The Atlanta Tech Village’s One Year Anniversary

Exactly one year ago today I purchased 3423 Piedmont Rd and announced it to the world as the new Atlanta Tech Village. Everything about the Village has exceeded my expectations. Entrepreneur support has been incredible. Community support has been incredible. And, support from city leaders has been incredible. I truly didn’t know what to expect and looking back it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

Here are a few observations after a year at the Atlanta Tech Village:

• Our staff at the Village is amazing and creates the magic
• Startup demand continues to exceed expectations, and is most concentrated in companies with 1 – 6 employees
• Hosting community meetings has been one of our best marketing vehicles and we’ve had over 150 events (our original goal for this year was to do 50 events, which we blew past)
• Startup Chowdown has taken on a life of its own and is the largest weekly gathering of entrepreneurs in the Southeast with 200+ people every Friday
• Atlantans have great pride in the city and having one of the 10 largest tech entrepreneurship centers in the country enhances the excitement
• Renovation costs are way higher than originally budgeted, especially with soft costs factored in (our goal is to be the best and the location, finishes, and amenities reflect that)

As part of sharing more background on the thinking and documenting some of the findings, I’ve written over 25 blog posts on the Atlanta Tech Village lessons learned and observations. Some of the most popular posts include the Economics of the Atlanta Tech Village, Mission, Vision, and Core Values for the Atlanta Tech Village, Translating Per Person Costs to Standard Commercial Real Estate, and 5 Goals for the Atlanta Tech Village.

Here’s to the next 10 years and everything in store for the future of Atlanta’s startup community.

What else? What are some other Atlanta Tech Village observations after one year?