Downtown Atlanta is experiencing nothing short of a major renaissance. Now, one of its most iconic addresses is being remade into a modern classic, thanks to the transformation of the former CNN Center.
In 2021, Atlanta-based CP Group purchased the 1 million-square-foot (93,000 sq m) CNN Center. CP Group has spent the last few years planning the rebirth of the property through a massive $400 million–$500 million renovation. Already, the firm has rebranded the property as The Center, with the tagline, “Where Atlanta Meets.”
Those words seem fitting, as, during the last decade, Atlanta’s convention and visitor business has grown dramatically, thanks to the fourth-largest convention center in the United States, State Farm Arena, which hosts more than 140 events a year; and Mercedes Benz Stadium, which holds more than 40 events a year, with more than 40,000 attendees per event. The Center stands at the heart of this activity hub, thanks to its direct connection to the convention center, the arena, and the new 1,000-room Omni Atlanta Hotel at Centennial Olympic Park.
CP Group founding partner Chris Eachus became interested in acquiring CNN Center in 2019. “Given everything that was going on around the building . . . it piqued my interest [as a real estate investor],” Eachus says. “The legacy of the property—and its landmark status—was something we thought we could reimagine and breathe new life into again.”
After the purchase, Eachus worked with a design and development team including Atlanta-based TVS—the building’s original architect, back in 1976—for two years on a mixed-use plan that would meet market needs specific to the site’s location as a meeting point, not only for convention attendees and tourists but also for the local community.
“The area has such an interesting demographic to serve, from a real estate standpoint, and we wanted to create something that would serve the entire community in a way that hadn’t been done before,” Eachus says. “From a foot-traffic perspective, it is one of the busiest locations in the entire state, on a daily basis.
After CNN vacated its office space in the building in July 2024 (after a short-term lease with CP), the phased renovation program started, in earnest, in late 2024, with a ground-breaking for reconstruction of the building’s two major entrances, at an estimated $35 million cost.
Work also progresses on a digital media program featuring three 12-story-tall digital billboards on the building’s exterior. “Those are really a nod to the media legacy here but also to activate the project and, frankly, that whole corridor,” Eachus says.
Retail and office leasing is also well underway through brokerage firms Hines and CBRE. Several new food and beverage purveyors, including a new-to-market, 10,000-square-foot (930 sq m) restaurant, will be announced shortly, and the office space is being actively marketed to several major users, Eachus says.
Phase one completion of the entrances is set for the end of 2025, just in time for The Center to have its first major closeup before a global community as Atlanta plays host to several World Cup soccer matches next summer. “We will have some spaces activated for the World Cup, which we’re really excited about, and it will be a great way to get visibility [in] the global market,” Eachus says.
The reorientation factor
CNN Center’s original, 1970s-era Brutalist architectural style presented major challenges and opportunities for the renovation team. “Historically, it was closed off to the outside and, even though a lot of people went through it, it did not present a very welcoming first step [inside],” Eachus says. “We want it to step forward and still preserve what everybody loves about this landmark, but also [to] make it more friendly to the public and make something that really welcomes people into it.”
That meant step one of the phased renovation involved reorienting the entrances to Centennial Olympic Park and the convention center (both are now under construction).
Inside the atrium, the ground-floor retail component also is being reoriented from a traditional mall food court experience into more of a community gathering spot that will ultimately encompass 150,000–200,000 square feet (14,000–18,500 sq m) on the first and second floors. “Here, you already have the people, so, now it’s really about serving up something that everybody finds appealing and wants to spend time in, and [to] bring their family and friends to visit,” Eachus says. “Our focus meant [that], if we get the bottom right with the ground floor, then the rest follows.”
CP Group is also leveraging both Atlanta’s stature as a top movie production center and CNN’s former broadcast infrastructure at the property to attract video and movie productions.
A potential multifamily conversion of the office space in as many as half of the four tower components that stand along Centennial Olympic Park Drive is also being studied through a cost and economics analysis, according to Eachus.
“There are [lots] of different levers to pull here, and because of the bones of the building, the location, and all the demands surrounding it, there are [lots] of different ways we can capitalize on the opportunity,” he says.
“It’s a huge piece of the interlacing fabric of that area,” says Tim Wright, a director with Cushman & Wakefield in Atlanta. “We have a new world-class stadium that is winning World Cups, Super Bowls, and college national championships, but really, the surrounding area does not provide much, if any, experience. Between CP Group’s efforts at The Center and [those of CIM Group at] Centennial Yards, we have a really amazing future for that district.”
The “CNN factor” will also remain a significant part of the property’s identity. “CNN put the building on the map, and we respect that,” Eachus says. “Even though the news operations are gone, the brand equity remains, and we lean into that storytelling legacy. We view this [approach] as a way [that] we can honor the past of the building but create something that’s new and . . . build on the legacy that CNN created here. We think of it as a 2.0 iteration that will be an exciting building for Atlanta.”
