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ew City Properties plans to expand its Fourth Ward development in Atlanta with hundreds of new apartments, pending market conditions. The $1 billion project will include two apartment buildings with 780 units, replacing a parking lot and the former site of Venkman's music venue at 740 Ralph McGill Boulevard. Berlin-based architect Barkow Leibinger will design the project.

    Construction is expected to begin when market conditions improve, but not all units will be built at once due to elevated interest rates and an influx of new apartments in metro Atlanta. The average advertised asking rent in the area was $1,638 this summer, down 0.1 percent from last year's average. Metro Atlanta posted the nation's second-biggest decline in rent growth year-over-year.

    The median rent in Old Fourth Ward is around $2,200 per month, about 33 percent higher than the metro Atlanta average. New City founder and president Jim Irwin notes that the high demand for housing in this historic neighborhood underscores the need for additional options. The development already includes a 360,000-square-foot office building, a hotel, and a 359-unit apartment building.