First look: Apartments claiming Turner Field parking lots mark Summerhill’s next big thing

The former Turner Field parking lots around Georgia State Stadium are once again the stage for a development that aims to swap a car-centric feel for one that’s more urban.

On Tuesday, developer Carter, in partnership with King & Company and Healey Weatherholtz Properties, broke ground on a 306-unit apartment complex at 565 Hank Aaron Drive, officials tell Curbed Atlanta.

That means nearly 1,000 new multifamily residences are in the pipeline or have recently opened in the blocks surrounding the repurposed Major League Baseball stadium and its lots.

Once complete, the five-story complex is expected to feature some 8,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space below a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, as well as six live-work units.

Plus, officials noted, 31 of the one- and two-bedroom residences are expected to be earmarked for households earning 80 percent of the area median income.

The property, just north of the football stadium, is being sited in a way that would allow residents to peer out toward Georgia State University’s planned new baseball park.

In an effort “to complement the architectural style of the buildings along Georgia Avenue,” the apartment building’s exterior “will feature a mix of red and charcoal brick,” Carter officials said, in a prepared statement.

Most of the rentals are are slated to have oversized windows—and floor-to-ceiling windows for those living on the corner of Glenn Street and Hank Aaron Drive—and private balconies.

Amenities would include a pool, communal courtyards, grilling stations, a fire pit, dog park, and pet grooming station, among other perks.

Apartments are expected to be ready for tenants by fall 2021, with pre-leasing launching earlier that year.

Google Maps

In the past couple of years, Summerhill’s once-bustling—and then rundown—commercial corridor, Georgia Avenue, has welcomed retail life with new food and drink options. Carter’s latest apartment project is far from the only residential activity planned or underway in the neighborhood.

Developer Hedgewood Homes—of Serenbe acclaim—recently launched sales for what’s expected to eventually be a 100-unit housing enclave simply called “Summerhill.”

In recent weeks, national apartment developer Alliance Residential announced it has closed on five empty acres on Fulton Street, just north of Georgia Avenue, with plans to build nearly 300 luxury apartments.

And student housing community Aspen Heights recently opened across the street from the stadium, replacing surface parking with hundreds of beds for GSU students.

GSU also recently unveiled renderings for a planned $85 million convocation center, an arena where the school’s basketball team would play, just north of the stadium.