Saluting Chattanooga's MVPs
Chattanooga's downtown skyline took on a new look in 2017 with the tallest new building erected in decades added in the central city and several signature structures taking on new owners and uses.But far more than just the built environment was altered during the past year as a growing and shifting economy and workforce continued to change the way business is done in Chattanooga.The individuals who helped lead such changes and did the most to reshape the regional economy are our Most Valuable Players in business in 2017. The top 10 list includes those leading everything from volunteer programs to Chattanooga's biggest business and reflects the diversity of our changing economy.
Businessman Boyd Simpson may live and work in Atlanta, but downtown Chattanooga is seeing and feeling his growing presence.
His company, The Simpson Organization, in October officially opened Market City Center on the 700 block of Market Street, filling what had been a persistent hole in downtown Chattanooga's fabric.
The 10-story, $30 million structure that has 125 apartments along with commercial space is the tallest new building to go up in downtown since the 1970s.
The Simpson Organization also owns the SunTrust Bank Building next door, which it acquired in 2007 and will undergo a multimillion-dollar interior upgrade in 2018.
In 2016, the company purchased Warehouse Row, the nine-building complex at Market and Lindsay streets. It holds 260,295 square feet of street-level restaurants and upscale boutique retail as well as upper-level lofts and office suites. The Simpson Organization paid $36.9 million for the historic Warehouse Row site.
"We think [downtown] is changing in positive ways," Simpson says. "We hope [Market City Center] will be a shot in the arm."
Simpson says his company, which has properties in seven Southern states, has invested about $90 million into the Scenic City.
"If we find the right project, we'd do something else downtown," he says.
The Simpson Organization focuses on commercial real estate, and Simpson says he likes to zero in on urban centers rather than suburban sites.
"We like the energy, the opportunities they bring," he says. "That's just a preference, one that has served us well. We've been on the right side of the wave."