Chatter

By Paulie [eatl/ga]

October 12, 2006 10:50 AM | Link to this

Good thing we are planning for it by only allowing responsible development and adding mass-transit capabilities.

By Sean B

October 12, 2006 10:54 AM | Link to this

I live in East Point and would like to move closer into the city. If it weren’t for all of the people that live in the south metro area, my commmunte on the connector wouldn’t be so bad.

By Census G

October 12, 2006 10:55 AM | Link to this

and furthermore folks don’t buy into this talk about a ‘…housing bubble burst’ - there is no such thing as a national housing market or a national housing bubble - real estate has always been local and the metro atlanta housing market is white hot - now city govt lets stop cutting off our nose to spite our face - compromise with the beltline guy and beef up the public transportation!!!!!

By once ITP

October 12, 2006 10:59 AM | Link to this

I recently lived in a high rise downtown for 3 years and loved the environment, but the combination of higher per square foot cost and very high property taxes caused me to return outside the perimeter. I’d like to think that an inverse correlation will occur (increased residents = decreased taxes) but we all know that taxes rarely come down.

By Robert Reed

October 12, 2006 11:00 AM | Link to this

Atlanta should benefit from increased population, but this city does not have a history of urban dwelling (distinct from streetcar suburbs like Inman Park) and has not displayed the will to manage quality of life issues such as noise, parks and vagrancy. Mayor Franklin had so much basic work to do when she arrived that it is understandable that these have not been addressed, but if we are to reap the benefits of increased population we need to follow the example of cities that do not tolerate uncivil behavior.

By Jason

October 12, 2006 11:10 AM | Link to this

Well, all of those who think intown living is expensive now compared to OTP had better plunk down some cash because the law of supply and demand says it is just going to get more and more expensive. Now is the time to make the change, not five or ten years from now. This is especially true if you want a house with a yard because gentrification is causing those property values to go through the roof.

Clayton and south Gwinnett are clear signs of what is the future for the suburbs. Get out before your property value crashes into the ground and you can’t afford to leave.

By Tyryztoll

October 12, 2006 11:18 AM | Link to this

One of the many reasons I left Atlanta - great town, but getting WAY too big WAY too fast.

By Ben

October 12, 2006 11:23 AM | Link to this

I’m one of those suburbanites considering a move intown. I currently live near Eagle’s Landing and I frequently feel trapped by the traffic.

By Eric Rogers

October 12, 2006 11:23 AM | Link to this

I moved back to Atlanta after 5 years in Denver. After coming back, I have noticed the growth in population but nothing of the transportation infrastructure. Atlanta has to act now in devloping her mass transit rail system similar to New York and Chicago. The city is already behind the growth curve, but it is not too late to get the ball rolling. Its citizens are crying out for this so why isn’t the city listening?

By Ernest

October 12, 2006 11:34 AM | Link to this

I agree with Eric, with this possible influx of new residents, hopefully there is a planned/managed growth plan that includes transportation. We need to educate the community about the merits of either carpooling or light rail, among others.

I REALLY like what was done in the DC area with the Metro and their live/work communities around various stations. I wish we had that foresight during the early days of MARTA.

By shanthemanatl

October 12, 2006 11:37 AM | Link to this

While I think these numbers may be a bit overly optimistic, I wouldn’t be shocked to find 700,000 calling the city of Atlanta home by 2020. That said, we desperately need the transit portion of the Beltline to be completed as soon as possible. And, not only do we need the Peachtree streetcar line, but we need streetcars running on every major north-south and east-west thoroughfare in this city, linking to MARTA and the Beltline.

By Brent Scott

October 12, 2006 11:56 AM | Link to this

I left Atlanta in 2000 and headed for San Francisco. San Francisco has all the amenities that one could offer. A public transit system that gets me where I need to be, a cultural living environment that accepts my right to love another man and every country is represented right here in the Bay city. Atlanta, if you truly are an international city then you need to provide an environment that will foster this. Take a good look at San Francisco and take notes because you have the potential to have a subway system, street cars, buses, and a livable city but you have to realize that Atlanta is not just the capital of a hick state but a city that has held the Olympic Games. You already have one up on San Francisco so now take the leap into the future and maybe just maybe, I will return to Hotlanta!

By lynn d

October 12, 2006 12:05 PM | Link to this

Unless people will raise families in multi-family housing, I suspect that these projections are overly optimistic. I just think that families want a back yard, a true neighborhood and of course, good schools.

Time will tell, if Atlanta will become like NYC, Chicago and San Francisco, where families are routinely found in multi-family housing, because they want to live there not because it is all they can afford.

By cw

October 12, 2006 12:09 PM | Link to this

Two themes: 1) Atlanta and other cities will start to resemble many developing country cities: the wealthy wil live in the city and the poor will live away from the city — the poorer the farther away; and 2) Atlanta really needs to improve its mass transit by a) adding bus lanes on major roads so busses can relaibly move around the city; b) adding commuter trains that link with Chattanooga, Macon, Athens and Birmingham, maybe Charlotte; and c) putting the beltline in place as soon as possible.

By MP

October 12, 2006 12:30 PM | Link to this

I can beleive that more and more people will move from the suburbs back to the city. As baby boomers get older which contains a lot of wealth, they will ditch houses with big yards and all the responsibility that comes with them. Plus as metro Atlanta continue to grow the commute will become to long for people to continue to move further out. So they will choose to live close in or intown to shorten drive time. Also if they live intown their’s less need for a car. So as people move intown the jobs will follow and visa versa, we or already beginning to see that take place.

By mike jones

October 12, 2006 12:33 PM | Link to this

Atlanta will control to grow (So will the Burb’s) if Atlanta can figure out how to keep Race and Politics out of the whole situation.

By Rival

October 12, 2006 12:43 PM | Link to this

If it weren’t for all of the people that live in the south metro area, my commmunte on the connector wouldn’t be so bad.

Man, I hope that was a joke. There are twice as many people living in the north metro area than the south metro.

Cobb vs. Coweta, Gwinnett vs. Henry, Forsyth vs. Spalding…it’s not even close.

It’s not the population of the south metro area that clogs the Connector. It’s because the employment center of Atlanta isn’t downtown anymore - it’s Perimeter & Buckhead. So people who drive in from East Point to work in Buckhead have to take the Connector or similar north-south route.

By Tyryztoll

October 12, 2006 12:45 PM | Link to this

I moved to Boston from Atlanta last month, and you won’t find a bigger contrast between cities as far as public transportation goes. The difference is Boston is actually a city, whereas Atlanta is a region - just like L.A. I seriously doubt you’ll ever see anything like the “T” here in Boston down there in Atlanta - too spread out and it would cost so much it would never get off the drawing board. Granted, I do miss my car every now and then (I sold it when I moved here), but all I have to do is listen to my brother vent about the latest I-75 nightmare and I am fine again!

By BPJ

October 12, 2006 12:45 PM | Link to this

Regardless of which figure is correct, we’re going to have a lot more people in the city soon. 700,000 by 2020 is easy to believe. So, yes, we need to get going on expanding MARTA rail, adding light rail, commuter rail, and the Beltline.

So what can you do about it? Commenting on AJC forums is nice, but telling politicians that you will only vote for them if they support major expansion of transit options in and around Atlanta is the way to get results. These folks are running around asking for your vote (and money) right now; tell them in no uncertain terms (but politely of course) that this is a voting issue for you. The more of us they hear from the better.

So what are you waitng for? Do you know who’s running for city council, county commission, state legislature, and Congress where you live? You should know! The info is readily available on the web. Start calling and e-mailing. Now.

By Kevin

October 12, 2006 12:48 PM | Link to this

Why don’t all the transplants go home.

By Jason

October 12, 2006 12:49 PM | Link to this

800K isn’t that far fetched. The metro is projected to grow to six million by then, which means that the increase in the city population would come through only capturing about 20% of the metro increase. Given that the demographics in the US are rapidly changing, the problem of families with children wanting large homes with a large yard does not matter. Families with children is one of the slowest growing demographic groups. Most growth in this category comes from immigrants and not from those who are third generation or higher Americans.

I expect that the families who do live in town in the future will find it a much different place. Because gentrification pushes out those of lower income, the schools will not have to spend so many resources on addresses issues that are associated with children from low income homes. Combine that with a much larger tax base and an even or lower student count, it is likely that APS will end up being the best school system in the metro instead of one of the worst. Parents will desperately want to be able to afford a home in APS districts and may push for city annexation if they can’t afford a home in the existing limits.

Most of the population growth is going to come from empty nesters, a continueingly growing gay population, singles, and DINKS (Dual Income, No Kids). Those families that can afford to live in the city will find it a great place.

Sadly there are always winners and losers. Expect the suburbs the decay horribly, much worse than the city did during the white flight of the 70s and 80s. Providing infrastucture and police protection over the low density sprawling landscape is going to be expensive. Given the declining tax bases these areas will experience, services will have to be cut way back. This is already being seen in the older suburban areas and will continue to accelerate.

By Prootwadl

October 12, 2006 12:56 PM | Link to this

I live roughly three miles OTP, and I’m very happy where I am.

I love my house with all of the trees in the yard (our whole back yard, though small, is wooded, as are the back yards of the neightbors both behind and beside us), and I work just ITP — my daily commute is roughly 15-20 minutes of non-freeway travel each way.

I can’t think of any reason why I would move ITP. I don’t think I’d move any further OTP, either. For now, I think I’ve hit a happy medium. :-)

By Prootwadl

October 12, 2006 01:01 PM | Link to this

Why don’t all the transplants go home.

If it weren’t for the transplants, Atlanta would still be an interesting little railroad settlement called Terminus. :-)

By jim

October 12, 2006 01:06 PM | Link to this

I’ve lived in the downtown area for the past 5 years. While Mayor Franklin has much to be proud of we’ve still a long ways to go. Atlanta needs a transportation system like Washington, DC or New York City. We need more train tracks and more train stations. I work up the I-85 corridor and would love to take MARTA (the train) but choose not to because of having to take buses as well. This turns a 15 minute commute by car into a 45 minute plus ordeal! That is NOT convenient! And, more importantly, the homeless issue has to be addressed once and for all. I get sick of seeing the Buckhead and Dunwoody do-gooders pull into a parking lot visible from my home and watch them feed the homeless. It’s like feeding stray cats…feed them once and they keep returning. If you feel sorry for the homeless then come down, stay for a few days and observe! I can see drug deals, sex/prostitution and other crimes going on from my living room window! You won’t feel sorry for these bums once you’ve experienced first hand what they do to your neighborhood. The mentally ill need to be taken care of and the rest need to be jailed or, at the very least, made to work! I also get sick of everytime you walk of your home you’re hit up by a pan handler! Dude, get a job and work like the rest of us do! If only Atlanta could get a grip on the homeless and transportation we’d be a first class city. If I lived OTP I wouldn’t start packing just yet.

By Cari

October 12, 2006 01:07 PM | Link to this

No kids, no pets, a job in Midtown and no real love of my car. I’d be the ideal intown resident..if only I could afford housing!

By Sean B

October 12, 2006 01:08 PM | Link to this

I think they should put toll plazas up at all of the interstates and charge to drive inside the perimeter. The money would then pay for mass trasit. You want to live in the suburbs and drive into the city in your gas guzzling SUV, fine, then you pay for me to live in an urban center and take a train from point A to point B.

By Lee

October 12, 2006 01:10 PM | Link to this

Jason appears to be about the only intelligent blogger on this tread. Not only that he spells correctly and uses proper grammar and syntax. Hopefully he lives ITP.

By Bart

October 12, 2006 01:14 PM | Link to this

I moved to Midtown from Vinings in March. The number of high-density developments (there are five new or under-development condo high rises within six blocks of my place) is both encouraging and disturbing. When I think about all of the cars that these high-rises will be adding to the crowded in-town streets, it makes my skin crawl. We’ve got to press our elected official to throw some money at this problem … and fast!

By stick to the point

October 12, 2006 01:30 PM | Link to this

Lee, this blog is about gentrification, the population boom itp and the like - it’s not a grammar/spelling contest - your inability to stick to the point speaks volumes about your intelligence level

By Indifferent

October 12, 2006 01:31 PM | Link to this

Tyryztoll good points. I actually moved here from Boston in 2001 and love it here. I DO NOT miss the Winters in Boston. They are very rough. But the ‘T’ was a very convenient way to get to work for me. The problem with Boston is you cannot afford to live there unless you are independantly wealthy which is why I am here in Atlanta. The traffic here is killer but the grass is not always greener on the other side because traffic is just as bad in Boston, NY, Chicago etc….except the weather here is nicer to drive in.

By mark

October 12, 2006 01:35 PM | Link to this

I find it ironic that all the criticism always comes from the ones the “now” live in more progressive cities, but continue to read the AJC on a daily basis.

By Kevin

October 12, 2006 01:50 PM | Link to this

If the transplants went home we wouldn’t have any of these problems. :|

By Lee

October 12, 2006 02:02 PM | Link to this

Stick, if someone’s spelling and grammar are so poor how can one comprehend their statements? The point is unless you can express yourself intelligently don’t bother to leave a post.

By Stinky Sullivan

October 12, 2006 02:04 PM | Link to this

I BLAME TWO TYPES OF PEOPLE:

1. Cold-fearing YANKEES pouring down here and complaining about “how everything is so much better up North” Well, Einstein, if it was so much better GO BACK THERE!

And 2.ILLEGAL HISPANICS pouring into our counties with absolutely no regard for our laws, yet sopping up all of our tax dollars to “be humane.”

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!

SS

By LJ

October 12, 2006 02:08 PM | Link to this

So a bunch of people living in a backwards city

By bella

October 12, 2006 02:14 PM | Link to this

I live ITP in a modest bungalow with a big yard.

Unfortunately, I have yet to find a job ITP. During my years in Atlanta, I have worked in Douglasville, Norcross and Marietta.

Maybe if there were places to actually WORK ITP, then more people would be drawn to intown living.

By Pillsbury Doughboy

October 12, 2006 02:24 PM | Link to this

Stinky Sullivan needs to relax.

I love morons who complain about how backwards Atlanta is. How stupid are you and have you ever left the South?

Atlanta needs more extensive transit. At that population, Atlanta would have about 6,100 people per sqaure mile. Now is the time to act.

By stick to the point

October 12, 2006 02:28 PM | Link to this

*”…The point is unless…” - enough said - Lee you stay after class and spell ‘useless’ 100 times on the chalkboard

By Lee

October 12, 2006 02:31 PM | Link to this

I live in Palmetto-Chattahoochee Hill Country area and have a decent commute in the mornings to downtown Atlanta M-F using all back roads in the morning, and in the afternoon going home via I-85 So. Traffic usually not too heavy around 5 p.m. My hope is that my area is not innundated by subdivions and shoddy housing. This area is too beautiful and pristine to screw up! Therefore, there is no moving intown for me !

By Jason

October 12, 2006 02:39 PM | Link to this

bella, keep your eyes open at all times for new employment opportunities and eventually you’ll find something ITP. I use to do consulting and had to drive all over the ‘burbs and hated it. Eventually I found employment in Midtown and jumped at the chance. My old employer was quite happy with my work and I was advancing nicely in the company but I took the risk to jump to an intown employer and have been happy ever since.

Employers want to keep costs down. Many moved to the suburbs because rents were cheaper but also because it was hard to attract talent from the suburbs to the city. Now that high paid professionals are moving back intown and are making the choice to switch to intown employers, other employers are being forced to move back in town. Once upon a time Southern Company headquarters was in the Dunwoody/Sandy Spring area but now it’s Downtown. The city’s largest developer, Cousins, is moving from Cobb County to Downtown. Many smaller firms are doing the same. When the savings on rent are outweighed by the increased absenteeism of employees struggling to make it to work and the cost of turnover of burnt out employees, you’ll seen the flow of employers turn into a flood.

You might not be able to find intown employment immediately but keep the faith. The largest and best employers are moving back intown. Keep looking and you’ll eventually find your short commute bliss! My ten minute walk to the office is the best perk I’ve ever had.

By Lee

October 12, 2006 02:40 PM | Link to this

Try re-reading the sentence Stick. The word I was spelling was unless. Your posts are useless. Maybe you should stay after school and improve your reading skills.

By Dan

October 12, 2006 03:08 PM | Link to this

I live in a famous highrise on Peachtree Street in Midtown that started the condo building craze 4 years ago and LOVE IT. I have lived in Midtown for years before that and LOVED it even when it was a neighborhood only for gays, drag queens and prostitutes ! now EVERYONE wants to live in Midtown. the MidtownAlliance had it right all along.. growth was coming and we needed to plan for it.

By cpj

October 12, 2006 03:37 PM | Link to this

Lee spelled subdivisions wrong @2:31 post. Lee can’t spell either. Stay after class Lee.

By Lee

October 12, 2006 03:48 PM | Link to this

I’m Lee #2 …. actually I had all A’s in spelling, but none of us are perfect cpj…and you’re certainly not perfect by bringing up such silliness. Childish maybe.

By Davey Bob

October 12, 2006 04:13 PM | Link to this

Growth for the sake of growth is the philosophy of the cancer cell. - Edward Abbey

By CJ

October 12, 2006 04:20 PM | Link to this

I don’t believe it. What they aren’t factoring is the number of people that will leave metro Atlanta because the quality of life will s*ck.

Do we have the water to sustain this growth? Who cares, the counties zoning commissions are just the developer,s b*tches.

By cpj

October 12, 2006 04:30 PM | Link to this

You should have put Lee#2. How was anyone to know you were not Lee. Lee said no one on this board could spell are had proper grammer but Jason. Just letting him know he’s not perfect either.

By James

October 12, 2006 04:33 PM | Link to this

We better get mass transportation done now because gas and oil will be going through the roof later. People are not going to be able to afford to drive their cars later. Mass transportation is the way to go. Need the beltline and streetcars going up and down Peachtree Street. High density is necessary so people can access their jobs, retail, and the like. Don’t believe me? Check out http://lifeaftertheoilcrash.net and seriously read this stuff.

By BPJ

October 12, 2006 04:35 PM | Link to this

So……how many of you have called your elected officials (or wannabe elected officials) this afternoon, to tell them how important these issues are to you?

By Justin

October 12, 2006 04:48 PM | Link to this

By Jason October 12, 2006 11:10 AM Clayton and south Gwinnett are clear signs of what is the future for the suburbs. Get out before your property value crashes into the ground and you can’t afford to leave.

Jason, this is also happening in Cobb County, especially in the Atlanta Road, South Cobb Drive, Windy Hill Road, Austell Road and Powder Springs area. Our property values are decreasing rapidly. It is starting to look like Gwinnett. The crime rate has risen immensely and there is a growing Black and Hispanic gang population.

By Deborah

October 12, 2006 04:49 PM | Link to this

I bought a single family house in the Morningside/Virginia-Highland area eight years ago. I have a great house with a fairly large wooded yard. I can walk to restaurants and shops and I’m five miles from my work (no interstates). Intown living doesn’t have to be in a highrise. There are plenty of single family homes in neighborhoods like Grant Park, Inman Park, Morningside/Va-Hi, East Atlanta, Candler Park, etc. I could go on and on. I wouldn’t live OTP if someone gave me a house.

By Jason

October 12, 2006 04:55 PM | Link to this

I agree with intown living being on the rise, but let’s not get too excited. Currently, living downtown is completetly inconvienient. There is zero retail downtown, so in order to buy a loaf of bread, rent a movie or buy cat food you have to get in your car and drive to Midtown or Edgewood. We definitely can’t rely on public transit for these errands. Before any real urban living growth occurs in Atlanta the homelessness has to addressed. Downtown Atlanta is a haven to the homeless and mentaly ill, and the problem gets worse everyday. Nobody wants to live around what goes on in in Downtown Atlanta everyday. Real and positive growth for the inner city will never occur until these vagrants are eliminated.

By Jason #1

October 12, 2006 05:45 PM | Link to this

I have to disagree with the 4:55PM Jason. I live Downtown carfree and get my groceries at the Midtown Publix. It’s only a couple of MARTA stops away. I did have to buy a collapsable shopping cart and some thermal bags for my frozen foods but that just goes with adjusting to a new lifestyle. Anyone who thinks that they can move intown and not make changes to how they do things is going to be sorely disappointed. Also retail is on its way to Downtown. At least two grocery stores (rumored to be Whole Foods and Publix) are going in the Centennial Hill area. Target has long expressed an interest in Downtown but are waiting for there to be enough residents to support a store. Until then, I have no problem taking MARTA to the Edgewood, Atlantic Station, or Buckhead Target.

As far as the homeless problem goes, it depends on where you are. On the north end of Downtown it isn’t a problem except around the horrible Peachtree-Pine shelter. Given that Downtown has 90% of the metro’s shelters but only a quarter of one percent of the metro population, there does need to be a rule against any more shelters Downtown. Other communities are finding that they can’t simply push their homeless out to Atlanta fast enough anymore and are being forced to have some shelters of their own. Eventually the real estate in town will just be too expensive for shelters and the only ones left will be the ones who refuse to sell their building at any price for ideological reasons.

By Yeeeehaaaaaaaaaa

October 12, 2006 06:10 PM | Link to this

MARTA? You mean the transit system that has a stop in front of the jail but not Turner Field? That tells you something about MARTA’s target audience. MARTA? You mean the transit system that Gordon Bynum supported but was murdered next to? MARTA? The transit system that shuttles criminals to and from Buckhead?

By BPJ

October 12, 2006 08:05 PM | Link to this

As I recall, Mr. Bynum was killed in or near his driveway, by men who were in a CAR, not having arrived by MARTA. Only the fact that he had walked from a MARTA station converted a killing in a driveway into a “MARTA slaying,” in some people’s minds.

By Van

October 12, 2006 08:06 PM | Link to this

Here is an idea. Let’s just go ahead and move everyone in the U.S. to the South. For example, we will abandon all the other states and move everyone to FL, GA, and AL, all 300 million of us. Sure, it will be crowded but look at it this way, we can give the rest of the country back to nature and just trash the environment here in the South. It’s happening anyway. Then, if you care to see an old-growth forest or a clear stream you can venture out of the populated section of the U.S. and visit the rest of the now abandoned nation like one huge national park. I am a genius.

By Lee2

October 12, 2006 08:25 PM | Link to this

You’re absolutely right, Van … Speaking locally, I shudder to think whats going to become of GA’s coast and the North GA mtns. As for Atlanta, well, whats left? We do have a good covering of trees around..for now…

By Jeremius Shakazulu Abul El-Alamin Muhamid

October 12, 2006 08:44 PM | Link to this

Delvelopers mowing down the environment. Put that on the list.

By BK

October 12, 2006 08:53 PM | Link to this

Gayboy,

Please stay in the land of fruits & nuts. We don’t like your types in ATL. .

By jonny

October 12, 2006 10:16 PM | Link to this

Has anyone thought that maybe the developers are making this marketing campaign in the AJC to sway people to buy their overpriced, cheaply constructed, condominiums. The best way to market is to act like it is “verified” report in the AJC on unfounded statistics. Much more cost effective to take the AJC reporter out to a nice dinner than to pay for full page ad’s. Don’t be a sheep following these rascals. The cheap cconstruction makes their price per foot a GRAVY train. Wake up.

By mark

October 12, 2006 10:53 PM | Link to this

Hmmmm, let’s see. Cousins buys back 191 peachtree, which is only 20 % leased out. They bought it back form Equity Office (one of the smartest, biggest commercial players is in the NATION). Equity say’s they are liquidating EVERYTHING they have in the ATL because the future looks very bleak. Cousins has muliple projects going up in-town, both res. and comm.. So hey boy’s, let’s make a buzz in the AJC that intown “IS IT”. what a crock-o-s…. They are trying to do a head game on everyone so they THINK that in-town is “IT”. They are trying to create a false buzz that “f you do not live in-town then you are missing the boat”….whatever. Just ask a few intown condo owners what kind of rate of return they are making from the condo’s they bought 3-5 years ago. Sellers are actually trying to dump their crappy condos, and are willing to pay money at closing in order to get out. If you wish to live in town is one thing but believing it is the “bomb” for a “no loss” investment… Ok Trump junior. yYu might better double check these “statistics”(which were probally paid by cousins to get) and ask the people on the street. Realtors, mortgage bankers, etc who all KNOW this is a hyped up marketing campaign. around, around and around we go. pop goes the weasel …no one has a seat to sit in.

By NCR

October 13, 2006 12:42 AM | Link to this

If you think families are moving back intown, you’re crazy. Nobody wants to expose their kids to the crap that is “big-city” living. The suburbs are where it’s at, no matter how big Atlanta grows.
Now, singles, queers, and “nightlife” seeking-bimbos, then fine, downtown/midtown is where it’s at.
But, yes, more “clean” public transportation would be a good thing.

By tim

October 13, 2006 04:57 AM | Link to this

to the poster above me - ncr - i’m kind of shocked the ajc has allowed your disparaging comments to be shown here.

you’re downright wrong about families living in the city. they’re moving back, in cities across the nation. people are tired of being hopelessly and utterly dependant on their cars.

i would call you a jerk, but you’d probably get off to it. please feel free to never set foot ipt, or leave the middle of nowhere where you feel the most comfortable.

By Got What You Want

October 13, 2006 08:02 AM | Link to this

All I can say is thank God I live in a town that is far enough away from the sprawl that is Atlanta, but yet still has the drive and vibrancy to sustains itself on its own economically. My fear is that one day, maybe 100 years from now, sprawl will even reach my home town of Washington, Ga. in Wilkes County east of Atlanta. Until then, life couldn’t be better!

By BBP

October 13, 2006 10:15 AM | Link to this

Why would anybody be proud of more people crowded into a area that has destroyed the quality of life that existed even 10 years ago. I live outside of the city because I need good public schools, low crime, and less pollution. Crime is increasing outside the city because the crooks drive from one county to another committing their worthless activities. The drive into work is HORRIBLE unless I leave home at 6 am and leave work at 3:30. And forget MARTA…they are incompetent, inefficient, and dirty. Does not matter how many sports teams you have…how many great restaurants…how many shopping centers…how many cultural activities, the overall quality of life continues to go down…and the tide will change. People will not move into ATL area if they really research first and many folks (including me) will not retire here. Our days are numbererd.

By JohnF

October 13, 2006 11:20 AM | Link to this

To BBP,

I don’t know what area you are talking about, but you are grossly misinformed.

I’ve lived ITP, in Atlanta for over 20 years so I”m probably more qualified than you to decide if life is better or worse…and it’s definitely better…more things to do, more options as to where to live. My house which is paid off has appreciated 300% and I’m just closing on another. People are moving back into Atlanta and breathing new life to the city, which will create all kinds of new places to eat and play.

Crime is down, and I’d much rather breath the air around Brookhaven or Midtown then up 400 or 75/85.

Your commute is horrible because all of you suburbanites clog up the highways…It takes twenty minutes for my brother in Alpharetta to go 3 miles just to get on 400…my commute is 10 minutes and that includes stopping for coffee..

But please keep thinking the way you do, the last thing I want is a bunch of close minded hicks as neighbors. Go ahead…retire in Blue Ridge or Young Harris…I hear life up there is riveting…everyone loves Wal Mart and Bass Warehouse.

By kcb

October 13, 2006 12:08 PM | Link to this

To Mr. San Francisco, Brent Scott….just stay there!!!

We do not want anyone coming back that has the audacity to call us a hick state.

BTW, our children in GA only have one mother and one father. The way God intended it.

By mikeinga

October 13, 2006 01:51 PM | Link to this

KCB- You proved your own ignorance with that one statement…”our children in Ga only have one mother and one father”. I know several gay couples who have children, and raise them in the most amazing loving family environment you could think of. They are head and shoulders over most of the hillbilly families that raise children in this state, which probably includes you.

By benjie

October 13, 2006 05:55 PM | Link to this

Tyryztoll: what you said about Boston vs. Atlanta is nonsense. I lived in the Boston area for 12 years (middle school through college) until moving to Atlanta 2 years ago. Boston has many parallels to Atlanta: backbreaking traffic and a substandard public transportation system. Yes, the T is decrepit. I used it only because I could not afford a car as a student during my time there. Plus, Boston is very much a “region” like Atlanta is. You have Boston, Cambridge, Brookline, Somerville, Lexington, etc. etc. The traffic on Masspike during rush hour is as bad as any road in Atlanta because of the suburban commuters coming to and from their jobs via car. When traffic is at its worst on the I-93 corridor, it can put 285 or the connector to shame. Plus, similar to Atlanta, there is nobody actually living in true downtown Boston (i.e. the financial district area). However, just like Atlanta, that is beginning to change. The parallels between Boston and Atlanta are countless.