In developing the Bank of America plaza, this
flexibility came in handy. When the project started, Cousins and the bank then known as C&S formed
a partnership between tenant and developer that lasted through multiple mergers and name changes from
C&S to C&S/Sovereign to NationsBank and finally to Bank of America. The partnership worked so well
it led to another major development between the partners in Charlotte, North Carolina, indicative of
Cousins’ diversification into other office, retail, industrial, and residential markets across the country.
The process of constant review defines the modus operandi in the Cousins’ administration. "In general,
people don’t ask enough questions, and they don’t listen to the answers," Bell says. "At Cousins,
we ask a lot of questions."
Bell finds it encouraging that others in Atlanta are now asking some of those same questions. One of the
difficulties in directing smart growth is coordinating the 165 governmental entities in the region, all of
which are making land use decisions every day. To get these groups talking to each other and planning
together is the first step. "We can’t stop the growth," Bell says. "We have to accommodate
it while it’s happening." Whereas critics of Atlanta have condemned the way the city has sprawled,
Bell believes even if the region had recognized the growth that was coming, there was no way its
infrastructure, which takes time to develop, could have kept pace. Now he recognizes a fresh willingness
among government, public- and private-sector leaders to coordinate on air quality, water and sewer
systems, and transportation issues. "There seems to be a spirit not present in prior times to embrace
our growth and cooperate with each other. Take out the things on which we don’t agree," he says.
"If we can just do some of the things on which we agree, we’ll make a huge difference." That’s
smart growth.
Office of Communications and External Affairs
Robinson College of Business,
Atlanta, Georgia 30303
Tel: 404-413-7080; Fax: 404-413-7076; E-mail: External Affairs
In developing the Bank of America plaza, this
flexibility came in handy. When the project started, Cousins and the bank then known as C&S formed
a partnership between tenant and developer that lasted through multiple mergers and name changes from
C&S to C&S/Sovereign to NationsBank and finally to Bank of America. The partnership worked so well
it led to another major development between the partners in Charlotte, North Carolina, indicative of
Cousins’ diversification into other office, retail, industrial, and residential markets across the country.
The process of constant review defines the modus operandi in the Cousins’ administration. "In general,
people don’t ask enough questions, and they don’t listen to the answers," Bell says. "At Cousins,
we ask a lot of questions."
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