Hines, Invesco Sell Microsoft Atlanta Campus

Atlantic Yards. Image courtesy of KKR

A joint venture between Hines and Invesco Real Estate has finalized the disposition of Atlantic Yards, a trophy office campus totaling 523,511 square feet in Midtown Atlanta. Global Atlantic Financial Group, a majority-owned division of KKR, acquired the two-building asset, which is fully leased to Microsoft Corp., with the help of Eastdil Secured.

The transaction closed following its late-June approval by the Development Authority of Fulton County, which originated a $205 million bond for the development, and also provided the 2.7-acre project site through a 20-year ground lease for Atlantic Yards, according to Bisnow and CommercialEdge.

At the time of the approval, the same publication reported that Eastdil Secured estimated the office campus might sell for up to $500 million or roughly $950 per square foot. As of yet, the purchase price remains undisclosed.

In the first half of the year, 30 office properties totaling more than 4.3 million square feet traded within the Atlanta metro, CommercialEdge data shows. Most transactions involved properties in the suburban area of the office market, while only four assets were traded in the Urban – Primary location, with the average sale price per square foot reaching almost $400.

Developing the trophy Atlanta office asset

In 2017, Hines teamed up with Invesco Real Estate to develop two office projects totaling 700,000 square feet in the Atlanta metro. From this partnership stemmed the 231,535-square-foot T3 West Midtown, a mass timber office building as well as Atlantic Yards at 170 and 200 17th St. NW, both within Atlantic Station, a sustainable master-planned development totaling 12.5 million square feet.

In 2020, in addition to the bonds, the co-developers also secured a $127.6 million construction loan financed by Pacific Coast Capital Partners, CommercialEdge shows. The same year, Hines and Invesco with the help of T. Dallas Smith & Co. landed one of the Big Five as tenant. Microsoft is occupying the two buildings until 2035 through its $75 million lease and expects to employ up to 2,000 workers at the client-facing workplace.

Designed by Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture to achieve LEED Gold certification, the office campus features open floorplates, common areas, a rooftop garden, open-air terraces and a 20,000-square-foot ground-level retail space along with fitness facilities.