The Lowdown: Aaron Goldman

I Bet You Didn't Know...Goldman was a founder and became board chair of the Atlanta Real Estate Collaborative, a group of real estate principals who created a non-profit. Goldman also serves as the founding board chair of Open Doors.

By Marcia Caller Jaffe February 15, 2023, 2:47 pm Edit

After 37 years with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and now with the AJT, , Jaffe’s focus is lifestyle, art, dining, fashion, and community events with emphasis on Jewish movers and shakers.

Atlanta is chock full of interesting “movers and shakers” – some bent on creativity, empire building, activism and/or just plain having fun and living the good life. Lean in to hear some of the “off the cuff” remarks as to what makes our spotlight, Aaron Goldman, tick.

Raised in Milwaukee, Wisc., Goldman is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin Real Estate Program and served on the Wisconsin Real Estate Alumni Association Board of Trustees. He is the president and co-owner (with brother-in-law, Tim Schrager), of Perennial Properties, Inc., a development, investment, and management firm focused on apartments accompanied by retail establishments.

Five of the earliest apartment and mixed-use communities on the BeltLine are Perennial Properties.

Perennial’s existing portfolio is centered in Atlanta’s Intown neighborhoods including West Midtown, Virginia Highland, Morningside, Piedmont Heights, Emory, Buckhead, Inman Park, Grant Park, East Lake, and the Old Fourth Ward.

Perennial has acquired or built more than 30 properties in metro Atlanta. The company has also developed projects in Athens as well as Tampa and Orlando.

Goldman served as a board member for Cool Girls, Inc., a nationally recognized mentoring and afterschool program serving Atlanta’s at-risk girls. In 2012, Goldman was a founder and became board chair of the Atlanta Real Estate Collaborative, a group of real estate principals who created a non-profit. Goldman also serves as the founding board chair of Open Doors.

Goldman resides in Morningside with his wife and daughter. The Goldmans also have a son at the University of Wisconsin and a daughter at the University of Colorado – Boulder (a badger and a buffalo)!

Find out how Goldman notched the “belt” in BeltLine:

What are you reading?
“Powder Days,” a fascinating book about the life of ski bums in the west in search of the biggest snow, air (jumps, cliffs, etc.) and parties, while addressing the impacts of climate change and extreme income inequality in resort towns.

My wife says I’m too…
There is a claim that I snore, she has recordings…

My best real estate deal…
Sept. 12, 2001 (day after 9/11) we went under contract for seven acres in the Old Fourth Ward on the border of Inman Park, with frontage on “scary” train tracks. We had no idea if Atlanta, or the world, would come back, Atlanta being an “airport” town. While under construction for apartments, we were asked for a small donation for what sounded like a longshot project to turn those tracks into a network of pedestrian trails and light rail transportation (calling it “The BeltLine”) linking 46 neighborhoods. We said ‘yes,’ and our karma was pretty good.

What are you streaming?
“The Recruit” on Netflix and waiting impatiently for “Fauda” season 4.

What was your most unusual job?
I was the ticket taker for the local beach ($1 for the day or $10 for the season/family) on chilly Lake Michigan.

My last fashion disaster…
I bought 11 items of clothing for my wife and daughters for Chanukah to head to a ski trip that I thought were exceptional. They returned 10.

When I walk on the BeltLine, I feel…
Excited and grateful for the leadership that created this opportunity to rejuvenate the intown community with recreation, commerce and vitality.

The one odd thing about real estate is…
You can’t escape it, it’s everywhere, both sides of the street, at ground level and up in the horizon, at home and wherever you travel.

The best advice your grandfather ever gave…
“The figures never lie, but the liars always figure.”

What was your most exotic vacation?
Went on a hiking and biking trip with 10 couples to Basque country in Spain and France. The Basques speak neither French or Spanish and have extraordinary sea and mountains, food, and wine.

What is one thing most folks don’t know about you?
I’m a major “cheesehead” from Milwaukee, which relates to owning the Midtown Bowl (for “Laverne and Shirley” lovers).

Your guilty pleasure?
Anything bourbon and walking the dog to podcasts about “P and P” (politics and the Packers).

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