Atlanta Tech Village founder David Cummings is buying up acres of South Downtown properties that were set to be sold at foreclosure. His plans for the property include creating a vast tech entrepreneurial district as the second location for Atlanta Tech Village.
Cummings and Jon Birdsong of Atlanta Ventures, an investment group that founded Atlanta Tech Village in Buckhead, have teamed up to buy up some of German developer Newport RE’s properties, the Atlanta Business Chronicle first reported Tuesday. Atlanta Tech Village is one of the country’s largest centers for technology entrepreneurs.
Newport’s plans to redevelop 10 blocks of the neglected Downtown area near the Five Points MARTA station into a thriving neighborhood dubbed “South DWNTN” collapsed earlier this year when the company said it was forced to sell its portfolio after investor funding dried up.
Many of Newport’s properties were up for foreclosure when the company defaulted on loans after a deal fell through to sell its portfolio to Braden Fellman.
Cummings and Birdsong announced their plans Tuesday to buy the entire Newport portfolio — 53 parcels including 6 acres of parking lots — in a statement posted on the Atlanta Ventures website.
They praised Newport’s “compelling vision” to revitalize South Downtown. That vision deserves to be pursued, they said, to develop South Downtown into a potential hub for tech entrepreneurs. A larger plan for the property could be completed in the next year with plans for mixed-uses to be open in time for the 2026 World Cup.
“Our first priority is listening and ensuring the mechanisms are in place to keep South Downtown in a state of progress,” the statement said. “Progress towards the continued combination of historic preservation and new construction, with a greater emphasis on creative doers and entrepreneurs from every corner of our city.”
“Returns and proceeds from companies started on streets we all know, Peachtree and Piedmont, are fueling the continued vision set forth nearly a decade ago. We, at Atlanta Ventures, will not let our city go backwards,” the statement said.
“Innovation, progress, and risk-taking are in our blood. It’s why we choose to call this city home. It’s why we named our firm after our city,” the statement said.
“Now is the time to be on the offense. An opportunity to create a safe, walkable, and livable neighborhood in the once forgotten ‘heart of the city’ is right in front of us. Every great city in the world has a vibrant downtown, it’s Atlanta’s turn,” the statement said.
“Over the next year, we’ll be listening, learning, and designing towards a larger plan – while balancing the time constraints as the world awaits to enter our doorstep for the World Cup in the summer of 2026.”
They also announced April Stammel of Newport is now a board member of Atlanta Ventures.
Newport CEO Olaf Kunkat announced Tuesday on his LinkedIn page the transfer of the company’s properties to the new venture started by Cummings and Birdsong.
“After two previous attempts since December 2022 with prospective buyers from New York & Atlanta, we have now successfully reached an agreement with the third party,” Kunkat said.
“The project will be transferred to an investor who is not originally from the real estate industry at the end of the year. The project is going into good hands, which however, is little consolation for us as Newport RE LP will have to write-down its invested equity.”
This story has been updated with a statement from Olaf Kunkat, CEO of Newport.