Plans to transform a car body shop into more than 180 apartments near the Atlanta Beltline are dead after the project’s developer sold the site for a sizable loss.
Toro Development Company purchased Reid’s Body Shop at 952 Memorial Drive in mid-2022, planning to raze the building and replace it with 186 apartments. The project was called The Reid, an homage to the former auto shop that closed after more than 60 years of fixing cars.
The body shop was destroyed, but the rest of the plan never came to fruition, with the developer selling the 1.6-acre site in December.
Credit: Google Maps
Credit: Google Maps
Mark Toro, the developer’s founder and principal, confirmed the sale to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, but he declined to comment further. Fulton County property records show the land was sold to KCC Capital LLC for $4.3 million, which is $2.5 million less than records show Toro paid to acquire the property.
The sale was first reported by Urbanize Atlanta. Arthur Cohen, a partner at KCC Capital, told the AJC that future development plans are on hold because new construction projects are tough to finance due to high interest rates.
“Right now, capital markets at still tough,” he said. “This is a land hold at this time.”
Cohen, who is also a cofounder and partner at Cross-Town Realty and principal with developer Tecton, said he’s been interested in the body shop site for years, placing many offers to buy it to no avail. He said his partners at KCC Capital tend to focus on creative loft office projects, but he said it’s too soon to discuss potential plans for the Reid site.
Toro, a former North American Properties executive, has developed multiple apartment developments along the Beltline’s Eastside Trail, including Edge OTB, Anthem on Ashley and Camden Fourth Ward. Toro’s largest project currently under development is Medley in Johns Creek, the mixed-use redevelopment of State Farm’s vacant 40-plus acre office campus.
The Reid is the latest Reynoldstown project to face a drastic shift, according to Urbanize. Embry Development Co. recently purchased a 2-acre site from Toll Brothers at 195 Chester Ave. to finish an 85-unit housing project, while NRP Group recently canceled plans for 200 apartments called Colgate Mattress Lofts at 220 Pearl St.
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