What was once an undesirable part of Atlanta is now the most expensive street

ATLANTA — What was once an undesirable place to be in metro Atlanta is now known as the most expensive street in the city.

Ponce De Leon Avenue in northeast Atlanta has developed over the years.

Atlanta has always been booming when it comes to business, with 16 metro Atlanta-based companies on the Fortune 500 list and another 14 making the Fortune 1000 list.

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The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce estimates the 30 companies’ combined revenue is $438 billion.

Channel 2′s Karyn Greer spoke with people walking around the area about the transformation.

“Historically when you were looking for office space in Atlanta it would be proximity to interstates, hotels, and other offices, Eric Weatherholtz said. “This has none of those or very limited those. But what it has is it’s got a soul to it and it’s got the BeltLine.”

A new study by Jones Lang LaSalle, Inc., a global real estate services company headquartered in Chicago, reveals the relatively small stretch of Ponce De Leon Avenue has bumped Phipps as Atlanta’s most expensive street for office space.

At one point the area was not a desirable place to take families.

It’s a different story now.

“In high school, my parents wouldn’t let me come down here because it was such a bad neighborhood and now it’s really a great spot, especially with the BeltLine,” another man said.

It’s hard to believe, but the area that used to house City Hall East and the old Sears and Roebuck is the new tourist destination and hottest new address for commercial real estate.

Ponce City Market and the Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail have helped Ponce De Leon Avenue to become a nightlife corridor and the country’s fifteenth most expensive street.

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“Look how amazing it looks. So many people come here now. So many people are around. It’s kinda like a mini-California... Hollywood Boulevard. It looks neat,” England Cutler said.

Ponce City Market, the BeltLine, and another new mass timber loft office building being constructed are driving the higher rents.

Next on the list for high retail space is Spring Street in Midtown and Howell Mill Road on the Westside.

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