The savior of Buckhead Atlanta has defected to Portman Holdings. In a shocking move, Hunter Richardson has left OliverMcMillan, where he steered the revival of Ben Carter's failed luxury mixed-use project for new owners, and joined one of Atlanta's most storied development firms. For Portman, the hire is a solid move. After years pursuing international development projects, recently there's been a shift to concentrate on domestic development, Hunter tells us. “We are going to be actively pursuing other development in the Atlanta area.”

Most recently, Portman acquired 230 Peachtree, which is being renovated as both an office building and a Hotel Indigo. Hunter says the timing to leave overseeing Buckhead Atlanta—despite some development left there—is right. “[This] is what I want to do for the next phase of my career,” he says. Hunter kicks off his new job by overseeing the start of Union Tower West, a hotel/office mixed-use project in downtown Denver that will break ground in the next 45 days. And Hunter, who has been living in Virginia and commuting to Atlanta for work the past few years, says he may now become a full-time Georgia resident.