As prices climb and developable land becomes more scarce, numerous churches around Atlanta have sold their properties in recent years for repurposing or redevelopment. But a growing congregation with ministries in Atlanta and Sandy Springs is flipping that script. 

Christ Covenant Church has acquired 1980s office complex Piedmont Place in Buckhead to create a centralized church location that will include a 2,500-seat sanctuary, officials announced today. 

The church today operates at The Armour Collective in south Buckhead and at Christ Covenant Sandy Springs on Mount Vernon Highway. 

Christ Covenant bought the 94,000-square-foot, four-story office building at 3520 Piedmont Road NE for $16.9 million from Hall Capital, according to commercial real estate firm Transwestern, which brokered the deal. That’s $179 per square foot. 

Planned church facade in the 3500 block of Buckhead's Piedmont Road. Courtesy of Transwestern/Christ Covenant Church; designs, Cooper Carry

Location of Piedmont Place and the future church (in red) at 3520 Piedmont Road, in relation to other Buckhead landmarks. Google Maps

Piedmont Place is located across the street from the sprawling, 14-building Piedmont Center campus where developer CP Group is planning major renovations with retail and a medical office component. 

In the short term, Christ Covenant plans to operate Piedmont Place as a multi-tenant office complex as long-term church campus plans come together. In today's announcement, Christ Covenant senior pastor Jason Dees said the church has grown to more than 2,000 members since 2017, noting: “At Piedmont Place, the church has an opportunity to build a central gathering place to serve its membership today and reach the City of Atlanta well into the future.” 

A project rep tells Urbanize Atlanta that Christ Covenant’s plan is to begin church construction within the next year to 18 months, with completion slated for 2029. 

According to LoopNet, Piedmont Place was constructed in 1983 and heavily renovated in 2009, qualifying as a Class A office property today. Transwestern officials say the building offers free surface and covered parking with a convenient location, extensive landscape, and competitive office rents.

Transwestern has been retained by the church to head leasing and asset services. 

Designs by the Cooper Carry architecture firm in store for the church auditorium. Courtesy of Christ Covenant Church; rendering, Cooper Carry

Piedmont Place as it stands today. Courtesy of Transwestern/Christ Covenant Church

According to Bradley Fulkerson, Transwestern’s senior managing director and head of Atlanta’s Tenant Advisory + Workplace Solutions Group, the property is offering one to two-year lease terms for floorplans up to 30,000 square feet. 

“Piedmont Place was the clear winner of our site selection process,” Fulkerson said. “The property is exceptionally well located on Piedmont Road between Roswell Road, Lenox Road, and Peachtree Street, and is among only a few properties in Buckhead with developable land.” 

Find more context and imagery in the gallery above. 

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