Colony Square: Gathering Place

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Under the stewardship of NAP and managing partner Mark Toro, work proceeded while day-to-day operations of Colony Square continued. The formerly enclosed, once-insulated shopping mall was eliminated. Because stores and eateries no longer had to be tucked away behind barriers, they were moved nearer the street.

The existing office towers were reinvigorated, and joined by a pair of new Class A office-over-retail buildings. Multiple community gathering spots were unveiled, from which visitors can now conveniently step to more than 20 eateries and stores. 

Doors swung open on a 20,000-square-foot food hall with 11 purveyors. There’s also a central bar, fully equipped event space, a hidden outdoor patio. The other elements of the redevelopment include a nine-screen IPIC theater, Trust Bank branch, Primrose School of Midtown, a functional helipad that hosts a dozen exclusive annual events, dedicated rideshare zone and 24/7 onsite security. Not included in the redevelopment of Colony Square is a hospitality component, the 466-key Curio Collection by Hilton hotel.

The mixed-use development also set a new standard in technological advancement, boasting a single content management system controlling more than 45 unique digital assets. Among them are interactive and non-interactive digital kiosks and LCDs, as well as Colony Square’s enormous LED display and 18 elevator cab touch-screen displays.

The project reached completion in July 2021, when the wraps were taken off the food hall, known as Politan Row at Colony Square. The 20,000-square-foot food hall showcases some of Atlanta’s finest locally trained culinary talent.

A more than 10,000-square-foot, central open-air green space, the Plaza, links visitors to all Colony Square offers. It’s a Midtown gathering space and an activation area for Colony Square’s events, serving up an indoor-outdoor performance stage, soft seating, large-format LED display, interactive 3D mapping and digital art experience, as well as direct access to Politan Row.

Pandemic pivot

Because the redevelopment debuted during the COVID-19 pandemic, NAP installed UVC lighting technology to destroy airborne bio-contaminants in the air filtration system. Escalators whisking visitors from the parking deck to street level offer built-in UV hand sanitizing protection. At a time when doubts about being out and about linger among many Americans, Colony Square has outstripped rivals in luring folks back. Its physical utilization is 80 percent compared with a 48 percent market average.

One of its drawing cards is an arts focus. Midtown Atlanta houses the Southeast region’s greatest concentration of arts and cultural venues. That recognition in turn has helped inspire some of the most popular programming at Colony Square. Living up to its tagline “The Art of Modern Life,” it features a rotating art program that has spotlighted hundreds of local artists’ works. Among them is a 2,900-square-foot mural of Aurora on permanent display at the main entrance, crafted by four local female artists. In addition, Colony Square stages more than 200 events each year, most featuring philanthropic elements that raise an average $25,000 for Atlanta-area nonprofit organizations yearly. 

In short, the redevelopment of Colony Square has morphed a bleak and detached block into a socially-engaging magnet that attracts an average 100,000 visitors per month.

“At the onset of the project, we really focused on filling the experience gap and generating a space where people from all walks of life would feel comfortable converging,” says Tim Perry, managing partner for NAP Atlanta. 

“The end result has been nothing short of astounding, and we are eternally grateful to the Midtown community for its unwavering support of Colony Square.”