Few architects and developers have reshaped the American city as dramatically as John Portman has done in the past quarter-century. From the hulking Marriott Marquis hotel in Manhattan to the sprawling Embarcadero Center office % complex in San Francisco, Portman has left an imposing mark on urban skylines. But the Atlanta-based master of the vaulting atrium and the skylighted ceiling faces a severe cash crunch. In October, burdened by more than $2 billion in debt and hurt by low occupancy rates in many of his buildings, Portman surrendered to creditors his control of Atlanta's 13-block Peachtree Center, the cornerstone of his...
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