Sam Carroll and Walter Brown are leasing this historic office building current being redeveloped.

Work is underway on a major redevelopment project in the heart of downtown Birmingham.

The Frank Nelson Building, a historic building at the corner of 20th Street and Second Avenue North, is being redeveloped into “The Frank” by local group Orchestra Partners.

The firm said this week the building is being re-thought as a “vertical campus,” with modern office spaces that can accommodate entrepreneurial and innovative businesses.

“The success and popularity of Innovation Depot inspired this vertical approach. The new generation of entrepreneurs wants to amplify collaboration and offer amenities to staff they can’t get anywhere else, like showers, games, media rooms, phone nooks, sleep pods, etc,” said Principal Hunter Renfroe. “Since we don’t know exactly what they want, we’re going to provide executives the tools to choose it themselves. Moreover, the idea-sharing across industries and floors will be the next step in the evolution of Birmingham’s startup scene.”

The project is significant in that it is one of a very few majority office-related redevelopments in downtown Birmingham. Work is expected to be complete on the office spaces between late 2019 to mid-2020.

The Frank will have more than 100,000 square feet of office space, or 11,000 square feet per floor, which include downtown views in three directions. The spaces have 10-foot ceilings and large windows typical of the early 1900s era in which the building was first constructed.

Orchestra Partners said it will renovate the entrance lobby, update the building’s facade and provide controlled access for building tenants. Ground floor tenants UPS Store and Trattoria Centrale are staying in the building, and a corner retail space could attract a new lunch or dinner restaurant.

A key aspect of the project is the 630-space parking deck. There will also be an interior courtyard for tenants as well as amenities like meeting space on the lower level and a rooftop bar or event space.

Design-build firm Creature is working on the building, and Graham & Co. is leasing office and retail space.

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