DuPre Excelsior Mill
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The Excelsior Mill is a former excelsior (wood wool) mill located at 695 North Avenue (U.S. 78) in the Poncey-Highland neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia. The mill was built in the 1900s (1901 or 1905) by DuPre Manufacturing Co. During the late 1970s and 1980s, the buildings were home to an independent pizzeria, complete with a small movie theater and an in-house pipe organ. In 1988 or 1989, it became the Masquerade, now a well-known nightclub and concert venue for both indoor and outdoor shows.
In January 2006, the club was sold to developers Poncey Highlands Investors, who agreed not to destroy the building which many locals are seeking historic designation for. Tentative plans are that it may again become a restaurant, possibly with a microbrewery. Condominiums will be built around it, and the Belt Line behind it will likely become used for rapid transit again in the somewhat near future. The club's former owner plans to reopen it at another location, but many doubt it can ever be the same without its historic building.
City Hall East, opposite the club on the north side of the street, is also slated for redevelopment. The area is within neighborhood planning unit M (NPU-M).
