The Georgian Terrace

659 Peachtree Street Atlana, GA 30308

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Originally Constructed:1911

Original Function: 254-room hotel

Purchase Amount & Date: $4,375,000 (1990)

Renovation Completed: 1992

Construction Cost: $32,850,000

Role of E.F. Howington Co: Developer/Sole General Partner/Manager

Previous Function: 425,000 sq. ft. luxury apartment building with 294 units and 46,000 sq. ft. of retail space.

Previous Occupancy: Apartments--93% leased; Retail Area--90% leased

Current Function: In 1997 the building was converted back to a hotel.

Architect: Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, & Stewart

The renovation of the Georgian Terrace comprised two phases:

I. The removal of the existing structure's interior walls above the mezzanine level to facilitate the creation of 80 new apartments.

II. The introduction of a 20-story tower containing 214 apartments.  The tower, painstakingly designed to complement the original edifice, is connected to the latter via a turret-atrium with skylights and open walkways on each level.

Construction of both phases of the renovation began in March of 1990.  The restoration of the historic building was completed in 12 months.  The construction of the new tower was completed in 16 months.

Additional Improvements:
The combined structure has been fitted with new heating, air-conditioning, electrical and plumbing systems.  The appearance of the original building was improved with aluminum copies of the original windows.  The ballroom, mezzanine and Peachtree levels were faithfully restored to their fin-de-siecle grandeur.

Apartment Features:
All apartments come equipped with nine- or ten-foot ceilings, crown moldings, and state-of-the-art appliances.  Kitchens feature Corian countertops and cherry cabinets; bathrooms also have cherry cabinets, as well as cultured marble tops and cast iron tubs.  The Georgian Terrace boasts the city's only 25-meter rooftop swimming pool and health club, the use of which is included in the price of rent.  Basic cable and washer-dryer sets are also included in each unit.  Adjacent to the apartment complex is a 700-space parking deck, half of which is reserved for apartment residents.

The apartments were 95% leased within 12 months from completion of construction.

Commercial Re-use:
A full 35,000 square feet has been devoted to retail and restaurant space.  Tenants include: a deli/convenience store, a  restaurant/bakery, an Italian restaurant, a dry cleaner, a hair salon, a nail salon; executive offices and a museum devoted to "Gone With the Wind";  apartment storage space is also available.

Banquet Capabilities:
Seventeen thousand square feet of ballroom/function space is available for receptions, weddings, seated dinners, balls, corporate and convention functions.  Georgian Terrace Banquets books more than 200 events annually, some recent examples include: Dominique Wilkins' wedding; Ted Turner's wedding reception for his daughter; a "Welcome to Atlanta" party thrown by Nations Bank for its new chairman, Hugh McColl; the press conference and premier party for Castlerock Entertainment's "City Slickers II"; and a charity reception for Baryshnikov.
1997 Apartment to Hotel Conversion  - In December 1996, EF Howington Company LLC bought out the existing ownership to convert the building to a four star hotel. The conversion took approximately 12 months to complete because apartments were converted to hotel suites as the residential leases expired. The conversion also included a major reconfiguration of 32 two bedroom apartments into 64 hotel suites.