The Beltline’s Importance to Atlanta’s Economy
By Sandy Smith
Imagine going from Inman Park to Piedmont Park in just a few minutes – without a car. That’s just one of many intriguing things about the Atlanta Beltline – a bicycle- and pedestrian-friendly intown trail being built on land formerly used by the railroads. It’s like a river that flows through those neighborhoods – a river that runs with no stoplights, traffic or hassle – that even a native Atlantan like myself never knew existed.
The development of the Beltline could be a key not just to recreation and better transit – it has the potential to be a powerful economic force. Other cities are working hard to pull ahead of us in the competition to attract a vibrant, growing population. The beltline is the sort of thing that appeals to the young people who are so important to helping Atlanta thrive.
To me, the beltline and the flourishing neighborhoods with new apartment coffee shops, restaurants, parks and open spaces are what we want to attract the next generation of bright young people. They raise their families here, which contributes to the area for years to come, and possibly their whole lives. This sense of community helps Atlanta keep a competitive position with other cities both socially and economically.
I had read about the beltline but, like many people, it didn’t click until I experienced it in person. I recently rode the Eastside Trail with a group of bicyclists, who were amazed at how it easily connects neighborhoods. If you start at Piedmont Park in Midtown, it’s just a few minutes to what used to be City Hall East, then Historic Fourth Ward Park, then in Inman Park. I’ve been to all these places before – many times – but the Beltline helps you experience them in ways that are completely new.
And this was just one of the trail’s finished segments; the Northside and West End Trails are also paved and open. Hikers can walk through unpaved segments, including one behind Ansley Mall.
Atlanta business is already benefitting. New apartments line many parts of the trail, and new restaurants and coffee shops are opening. Nearby businesses have seen their sales increase since the Eastside Trail opened. Plus, the Beltline says that the overall development could add $20 billion to the local tax base.
The vision is to have it encircle the entire center of the city. Eventually, officials hope it will have a light rail component. But the plan still has a long way to go. Completing it will take both money and altruism, which are things Atlanta’s been short on for the last several years. Once the Southwest Connector Trail, which broke ground in January, is finished, only seven of the planned 22 miles will be complete. Land must be bought and cleaned up. Voters shot down a sales tax for transportation last year, which would have helped fund this and many other projects. The Georgia Supreme Court is considering a Fulton County Taxpayers Foundation challenge to some of the current funding.
But still, thanks to the support of government, philanthropists and members of the community, the project is moving forward. Looking at it from a business and economic perspective, this is a chance for the city to make its mark. The Beltline connects our city in a way that hasn’t been done before, unless it was before the rise of the automobile. The vision is there – it’s up to us to see it through.
Sandy Smith, a partner with Womble Carlyle, is on the board of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research founded by George Shultz. He also chairs another Stanford think tank – the Institute for Research in the Social Sciences.
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