Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed has said he’s not interested in playing “real estate developer.” But he has clear ideas how a resurgence in downtown development — that’s already underway — could get a further boost from the sale of city-owned properties.
Reed wants to sell the 77 soon-to-be-vacant acres at Turner Field, the struggling Civic Center and Underground Atlanta to private developers. The mayor hopes it’ll add fuel to more than a billion dollars in development already taking place downtown from the new Falcons stadium, to the streetcar, to Georgia State University.
» INTERACTIVE MAP: Major Atlanta development projects
In an interview in his city hall library, the mayor is quick to sketch on a cocktail napkin how he’ll use the three city assets to re-imagine downtown Atlanta.
Clean up blight. Push development out from downtown universities. Build off the appeal of the Atlanta Beltline and Ponce City Market. Leverage the promise of the new Falcons stadium.
“We’re going to take all of these assets and bring them toward the center, which brings 18- to 35-year-olds into the heart of these corridors,” Reed said. “When I finish, the city is going to have the strongest spine it’s ever had before.”
But can the city juggle so many projects with all its other responsibilities?
In Sunday’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution and myajc.com, reporters J. Scott Trubey and Katie Leslie explore Reed’s plan.
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