Downtown Atlanta parking lot will be a $5 billion bet on the city’s future

What's being used as a parking lot is actually where Atlanta was born. The Gulch, once the railroad junction that gave the city its first official name “Terminus," later became a sunken gap that divided downtown as cars and highways changed how Atlantans commuted. Now, a $5 billion redevelopment called Centennial Yards is transforming the 50-acre site with apartments, retail, hotels and entertainment. The project hasn't been without controversy. Centennial Yards opted to pay Atlanta an in-lieu fee instead of building affordable housing units inside its first residential building. But, city leaders are optimistic that the project will reconnect downtown neighborhoods and ignite what could be the biggest revival of the area since the 1996 Olympics. The AJC's Zachary Hansen dives into the history of the Gulch and speaks to the people shaping its future. Credits: AJC | Georgia State University Library | Atlanta History Center | Georgia Archives Vault | Zachary Hansen/AJC | New Georgia Encyclopedia | Georgia Department of Transportation | National Trust for Historic Preservation