Atlanta Tech Village opens South Downtown location
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Mayor Andre Dickens joined other political and civic leaders to open the second location of the successful startup incubator. Photo: Thomas Wheatley/Axios
A key part of an ambitious plan to breathe life back into historic South Downtown is officially open for business.
Driving the news: On Wednesday, Atlanta Tech Village cut the ribbon on its second location in the neighborhood: two historic buildings along Mitchell Street's Hotel Row.
Zoom in: Named after the historic hotel it now occupies, ATV Sylvan has flexible office options for entrepreneurs ranging from one-woman shops to growing businesses.
- Membership includes access to meeting rooms, common areas and a "big bear hug of support" through programming and networking opportunities, Jon Birdsong of Atlanta Ventures, the venture capital firm driving South Downtown's development, told Axios.
What they're saying: "Entrepreneurship is lonely, and this is an area where you can look to your left, look to your right, and see just as many crazy entrepreneurs building," Birdsong said.
By the numbers: The incubator has sold roughly 40% of its memberships and the team gives tours to prospective members daily, Birdsong said. At full membership, the location could accommodate roughly 225 people.
Catch up quick: In Jan. 2024, Birdsong and Atlanta Tech Village founder David Cummings purchased a real-estate portfolio stretching 10 city blocks from German developer Newport RE, whose long-term plan to revive South Downtown was hobbled by the pandemic and high interest rates.
In the weeds: To woo people back to the office and South Downtown, Atlanta Ventures has spent the past year renovating buildings and prepping spaces for new businesses to serve the community, including soon-to-open record store Crates and Delilah's Everyday Soul restaurant.
Zoom out: The influx of new ATV members helps drive Cummings' and Birdsong's 40- to 50-year vision for their 56-building real estate portfolio: attracting more people to South Downtown.
What's next: Lots of residential, Birdsong said. Crews are working on 40 units at a former furniture store on Mitchell Street, the AJC reports, and 60 units in a historic Peachtree Street building that was once an early location of the defunct Rich's department store empire.
- Plans also call for converting 222 Mitchell Street, the former C&S Bank headquarters, into roughly 220 residential units, Birdsong said.
Yes, and: Prepping the neighborhood for the estimated 3.5 million people who will visit Atlanta for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.