Stone Mountain is sizing up three competing real estate advisory firms to figure out the future of Lawn on Main, the 3.47-acre downtown greenspace the city bought in 2024. The pitches on the table range from a roughly 22-week sprint to a year-plus process that would include a full search for a private developer. Whoever wins the job will be expected to run a market feasibility study, draw up site plans, and lead community engagement before bringing in a developer. The stakes are clear: the decision will guide whether the land stays largely open parkland, turns into a hotel-driven tourism anchor, or tries to split the difference.
The property, long known locally as the Baptist Lawn, plus an adjacent Georgia Military College building, were acquired by the city in 2024 and rebranded as Lawn on Main as part of a broader downtown refresh. Before putting out a request for proposals for a development advisor, the city hired Pond & Company to handle surveying and schematic design. Those early moves are laid out in the City of Stone Mountain meeting packet.
Three Firms, Three Speeds
The finalists are Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis (CBRE), Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), and 4PM, each pitching a different balance of time and price. CBRE is proposing a 12 to 18 month schedule, paired with a $20,000 monthly retainer, according to CBRE. JLL has outlined a fixed $250,000 fee to line up a development partner in about eight months. 4PM is pitching the fastest track, with a timeline of roughly 22 weeks, as reported by Atlanta News First.
Preserving Greenspace, Courting Hotels
Mayor Jelani Linder has been blunt about one non-negotiable: the neighborhood is not giving up its lawn. "This deal does not work, nothing will work, if the community does not get a green space," he said, describing a concept that pairs public open space with a hotel intended to boost local tax revenue. Linder told Atlanta News First the site could become the city's newest tourist hub while still functioning as an everyday space for nearby residents.
What The Advisor Would Do
The chosen advisor will be tasked with delivering a feasibility study, generating site and design options, organizing community engagement sessions, and then packaging and marketing the project to qualified developers. The request for proposals describes that sequence as the way to protect long-term public value while still creating a project that can be financed. The city's procurement materials and meeting packet spell out those deliverables and the scoring criteria used to rank the competing firms, and they are available in the city's posted documents.
Next Steps
The RFP set a tight timeline. Sealed proposals were due in April, followed by an optional pre-bid meeting held on site that same month. The top-ranked teams then presented to the mayor and council in early May, after which the city expects to negotiate a contract with the selected advisor, according to the city's procurement documents. The posting bundles the RFP, evaluation materials, and a site survey that maps the individual parcels making up the 3.47-acre property.
Local business owners and residents say they want more activity downtown without losing everyday access to the lawn, and city leaders argue that balance is exactly what the advisor will be hired to guard. The mayor and council are set to keep debating which team is most likely to protect the green while delivering economic lift in their upcoming meetings.
