Cousins is synonymous with Atlanta Class-A office development, though it has developed mixed-use and retail properties throughout the U.S. Its footprint and influence stretch across metro Atlanta, and the company has played an especially vital role in Downtown revitalization since it acquired 191 Peachtree and American Cancer Society Center.

In spite of recession, Cousins is among the leaders in pulling Atlanta's office market towards recovery. In the past year, Cousins leased more than 1.5 million square feet of office space, with approximately 500,000 square feet on the agency side representing clients such as TIAA-CREF, Northwestern Mutual, Parmenter Partners and Jamestown. It's also added Carlock, Copeland & Stair at 191 Peachtree and renewed and expanded InComm at ACSC.

Perhaps the year's biggest momentum builder involved Cousins recapitalizing Buckhead's Terminus 200 with Morgan Stanley, which opened the door for 320,000 square feet of leasing at the building with tenants such as Sony Ericsson, Greenburg Traurig and Kids II. A lot of that momentum was built in the excruciatingly slow prior year as potential tenants tested the market but delayed decisions. In the interim, Cousins was able to "keep them in the boat," as Senior VP Walter Fish likes to say.

"These big tenants didn't hang around for six months because of rate," said Thad Ellis, a senior vice president at Cousins. "It speaks to the relationships we built with those prospects and the customer service our team provides."

Toward the end of 2009, Majestic inked agreements for build-to-suits for Kraft Foods Inc. and Dendreon Corp. at Majestic Airport Center III near Interstate 85 and Georgia Highway 138 in Union City. The Kraft deal for a 960,000-square-foot distribution center is among only a handful of blockbusters over the past few years, while Dendreon's 160,000-square-foot manufacturing facility will produce Provenge, the biotech firm's new prostate cancer drug. The two build-to-suits occupy approximately 50 percent of Majestic Airport Center III's developable land.

"In an ultra-competitive marketplace, Majestic was fortunate enough to land two build-to-suits in 2010 totaling over 1.1 million square feet," said Carr Carothers, director of leasing and development at Majestic. "The Kraft and Dendreon build-to-suits validate Majestic Airport Center III as the premier business park on the Southside of Atlanta, and we look forward to pursing other opportunities at MAC III and our business parks located across metro Atlanta."