Scottish Rite Up For Sale
Decatur Metro | December 5, 2013 | 1:05 pmThe landmark site in Oakhurst is up for sale for the first time since it was restored and revived years ago. Adams Realty sent this email around yesterday…
This message is going out to absolutely everyone that I have ever emailed. It is just not possible to be any more excited about a new listing than I am about this one. The former Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital in Decatur was raised from the dead in 2001. It was an abandoned eyesore for the Oakhurst community for about 20 years. The roof was falling in by the time a creative developer took on the project (Progressive Redevelopment Inc). Since then, the building has been lovingly restored and re-purposed as a mix of office, medical office, event space and restaurant. The building was originally designed by notable Atlanta Architects Neel Reid and Hal Hentz. The renovation general contractor was Gay Construction with Smith Dalia as architects. The property was restored in part with Historic Tax Credits, so the exterior has been preserved in every way possible, down to the clay tiles on the roof. It has on-site parking and an elevator. If you have ever been to Oakhurst, you know that this building is the center piece and anchor for the whole neighborhood.
The property is well maintained and fully leased. It is located in one of the hottest residential neighborhoods in Atlanta. Vacant lots are selling like hot cakes at $250,000 for single family construction. Appropriately marketed houses go under contract in 30 to 45 days.Please tell your friends and colleagues about this rare opportunity to own a real trophy property.
Looks like it’s time to update our commercial tax digest.
Well, hey. While Oakhurst routinely sells for $150-$200 sq. ft., you can pick this baby up for under a hundred. What’ll it take to put you in this classic polio hospital today?
Seriously, though, calling this property a gem is not being hyperbolic. Good luck!
At the rate that Oakhurst residential real estate is appreciating, I wouldn’t be surprised if this morphs into a single family $2.1 million home! Along with a wine cellar and attached indoor nursery comes a private iron lung suite.
I heard that they are going to retrofit for a Trader Joes….
Trader Joe’s would be a great addition to Oakhurst…all products are dye free for kids.
Live free or dye.
Sweet! I’ve always wanted to own a Scottish Rite Hospital!
I know exactly where I would install the stripper poles and dancing cages.
Thankfully there will be enough room for both inside the Walmart that will be built there.
It is isn’t Scawtish, it’s crawp.
Looks like a cute little elementary school to me.
Oooooh. And we happen to need another one on the south side! Scottish Rite Elementary! Fifth Avenue could stay a 4/5 (given a bunch more additions), College Heights could stay an ECLC, and Lenox Park or whatever it’s called could stay at Oakhurst. If the school needed more classrooms in the future, it could gobble up the Palate/McGowans building which is already similar in style. It’s in the heart of Oakhurst, across from a fire station and within walking distance of Oakhurst Garden, Oakhurst Park, McKoy Park, and after school hangouts like Oakhurst Market and Hop and Shop (or whatever it’s called).
How is it that we haven’t thought of this before?
I happen to enjoy The Solarium as an event space as well as McGowen’s. And then there’s my great doctor Timothy Watts. Ideas of using the buildings for something else disappoints. Hoping a new owner is of like mind.
People’s individual reactions to The Solarium as an event space tend to be at opposite extremes. I’ve been to 10-15 wedding in Atlanta in the last decade and it is by far my least favorite venue. The rooms are small, cramped, and almost entirely detached from one another. I think of it as the ant farm of event spaces and hope that someone can come along and turn it into something that makes sense, like a combination bar/hotel/babysitting center.
I’ve used the space for a birthday party and a rehearsal dinner, much different from a larger wedding event. I’ve attended community parties there as well. I agree it is lacking in design for most wedding receptions, especially those over 75 people. The Oakhurst community needs to maintain an outdoor gathering space for jazz nights, wine crawl as well as the indoor space for other community activities.
“Vacant lots are selling like hot cakes at $250,000″
Hot cakes are selling for $250,000?