Fire Protection Design Requirements: Alina at 1072 West Peachtree, Atlanta, GA

Meta Description: Fire protection design for a 60-story mixed-use high-rise in Midtown Atlanta: NFPA 13 (2019), NFPA 72 (2019), NFPA 101 (2018), and Georgia fire code.

Section 1: Project Overview

Alina, at 1072 West Peachtree Street NW in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia, is a 60-story, 749-foot mixed-use tower developed by Rockefeller Group in a joint venture with Taisei USA LLC and Mitsubishi Estate New York. Turner Construction Company is serving as general contractor. The building was designed by TVS Architecture. At 749 feet, it is Atlanta's tallest new tower since the 1990s and the city's tallest residential structure.

The program includes 357 luxury rental apartments in the upper floors, 224,000 square feet of Class-A office space distributed across eight floors in the lower and mid-tower, and 6,300 square feet of ground-level retail. Amenity levels serve both the residential and office populations. Construction financing was provided by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, with equity from the Rockefeller-Taisei-Mitsubishi joint venture.

Vertical construction began in July 2023 and the structure topped out on November 7, 2025. As of spring 2026, the building is in interior fit-out with exterior façade work substantially complete.

The authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) is the City of Atlanta Fire Rescue Department, operating under Georgia's State Minimum Fire Safety Standards. This project was permitted under the editions in effect at the time of permitting: NFPA 72 (2019 Edition), NFPA 13 (2019 Edition), and NFPA 101 (2018 Edition) with Georgia amendments.

Section 2: Fire Protection Challenges Specific to This Project

At 749 feet, the water supply pressure challenge is significant but more manageable than a supertall. The static head from grade to the uppermost residential floors exceeds 320 psi. A single fire pump at grade cannot deliver compliant residual pressure to the hydraulically most remote sprinkler in the upper residential floors. The design requires at minimum two pressure zones with a booster pump station positioned at an intermediate mechanical floor. Pressure-reducing valves are required at the lower floors of each zone to keep working pressure within the rated limits of the piping system and sprinkler heads. Zone boundary placement must be coordinated with the building's structural mechanical floors — which, on a project with Turner Construction's BIM workflow, means that conversation needs to happen in design development, not during permit coordination.

The mixed-use program creates two distinct occupancy classifications within the same high-rise structure. Office floors are governed by NFPA 101 (2018 Edition) Chapter 39 (Existing Business Occupancies) for the built structure; the residential apartment floors fall under Chapter 30 (New Apartment Buildings). These chapters carry materially different requirements for corridor fire resistance ratings, egress component sizing, and occupant notification. The design narrative submitted to Atlanta Fire Rescue must define the occupancy boundary clearly — including any shared amenity floors — and the fire alarm system must be zoned and configured to meet the notification requirements of each occupancy type independently.

The Emergency Voice/Alarm Communication System (EVACS) design must address the operational difference between office and residential occupants. Office occupants on evacuating floors require audible and visual notification with a directed-evacuation message. Residential occupants on floors not immediately involved may remain in place under a defend-in-place strategy. NFPA 72 (2019 Edition) Section 24.4 governs the in-building emergency communication system for high-rise buildings; the sequence of operations for selective floor notification must reflect both the occupancy split and the fire department's operational preferences. Pre-permit coordination with Atlanta Fire Rescue on the EVACS narrative avoids rework during plan review.

Section 3: Required Systems and Applicable Codes

The project is governed by the City of Atlanta Fire Rescue Department under the Georgia State Minimum Fire Safety Standards, which incorporate the following editions as of the project's permit date:

Note: Georgia adopted NFPA 72 (2022), NFPA 13 (2022), and NFPA 101 (2024) effective May 27, 2025. Projects permitted before that date are reviewed under the editions in effect at time of submission.

High-rise classification under NFPA 101 (2018 Edition) Section 11.1.3 applies to any building exceeding 75 feet in height measured from the lowest level of fire department vehicle access to the floor of the highest occupiable story. At 749 feet, Alina triggers all Chapter 11 high-rise requirements: automatic sprinklers throughout, EVACS, emergency lighting, and standpipe systems in all stairwells.

Class I standpipe systems are required throughout the stairwells under NFPA 14. At 749 feet, static pressure at lower-floor hose valves will exceed the NFPA 14 maximum of 175 psi without pressure-reducing hose valves — a detail that requires explicit documentation in the design drawings submitted for permit.

Section 4: What Designers Need to Think Through

The pressure zone boundary is a structural coordination item, not just a hydraulic calculation. Fire pump rooms require dedicated floor area, adequate clearance for pump and controller access, and appropriate electrical infrastructure. In a 60-story building, the intermediate mechanical floor locations are determined by the structural design team. If the fire protection engineer's required pump station floor doesn't align with an available mechanical level, the resolution is expensive. Get the zone pressure calculation done in schematic design and get the required mechanical floor location on the structural drawings before they're issued for construction.

The occupancy transition floors between office and residential require explicit documentation. On a mixed-use high-rise, the floor where office program transitions to residential is often shared with amenity spaces — rooftop decks, fitness facilities, conference rooms — that serve both occupancies. These floors do not fit cleanly into either NFPA 101 Chapter 38/39 or Chapter 30. The fire protection designer needs to produce a written occupancy analysis and submit it to Atlanta Fire Rescue for acceptance before the floor plans are finalized; changes to corridor construction or egress configuration after permit submission are costly.

Emergency Responder Radio Coverage (ERRC) must be included in the permit package under Georgia and City of Atlanta requirements. On a 60-story building, the distributed antenna system supporting public safety radio is a substantial scope item that requires early coordination with the telecom engineer and a pre-submission test protocol accepted by the fire department.

Section 5: How ProTech CDS Approaches Projects Like This

ProTech CDS provides fire protection contract documents for mixed-use high-rise towers — fire alarm, sprinkler, suppression, and BIM coordination — under a white-label delivery model. Our process on projects like Alina starts with an occupancy classification analysis and a preliminary pressure zone calculation before any layout work begins. That sequence identifies pump room location requirements and mixed-occupancy notification issues while the structural and mechanical designs are still in development.

NICET IV review and PE seals are available in all 50 states when the AHJ requires them. To submit a project for scope review, visit lockin.protechcds.com.

Section 6: Call to Action

Working on a mixed-use high-rise fire protection package? ProTech CDS delivers fire alarm and suppression contract documents with white-label delivery in all 50 states, with NICET IV review and PE seals when the AHJ requires them. Submit your project at lockin.protechcds.com.