Mayor Kasim Reed said the city is in negotiations with CV Underground, the current lease holder, to buy out the remainder of their current 88-year lease on Underground Atlanta. A unanimous Atlanta City Council vote on Monday authorized a purchase price of up to $8.8 million dollars for the 12-acre site.
“The time is right for us to reposition Underground Atlanta and stop the bleeding on our balance sheet,” Reed said. “With this move, we have the ability to market the property and solicit the best, most innovative ideas to transform it into a vibrant component of downtown. Based on the city’s track record with Ponce City Market, the Lakewood Fairgrounds and Buckhead Atlanta, I am confident we will succeed with Underground.”
Underground Atlanta is owned by the Downtown Development Authority. The goal of the redevelopment is to leverage the property as a catalyst for economic revitalization while minimizing the cost to taxpayers, as was done in the 2010 real estate sale of the City Hall East complex on Ponce de Leon Avenue. Developer Jamestown Properties bought the building from the city for $13.5 million up front with the potential for double that amount based on the success of the redevelopment.
