A.J. Robinson, at the executive committee meeting of Central Atlanta Progress (CAP) Wednesday morning, announced his intention to retire from the Downtown improvement organization.
"When I took this job, the 191 building was 17 percent occupied," Robinson reflected. "The Macy's building was empty. The Ellis Hotel was still the Winecoff. The Gulch was still the Gulch. There was nothing around Centennial Olympic Park but the Embassy Suites Hotel."
A search committee, chaired by developer Egbert Perry, will start looking for Robinson's successor with assistance from BoardWalk's Sam Pettway.
Once a new head of CAP has been named, Robinson said he likely will stay on as the volunteer chair of the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District (ADID). That was a role he had when he was selected to be the CEO in 2003.
Craig Jones, who has chaired ADID since 2003, will then focus his efforts on chairing the board of the Stitch, a park that will bridge over the Downtown Connector.
"I'm really not going anywhere," Robinson joked. "This is really a bump back to the future."
Robinson expects it will take until the end of summer to find his successor. That means he will stay through the World Cup preparations that will transform Downtown Atlanta next year.
