Massive office foreclosure | Georgians named ambassadors | Johns Creek project to launch

Massive office foreclosure | Georgians named ambassadors | Johns Creek project to launch

Welcome to Atlanta Business Chronicle’s LinkedIn Weekly Edition! I'm Digital Editor Chris Fuhrmeister, bringing you the business news to keep you in the know. Here's a selection of our top stories this week.

A collection of suburban Atlanta office buildings stuck in a financial quagmire has been foreclosed upon, with updated appraisals reflecting how far values on some properties have fallen.

Canadian real estate investor Adventus Realty Services had owned the portfolio. It includes eight properties that span 2.2 million square feet in metro Atlanta and Chicago.

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President-elect Donald Trump appointed Bill White, former CEO of Buckhead City Committee, U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium, he announced Dec. 15. Buckhead City Committee was the organization that pushed for the upscale district to secede from the city of Atlanta from 2021 to 2023.

Trump cited White's background as a businessman, philanthropist, author and military advocate as reasons for the appointment.

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A few days later Trump named another Georgian to an ambassador post.

Trump announced in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, that he will appoint Herschel Walker as U.S. Ambassador to the Bahamas. Trump praised Walker as “a successful businessman, philanthropist, former Heisman Trophy winner.”

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In less than a month, construction will officially commence on a major redevelopment that would add a mixed-use hub to an affluent Atlanta suburb.

Toro Development Co. plans to hold a groundbreaking ceremony in mid-January for Medley, a 43-acre project billed as a "third place" for Johns Creek residents to gather with one another. The redevelopment will take shape at the corner of McGinnis Ferry Road and Johns Creek Parkway, where State Farm once had a corporate campus before relocating to its Dunwoody hub.

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Torched Hop Brewing Company will shut its doors on Dec. 31.

Owners Chris and Stephen Bivins announced the closure on Instagram. They said they made this announcement with a “heavy heart” after eight years and eight months of business on Ponce de Leon Avenue, adding that this is not the “fairytale ending” they had hoped for.

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An Atlanta law firm will cut its office space nearly in half in a move to the city’s tallest skyscraper. 

Eversheds Sutherland has leased 94,000 square feet at the 55-story Bank of America Plaza, according to landlord CP Group.

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A real estate development veteran who worked on the expansion of Ponce City Market has landed a new gig. 

York Murray has joined Houston-based commercial firm Partners Real Estate as partner and managing director of development for the Southeast. Murray will be based at Partners’ Atlanta office, which opened in June.

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Northlake Square, an over 82,000-square-foot retail center in Tucker, has been sold.

An affiliate of Baltimore-based commercial real estate developer Greenberg Gibbons bought the property. An affiliate of Sandy Springs-based Barnhart Commercial Management was the seller.

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The conclusion of another U.S. presidential election looks to have increased economic confidence among some Atlanta-area homebuyers. 

Pending home sales in the metro area have increased 23% since the election last month, according to research conducted by national real estate data provider MarketNsight. 

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It’s been a big year for chef Jason Liang.

His restaurant, O by Brush, won one of the nine coveted stars given out at Atlanta's Michelin Guide ceremony in October, and he recently opened a new concept in West Midtown, Lucky Star.

Lucky Star is located in Star Metals District on Howell Mill Road, next to sushi restaurant Hayakawa, a fellow Michelin-starred establishment.

That's all for this week's top stories. Thanks for reading Atlanta Business Chronicle! Questions? Comments? Concerns? News tips? Send them to cfuhrmeister@bizjournals.com.

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