Across all its iconic, pie-shaped floors, Atlanta’s oldest high-rise is set to become flexible office space, allowing workers to set up shop for as little as a few hours. 

That’s the word this week from officials with Avison Young, a global real estate advisor that’s partnered with FlatironCity, owners of the Flatiron Building downtown, to convert the entire 47,697-square-foot landmark into flexible offices. 

The 11-story Flatiron Building has stood at 84 Peachtree Street since 1897, predating New York City's famous building of the same name by five years.

A yearlong renovation wrapped in 2016, when the resuscitated, modernized building reopened as FlatironCity, soon tallying an eclectic tenant roster that included the Microsoft Innovation Center, Women’s Entrepreneurship Institute, and startups. 

The Flatiron Building, a downtown landmark since 1897.Courtesy of Avison Young/FlatironCity

Now, according to Avison Young officials, the building will switch to flexible lease terms uncommon in the Atlanta market today, including daily and hourly usage, and leases between one and 36 months. Companies will be allowed to downgrade or upgrade terms with a month’s notice. 
 
“Now that WeWork recently closed their downtown location,” an Avison Young spokesperson wrote to Urbanize Atlanta in an email, “FlatironCity is a great alternative.”

Inside shared workspaces where extensive renovations concluded five years ago. Courtesy of Avison Young/FlatironCity

WeWork announced the closure of its downtown offices at the renovated 101 Marietta tower—the company’s largest operations in metro Atlanta—in recent weeks as part of global streamlining efforts amidst ongoing financial turbulence, as CoStar reported. Two years ago, the world’s largest coworking provider made a splash in announcing it would claim multiple floors at that well-known downtown high-rise (leasing more than 100,000 square feet) while posting its name in lighted “WeWork” signage at the top.   

At FlatironCity, the tactic is meant to meet a growing demand in the office industry for flexible terms as businesses of all sizes begin to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic’s cloud, says Monica Speak, an Avison Young senior consultant.  

“As companies begin to transition to back into the office, FlatironCity’s leasing options, combined with its Class-A amenities, offer the flexibility and level of service tenants need in a post-pandemic world,” Speak said in a press release. “The ‘one size fits all approach’ is no longer viable, and we’re likely to see more Atlanta owners and occupiers seek flexible office offerings in the future.”

Check out a virtual tour of several FlatironCity floors and shared spaces here. 

• Downtown news (Urbanize Atlanta)