Above, rendering of main features of Pinewood Forrest. At right, Dan Cathy at groundbreaking ceremony. Photos/Ben Nelms.
“Live-create-play.” Those three words summed up the intent and the outlook of Dan Cathy at the Pinewood Progress Fall 2016 announcements held Oct. 14 on the site of the 234-acre Pinewood Forrest development along Veterans Parkway on Fayetteville’s west side.
Pinewood Forrest Project Director Bill Lynch, Chick-fil-A CEO and Pinewood Forrest principal Dan Cathy, newly-appointed Pinewood Forrest President Rob Parker and Crow Hospitality Investment Group President John Crow laid out some of the details of the Pinewood Forrest development expected to be unlike any mixed-use creation seen in the Southeast.
Cathy described his vision for Pinewood Forrest as one that embodies a sensory-designed experience and where price-points are thrown out the window. “We want to bring bold, daring work here. It’s about touching the world. We want to touch the world with the world’s first live, create and play community.”
Cathy in his comments, and with chuckles from the audience following, also noted the potential for having a tattoo parlor as one of the retail providers on the main street.
Cathy said the charge to architects several months ago was to design a community that will be “edgy, hip and cool.”
Parker in his remarks followed up on the vision for Pinewood Forrest.
“This will be an environment and an experience to touch people’s hearts,” he said.
There is a higher purpose here, Parker explained. “Attainable, sustainable, walkable, rideable, livable and connected and unbelievable,” Parker said, summing up the purpose for Pinewood Forrest.
Village Square, the community district situated adjacent to Veterans Parkway, is billed as one with “an informal European vibe and distinctly Southern design, the heart of activity and action with a boutique hotel, farm-to-table restaurants, an integrated wellness center and filled with outdoor cafes and retail shops.” Also shown in an illustration of Village Square was office space and an arts/events center.
One of the first venues to be constructed will be a boutique hotel developed by HCH Pinewood Forrest, LLC and operated by Hay Creek Hotels. The hotel is expected to open in 2018. Crow contacted Hay Creek and a partnership for the high-end boutique hotel was subsequently formed.
“We’re honored to join the Pinewood Forrest community and development team to create the property that will help anchor Village Square,” said Crow. “We expect very high demand for this unique boutique hotel that will offer amazing experiences.”
The hotel will feature 95 high-end rooms, including special-designed rooms for celebrity guests, meeting and function space, a high-quality restaurant and bar and a spa and pool.
“There will be an area in the hotel for script writers. Of course, it’ll probably be in the bar,” Crow said to the laughter of the audience. ”Then we thought about entertainment, bringing in professional storytellers… something different than any hotel you’ve stayed in .”
Among other guests, the hotel will likely cater to some of those involved in filming the ongoing list of Marvel Studios blockbuster movies just a stone’s throw across Veterans Parkway at Pinewood Atlanta Studios.
On the residential front, the first phase of homesites will activate the beginnings of the Garden and Culinary districts. The first homesites will be available for reservation in the coming months, Lynch told the audience.
“We expect the initial group of homesites to sell quickly based on interest we’ve already seen and the excitement already created at Pinewood Forrest,” said Lynch.
Commenting on the homes in Phase 1 of the multi-district development, Lynch said the homes would include a broad-spectrum of small to large offerings in multiple sizes and ranging from $200,000 to more than $1 million.
Also announced was the Pinewood Forrest Green Building certification program and formation of the Pinewood Forrest Builders Guild. The green building certification program will ensure Pinewood Forrest builders meet a high standard for sustainable building practices. The Builders Guild will be a collection of 8-10 reputable builders in the metro Atlanta area.
“The talented, carefully selected team of homebuilders we’re assembling furthers our belief that Pinewood Forrest will set a new bar for residential developments in mixed-use projects,” said Lynch. “We are confident this group will deliver quality residences that follow the architectural standards set for Pinewood Forrest, including a green building certification program that will exceed typical certification program requirements by approximately 50 percent.”
Pinewood Forrest Real Estate also announced that it has added Ansley Atlanta as partner in its residential services team. Ansley Atlanta, a leading boutique luxury real estate brokerage firm in metro Atlanta, will provide residential sales and marketing for the Pinewood Forrest development under the name of Pinewood Forrest Real Estate.
“Each of these partnerships contributes greatly to the progress we’re making at Pinewood Forrest, which will be the most innovative mixed-use development in the Southeast,” said Rob Parker, who earlier last week was announced as president of Pinewood Forrest. “We’re proud to add such a prestigious hotelier, Builders Guild and residential brokerage to the Pinewood Forrest team.”
Parker in a word to the large group present for the first Pinewood Forrest Progress announcement said other updates will follow in the coming months.
Pinewood Forrest is a 234-acre master-planned residential and mixed-use development adjacent to Pinewood Atlanta Studios in Fayetteville, designed to be a diverse, multi-generational community, a place “to bring stories to life and be your best self.”
The community is laid out in districts. First up is the largely commercial and office Village Square adjacent to Veterans Parkway. The residential areas situated away from Veterans Parkway include the Craft District on the north side of the property, the Garden District in the center of the property, the Culinary District on the south side and adjacent to Hood Road, and the Woodlands District, also on the south side and to the rear of the site.
Proposed community features include:
• 1,300 unique residential units including single-family homes, micro-cottages, multi-family flats, townhomes and tree homes featuring authentic materials
• 300 hotel rooms in boutique and all-suite hotels
• 275,000 square feet of commercial office, street level retail and restaurants
• Over 15 miles of trails and pathways
• 118 total acres of public green space (approximately 51 percent of total site)
• Community gardens, pools, playgrounds and dog park
• Integrated wellness center
• Arts/events center
• Shared meeting spaces, offices and other amenities
• Buildings designed with low carbon, efficient and Earthcraft/LEED features
Principal participants in the unfolding Pinewood Forrest story include:
• Dan T. Cathy, Chief Visionary and Lead Developer of Pinewood Forrest.
• Rob Parker, Pinewood Forrest President.
• Jim Pace, Pinewood Forrest Advisor and Co-Developer.
• Bill Lynch, Pinewood Forrest Project Director, Pace Lynch Corporation.
• Lew Oliver, Pinewood Forrest Town Urbanist and Planner, Whole Town Solutions.
• Rick Halbert, Pinewood Forrest Construction Manager, Halbert Development.
For ongoing information on Pinewood Forrest visit www.pinewoodforrest.com.
