Tom Cousins
| Tom Cousins | |
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| Born | Thomas G. Cousins |
| Alma mater | University of Georgia |
| Occupation | Real Estate Developer, Philanthropist, Sports Supporter |
| Home town | Atlanta, Georgia |
| Spouse(s) | Ann Cousins |
Thomas Grady Cousins (born December 1931) is a real estate developer, sports supporter and philanthropist, primarily based in Atlanta, Georgia. Cousins was a leader in shaping the skyline in Atlanta, and he purchased and brought the Atlanta Hawks to the city.
Cousins is also known for his community redevelopment and his desire to help local neighborhoods. In 1995, he purchased the historic East Lake Golf Club with the intent that its profits would go back to help the local East Lake community. Cousin's model of community redevelopment is now being implemented in cities all over the country through a program he founded to replicate the East Lake model called Purpose Built Communities.
Cousins graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) in 1952 from the Terry College of Business at The University of Georgia in Athens. He and his father started their real-estate company in 1958. During the 1960s, Tom Cousins moved from real-estate to property development and sports franchising.
He developed buildings such as the CNN Center, the Omni Coliseum, 191 Peachtree Tower, the Pinnacle Building in Buckhead and the first phase of the Georgia World Congress Center. He and competitor John Portman completely remade downtown Atlanta in the 1970s and 1980s.
He also helped revive and redesign the home course of golfing great Bobby Jones, East Lake Golf Club, which had fallen into disrepair. He hired Rees Jones (no relation to Bobby) to redesign the golf course, which has since hosted the PGA Tour's season ending Tour Championship several times, and become one of the leading golf courses in Atlanta. Cousins and his family financed the project to the tune of about $25 million. This was part of a greater revitalization of the East Lake Meadows housing project in the East Lake neighborhood around the golf course.
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Wikipedia