The Stitch, an innovative park idea that would straddle the busy Atlanta Downtown Connector is part tunnel and part pedestrian-friendly greenspace.
The name is drawn from the project’s goal of stitching — or reconnecting — parts of Downtown long divided by the many-laned interstate highway south of the Civic Center MARTA station. The project got a boost with news of a $157.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help fund the first phase of the project.
The Stitch is is not the only such elevated park or highway cap proposed for Atlanta. Elevated greenspace projects have also been proposed in Midtown and Buckhead. And a smaller-scale highway greenspace opened in 2006, when a pedestrian-friendly makeover of the 5th Street bridge over the Connector was completed near Georgia Tech.
Here are some details about the Downtown, Midtown and Buckhead proposals:
The Stitch
A project of the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District, The Stitch is planned as a 14-acre greenspace, a long skinny park straddling I-75/85 — from West Peachtree Street near Pine Street on the North to just below Piedmont Road near Baker Street on the South. That’s three-quarters of a mile.
The goal is to reconnect old neighborhoods that were cut in two by the original construction of the Downtown Connector. These include Buttermilk Bottoms, Bedford Pines and Sweet Auburn, U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta, said in announcing the grant.
The first phase of construction would include 5 acres of park space, improvements to seven downtown streets and improved access to MARTA’s Civic Center station. Work would begin in 2026. Later phases include housing and transit-oriented development.
The reconnecting of underserved neighborhoods is one aspect that makes this project different from the two other current proposals in Atlanta. The federal grant was awarded through the Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods, according to Wilma Sothern, marketing vice president for Central Atlanta Progress.
Next steps: A project master plan is expected to be finished in summer 2024. The public can share comments or ideas for the design and find details on upcoming community meetings at the project website, thestitchatl.com/engagement.
Buckhead / Lenox Road
The proposed HUB404 project in Buckhead would stretch from near the Atlanta Financial Center on Peachtree Road to the Lenox Road-Ga. 400 interchange. It would cover parts of Ga. 400 and the Buckhead MARTA station, creating a walkable connection to apartment towers and office buildings now cut off by the highway. The project is a partnership between the Buckhead CID and the HUB404 Conservancy.
Jim Durrett, Buckhead CID executive director, said a conceptual plan has been developed and “later this year, we will be underway with the next phase of design.”
Unlike the Stitch, HUB404 would not create a tunnel. It would cover just part of Ga. 400, Durrett said. As proposed, the project would connect to the PATH400 regional greenway trail via the proposed Sam Massell Gateway, Durrett said as part of a separate Lenox Road transformation project. On the web: buckheadcid.com/projects/hub404/
Midtown / Georgia Tech
A third proposal would cover the interstate in Midtown, just north of where The Stitch would be. The Atlanta Connector Park Midtown would create more than 12 acres of greenspace above I-75/85 between North Avenue and 5th Street, a distance of about one-half mile.
The highway cap would be built over the interstate between Georgia Tech’s main campus and Technology Square. It would connect with an existing pedestrian-friendly bridge at 5th Street that includes a nearby greenspace used for events and as a gathering spot at Georgia Tech. The project received a federal grant for planning in early 2023. Plans includes a park and an outdoor performance venue. Leading the project is Doug Hooker, former executive director of the Atlanta Regional Commission. On the web: connectorpark.org/
-Earlier reporting by David Wickert and J. Scott Trubey were used in this article
Credit: Rogers Partners
Credit: Rogers Partners
Credit: Atlanta Connector Park
Credit: Atlanta Connector Park
