Cousins Signs 88,000 Square Feet of New Leases At 101 Second Street; Leases Backfill 59% of Former Arthur Andersen Space.

Business Editors

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 17, 2002

Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ) and Myers Development Company announced that they have signed three leases totaling 88,000 square feet for an average term of 6.2 years at the 387,000-square-foot 101 Second Street in San Francisco, bringing occupancy at the Class "A" office tower to 83%.

Nexant, Inc. has leased 35,000 square feet to relocate its headquarters to 101 Second Street, and Ziff Davis Media Inc. has also leased 35,000 square feet, with both tenants expected to begin paying rent on or before January 2003. In addition, Wealth and Tax Advisory Services, Inc. began occupying 18,000 square feet for its new San Francisco office in August. Phil Tippett and Bill Walsh of CB Richard Ellis represented the landlord in all three transactions. Brad Colton and Cody Winchester of Arroyo & Coates represented Nexant, and Nick Slonek of CB Richard Ellis represented Ziff Davis.

Craig Jones, president of Cousins' Office Division, stated, "Located in the heart of the Financial District, 101 Second Street has established a reputation as one of San Francisco's most prestigious addresses. Since completing this project almost three years ago, we have been able to consistently attract an elite roster of leading U.S. and international companies. We are pleased that we were able to accommodate the unique needs of all three companies, while at the same time backfilling 59% of the space previously leased to Arthur Andersen. As previously reported, Arthur Andersen's lease of 148,000 square feet was terminated in August, and 88,000 square feet of the space was released within 30 days. We are optimistic we will be able to successfully release the balance of this space."

Nexant, Inc. is a premier provider of technology solutions and experience-based technical and management consulting services to the global energy industry. Wealth and Tax Advisory Services, Inc., a subsidiary of HSBC USA and part of the HSBC Private Client Services Group, serves the wealth and tax advisory needs of high net worth individuals. Ziff Davis Media Inc. is a special interest media company focused on the business and consumer technology markets. With over 20 million readers, it is one of the largest magazine publishers in the United States.

Cousins Properties Incorporated, headquartered in Atlanta, has extensive experience in the real estate industry including the development, acquisition, financing, management and leasing of properties. The property types that Cousins actively invests in include office, retail, medical office and land development projects. The Company's portfolio consists of interests in 13.3 million square feet of office space, 3.1 million square feet of retail space and .9 million square feet of medical office space, and more than 300 acres of strategically located land for future commercial development. Cousins is a fully integrated equity real estate investment trust (REIT) that has been public since 1962 and trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "CUZ." For more information on the Company, please visit Cousins' web site at www.cousinsproperties.com.

Certain matters discussed in this news release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws and are subject to uncertainties and risks, including, but not limited to, general economic conditions, local real estate conditions, interest rates, the Company's ability to obtain favorable financing, and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Form 8-K filed on March 9, 2001. The words "believes," "expects," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and speak as of the date of such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of future events, new information or otherwise.