Words create worlds. Truth is, there was a time when train tracks like the Atlanta BeltLine divided communities, mostly along socioeconomic lines. “Where you’re always on the right side of the tracks” acknowledges that past while simultaneously casting a vision for a more inclusive future. Because words create worlds. The Atlanta BeltLine railroad re-invented as a common meeting ground for all of us is part of the awesome sauce that makes the surrounding neighborhoods -- BeltLandia -- … [Read more...]
Dancing with the Goats at Ponce City Market
I’m always jonesing for a good cup of coffee and one of my favorite places is Dancing Goats Coffee Bar, which just so happens to be right on the BeltLine! I used to love going to their Decatur location, but it was a little too out of the way for frequent visits (traffic, of course, being the deciding factor), so I was delighted when they opened their Old Fourth Ward location a few years ago. Dancing Goats was one the first businesses to open up at Ponce City Market. Over the past couple years … [Read more...]
Bring shelter for the soul to BeltLandia
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I recently toured a couple of live-work artist cottages at Serenbe Art Farm. The so-called 20K houses are the result of a seemingly unlikely partnership between the new urban enclave of the wealthy that is Serenbe, and Rural Studio, an undergrad program of Auburn University’s School of Architecture that builds houses for poor people. The visit took me back to one of the most transcendent moments of my life. It happened standing in a downpour outside a poor, elderly woman's home in Hale … [Read more...]
The Square – “At the Edge of Everything”
I remember when John Wieland Homes broke ground on Highland Park. It was the first new construction many of us had seen for a few years, thanks to the Great Recession. There was a collective gasp when the introductory price in the $300K range was announced for these townhouses. That seemed like such a high price point at the time. You have to remember that, at the depth of the recession, we had seen houses in the Old Fourth Ward go for as little as $15,000. Of course, the desirability for … [Read more...]
The Southside Trail – something to smile about
Earlier this year, #boardthebeltline activists created a stir when they DIY’d a plywood path nailed atop cross ties on a section of dormant railway. Did this expression of frustration with the pace of progress pent up demand for completing a key section of the BeltLine trail system actually help get things moving forward? Maybe. According to The Atlanta Business Chronicle, Atlanta BeltLine Inc. has released a request for qualifications (RFQ) for the design and engineering of its Southside … [Read more...]
Buyers loving Rtown architect-builder’s modern farmhouses
For the BeltLine to be truly transformative it should have transformative residential design as part of the metanarrative. More to the point, BeltLandia could sure use some fresh architectural statements. Abode Architect-Builder of Reynoldstown is bringing just that on seemingly every available lot left in the neighborhood. I describe their work as Scandinavian farmhouse mashup, with sprinkles of modern, gothic, folk, and victorian. "Modern Farmhouse" is the shorthand for this blend of the old … [Read more...]
How to improve your social life in a healthy way
I just got back from my semi-annual doctor's visit. One of the docs the Doc gave me as I was leaving was entitled "Management of Your Personal Health." The header of one section reads: "How can I improve my social life in a healthy way?" Learning that he is concerned with my social health as well as my physical health kick-started an inner monologue of new-found appreciation for my choice in health care professionals. After all, we keep hearing that social and physical health are … [Read more...]
Hoverboards, Flying Cars, and Wireless Solar Streetcars
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One of the speakers at the ribbon cutting for the Atlanta Streetcar congratulated the city and then wondered, “What’s next? Hoverboards and flying cars?” A fair question.That’s what the Back to the Future movies predicted for 2015, right? Although hoverboards and flying cars (of a sort) may actually be available, they’re still financially out of reach for the majority of us. Or they catch on fire. There is a technological advancement for the Streetcar that is well within our grasp and one … [Read more...]
Re-Learning To Ride A Bike On The BeltLine
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We're all jumping some sort of hurdle in our lives. Juggling jobs, families, running a business, maintaining relationships, creating new ones; we're all working around some sort of challenge. Those challenges can be present in our every day normal activities, or they can be more like the one I'm writing about today: in the back of your mind, and slowly nagging you to death. A few years after 1999 I was tooling around my college campus on my bike, zipping through throngs of students to get to … [Read more...]
Roofscape the Eastside Trail
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I often refer to the BeltLine as Atlanta 2.0 because of how it is upgrading the city. The elevations of the reclaimed railroad have definitely upgraded city vistas at certain locations. The downside is that users of the Line will sometimes be looking down at wide expanses of the rooftops of big box retail buildings. This certainly doesn't show us the building's best side. Little consideration has been given to these elevated deserts of gravel and black tar because they weren't visible before … [Read more...]
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