Bill Text: GA HR1347 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Portman, Mr. John Calvin; commend and invite to House
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 6-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-02-05 - House Read and Referred [HR1347 Detail]
Download: Georgia-2009-HR1347-Introduced.html
10 LC
94 2093
House
Resolution 1347
By:
Representatives Smith of the
113th,
Keen of the
179th,
Burkhalter of the
50th,
Jerguson of the
22nd,
Lindsey of the
54th,
and others
A
RESOLUTION
Recognizing
and commending Mr. John Calvin Portman, Jr., and inviting him to be recognized
by the House of Representatives; and for other purposes.
WHEREAS,
Mr. John Calvin Portman, Jr., has long been recognized for his commitment to the
urban environment as an architect, developer, business entrepreneur, and civic
leader; and
WHEREAS,
he served as a guardian of this nation's freedom and liberty in the United
States Navy during World War II; and
WHEREAS,
a native of Atlanta, Georgia, Mr. Portman earned a bachelor's degree in
architecture from the Georgia Institute of Technology and opened an Atlanta
architectural firm, John Portman and Associates, in 1953; and
WHEREAS,
over the last six decades, his firm has grown from a two-man office to the
Portman Family of Companies, a global organization based in Atlanta that
includes Portman Holdings, a real estate development company, and AmericasMart,
a home decor wholesaler; and
WHEREAS,
at a time when most builders and developers were fleeing America's inner cities,
Mr. Portman drove his architectural stake solidly into the ground and into the
urban streets of Atlanta by designing numerous buildings that carved stylish
urban spaces from a decaying downtown and guided the rejuvenation of Atlanta's
center into a vibrant world capital; and
WHEREAS,
his Peachtree Center Office Building in Atlanta established a model for
multipurpose complexes globally, and his famous Hyatt Regency Hotel, with its
22-story lobby of 120 feet on each side, served as the prototype for countless
atrium hotels; and
WHEREAS,
Mr. Portman's Peachtree Center Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel extended a 73-story
glass cylinder of 1,100 guest rooms from the core of a raw concrete base; his
Atlanta Marriott Marquis features a 50-story lobby and 1,675 guest rooms on
splayed floors that dramatically overhang a grandiose atrium; and in 2000 he saw
the opening of SunTrust Plaza Garden Offices; and
WHEREAS,
Mr. Portman has taken an active role throughout his career in civic leadership,
guiding the city's first comprehensive study of downtown as president of Central
Atlanta Progress, championing the construction of the city's rapid rail system
in the 1970's, and initiating the idea of the Georgia World Congress Center to
help foster Atlanta̓s growing convention industry; and
WHEREAS,
committed to his alma mater and architectural education, Mr. Portman diligently
and conscientiously served on the Georgia Tech Advisory Board and the Georgia
Tech College of Architecture Alumni Board; and
WHEREAS,
it is abundantly fitting and proper that the outstanding accomplishments of this
remarkable and distinguished Georgian be appropriately recognized.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of
this body commend Mr. John Calvin Portman, Jr., for championing the advancement
of Atlanta and Georgia through his remarkable civic service and design
excellence and invite him to be recognized by the House of Representatives at a
date and time to be determined by the Speaker of the House of
Representatives.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized
and directed to transmit an appropriate copy of this resolution to Mr. John
Calvin Portman, Jr.
