ATLANTA -- Before Donald Trump was one of the leading candidates for the Republican nomination for President, you knew his name and more importantly, his brand of real-estate.
You'll find Trump Towers in world-class cities across the globe. From New York to Panama, Mumbai to Vegas, the Trump names carries a certain expectation of luxury.
Nine years ago a triumphant Donald Trump came to Atlanta to announce his plans to revolutionize the midtown Skyline. At the time, 11Alive cameras captured him showing off a model of Trump Towers Atlanta. The two massive buildings were going to sit on a prime piece of real estate and cost an estimated $300 million. But that dream never became a reality.
If you drive on Springs Street or West Peachtree through Midtown you see what could have been. Right now there's construction of a new 30 story tower not far from the Woodruff Art Center. Donald Trump thought it was a great location. "That is really a brillant design," he said back in 2007.
In April of that year, The Donald and his daughter Ivanka headlined a showcase of the Trump Towers Atlanta to much fanfare. They showed off models of two twin luxury condo buildings, one 47 stories, the other 38, with the distinctive Trump name right in the center.
The project's website, which is still up and running, boasts the units will have the ultimate standard of Trump luxury. When Trump spoke to us almost nine years ago, he raved about the city.
"Atlanta's just...they done a great job, an amazing job. We're just happy to be here. We also think we have the best site within Atlanta and that's very important," he said.
He and his daughter Ivanka said the time was right to build. "Now the time is right, the market is hot, the market is extremely strong," Ivanka Trump said.
But the market wasn't strong. Atlanta was hit hard by the recession, many projects failed.
By 2010, the planned towers were in foreclosure. The Trump organization says he was never the developer or the owner. Instead it was his name that was attached to the deal in hopes of making a big splash. Ultimately, that splash failed.
Those failures led to another company's success. Right now, construction is underway on a 350-unit building. It won't carry the distinctive Trump name.
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