Atlanta - November 14, 2006 - The Atlanta Chapter of The American Institute of Architects held a 100th anniversary celebration event at TWELVE Hotel in Atlantic Station in Midtown Atlanta while announcing the winner for each decade of the 1906 – 2006 Best Buildings of the Decades.  The goal of the “Best Buildings” event was to educate, entertain, and engage the public about Atlanta architecture.  Winners for each decade received special recognition and certificates at the event. Additional images and information are available.

Early this spring, building nominations were solicited from AIA Georgia architects as well as other organizations and professionals within the allied fields (Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, Atlanta History Center, DOCOMOMO, Georgia Institute of Technology, American Council of Engineering Companies, Association of General Contractors, etc.) for the slate of building candidates to be presented to the public.  Over 200 nominations were received, covering a broad spectrum of both residential and commercial buildings.  Of these, all were well-designed, thoughtful examples of architecture in Atlanta. 

Two eight-member juries convened to review five decades each (1906 – 1956 and 1956 – 2006) to examine, in greater detail, those buildings still in existence that represent the best of the best of each decade for the 100 years since the founding of AIA Atlanta.  Jury criteria focused on buildings inside the Perimeter completed between 1906 and 2006.  No buildings completed before 1906 or after 2006 were considered.  After careful review and deliberation, the juries voted and narrowed the nominations to five buildings per decade.  Because a series of Architecture AIA150 Tours of the winning buildings is scheduled for the spring of 2007 (a nationwide celebrations of the 150th anniversary of The American Institute of Architects), all nominated buildings had to be in existence

The ballot of fifty finalists was published in the Atlanta Journal Constitution and the public was invited to vote online for their choice of the best building for each decade.  Over 32,000 votes were cast on www.ajc.com and ten winning buildings (owners, architects, contractors, engineers) were awarded Best Building of the Decade.   

Here are the winning “top vote getting” buildings from the last 100 years of Atlanta architecture, along with juror comments:

Decade 1906 – 1915

Candler Building, 1906       

Architects: Murphy and Stewart

The neo-Renaissance terra cotta and marble building, the Candler Building (named after the founder of the Coca-Cola Company, Asa Griggs Candler) was the tallest and the best-equipped office building in Atlanta at the time of its construction.  The Candler Building was Atlanta's first building to reach 15, 16, or 17 stories.  The size and prominent location of the building, the magnificent sculpture executed by craftsmen under the direction of F.B. Miles, and a total, well-conceived design all contribute to the deliberate monumentality of the building.

Decade 1916 - 1925

The Villa, 1920                     
Architects: Hentz, Reid and Adler

One of Atlanta’s most famous architects, Philip Trammell Shutze, is credited with the design of The Villa.  The Villa was built around 1920 next to the Ansley Golf Club.  It was called The Italian Villa Apartments until World War II, when it was renamed simply The Villa.  The Villa was converted into condominiums in 1979.

Decade 1926 – 1935

Fox Theatre, 1929

Architects: Marye, Alger and Vinour

The "Fabulous" Fox Theatre, an awe-inspiring brick structure of mixed architectural motifs, has towered over the corner of Peachtree Street at Ponce de Leon Avenue in Atlanta since 1929.  Its unique cream- and buff-colored ribbons, arched doorways, minarets, and domes all combine to make the Fox an architectural illusion—lending it the appearance of a cluster of small buildings.  In reality, the Fox is one cohesive building, broken up by balconies and stairways leading to various zones of the theater, which occupies the larger part of a midtown city block.

Decade 1936 - 1945

Cathedral of Christ the King, 1937

Architect: Henry D. Gagit Jr.

The site selected for Christ the King consisted of about four acres on Peachtree Road between Peachtree Way and East Wesley Road.  The cost of the land with the existing white mansion was $35,000.  A French Gothic architectural style of the old world was selected for the Cathedral.  Seating would be for more than 700, a huge number considering the parish numbered only 400 in 1937.

Decade 1946 – 1955

Mikell Memorial Chapel, Cathedral of Saint Philip, 1947
Architect: Francis Palmer Smith                            

Francis Smith's career culminated in projects for the Cathedral of St. Philip on Peachtree Road, including the Mikell Memorial Chapel.  By the 1930s, the streets of Atlanta had been built up higher than the entrance to St. Philip's, and much of the parish had moved away.  In 1933, St. Philip's Cathedral moved to its present location; the "little gray church" was built atop the hill at Andrews Drive and Peachtree, with its doors opening to the city.  The present Mikell Chapel was finished in 1947.

Decade 1956 - 1965

Peachtree Center, 1965                             

Architects: Edwards and Portman
Contractor:  J.A. Jones

Peachtree Center displays the pioneering work of John Portman at Peachtree Center (1961-present).  When Portman's Merchandise Mart of 1961 first appeared on Peachtree Street, it was less a gesture closing this early period of "emerging modernism" as it was the beginning of more than three decades of Portman's development of Atlanta's great agora; Peachtree Center became a market/convention complex that set a model for multipurpose developments worldwide.

Decade 1966 - 1975

Hyatt Regency Atlanta, 1967

Architects: Edwards and Portman
Contractor: J.A. Jones

The huge interior atrium - first of its kind in modern hotels - was an immediate sensation and changed the course of hotel design.  Portman intentionally designed the entrance spaces to be low and confining to exaggerate the contrast with the dizzyingly tall central space.  Writers of the time mentioned the "Oh my god!" effect as people moved from one to the other.  The 800 guest room Hyatt was the first major hotel built in downtown Atlanta since the 1920s.

Decade 1976 - 1985

High Museum of Art, 1983

Architects: Richard Meier & Partners

Contractor: Skanska

Designed in 1983 by Richard Meier, the building has received numerous awards and honors for its architectural excellence.  Its four-story atrium, surrounded by a spiraling ramp and capped by skylights, was inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright's modernist design of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City.  Key features of Meier's design include such strong architectural elements as the soaring atrium; an emphasis on modernist planes, curves, and lines; and galleries within galleries.  The sculptural quality of the High's interior is enhanced by the play of light and shadow reenacted daily in the atrium.

Decade 1986 - 1995

One Atlantic Center, 1987
Architects: Phillip Johnson and John Burgee
Contractor: Beck Group

This was the tallest building in Atlanta from 1986 until 1991.  The design gives a respectful nod to its historic ancestors – the pyramidal roof of Boston's Trinity Church, the cut-back corners of Chicago's Tribunal Tower - while possessing a total integrity all its own.  The Rosa Porrino granite exterior is complemented by a 32-foot high gray granite lobby, with marble accents and a geometric-patterned marble floor in black and white.

Decade 1996 - 2006

1180 Peachtree Street, 2006

Architects: Pickard Chilton

Contractor: Turner Construction

1180 Peachtree Street marks the reemergence of Atlanta's skyscraper tradition -- rising forty-one floors to a height of over 645 feet – the equivalent of a fifty story high rise.  1180 Peachtree is the most advanced skyscraper in a generation including such sustainable design strategies as a high performance glass enclosure with projected vertical mullions to mitigate solar gain, the incorporation of a horizontal lightshelf, natural light photometric sensors to reduce perimeter artificial lighting, highly efficient HVAC systems, and the incorporation of recycled materials and the use of certified woods.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is the professional organization for over 75,000 licensed architects and associated professionals.  With headquarters in Washington, D.C. and nearly 300 state and local components worldwide, the AIA helps to build the public’s awareness of architecture while supporting the practice of architecture.  AIA Atlanta represents Atlanta’s voice in architecture, is dedicated to serving its members and advancing their value while improving the quality of the built environment in the city and metropolitan area of Atlanta.

Contact:            Anne Melanson, AIA Georgia

                        404.222.0099 ext 1004

                        amelanson@aiaga.org