Full Circle Real Estate Group

New Plans for Armstrong + Dobbs Project

Katie Throne — Mon, 06 May 2013 22:07:00 EST

A new set of plans for the Selig Enterprises project at the 10-acre Armstrong & Dobbs tract in the east end of downtown Athens have been submitted to the local planning board, showing a slightly scaled-down commercial component and more residential units.

The plans, made publicly available Monday at the Athens-Clarke County Planning Department, call for about 102,000 square feet of commercial space and 375 multi-family units with 990 bedrooms. Plans discussed in December had the more than $90 million project at 125,000 square feet of retail space with about 250 housing units with 600 bedrooms.

Gavin Hassemer, the Athens-Clarke County planner handling the project, noted major changes to original concepts for the property, such as a notably smaller anchor tenant, at about 38,000 square feet, versus 90,000 square feet almost two years ago, and a plaza that would face the Firefly Trail and give traffic coming into the development from Oconee Street a clear view of the greenway. The size of the anchor tenant, and talk of it housing a Walmart, set off a polarizing debate in Athens about the size and substance of the project off East Broad and Oconee streets.

Read more Courtesy of Athens Banner-Herald

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Home Prices Up Highest in 7 Years

Katie Throne — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 11:39:00 EST

U.S. home prices rose 9.3 percent in February compared with a year ago, the most in nearly seven years. The gains were driven by a growing number of buyers who bid on a limited supply of homes.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index increased from an 8.1 percent year-over-year gain in January. And annual prices rose in February in all 20 cities for the second month in a row.

Phoenix led all cities with an annual gain of 23 percent in February. Prices jumped nearly 19 percent in San Francisco. In Las Vegas, home prices increased 17.6 percent and in Atlanta they rose 16.5 percent.

News courtesy of The Athens Banner-Herald

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40 Watt Makes Rolling Stone Best Clubs List

Katie Throne — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 15:19:00 EST

Breaking news from our friends at The Flagpole:

This will come as no surprise to well-traveled Athenians, but the 40 Watt Club is among the best music venues in the country, according to Rolling Stone.

Twenty-four musicians, agents, promoters and managers (including Athens' Bertis Downs) were asked to rate "the most rocking small rooms in America." The 40 Watt came in 18th.

Says the venerable publication:

Years before Michael Stipe used to stage-dive into the crowd at this legendary Georgia nightclub, the future R.E.M. frontman would count pennies to get in as doormen stared him down. (He later befriended Nirvana's Dave Grohl over veggie sausage at a restaurant the morning after the Seattle band performed at the 40 Watt.) Originally the rehearsal space for local rock heroes Pylon, the 40 Watt morphed into a bona fide club in 1979, drawing the B-52's, Sonic Youth, X, Patti Smith and Drive-By Truckers.

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Athens Makes Forbes List of "Best Places to Retire"

Katie Throne — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 19:32:00 EST

Once again, Athens has made a Forbes magazine list of noteworthy communities, this time as one of “The 25 Best Places to Retire in 2013.”

The community’s latest recognition from Forbes is based on its “college-town cultural amenities,” a median home price of $133,000 and a “good state tax climate.” Forbes did ding Athens a bit, though, noting a “below average air quality.”

The magazine considered a wide range of factors in developing this year’s list of best places to retire, evaluating data from 400 American cities on everything “from living costs and taxes to crime to the availability of doctors and the opportunity to stay active with outdoor exercise and volunteer work.”

Athens was the only Georgia city to make the Forbes list, but interestingly, a couple of cities toward which Athens has looked for inspiration in local development — Austin, Texas, and Asheville, N.C. — were also on the list.

Click here for the full article from The Athens Banner-Herald

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Home Sales Continue to Edge Up

Katie Throne — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 20:21:00 EST

Existing-home sales edged up in January, while a seller's market is developing and home prices continue to rise steadily above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Sales rose in every region but the West, which is the region most constrained by limited inventory.

Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, increased 0.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.92 million in January from a downwardly revised 4.90 million in December, and are 9.1 percent above the 4.51 million-unit pace in January 2012.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said tight inventory is a major factor in the market. "Buyer traffic is continuing to pick up, while seller traffic is holding steady," he said. "In fact, buyer traffic is 40 percent above a year ago, so there is plenty of demand but insufficient inventory to improve sales more strongly. We've transitioned into a seller's market in much of the country."

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Green Life Expo Next Weekend

Katie Throne — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 09:57:00 EST

The annual Green Life Expo will be held at the Classic Center on Saturday, February 9th. Expect a multitude of offerings including recycling options, exhibits, green shopping, kid's activities and more.

Go to www.greenlifeathens.com for info!

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Happy Holidays!

Katie Throne — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 11:17:00 EST

Happy Holidays! We wish all of you a healthy and happy holiday season. We are looking forward to 2013!

Full Circle will be closed Monday thru Wednesday, (Dec 24-26) and Monday and Tuesday (Dec. 31 and Jan 1).

As we leave to spend time with our loved ones and celebrate the holidays, we'll be thinking of those families of the victims in Newtown, CT, with heavy hearts. If you haven't already, please consider making a donation to help those affected by this tragedy.

Sandy Hook School Support Fund, c/o Newtown Savings Bank, 39 Main St., Newtown CT 06470. Or they may be dropped off at any Newtown Savings Bank branch.

For questions about your check donation within local Newtown Savings Bank branches, call 800-461-0672. Or, at the United Way, call David Deschenes, 203-792-5330 ext. 239, or Isabel Almeida, 203-792-5330 ext. 106. You can also donate by credit card. Go to: https://newtown.uwwesternct.org.

Read more: http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Ways-to-help-Sandy-Hook-4136475.php#ixzz2FhgdQbmS

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Raise a Glass! No Wally World Coming To Downtown

Katie Throne — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 13:38:00 EST

From People for a Better Athens: A year ago, we learned just before the holidays that Wal-Mart planned to occupy a 100,000 sq. ft. big-box in downtown Athens. Shortly thereafter, we started our petition. We organized: legal counsel was retained, meetings were attended, voices were heard.
We never accepted what our mayor and other elected leaders would have us believe- that this project was a "done deal."
Yesterday, numerous reports confirmed the developers of the site have made drastic changes to their proposal, incorporating this past year's Athenian feedback. The new anchor will now be 35,000 sq. ft. Click HERE for full story on new plans.
Wal-Mart is no longer interested in a downtown Athens location.
Thank you to the worldwide fans of Athens, GA, who had the courage to take a stand for a better Athens- it was not easy.

Tonight, we’re partying where it all started: Ted’s Most Best in downtown Athens: 254 W. Washington St.
7 ish.
Pop a bottle, and raise a glass.
~People for a Better Athens

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Local Restaurant Makes Andrew Zimmern's Best Southern Food List

Katie Throne — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 15:08:00 EST

Andrew Zimmern named his list of the Best Southern Food for Food and Wine Magazine and our local eatery, Five and Ten, made the list, which is predominantly comprised of well known restaurants in Charleston, Savannah and New Orleans. Here's what he had to say:

Hugh Acheson’s flagship restaurant melds traditional Southern flavors with French and Italian influences, garnering top awards from Food & Wine and the James Beard Foundation. The menu changes daily, but there are a few mainstays, including the fantastic low-country Frogmore stew with shrimp, andouille and leeks in a tomato broth.

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Buy Local! Holiday Market Is Back

Katie Throne — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 14:33:00 EST

The holiday market at Big City Bread is back this year. Come out to peruse and buy local, handmade goods in the festive setting beneath the sparkling lights on Big City Bread's patio. This event provides fun for one and all, no matter the age.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 13, 5-9PM AND FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 5-9PM

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