Federal Reserve building

Federal Reserve Building on March 20, 2006

The Federal Reserve building at 1801 5th Avenue North in downtown Birmingham was built in 1924 to house a branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta which was first opened here in 1918. The building was designed by A. J. Krebs of Warren, Knight & Davis and built of Georgia marble and Indiana limestone.

A major expansion of that facility was completed in 1957, bringing the total area to 104,000 square feet.

2000s

The Birmingham Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta moved to a new facility in Liberty Park in 2000. Later that year, Sloss Real Estate and Barry Real Estate announced plans for One Federal Place which included renovation of the Federal Reserve building along with construction of a new 300,000 square foot multi-use structure facing 19th Street North.

In 2002 Newark, New Jersey artist Stephen Hendee was invited to install the first phase of his project in the Birmingham Museum of Art's "Perspectives" series at the Federal Reserve building and the Concord Center. The illuminated geometric sculptures displayed at the Federal Reserve building included "The Vigilant, Thankful Excuses"; "Orange Chimera"; "The Counters, Transfer Ritual", "Date of Design" and "Dead Pool". During this phase the public had only a limited view of the work, through which Hendee was "working with the residual meanings of the building and its interior spaces," because the building was not open. Those elements were then relocated to the Museum and incorporated into the monumental Phase II installation entitled "Ascension".

In 2003 the original Federal Reserve building was added to the National Register of Historic Places. It is currently vacant, but has been marketed as class B office space for $18.50/SF by Sloss Real Estate.

Current plans

On March 18, 2006, Savannah, Georgia-based Melaver Inc. announced plans to purchase and renovate the Federal Reserve Building and an adjacent building and to develop a new 14-story office/hotel tower on an adjacent surface parking lot. The $40 million project would encompass 80,000 square feet of commercial space in the renovated buildings and 175,000 square feet of new space in the tower, including a 34,000 square foot hotel on the top three floors. A 270-car underground parking deck is also planned. According to Colin Coyne, chief operating officer of Melaver, the project will seek LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, meaning that it will use environmentally responsible materials and energy-saving designs and systems. Brasfield & Gorrie has been selected as general contractor and the developers expect to begin immediately with the renovation. Progress on the tower is contingent on securing a commitment from a hotel.

A June, 2006 update revealed that Melaver had purchased the property for $3.12 million and that renovation of 80,000 square feet in the existing buildings will begin within the next three weeks. Coyne also shared that a restaurant and coffee shop/bar were being considered for the former branch's lobby area, and that the vaults are being kept for re-use in the new space. The overall scope for multiple phases of work remains the same. Speaking of a design charette recently undertaken by the firm, Coyne said "We will settle for nothing less than a building of national significance." It is through design and technology that Melaver hopes to attract tenants in a slack downtown office market. Preliminary plans were revealed at a breakfast meeting of Operation New Birmingham on June 22, 2006. As of July 20, 2006 no major tenants had committed to the proposed tower. Negotiations with two area law firms were unsuccessful and talks with hotel operators are continuing.

References

• Tomberlin, Michael. (June 18, 2006) "'Cutting edge' plan for Reserve". Birmingham News.
• Tomberlin, Michael. (March 18, 2006) "$40 Million downtown project set". Birmingham News.
• Tate. Jean (March 3, 2004) "Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta". New Georgia Encyclopedia. [1]
• Calvert, Michael. (October 20, 2000) "City Center is adding new office space." Birmingham Business Journal.
• Birmingham Museum of Art. (2002) "Stephen Hendee: Perspectives 7" press release

External links

• Federal Reserve Building project page at Melaver.com
• Vacant buildings on the National Register of Historic Places