Members of the Atlanta City Council Transportation Committee on Wednesday pressed pause on state plans to build a skybridge over Martin Luther King Jr. Drive as part of a $400 million makeover to Capitol Hill.
The state’s vision includes a new eight-story legislative office building at the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Capitol Avenue that would have been connected to the Gold Dome by a bridge suspended three stories in the air.
The Georgia Building Authority has said it would make it easier for lawmakers and the public to move between meetings.
But city of Atlanta leaders — who are usually at the mercy of state decisions — shot down the proposal with a 5-0 vote, saying that a secluded skybridge would reduce foot traffic downtown and ultimately hinder efforts to revitalize the area.
“I’m a big believer that these sorts of pedestrian bridges — or I like to call them hamster tubes — don’t do much or do anything to get people on the street patronizing businesses,” said Council member Jason Dozier, who represents the area home to the state Capitol.
Credit: JOHN SPINK / AJC
Credit: JOHN SPINK / AJC
Lawmakers from across the state flock to Atlanta for 40 legislative days — or around three to four months of work — before returning to their Georgia communities. In recent years, the state has made a variety of changes to the area around the Gold Dome that shut off streets and even installed a $5 million, 8-foot-tall steel fence around the building.
“This is the latest in a series of decisions that the state has made that have been antagonistic toward these properties being open to the people,” Dozier said. “Now we have this pedestrian bridge that will have hundreds of state legislators and staff members ... not willing to be connected to the larger community that surrounds the building.”
The Georgia Building Authority said in a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the state would continue to advocate for the project.
“We respect the City of Atlanta’s committee process and we stand ready to answer any of their questions and address their concerns,” said Gerald Pilgrim, chief of staff for the building authority. “We look forward to bringing this important project to the citizens and improving their ability to participate in the State of Georgia legislative session.”
Credit: Houser Walker Architecture
Credit: Houser Walker Architecture
The city’s preservationists also decried the state’s proposed skybridge, saying it would significantly take away from the historic facade of the building.
“The Capitol Building is one of the most significant structures in the city and in the state,” said David Y. Mitchell, the executive director of the Atlanta Preservation Center. “These things are protected; these things exist for a reason. They stand as symbols to let people know it’s a place where they can go to be heard, be seen and be recognized.”
The state needs Atlanta’s permission to build the bridge since it crosses a right-of-way owned by the city. City Council would have also needed to hand over air rights for the project to move forward.
“Our friends from Dalton and Thomasville and Macon and Swainsboro, et cetera — we welcome them on our streets,” said Council member Amir Farokhi. “Downtown Atlanta and the area around the state Capitol will be made better by folks walking around the footprint.”
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