All over the TV news, and in the Atlanta Business Chronicle....it's official!
Mercedes Benz Will Relocate North American Headquarters to Atlanta
The move will happen quickly....by THIS summer, although the company will locate into temporary space until a built-to-suit building can be completed in 2017. Reports say Mercedes Benz has narrowed their site to the Central Perimeter with 4 sites, and one in outlaying Alpharetta. The company will invest more than $100 million in the new office building.
Mercedes' decision to move from sleepy Montvale, N.J. to frenetic Atlanta was about attracting the talent needed to be "competitive for the next 50 years," MBUSA President and CEO Stephen Cannon told Atlanta Business Chronicle in an exclusive interview Tuesday afternoon.
Atlanta's prime location puts the city in between Mercedes' largest U.S. production plant in Tuscaloosa, Ala. and the Port of Brunswick, it's largest import facility. The relocation "helps us to optimize our footprint in the United States," Cannon said.
Atlanta landed the Mercedes headquarters from a short list that included Dallas and the Charlotte/Raleigh region, because of the region's "top-shelf" infrastructure (Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport) and its quality of life.
"We're living in an environment where it's all about talent," Cannon said. "Offering the best quality of life attracts the best talent."
Talent also drove Mercedes' site selection in Atlanta. The Central Perimeter offers an appealing balance of suburban and urban living environments, located in between the family friendly northern suburbs and the Millennial-rich in-town neighborhoods.
"Folks concerned with houses and schools can locate north and commute south," Cannon said. "The Gen-Yers who want that urban living... can take a short MARTA ride (to work)." That urban living will be found in Midtown Atlanta with it's THREE MARTA stations and walkable community. Buckhead will also be an alternative but the MARTA station is not as close to as many condominium-type buildings as in Midtown.
One also has to wonder if the "Central Perimeter" might include the new re-development of the General Motors plant in Doraville. The site is currently being cleared of the some 90 acres of buildings and exciting plans are emerging for a unique village-type atmosphere. Additionally, the site is certainly large enough to allow Mercedes Benz to do a "campus-like setting with several buildings, and yet have the accessibility of MARTA and the outlaying neighborhoods like Alpharetta and John's Creek for housing and schools.
Needless to say, Atlanta is quite excited to be welcoming our newest corporate headquarters! And we hear at MyMidtownMojo.com look forward to helping those people looking to experience and live in the urban core of Midtown Atlanta!
Welcome Home Mercedes Benz North America!
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