DALLAS—Woodbine Legacy Investments (WLI) purchased W Atlanta-Buckhead, a 12-story, 291-room full-service hotel in a 13-million-square-foot mixed-used district. W Atlanta-Buckhead marks the second acquisition for WLI, a private real estate fund created by Woodbine Development Corporation. Marriott International will continue to serve as the hotel’s operator.
“Buckhead is one of the best markets in the country and one of the few that isn’t seeing a major influx of hotel inventory. Those factors—plus demand-drivers like nearby office, retail, and residential—are what put W Atlanta-Buckhead at the center of the strike zone for us,” said T. Dupree Scovell, managing partner and chief investment officer of WLI and Woodbine. “Our plan is to maximize the potential of the property by repositioning and updating it to be the best lifestyle hotel in Buckhead.”
W Atlanta-Buckhead’s amenity lineup includes three F&B outlets: Cook Hall, Living Room, and Buckhead’s only rooftop bar, Whiskey Blue. Scott Gerber, principal and CEO of Gerber Group, which owns and operates Whiskey Blue, intends to evolve and update the bar to complement the major renovation that WLI is planning for the hotel.
The property also has a 24-hour fitness center; yoga, barre and boot-camp classes; an infinity-edge pool; and 11,000 square feet of flexible indoor/outdoor meeting and event space. The Buckhead district has been rated by Robb Report as one of the nation’s “Top 10 Affluent Communities.” The destination is adjacent to luxury high-rise residential projects and retail shops—which have earned the neighborhood a reputation as “the shopping mecca of the Southeast.” Top draws include the boutique Peachtree Lenox Building, Lenox Square Mall, the luxury Shops Around Lenox, and the Buckhead MARTA Station.
WLI’s acquisition of W Buckhead-Atlanta is the real estate fund’s second purchase. Mark Elliott and Todd Ratliff of Hodges Ward Elliott served as the brokers for the transaction. Woodbine’s ongoing partnership with the Marriott International—which is currently growing the W brand around the world and working to innovate in the lifestyle space—now includes more than $225 million in active development projects.
