'Cop City' Protesters Disrupt Construction At 487-Unit Midtown Apartment Project
Two people protesting Atlanta’s plan to develop a large new police training facility disrupted construction Monday morning at a huge luxury apartment project in Midtown.
One person locked themself to a construction elevator and another to a boom lift being used on the site, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Police closed Juniper Street to traffic around 8 a.m. but removed the protester tied to the boom an hour later, the AJC reported.
The general contractor of the two-tower project in Midtown is Brasfield & Gorrie, the same contractor tapped to work on the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, dubbed “Cop City” by its critics.
The two protesters targeted the site of a 487-unit, two-tower apartment project being developed by a joint venture of Charleston, South Carolina-based Middle Street Partners and AECOM-Canyon Partners. One of the towers is slated to reach 36 stories, while the other tops out at 33 stories. The partners landed a $245M construction loan in 2022 to launch the project on the site that formerly housed the restaurant Einstein’s and the bar Joe’s on Juniper.
The AJC reported that training center protesters also gathered on the side of the road and SWAT officers arrived to assist police in removing the second protester from the site. That person was removed by 10:15 a.m. Both were arrested and charged with criminal trespassing, according to a statement from Brasfield & Gorrie.
"We’re thankful that no one was hurt, and we appreciate the quick response of law enforcement. Work continues on the construction site," Brasfield & Gorrie said in a statement sent via email to Bisnow.
Calls to AECOM-Canyon Partners and Middle Street Partners weren't returned.
The public safety training center, on 85 city-owned acres off Key Road in the South River region of DeKalb County, is planned to be used to train Atlanta police, firefighters, emergency medical services and 911 staff. It would consist of a 59K SF training facility, an 18K SF leadership building, a mock fire station for training, emergency scenario training buildings such as a mock nightclub, motel/apartments and a gas station, a shooting range and green space with pedestrian paths, according to its website.
The project is slated to cost $109M, a sum that has increased from the announced $90M in part due to extra costs associated with ongoing demonstrations.
This isn’t the first time protesters, who have organized under the banner Stop Cop City, have targeted Brasfield & Gorrie sites.
In May, protesters broke windows of the Birmingham, Alabama, offices of the general contractor and painted “Drop Cop City Or Else” on the building, 11 Alive reported. In September 2022, the Birmingham home of Brasfield & Gorrie Chairman M. Miller Gorrie was targeted by training center protesters as part of a campaign to pressure the contractor off the project, the AJC reported.
"This is the latest in a related string of events over the past year and a half, many of which have involved criminal activity," Brasfield & Gorrie's spokesperson said in the statement. "Since this string of events began, we’ve taken steps to increase security as well as planning and response protocols. We continue to work closely with law enforcement agencies to monitor and respond to potential activity on an ongoing basis."
The wooded training center site itself has become a frequent flashpoint between police and protesters, some charging that the facility will further militarize the Atlanta police. Others are concerned with the environmental impact of the facility.
In January 2023, police shot and killed Manuel Esteban Paez Terán during a raid on a protest camp. While police say Terán, known by the nickname “Tortuguitam,” shot at officers during the raid, injuring one, family members and other activists have questioned law enforcement’s version of events. Local prosecutors later said the six officers involved in the shooting wouldn't face charges, determining they acted in self-defense.
In March, a group of protesters swarmed the actual training center site in what police described as a coordinated attack, setting multiple pieces of construction equipment on fire, according to Construction Dive. Police later charged 23 activists as terrorists in the attack, The Associated Press reported.
UPDATE, JAN. 29, 5 P.M. ET: This story has been updated to reflect a statement from Brasfield & Gorrie and specific charges against the two protesters.
