A remade North Point Mall aims to lure the NHL back to Atlanta
The NHL’s Thrashers played their last game in Atlanta in 2011 when they moved to Winnipeg and became the Jets.
But last July, NHL commissioner Bill Daly met with several groups seeking to re-establish professional hockey in Atlanta. Forsyth County has approved plans for a $3 billion development called The Gathering at South Forsyth.
A competing bid was submitted by the Alpharetta Sports & Entertainment Group, which wants to place what could be the league’s 33rd team in a brand new arena that will be the centerpiece of a massive redevelopment of North Point Mall.
This week Jamestown and New York Life, owner-operators of North Point, submitted a zoning application to the City of Alpharetta for a redevelopment of the mall into a walkable “sports-anchored entertainment district positioned to bring an NHL team to the greater Atlanta metro,” according to a Jamestown press release.
The central feature of the proposed project is a 20,000-seat NHL arena. Also in the plan are additional entertainment and hospitality venues that will include a 4,000-seat music hall and performing arts center, a 2,000-seat community hockey rink, and a 500-seat movie theater.
The re-do will include nearly a million square feet of retail and dining spaces, 750,000 square feet of office space, and 1,385 multifamily residential units.
More than 16 acres of park, plazas, and multi-use trails are also in the redevelopment plans.
“Today’s filing is an important milestone in advancing our plan to transform North Point Mall into a modern, sports-anchored district that sets a new standard for suburban placemaking,” said Frances Bohn, Jamestown director of development and construction.
The redevelopment plan, which aligns with the Alpharetta Comprehensive Plan and proposed Tax Allocation District (TAD), seeks to maximize the potential of the site to deliver jobs, increase the tax base, provide new community amenities, and preserve the North Point area as a regional destination for future generations.
