There is a particular kind of Atlanta-loop story where a property built by John Portman in the 1970s ends up back in Portman hands fifty years later. That is what just happened to the Westin Peachtree Plaza. Urbanize Atlanta's Josh Green reports that Portman Hospitality Fund I, the firm's vehicle for acquiring large full-service hotels in major U.S. markets, bought the cylindrical downtown tower from Marriott International for an undisclosed price. Marriott will keep operating the building under a long-term management deal, so the Westin flag stays up.
The building is hard to miss if you have ever driven the downtown connector. It opened in 1976, climbed 73 stories, became Atlanta's tallest building for a stretch in the 1970s and 1980s, and still ranks sixth tallest in the city. With 1,073 keys, it is one of the bigger hotels in the southeastern United States and an obvious workhorse for World Cup, the College Football Hall of Fame's neighbors, and the convention crowd at the GWCC. A renovation has been announced but specifics on scope and timeline have not been released. For now the headline is a homecoming: Portman building, Portman family firm, fifty years later.
