Underground development pause; MARTA infill stations; $4M penthouse

DOWNTOWN—In what could come as disappointing but probably not shocking news to downtown boosters and ATL development wonks, the heads of Underground Atlanta are painting a fairly bleak picture when it comes to prospects for new construction of any considerable scale. 

As Bisnow Atlanta relays, Underground Atlanta owner Lalani Ventures is curtailing new development at the evolving mixed-use landmark property, citing the rising price of construction materials and capital to pull off major projects. (The company’s CEO, Shaneel Lalani, forecasted that this could happen during a Q&A on these pages in January.) 

Lalani and company’s focus has shifted to leasing existing spaces in the below-grade venue that's notched a number of bright spots (including the debuts of MJQ nightclub and Utopia Latin fusion restaurant) this year. Lalani told Bisnow’s construction and development conference this month Underground stands at around 60 or 65 percent leased up, and a push is underway to fill as many remaining spaces as possible prior to 2026 FIFA World Cup festivities. Bisnow pointed to a recent Deloitte survey of 850 global real estate executives that showed more “measured and muted optimism” ahead for 2026 than what they experienced this year. 

“With Underground,” Lalani told the Bisnow gathering, “we would have loved to have cranes in the air, but it’s just impossible right now given the market conditions.”

The most prominent proposal at Underground is a 30-story, $160-million apartment project that came to light in the third quarter of 2024, with no movement since. It calls for 405 units. That’d be a lot of potential Underground customers—and a surefire boon to downtown street life in general. 

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CITYWIDE—March will mark two years since Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens unveiled ambitious plans for building four new MARTA infill stations on existing lines dotted around the city—a move that would ostensibly boost transit access and MARTA’s revenue. The upcoming anniversary recently got the AJC thinking: What’s happened since that bombshell infill announcement in early 2024?

In terms of concrete progress in the field, the short answer is not much. If anything. 

The four stations—proposed for Armour Yards, Joseph E. Boone, at the Murphy Crossing redevelopment, and at Krog Street/Hulsey Yard—would carry a staggering combined price tag of $1.3 billion, per the AJC’s reporting. The Krog Street stop alone would run in the ballpark of $552 million. (Isn’t that about what Major League Baseball stadiums costed not so long ago? The original The Battery district, for context, was built for $2 million cheaper.)   

About half of the proposed funding for the stations (roughly $729 million) has been included on Dickens’ controversial list of initiatives that could see money channeled in from eight extended Tax Allocations Districts that are set, for now, to expire in 2030. But Jonathan Hunt, MARTA’s interim general manager and CEO, predicted that extending those TADs won’t be a make-or-break proposition for the four new stations. 

Originally, the $2.7 billion More MARTA program approved by Atlanta voters nearly a decade ago, was intended to fund the MARTA stops, but that “would jeopardize other projects currently deemed a higher priority,” per the newspaper. 

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BUCKHEAD—Despite years of gangbuster sales, The Dillon condo tower in Buckhead is still trying to offload a bit of new product—but don’t expect bargain-basement pricing. Recently re-listed is a sprawling penthouse unit atop the 18-story, 144-unit building on Peachtree Street that happens to be the largest pad incorporated into The Dillon’s designs. 

For the asking price of $3,995,900, a ballin’ buyer would get three bedrooms and three and ½ bathrooms in 3,721 square feet, along with perks like double ovens, a scullery, three assigned parking spaces, Dekton countertops, two private terraces, and a “wine tower” that holds more than 100 bottles. 

The southward city views, naturally, aren’t too shabby. 

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