As development hounds across Atlanta have excitedly noted this summer, the city’s tallest new building since the early 1990s is beginning to make its mark over West Peachtree Street, with base levels quickly stacking up beneath a pair of yellow cranes.

New York City-based developer Rockefeller Group’s plans for the 60-story 1072 West Peachtree building call for achieving two benchmarks: building Atlanta’s tallest residential building and tallest mixed-use tower. Even in Midtown—a subdistrict transformed by high-rise investment over the past decade—it’s an anomaly.  

With buzz for a true sky-piercing project mounting, Midtown Alliance recently caught up with a project lead, John Petricola, Rockefeller’s senior managing director for the Southeast region, for insight on where 1072 West Peachtree is headed, what will make it stand out beyond sheer height, and why it’s located where it is.

Rockefeller is familiar with the area, having partnered with Selig on the 40 West 12th condos a block from the 1072 West Peachtree site, where a Midtown post office facility had longer operated. The company bought the 1.14-acre USPS site for $25 million in 2020 and officially broke ground on the skyscraper in July last year.

The landing page for 1072 West Peachtree's website provides a glimpse of how the project would alter Midtown's skyline when viewed from the Connector. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS/1072 West Peachtree

Petricola had established Rockefeller’s Atlanta outpost more than a decade ago. But as he told Midtown Alliance, the experience working with Selig on what became the 1105 West Peachtree complex—now home to Google and the celebrated Epicurean Atlanta hotel, along with the luxury condos—opened Rockefeller executives’ eyes to Midtown’s potential.

According to Midtown Alliance, some 20 projects have been delivered (or are under construction now) in the 18-block West Peachtree Street corridor in Midtown since 2010.

Regarding the location, Petricola said Rockefeller was patient in picking a site for a signature tower in Midtown. Ultimately, 1072 West Peachtree stood out for its connection to Midtown’s existing street grid and proximity to two MARTA stations (Arts Center and Midtown stations are basically equidistant). Being a short walk from the Southeast’s biggest concentration of cultural and art attractions and the largest Whole Foods on the East Coast didn’t hurt either, Petricola told Midtown Alliance.

In general, Midtown “punches above its weight in demand,” the developer noted.

Rockefeller is putting a heavy emphasis on getting the street-level experience right at 1072 West Peachtree, Petricola said.

Plans call for “liner units” with retail along West Peachtree Street to more fully engage sidewalks. As further evidence that walkability is top-of-mind, the tower will also feature far less parking—more than 20 percent less, per plans—than the maximum City of Atlanta’s code allows for the site, as Midtown Alliance relays.  

Inside, Petricola said plans call for a two-story space where cyclists can lock away bikes and take a shower, in addition to a fitness center described as the best around.  

Another component will be Midtown’s largest outdoor amenity deck, designed for expansive views of the city. According to Petricola, that feature will be called the Sky Garden.

How Rockefeller expects the tower to meet West Peachtree Street. Site Solutions is the project's landscape architect. Courtesy of Rockefeller Group

Mixed-use breakdown of lower floors. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

Otherwise, the numbers haven’t changed. Designs by Atlanta-based TVS call for 6,300 square feet of retail at the street and 224,000 square feet of Class A office space above that. Topping the building will be more than 350 apartments alongside amenities described as world-class.

Set on the southwest corner of West Peachtree and 12th streets, the project’s height will alter Midtown’s skyline, especially when viewed from the west.

Rockefeller officials have said the tower will climb more than 730 feet, making it Atlanta’s fifth tallest high-rise and supplanting Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel for the No. 5 spot. No taller skyrise has been built in Atlanta since 1992.  

No timeline for 1072 West Peachtree’s completion has been specified, but the site has seen heavy demolition and infrastructure work ongoing for nearly a year and ½ at this point. 

Whether it's fully open or not, the building should add oomph to Midtown's skyline by the time FIFA World Cup 2026 hoopla comes to town. 

West Peachtree Street view of Rockefeller Group’s planned 60-story Midtown project.Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

The latest rendering showing the 1072 West Peachtree project's eastern facade, toward Peachtree Street and Piedmont Park. Courtesy of Rockefeller Group

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