Dilapidated Parkway Towers in Chattanooga's Southside is up for sale again

One of Chattanooga's most visible dilapidated buildings which once was a key source of Chattanooga power is up for sale again.

The Parkway Towers, the 5-story vacant structure next to the First Horizon Pavilion and Finley Stadium, is being marketed by a national real estate firm as the site of a potential hotel, office tower or high-rise apartment building. The current owners of the structure that once was the substation for the Tennessee Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) in Chattanooga are trying to sell the building for more than six times the $418,500 price they paid for the structure in 2008.

Located in an Opportunity Zone with favorable tax advantages for development and in the middle of the redeveloping Southside, the sellers are touting the building's visibility, location and potential for multiple uses. Parkway Towers Development Inc., an Atlanta firm headed by Maurice Kadosh, has hired Marcus & Millichap to market the site for $2.65 million.

"This property's location in the Southside Historical District provides an outstanding redevelopment opportunity for hotels, condos, office, mixed uses and more," said Rob Lyons,an associate for Marcus & Millichap in Nashville. "Chattanooga is a growth market and the Gig City has successfully attracted entrepreneurs and businesses to take advantage of its fast and affordable high-speed internet service."

Built in 1920, the 19,617-square-foot building served originally as Tennessee Electric Power Company's substation, storing electricity generated at the Hale's Bar Dam in Marion County. But the building has been vacant for decades and has stood to some as an eyesore on Chattanooga's downtown skyline.

The Stadium Corp., which bought the former Rock Tenn foundry to erect the 20,412-seat football stadium in 1997, didn't have the funds to buy the structure when land was initially bought for the Southside stadium. While other buildings around Finley Stadium have been restored and reused, including a new Naked River brewery and a luxury apartment complex being built by developer John Wise in the same block, Parkway Towers has remained vacant with its windows broken and its walls covered with graffiti.

The Parkway Towers building, standing empty with broken windows and covered with graffiti, is up for sale for $2.65 million. The 5-story builidng is near a new luxury apartment complex taking shape and next to the First Horizon Pavilion and Finley Stadium at 1823 Reggie White Boulevard. / Photo by Dave Flessner

But Peter Malone, a senior associates for Marcus & Millichap, said the building has a rich potential for development.

"This historic building will gather a lot of attention from developers, not only because of its location, but additionally for its high visibility on the city skyline," he said.

With historic tax credits and in an Opportunity Zone, investments in rehabilitating the structure and capital gains from those investments should receive more favorable tax treatment, Malone said.

Contact Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfreepress.com or at 757-6340.