Category: Development

Microsoft is making a huge land donation enabled by its collaborative partnership with the City of Atlanta.

This effort, facilitated by The City of Atlanta and the Atlanta Urban Development Corporation (AUDC), will convert a key section of the Quarry Yards site in the Grove Park neighborhood into a dynamic community hub designed to meet the priorities of local residents.

Microsoft Gifts Atlanta Grove Park Acreage

In 2021, Microsoft acquired the 90-acre Quarry Yards property and pledged to dedicate one-quarter of it to community purposes.

Although campus development plans are currently on hold, this partnership honors that original commitment and paves the way for initiatives that will fortify the neighborhood and benefit the wider Atlanta area for generations.

“We’re deeply appreciative of Microsoft’s collaboration to expand affordable housing in Grove Park,” stated Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens. “This gift will accelerate our affordable housing goals while enhancing vital community amenities that support resident well-being. Working alongside AUDC, we’re building a more equitable and prosperous Atlanta.”

Under the agreement, Microsoft will convey roughly 22.5 acres of the Quarry Yards land to the City of Atlanta via AUDC.

The prime parcel, bordering Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway, will connect seamlessly to key local assets such as Kipp Woodson Academy Charter School and the Grove Park Recreation Center.

“This land transfer embodies our collective commitment to uplifting families, inspiring students, and bolstering communities in Atlanta,” remarked Kia Floyd, General Manager of State Government Affairs at Microsoft. “We’re proud to join forces with the City and AUDC to bring this vision to life.”

AUDC is partnering closely with Microsoft to complete the donation details, with the transfer slated for Summer 2026.

“This alliance with Microsoft marks a pivotal advance in improving life for Grove Park residents,” noted John Majors, CEO of AUDC. “Through innovative public-private teamwork, we’re crafting a space that addresses community needs and sparks lasting growth and opportunity.”

The project supports Mayor Dickens’ ambitious target of creating or preserving 20,000 affordable housing units by 2029, promoting fair access to high-quality homes across the city.

For details on the land donation and ongoing updates, visit atlurbdevco.com.

Final Word

Downtown Atlanta’s development landscape has undergone significant transformation in recent years, driven by large-scale mixed-use projects, infrastructure upgrades, and a focus on revitalizing the city’s historic core. These changes reflect a broader effort to make Downtown more vibrant, walkable, and economically robust, particularly in preparation for events like the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

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Atlanta’s food scene just got another glowing endorsement! The prestigious MICHELIN Guide Atlanta 2025 has rolled out its awards, celebrating the city’s talented chefs and restaurants that are putting Southern hospitality on the global map. From

innovative fine dining to cozy neighborhood spots, these honors highlight the creativity, passion, and community spirit that make eating out in ATL such an uplifting experience.

One MICHELIN Star Winners: Elevating Everyday Excellence

These five standout restaurants earned the coveted one MICHELIN Star, recognizing their high-quality cooking and dedication to fresh, local ingredients:

• Arepa Mia (Avondale Estates) – Chef Rosa Lozano’s Venezuelan-inspired arepas are a heartfelt tribute to family recipes and bold flavors.
• BoccaLupo (Inman Park) – Chef Bruce Logue blends Italian traditions with Southern twists, creating dishes that feel like a warm hug.
• Hayakawa (Westside) – Chef Atsushi “Art” Hayakawa’s sushi mastery brings precision and joy to every bite.
• Lazy Betty (Candler Park) – The team led by Chefs Ron Hsu and Aaron Phillips delivers playful, precise tasting menus that spark delight.
• O-Ku (West Midtown) – Sushi Chef Jackie Chang’s fresh, sustainable seafood celebrates the ocean’s bounty with style.

Bib Gourmand Recipients: Affordable Eats That Warm the Heart

The MICHELIN Bib Gourmand award goes to spots offering exceptional value and quality meals. This year’s 11 winners prove that great food doesn’t have to break the bank:

• The Alden (Chamblee)
• Banshee (East Atlanta Village)
• Fishmonger (Multiple locations including Summerhill and Pullman Yards)
• Heirloom Market BBQ (South Cobb)
• Little Bear (Summerhill)
• Lyla Lila (Midtown)
• Miller Union (West Midtown)
• Poor Hendrix (East Lake)
• Sankranti (Johns Creek)
• Tio Lucho’s (Poncey-Highland)
• Talie (East Atlanta)

These eateries embody Atlanta’s inclusive vibe, serving up everything from smoky BBQ to vibrant global flavors at prices that invite everyone to the table.

Recommended Restaurants: Hidden Treasures Worth Discovering

An impressive 36 restaurants made the MICHELIN Recommended list, showcasing the diversity and innovation thriving across our neighborhoods. Highlights include:

• Aria (Buckhead) – Elegant Persian-inspired dishes in a welcoming space.
• Atlas (St. Regis Atlanta) – Art-filled dining with seasonal American cuisine.
• Bacchanalia (Westside) – Farm-to-table pioneer Chef Anne Quatrano’s timeless elegance.
• Cooks & Soldiers (West Midtown) – Lively Basque bites that bring people together.
• Gunshow (Glenwood Park) – Chef Kevin Gillespie’s interactive dim sum-style adventure.
• And many more, from The Chastain in Buckhead to Twisted Soul Cookhouse & Pours in West Midtown.

Special Awards: Cheers to the People Behind the Plates

MICHELIN also spotlighted exceptional individuals who make dining memorable:

– Exceptional Cocktails Award: Kimball Brigs, Bar Margot at Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta – Crafting creative drinks with local flair.

Final Word

Michilrn is great, but This is one of the best places to eat in West Midtown.

The best restaurants on the Beltline all have excellent customer service and food. What separates them from many of the other spots is that they’re on the urban playground called the Beltline.

The ATL has other cool eateries as well. If you’re gluten-free, there’s plenty of options. Same goes for keto-friendly restaurants or Asian fare in Atlanta.

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If you’ve ever found yourself inching along I-85 or the Downtown Connector during what feels like an eternal crawl, you’re not alone.

A fresh analysis from the Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s 2025 Urban Mobility Report reveals that Atlanta drivers are wasting a staggering 87 hours annually stuck in traffic — up from previous years as post-pandemic travel patterns refuse to normalize.

Yes, Atlanta Traffic Is Getting Worse

The report highlights a dramatic shift: congestion now stretches across six hours each day, with the absolute worst snarl-ups hitting between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m., when delays can balloon travel times by up to 50% or more.

But it’s not just the evening exodus that’s choking the city’s arteries. Mornings remain a battleground, particularly from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., where a heat map of peak periods shows gridlock rivaling the afternoon rush.

And in a twist that might surprise long-suffering commuters, Thursdays have dethroned Fridays as Atlanta’s most congested day of the week.

Researchers attribute this to “compressed travel times” — with more people squeezing errands and outings into fewer days — leading to heavier loads and less predictable flows on what used to be a relatively milder midweek slog.

“Travel patterns have evolved,” noted Dr. Tim Lomax, a co-author of the Texas A&M report. “We’re seeing delays bleed into non-traditional hours, turning what was once a predictable rush into an all-day affair.”

The study, which crunched data from 101 U.S. urban areas, ranks Atlanta among the top 10 for overall congestion, with drivers collectively losing over 261 million hours on the road last year alone.

Complementing the Texas A&M findings, the latest TomTom Traffic Index for 2024 (with early 2025 indicators mirroring trends) provides granular hourly insights into average one-way commute speeds across the metro area.

When Is the Best Time To Travel Through Atlanta?

Based on billions of kilometers of anonymized GPS data, it paints a clearer picture of when to hit the brakes — or avoid them altogether.

On a typical weekday, the sweet spot for smooth sailing is the wee hours before dawn, while late afternoons spell doom for anyone not already hunkered down with a podcast.

To help you plan your next drive, we’ve compiled average weekday travel times for a standard 10-kilometer (about 6-mile) trip through Atlanta, ranked from best (fastest, least congested) to worst (slowest, most gridlocked)

These figures average data across Monday through Friday, showing how even a short jaunt can stretch into frustration.

Average Atlanta Commuter Times

Time of Day	Average Travel Time (10 km)
5:00 AM	7 min 24 s
4:00 AM	7 min 32 s
3:00 AM	8 min 36 s
6:00 AM	8 min 47 s
2:00 AM	9 min 21 s
1:00 AM	9 min 35 s
12:00 AM	9 min 47 s
11:00 PM	10 min 20 s
10:00 PM	10 min 37 s
9:00 PM	11 min 2 s
8:00 PM	11 min 43 s
10:00 AM	12 min 9 s
11:00 AM	12 min 22 s
7:00 AM	12 min 28 s
12:00 PM	13 min 16 s
7:00 PM	13 min 29 s
9:00 AM	13 min 35 s
1:00 PM	13 min 41 s
2:00 PM	14 min 20 s
8:00 AM	15 min 16 s
3:00 PM	16 min 2 s
6:00 PM	16 min 46 s
4:00 PM	18 min 1 s
5:00 PM	19 min 26 s

As the table illustrates, zipping through town at 5 a.m. clocks in under 7.5 minutes for that 10 km stretch — a commuter’s dream.

But dare to depart at 5 p.m., and you’re looking at nearly 20 minutes of brake lights and frustration, a 160% increase over free-flow conditions.

Experts warn that without major interventions — like expanded MARTA rail lines or smarter traffic signaling — these trends could worsen.

The Atlanta Regional Commission echoes this, noting Atlanta’s average one-way commute already hovers at 32 minutes, fifth-highest in the nation.

For now, savvy drivers are turning to apps like Waze for real-time detours or opting for hybrid work schedules to dodge the peaks.

If you’re tired of the crawl, consider carpooling via the region’s Xpress buses or timing your trips for those golden pre-dawn windows.

Need more tips? Read our guide on how to beat Atlanta traffic.

Final Word

Atlanta’s roads may not get any wider, but a little foresight could save your sanity — and your schedule. Stay tuned for updates as the holiday rush threatens to turn these bottlenecks into full-blown parking lots.

From its humble beginnings as a railroad hub in the post-Civil War era to a bustling metropolis hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Atlanta’s skyline has long mirrored the city’s relentless reinvention.

As of this moment, Georgia’s largest city is poised to add its tallest building in three decades. But you may wonder how high the city’s steel canopy goes?

Top 10 Tallest Buildings in Atlanta

Here is a list of the 10 tallest buildings in Atlanta, based on architectural height (including spires but excluding antennas).

Rank	Building Name	Height (ft / m)	Floors	Year Completed	Primary Function
1	Bank of America Plaza	1,023 / 311.8	55	1992	Office
2	Truist Plaza	867 / 264.3	60	1992	Office
3	One Atlantic Center	820 / 249.9	50	1987	Office
4	191 Peachtree Tower	770 / 234.7	50	1992	Office
5	Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel	723 / 220.4	73	1976	Hotel
6	Georgia Pacific Tower	697 / 212.5	51	1981	Office
7	Promenade II	691 / 210.6	40	1989	Office
8	Tower Square	677 / 206.4	47	1980	Office
9	3344 Peachtree	665 / 202.7	48	2008	Mixed-use
10	1180 Peachtree	657 / 200.2	41	2006	Office

What was once a modest cluster of low-rise structures scarred by the fires of 1864 has evolved into a dynamic mosaic of glass spires and stone-clad towers, symbolizing economic ambition, cultural resurgence, and urban innovation.

As construction cranes pierce the Georgia sky once more, the Peach State’s capital is on the cusp of its most significant architectural renaissance in over three decades, with new mixed-use behemoths promising to redefine its silhouette.

The Roots of a Rising City: Early 1900s

Atlanta’s vertical journey began tentatively in the late 19th century.

The Flatiron Building (now the English-American Building), completed in 1897, holds the distinction of being the city’s oldest surviving skyscraper.

Pictured: FlatIron Building in downtown Atlanta.

At just 11 stories and 87 meters tall, its wedge-shaped form—echoing New York’s more famous counterpart, built five years later—marked a bold statement amid the ruins of war.

This era of modest growth persisted until the 1960s, when the skyline began its ascent with towers like the 28-story One Park Tower.

One Park Tower in Atlanta.

1970s-1980s: Atlanta Emerges As Southern Juggernaut

The 1970s and 1980s brought explosive change, fueled by Atlanta’s emergence as a Southern economic powerhouse.

Architect John Portman’s visionary designs dominated: the iconic Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel (1976), a 73-story, 723-foot cylindrical marvel with a revolving restaurant atop its gold-domed crown, briefly claimed the title of the Western Hemisphere’s tallest hotel.

Pictured: Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel in Atlanta.

Nearby, the Georgia-Pacific Tower (1981), a 51-story granite-clad office giant, anchored Downtown’s growing business district.

These structures, blending Brutalist and Modernist influences, transformed Peachtree Street into a corridor of ambition.

The 1990s: Ambition, Opulence

The 1990s boom cemented Atlanta’s status. Four of the city’s tallest buildings rose that decade, culminating in 1992 with the Bank of America Plaza (1,023 feet, 55 stories), the Southeast’s supertall icon featuring a Postmodern spire that glows green at night.

Pictured: Truist Plaza in Atlanta.

Flanking it were the 60-story Truist Plaza (867 feet), with its pink marble facade, and the 50-story *l191 Peachtree Tower (770 feet), a sleek glass obelisk housing legal powerhouses.

Midtown’s One Atlantic Center (820 feet, 1987), often called the IBM Tower for its former anchor tenant, added a copper-capped elegance, while the Equitable Building (1968) exemplified midcentury minimalism with its clean International Style lines.

Final Word

The 2010s and early 2020s tested Atlanta’s grit. Office vacancies soared amid remote work, and population growth strained housing.

Yet, the skyline adapted, shifting toward mixed-use developments along the BeltLine and in emerging districts like West Midtown. Between 2020 and 2024, Midtown and Downtown added dozens of towers, “beefing up” the profile with residential and retail infusions.

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