ATTACHMENT “A” TO NOMINATION RESOLUTION C I T Y O F A T L A N T A KASIM REED DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT TIM KEANE MAYOR 55 TRINITY AVENUE, S.W. SUITE 3350 – ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30303-0308 Commissioner 404-330-6145 – FAX: 404-658-7491 www.atlantaga.gov CHARLETTA WILSON JACKS Director, Office of Planning Designation Report for Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) Application Number: N-16-382 / D-16-382 Proposed Category of Designation: Landmark Building / Site (LBS) Zoning Categories at Time of Designation: I-1 and Beltline Zoning Overlay District: 17 Land Lot(s): 57 Fulton County, City of Atlanta Designation Report Sections: 1. Eligibility Criteria 2. Findings 3. Physical Description of the Property 4. Period of Significance 5. Narrative Statement of Significance 6. Biography, History, and Architectural Context 7. Contributing / Non-Contributing Structures 8. Bibliography 9. Potential for Transfer of Development Rights and Economic Incentives 10. General Boundary Description 11. Boundary Justification 12. General Plat Map Designation Report for the Trust Company Bank Building LBS – N-16-382 / D-16-382 Page 1 of 29 1. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA As more fully described in this Designation Report, the Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) meets the following criteria for a Landmark District, as defined in Section 16- 20.004(b)(2)(a): Group I - Historic Significance: (Three (3) total criteria - if qualifying under this group alone, at least one (1) criterion must be met) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) meets two (2) criteria: (1) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) is closely associated with the life and work of a person of exceptionally high significance to the City of Atlanta (the “City). Henri Jova’s architectural career in Atlanta spanned almost five (5) decades, from his Atlanta arrival in 1954 and work at Abreu & Robeson Architects to his retirement from Jova/Daniels/Busby in 2002 as Chairman of the Board. Jova/Daniels/Busby existed from 1966 until 2013. Taking into account both Henri Jova individually and his firm, Jova had an influence on the City’s architecture and physical development for almost 60 years. During that time, Jova or the firm he founded produced numerous significant and award-winning projects as judged from both an architectural perspective and community development perspective, including but not limited to: Colony Square, Underground Atlanta, Atlanta Newspapers Building, North Avenue MARTA Station, Atlanta City Hall Addition, The Carter Center, The Temple Restoration and Additions, and the Carnegie Pavilion. Additional projects in the metro area, the State of Georgia, and other locations add to the breadth of Jova and his firm’s influence. Along with other notable architects, engineers, and developers, Jova played a significant role in shaping the City’s physical form from the 1950s to the 1970s when a significant portion of the City of Atlanta as it exists today (and many of its iconic buildings and places) were developed. Lastly, Jova personally played a significant role as a champion for retaining and revitalizing Atlanta’s in-town neighborhoods. (2) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) is associated with extremely important historical trends of local significance. It is representative of the change in the City’s physical form during the 1950s and 1960s to an automobile-oriented, suburban-style development pattern focused on providing quick and convenient access for vehicles. A significant portion of the City that exists today was developed during this time period and buildings such as the Trust Company Bank Building serve as reminders of when this change first occurred. Further, the building’s design represents the shift away from pedestrian-oriented and surface street-connected business locations in traditional commercial nodes to locations that had high visibility from the relatively new “freeways” and were seen as stand-alone destinations. In addition, it represents a shift in the banking industry’s business practices and vision of itself. As noted by DOCOMOMO, this building: Designation Report for the Trust Company Bank Building LBS – N-16-382 / D-16-382 Page 2 of 29 Changes to all aspects of banking, from the increasing use of automobiles to changes in banking regulations, “helped transform an institution that represented tradition in all facets to one that embodied a new American vision: the modern, progressive bank building as a powerful image- making and passive advertising tool.” This modernization expressed itself no better than in the form of the drive-through teller and the car-centric bank branch. (DOCOMOMO, 2016, par. 2) Group II- Architectural Significance: (Fourteen (14) total criteria - if qualifying under this group alone, at least five (5) criteria must be met) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) meets seven (7) criteria: (1) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) clearly dominates and is strongly associated with a street scene and the urban landscape. Given its location next to and visibility from Interstate 85 and a surface street that provides direct access to Interstate 85, the building and its sign super structure are the dominant visual presence for the surrounding street scene and the immediately surrounding urban landscape. Though not particularly tall or large, the building’s unique design, shape, and location on a gentle slope define the urban fabric of this part of the City. Lastly, given the building and sign are the only structures on a relatively large property, the open space and parking areas that surround them (a typical suburban site planning strategy) heightens their outsized visual presence in the urban landscape. (2) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) is the work of an exceptionally important master architect. Henri Jova’s architectural career in Atlanta spanned almost five (5) decades, from his arrival in 1954 and work at Abreu & Robeson Architects to his retirement from Jova/Daniels/Busby in 2002 as Chairman of the Board. The firm itself existed from 1966 until 2013, also almost five (5) decades. Taking into account both Henri Jova individually and his firm, Jova had an influence on the City’s architecture and physical development for almost 60 years. During that time, Jova or the firm he founded produced numerous significant projects as judged from both an architectural perspective and community development perspective, including but not limited to: Colony Square, Underground Atlanta, Atlanta Newspapers Building, North Avenue MARTA Station, Atlanta City Hall Addition, The Carter Center, The Temple Restoration and Additions, and the Carnegie Pavilion. Additional projects in the metro area, the State of Georgia, and other locations add to the breadth of Jova and his firm’s influence. Along with other notable architects, engineers, and developers, Jova played a significant role in shaping the City’s physical form from the 1950s to the 1970s when a significant portion of the City as it exists today (and many of its iconic buildings and places) were developed. As noted in his American Academy in Rome obituary and other commentators, Jova received recognition for his design expertise and work throughout his life, including: - Winner of the prestigious Rome Prize from the American Academy in 1951; - a Fulbright Fellowship; - Fellow of the American Academy in Rome; - Fellow of the American Institute of Architects; - Fellow of the American Society of Interior Designers. Designation Report for the Trust Company Bank Building LBS – N-16-382 / D-16-382 Page 3 of 29 - Silver Medal for “consistent pursuit of achievement of the highest quality in design” from the Atlanta Chapter of American Institute of Architects (1985); - Member of the AIA National Committee on Design; - Member of the AIA National Honor Awards Jury; - Member of the Advisors at Cornell College of Architecture; - Trust Company Bank Building was noted in Time Magazine, Interiors, and other publications when it was completed in 1965; and - Trust Company Bank Building chosen by the American Institute of Architects as one of Atlanta’s best buildings of the previous century: one of five buildings representing 1956-1965. (4) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) is an example of a style that is extremely rare in the City. While there are buildings and structures in Atlanta that are considered “Modern” in style, the vast majority of commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings in the City are various combinations of more traditional architectural styles that predated World War II (both revival and non-revival, such as Federal, Georgian, Craftsman, Neo-Classical, etc.) and “post- modern” architectural styles that developed after the 1970s. Further, as noted by Rinehart, very little “Modern” architecture existed when Jova began practicing in the City: When Jova first came to Atlanta in 1954, the field of contemporary architecture was small, and few buildings could be Modern or International Style. Notable exceptions where Rich’s Store for Homes (Toombs and Creighton, 1947), Grady Hospital (Robert and Company, 1958) and Lenox Square (Toombs, Amisano and Wells, 1959). The Fulton National Bank (Hendrick with Wilner and Millkey) built in 1958, as the city’s first modern office tower, and, in fact, the first high-rise office tower built in Atlanta since the 1930s. The great explosion of modern architecture following Atlanta’s long slumber had yet to occur. (Rinehart, 2007, page 31). (5) The Trust Company Bank Building Landmark Building / Site (LBS) is an example of an exceptionally fine unique style and building type. The building is one of the few buildings in the City that are round in shape. Further, the building’s use of the curved, segmented, pie-slice-shaped roof forms deviates from the more common, rectilinear, flat roof forms used in many other “Modern” buildings in the City.