Touted as one of the largest office leases in Atlanta for 2024, Piedmont’s approximately 165,000-square-foot System Support Center is now open in Midtown Atlanta. Atlanta’s largest design firm, Cooper Carry, provided programming and predesign services, workplace interior design and experiential graphic services for the project, which consolidated three Piedmont offices across metro Atlanta into one centralized collaborative workplace. 

Located at 271 17th Street in Atlantic Station, Piedmont occupies levels 7-10 and 23-25 with a large conference and training center on the ground floor. Being the lead anchor tenant now prominently places Piedmont’s office as a part of Midtown’s skyline, with its logo featured on the 25-story trophy office tower overlooking the Downtown Connector. 

“During the programming process, our team spent an extended amount of time diving deep into the culture of the Piedmont,” said Dots Colley, Director of Programming + Predesign at Cooper Carry. “Collaborating closely with the Piedmont team, we crafted a design that’s thoughtfully tailored to their distinct work style. The result is a workplace that not only reflects who they are today, but also supports their continued growth and evolution.”

The top three floors of the building were previously occupied by a law firm. Tasked with fiscal responsibility – or, as Piedmont calls it, Stewardship, one of the nonprofit system’s four anchors -- Cooper Carry’s mission became reusing and repurposing as much of the original law firm buildout as possible. The firm salvaged glazing, doors and some existing offices while also using advanced architectural finishes to reface the existing wood to preserve its original function but with a fresh look. A grand staircase left by the previous tenant was also restored and refreshed. The lower floors started as blank slates. In the past, Piedmont would rent ballrooms and other external spaces to host large events. In an effort to increase efficiency and reduce costs, the healthcare organization leased the ground-floor retail space in their new building to create a large training center that can host conferences, training sessions, after-hours events, seminars and serve as a primary entrance and hospitality suite for guests.

“As a non-profit healthcare system, Piedmont is deeply connected to its community and committed to responsible stewardship,” said Sarah Keithly, Lead Interior Designer at Cooper Carry. “We developed a bespoke design to address their priorities centered on three design themes: cohesion, connectivity and longevity. These themes are woven throughout the space, supporting an environment that reflects Piedmont’s values, supports efficiency and stands the test of time.”

Due to Piedmont previously housing its resource systems across three locations, cohesion is one of the central design themes for the new office. No matter which floor an employee or guest is on, they will know they are at Piedmont. The design incorporates repeating patterns, colors, materials and layouts to provide a sense of familiarity between floors, fostering comfort and empowerment among employees. A softer color palette of grays, beiges, soft blues, mixed greens and burnt oranges complements the exterior views of the city. This design choice also allows Piedmont’s logo to pop against the architectural palette. On the ground floor, Cooper Carry’s Experiential Graphics team worked with Piedmont to commission an original watercolor mural by local artist Christina Kwan. The artwork incorporates vibrant reds and oranges, as well as the Magnolia flower emblematic of Piedmont's branding. 

Another key goal for Piedmont when merging and centralizing hundreds of employees was to create more happenstance connections and water cooler conversations. “We really wanted to create new spaces that Piedmont did not have in their previous workplace locations. Spaces that could, by design, generate opportunities for staff who may have never worked together before, or even been in separate buildings, to now meet, interact, collaborate and generate new energy to launch Piedmont into the future,” said Brian Parker, Principal of Interiors at Cooper Carry. 

Shared meeting rooms, collaboration zones and coffee bars were designed to provide additional spaces for teams across departments to foster connections. Every corner of the new office has a non-reservable huddle room that gives incredible views of the city for all employees to share and foster collaboration. All of the shared break rooms face the exterior with great site lines and a variety of seating arrangements for whether employees prefer to recharge alone or with coworkers. Cooper Carry also implemented lighting that would be seen from the busy Downtown Connector to add continuity to the exterior expression of the building after hours.

Having signed an extended lease, Piedmont wanted its office spaces to last. Cooper Carry considered product longevity, scrutinized material warranties, identified PFAS-free materials and incorporated creative approaches to rejuvenate the existing spaces. The long-lasting materials and adaptable layouts reinforce Piedmont’s values to support growth and efficiency.

 To explore Cooper Carry’s portfolio of office workplace design, visit www.coopercarry.com/.