Atlanta Beltline Symbolizes Efforts to Reverse Tide of Sprawl

As in many other cities, young adults in Atlanta are increasingly choosing to live in the urban core rather than in any number of the region's sprawling suburbs. Even so, the contrast between central Atlanta and its outskirts has not, historically, been as stark as those in other cities. Many downtown destinations, like the Underground Atlanta mall, have remained relatively lifeless because of low residential densities and un-walkable streets. 

The region, though, is in the process of building 45 miles worth of walkable, bikeable urban infrastructure. When completed, the BeltLine, plus a series of parks, will create a loop around central Atlanta with a 2-4 mile radius connecting 45 neighborhoods and creating a new sense of place for the central city. It has already "proven itself a powerful tool for changing the way people think about Atlanta’s development.

So far, $775 million worth of development has taken place within a half-mile of just one of the segments of the BeltLine. Planners tout developments like the adaptive reuse of a 1925 Sears warehouse and the 138-acre mixed-use Atlanta Station development. 

"It isn’t hard to see a geographic correlation between the location of this trend and the outline of the Atlanta BeltLine. Looping the center of the city with a series of paths and parks, it will, when fully completed, pass through 45 close-in neighborhoods that are all within a two- to four-mile radius of downtown. Even in its partially completed early stages, the BeltLine has proven itself a powerful tool for changing the way people think about Atlanta’s development."