The Bowery at Old Fourth Ward Development Set to Resume Soon

The Bowery at Old Fourth Ward Development Set to Resume Soon

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The Bowery at Old Fourth Ward faces new timeline

Construction activity has stalled at the corner of Boulevard and Highland Avenue, but developers say the pause is a matter of permitting rather than a project failure.

Urbanize Atlanta reported that the site for The Bowery at Old Fourth Ward currently shows no heavy equipment or active construction, despite the project’s significance to the neighborhood.

The mixed-use development is a joint venture between Atlanta-based Fuqua Development and Charlotte-based Northwood Ravin. While the 3.3-acre site appears idle, a spokesperson for Northwood Ravin told Urbanize Atlanta that nothing has changed or slowed down regarding the project’s overall development.

“We are just waiting on permits to allow us to encroach into the existing public right-of-way to complete some final utility and site work,” the spokesperson said via email. The firm expects activity to ramp up quickly once the permitting process is finalized.

Delivery dates move to early 2029 amid retail uncertainty

The project’s completion date has moved further into the future. Although developers previously expected to open the site in summer 2028, Northwood Ravin officials updated their timeline on November 9, stating they are now looking closer to the first quarter of 2029 for delivery.

Retail rendering howl townhomes fuqua development northwood ravin old fourth ward the bowery

The delay in occupancy follows a period of uncertainty regarding the site’s retail components. The Bowery was originally expected to include a large grocery tenant, such as a Publix, to serve the Old Fourth Ward community.

However, Northwood Ravin noted that the sudden closure of the nearby Atlanta Medical Center by Wellstar impacted the area’s daytime population and job numbers. This shift, combined with subsequent city restrictions on hospital property rezoning, reportedly discouraged potential grocery tenants from committing to the site.

This development follows intense financial and community scrutiny. In 2023, Develop Fulton—formerly the Development Authority of Fulton County—approved a request for $5.7 million in tax savings over a 10-year period for the three-building project. While some residents expressed concerns in 2025 that these tax breaks were contingent on the inclusion of a grocery store, both developers and Develop Fulton officials have maintained that no such contingency existed.

The Bowery plans include apartments, townhomes, and retail space

The Bowery remains a massive undertaking for the intersection, occupying nearly a full block. The plans include the following components:

The Bowery at Old Fourth Ward Development Set to Resume Soon
  • A 273-unit apartment building.
  • Two blocks of townhomes totaling 12 units.
  • Approximately 10,000 square feet of street-level retail with patio spaces.
  • 2,000 square feet of retail or incubator space facing the adjacent dog park.
  • A 400-space parking deck, which includes 17 spaces reserved specifically for patrons of the nearby Freedom Barkway Dog Park.

The developers closed on the 3.3-acre site in the summer of 2023, paying approximately $4 million per acre. While the construction footprint is large, the Freedom Barkway Dog Park sits outside the project boundaries and will remain unaffected by the development.

As the project moves toward its 2029 target, the intersection of Boulevard and Highland Avenue remains a central point of interest for the city’s urban density goals and the economic recovery of the immediate corridor.

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