Savannah Art College Scouting for 150,000-SF Local Campus

Brokers assisting locally based NAI-Brannon Goddard, which is working with the college to find the space, say the school is seriously considering the 500,000-sf Downtown 180 Peachtree St. Building, former home of Macy's department store. Built in 1927, the building was renovated in 2000 and is 35.4% vacant.

Also being considered is the former Equifax building, a 48-year-old, 300,974-sf structure which is 85.7% vacant. Brokers tell GlobeSt.com other properties that could accommodate the college include Inforum, a 989,531-sf structure built in 1989 and 15.7% vacant; Centergy, a one-year-old, 488,000-sf complex with a 30.7% vacancy level; and One Buckhead Plaza, a 442,929-sf structure completed in 1987 and 17.4% vacant.

Bob Grisby, a Brannon Goddard broker working directly with the college, tells GlobeSt.com various properties are still being evaluated but "we have narrowed it down to a couple of projects." He thinks the final selection could be made "in the next few weeks."

For the lucky landlord in the Downtown or Midtown market, that could be good news in a market where vacancies are in the 20% bracket. The lease would probably be for five years at an estimated effective rent of $21 per sf, according to Downtown brokers.

But brokers, familiar with the college's needs, tell GlobeSt.com all of the sites being reviewed have advantages and disadvantages and that no one site is being favored over another at this time.

In Savannah, the college occupies a total 1.5 million sf scattered among 55 buildings throughout the city. The school's total enrollment is an estimated 7,000 with students coming from 50 states and 75 countries. The college has not projected the enrollment of its new Atlanta campus.