Atlanta's Core Builds 'Up' Instead Of 'Out'

Atlanta has long been linked to sprawl and traffic jams. Now several huge mixed-use construction projects seek to remake the city's landscape. The new developments aim to create neighborhoods in Atlanta as swank and walkable as some sections of New York and Chicago with easy access to nearby office jobs, chic restaurants or fashionable boutiques. If successful, the physical and cultural shifts could serve as a blueprint for other cities.

A recently announced project called "12th & Midtown" features $1.1 billion worth of offices, hotels, condos and retail. "And that's just one of at least six multimillion-dollar projects with similarly ambitious goals under way in the urban core here."

"Though the suburbs are in no danger of emptying, demographers are finding demand for urban residences. Young professionals flooding Atlanta for employment are being joined by 'empty nesters' whose children have grown and moved out and by others who have finally had their fill of the long commutes from the outer ring of suburbs. Developers say they are seeing similar trends in other Sunbelt cities, including Charlotte, N.C., Tampa, Fla., and Dallas. It's part of a movement toward downtown living that's happening in many places across the country."

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