Atlanta News

From the New York Times:

The facility in Fulton County, Georgia, has long had problems with assaults, drugs and pests.

Arts Atlanta:

After a year marked by greater partisan polarization than ever, 2025 has opened with the sort of soft-politics moment that gives the nation a breather as we move from one administration to the next. In this case, the awarding of the Presidential Citizens Medals by President Biden provided such a moment at the White House...

From WABE Politics News:

In his time in the White House, Jimmy Carter advanced environmental priorities, from protecting millions of acres of land in Alaska to creating the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area in […]

6 Atlanta development stories to watch in 2025 Josh Green Fri, 01/03/2025 - 14:07 With a new administration on the horizon, the WFH zeitgeist still kicking, and a housing shortage that won't subside, the arena of real estate development promises to be interesting in 2025.

As always, the City of Atlanta should be knee-deep in it all. 

It’s tough to whittle down, with so much happening in so many corners of metro Atlanta. (That’s a good thing.) But below are a half-dozen picks for development stories that should play out in fascinating ways all throughout this brand new year. 

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6.  The Stitch gets (more) real

After years of big talk and retooled plans, downtown Atlanta’s highway-capping park proposal achieved in recent days what similar concepts in the city have not: It made public an extremely detailed master plan. (Officially it’s a draft version, pending more rounds of public input and Atlanta City Council’s stamp of approval.)  

Yes, The Stitch’s initial phase isn’t expected to see actual cranes and bulldozers until sometime in 2026. But the plan for actually putting it together should be set in concrete in coming months. Could it eventually spur Eastside Trail-like private development nearby? Project leaders seem to think so.

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5. More transit—at long last

To the delight of urbanists far and wide, MARTA’s first new transit line since the Sandy Springs MARTA station opened—way back in the year 2000—is scheduled to start rolling this year.

The five-mile bus-rapid transit route—christened MARTA Rapid Summerhill—will link downtown to neighborhoods such as Summerhill and Peoplestown before ending near the Beltline’s Southside Trail (and 11 stories of new affordable housing) at a station called Carver.

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

MARTA officials have said construction on the BRT line and adjacent infrastructure (see above) will wrap up this spring, with passenger service opening later in 2025.

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4. 850 new residences near Piedmont Park

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

If Atlanta’s marquee greenspace starts to feel a bit more populated in 2025, it’ll be no mystery as to why.

Two high-rise residential ventures with three towers total have entered the home stretch of construction in blocks just west of Piedmont Park, expanding the skyline in that section of Midtown.

The first project to start opening, 32-story Modera Parkside, includes 361 apartments (priced from $1,794 monthly) and 3,400 square feet of street retail, about two blocks from the park. Officials with developer Mill Creek Residential have said Modera Parkside is on pace to finish construction in the third quarter of 2025.

Just up the street, the two-tower 1081 Juniper St. project led by Charleston-based developer Middle Street Partners has topped out, with expectations to start opening sometime in early 2025, developers have said.

The larger North tower climbed to 400 feet in 2024, offering 320 units across 37 stories; the South tower topped out at 380 feet, with 34 stories, larger floorplans, and what’s designed to feel more like a boutique offering of only 167 units, the development team has said.

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3. Will Buckhead Village’s growth spurt actually happen?

Remember 2023, when developers’ plans called for Buckhead Village to look like a mini version of Midtown’s crane fest, with more than 1,200 new multifamily residences in the pipeline?

Those plans appear to be in jeopardy as 2025 unfolds. 

Of three proposed high-rises steps from the heart of Buckhead Village's shops and eats, only Chicago-based developer CA Ventures’ 340 East Paces Ferry Road project is under construction. That’s well on its way to stacking up 22 stories with 483 luxury rentals, next door to the Kimpton Sylvan hotel.

Where the 22-story building's retail is expected to meet East Paces Ferry. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Across the street, another company based in greater Chicago, Harbor Bay Ventures, has planned a 20-story, mixed-use tower that would claim an empty lot and be partially constructed of mass timber. About a block south of that site, New York-based Tidal Real Estate Partners has said it plans to build a 21-story project that would consume nearly a full block of the village. All low-rise properties at that site are currently vacant and boarded up (to the chagrin of some neighbors), awaiting demolition.

But more than a year after they were approved, both of the latter projects have yet to move forward.

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2. A true Atlanta skyscraper’s continued rise

A rough, in-house approximation of how the 730-foot building will stand out among other newer construction near West Peachtree Street. Urbanize Atlanta

We’re borrowing this one from the 2024 outlook, because projects of this scale take time, and the anticipation is more palpable than ever.

Devoted Atlanta development watchers have waited more than 15 years for another high-rise to truly change the city’s skyline. And by all indications, that should start happening in 2025.

With construction cranes standing tall and most wider base floors in place, all signs point to Rockefeller Group’s 60-story skyscraper 1072 West Peachtree making a definitive mark over Midtown this year. The mixed-use venture will be the city’s tallest new building since 1992.

Not since Sovereign Buckhead—a condo tower built in 2008 as the tallest residential building in Georgia history—has one structure promised to make such a visual impact over Atlanta.

West Peachtree Street view of Rockefeller Group’s planned 60-story Midtown project.Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

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1. Key Beltline pieces on docket

In the grand scheme of things, the Beltline’s 22-mile loop might still be rather choppy, from a functionality standpoint, for at least another year and ½.

But in the near term, Beltline enthusiasts have much to look forward to.

First on the docket, Atlanta Beltline Inc.’s 2025 construction schedule calls for the full opening of Westside Trail Segment 4 sometime this spring. That will create roughly 6.5 miles of contiguous trails between downtown and Pittsburgh Yards, when the Westside Beltline Connector is factored in.

In other words, the ability to use the Beltline to access downtown jobs and attractions from a multitude of Southwest and Westside Atlanta neighborhoods—without ever entering a city street—should become reality this year.

Progress on the 22-mile, multipurpose trail corridor and related projects as of November. Atlanta BeltLine Inc.

Following delays caused by issues with underground utilities, the debut of Southside Trail Segments 4 and 5 between Glenwood Park/Grant Park and Boulevard is on tap for this fall. That will provide a connected Beltline route from blocks just south of Zoo Atlanta all the way up to southern Buckhead. Finally.

Also in the offing for this fall is the opening of Northwest Trail Segment 5, a .7-mile section extending toward Buckhead from Marietta Boulevard and Huff Road.

On a related (positive) note, the Beltline opened other key sections of trail in 2024. Those included almost half of Westside Trail Segment 4 and the immediate hit among walkers, joggers, and cyclists that was the Northeast Trail’s full connection through Piedmont Park.

So Happy New Year, ATL. Let’s make this one grand.

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Subtitle From Buckhead to Bankhead, outlook calls for a fascinating year ahead

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From WABE Local News:

The U.S. Justice Department announced Friday that it has entered into a court-enforceable agreement with Georgia’s most populous county after finding that violence and filthy conditions in county lockups violated […]

From WABE Politics News:

The new Congress has opened with one major task at hand — the election of the House speaker. Newly-elected lawmakers are in place at the U.S. Capitol but current Speaker Mike Johnson’s weak grip on […]

Project with several uses floated for vacant Cabbagetown sites Josh Green Fri, 01/03/2025 - 10:36 Memorial Drive’s impressive development boom over the past decade could continue on a Cabbagetown corner that’s seen little activity this century.

A for-sale row of properties where Memorial Drive meets Tye Street has been primed for redevelopment with several uses, according to Keller Williams Realty Intown Atlanta listings.

The .17-acre corner property—vacant for well over 15 years—is directly across the street from Grindhouse Killer Burgers’ Memorial Drive location.

It’s half a dozen blocks west of the Beltline’s Eastside Trail, and just east of Oakland Cemetery, with protected bike lanes installed last year on Memorial Drive at the doorstep.

The Memorial Drive properties' proximity to the Beltline (at right) and Oakland Cemetery (left). Google Maps

The Cabbagetown corner lot in question as viewed from Tye Street. Google Maps

A Keller Williams listing posted last month indicates that property (690 Memorial Drive) would be included with the neighboring one (678 Memorial Drive) in the $595,000 asking price.

Property records indicate 678 Memorial Drive is a 1940s commercial building once used as an appliance store next to the vacant lot.

The property’s current owners have begun the planning process to redevelop the sites into a mixed-use project. According to listings, those plans call for 20 multifamily units, three commercial spaces, four townhomes, and what’s described as a “versatile-use center.”

The multifamily addition to the neighborhood would be a rarity for Cabbagetown, where no residential development of considerable size has delivered since the 764 Memorial condos and townhomes half a decade ago.

Next door, to the east, a 1.2-acre property formerly occupied by Cummin Landscape Supply remains vacant today.

Listings note that a parking variance will be required to successfully see the new Memorial Dive proposal through, and that “detailed plans [are] provided within the documentation” included with a sale. 

The empty Memorial Drive corner lots in question. Google Maps

Listings indicate this commercial building, a former used appliance store that's been empty for several years, is included in the deal. Google Maps

The properties are located in the Maynard Jackson High School cluster (Parkside Elementary and Martin Luther King Jr. Middle schools) and are called an “exceptional opportunity” in the historic neighborhood overall.  

Any wishlist items, at the dawn of a new year, for exactly what you’d like to see happen here?

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The Memorial Drive properties' proximity to the Beltline (at right) and Oakland Cemetery (left). Google Maps

The Cabbagetown corner lot in question as viewed from Tye Street. Google Maps

The empty Memorial Drive corner lots in question. Google Maps

Listings indicate this commercial building, a former used appliance store that's been empty for several years, is included in the deal. Google Maps

Subtitle Any wishlist items for parcels along Memorial Drive?

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Arts Atlanta:

Synchronicity Theatre has announced the second half of the theater’s 27th season, running February through June. Shows include a Stripped Bare Arts Incubator production, a Family Series production, a Women in the Arts staging and a partnership with Georgia State University.  Running February 4 through March 2 is the Family Series play Petite Rouge. Based...

From WABE Politics News:

Rudy Giuliani showed up Friday for a contempt hearing to decide whether he has dodged and deceived lawyers trying to recover a $148 million judgment won on behalf of two […]

From WABE Local News:

Dorothy and Toto aren’t the only ones known to hitch a ride on a passing severe weather event. A map from the U.S. Geological Survey finds that there are 222 […]

From WABE Local News:

Former President Jimmy Carter died Sunday at 100. On this encore episode of “Plugged In,” WABE’s Sam Gringlas looks at how two tiny towns in South Georgia shaped two U.S. […]

From WABE Local News:

With all the hustle and bustle of the holidays and the preparation for the new year, many Georgians were not thinking about the state legislature’s plans for when they meet […]

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, one of the world’s most popular dance companies and America’s cultural ambassador to the world, returns to Atlanta in 2025 with several performances at the Fox Theatre.  Celebrating Legacy in Motion and the late, beloved Artistic Director Emerita Judith Jamison, the 2025 Atlanta engagement will feature the world premieres Sacred … Continued

The post Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Returns To Atlanta In 2025, Here’s What To Expect appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Photo: Getty Images Former President Jimmy Carter is being remembered for his contributions to the political careers of several Black women amid his death. On Sunday (December 29), news broke that Carter died at age 100 surrounded by his family at his home in Plains, Georgia. Carter was the oldest living president and his state … Continued

The post Here’s How Jimmy Carter Boosted Black Women In Politics appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From WABE Local News:

In 2014, WABE’s Jim Burress traveled to Liberia to report on the Carter Center’s work helping to build up the country’s mental healthcare infrastructure nearly a decade after the end […]

From WABE Local News:

Counties throughout the metro Atlanta area are finalizing plans to open the doors of their respective warming centers on Thursday in the wake of predicted weather drops. Temperatures throughout metro […]

Arts Atlanta:

Each week, ArtsATL delivers a critic’s short list of the shows, exhibitions, concerts and events we recommend for the coming weeks within one discipline in the kaleidoscope of Atlanta arts and culture. Every week, we’ll present a different art form. :: APEX Museum Through January 25Ancestral Garden: Honoring Black Victorian Material Culture and Accurate Black...

From WABE Local News:

Atlanta is preparing for the funeral services for former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, and the public is invited to view the 39th president and Georgia native as he lies in […]

All hail Old Fourth Ward, your 2024 tournament champion! Josh Green Thu, 01/02/2025 - 14:23 After two weeks of spirited competitions, the Best Atlanta Neighborhood 2024 tournament has come to a close, and Old Fourth Ward has officially triumphed as this year's victor!

Nearly 4,500 votes came in across all contests in the 16-seed tourney. That goes to show how Atlanta is truly a patchwork of wonderful neighborhoods and ITP places, a city brimming with neighborhood pride.

In taking the 2024 crown, Old Fourth Ward is only the second Atlanta neighborhood to become a REPEAT champ in this hallowed, criteria-free competition, following West End’s triumphs in both 2015 and 2017.  

Here’s a quick recap of Old Fourth Ward’s difficult path to glory in this year’s competition:

Round 1:Escorted Adair Park to the door

Elite Eight:Edged Summerhill

***Final Four:***Soundly defeated neighboring Inman Park

Championship: Bumped out EAV

As usual, Beltline-connected O4W’s happenings this year were numerous. Two high-rise hospitality concepts—New City’s diamond-patterned Forth hotel and the Scout Living tower over Ponce City Market—opened in 2024, as rare for-sale condos debuted nearby at The Leon on Ponce. Elsewhere on Ponce, a Complete Streets overhaul came together as an effort to improve pedestrian and bike connections between Boulevard and John Lewis Freedom Parkway. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Civic Center redo edged toward groundbreaking, and the relatively affordable evolution of Boulevard continued to rise—to name just a few highlights of another busy year in this booming intown nabe.

Throughout the end of 2024 and now 2025, Old Fourth Ward proved itself exceptionally proud and capable of rallying support.

Here’s permission to keep on bragging, O4W, all year long!

The Golden Urby Chalice of Champions 2024.

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The hallowed pantheon of Best Atlanta Neighborhood tournament winners:

***2011:***Inman Park

***2012:***Old Fourth Ward

***2013:***Kirkwood

***2014:***Reynoldstown

***2015:***West End

***2016:***East Atlanta

***2017:***West End (again)

2018-2020:(forced hiatus)

2021:Mozley Park

2022:Avondale Estates

2023: Hapeville

2024: Old Fourth Ward

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The Golden Urby Chalice of Champions 2024.

Subtitle Booming intown neighborhood prevails in fourth annual Best Atlanta Neighborhood tourney

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Report: More than 90 percent of Atlanta apartments were rented in 2024 Josh Green Thu, 01/02/2025 - 12:11 Despite another hot year for multifamily development that saw a record 2,200 new residences added in Midtown alone, Atlanta remained a relatively competitive market for renters in 2024, according to a new analysis.

RentCafe, a national apartment search platform, studied the 139 largest U.S. markets for a year-end “Hottest Rental Markets” analysis and ranked them using five key metrics for rental competitiveness.

The findings concluded that new housing hasn’t exactly eased competition in most markets.

In the City of Atlanta (excluding suburban markets), the overall supply of apartments grew by 1.83 percent across 2024—or slightly behind the 2 percent growth rate the city had logged the previous year.

Meanwhile, the city’s apartment occupancy rate dropped by 1 percent, but remained relatively strong at 90.9 percent overall.

Renters faced less competition in 2024—seven people vying for the same vacant apartment, versus nine people the year before—as lease renewal rates ticked up slightly to 60 percent.  

Apartments on the market in the City of Atlanta stayed vacant for 44 days on average, per the RentCafe analysis.

Analysts studied Yardi Systems apartment data pertaining to market-rate, large-scale multifamily properties with at least 50 units. Apartment buildings deemed fully affordable were not counted, per RentCafe.

Many of the Midtown high-rise rentals shown here in December 2022 delivered last year, continuing a multifamily boom. Urbanize Atlanta

The five metrics included: the percentage of rentals occupied; number of days apartments stayed vacant; the share of apartments completed in 2024; the number of prospective renters competing for an apartment; and the percentage of renters who renewed leases.

Meanwhile, Atlanta’s suburbs saw an even higher occupancy rate (92.2 percent, or down .5 percent from 2023) with a full two-thirds of renters (65.9 percent) deciding to stay put.

The sheer amount of new apartments in Atlanta's ’burbs was described as “robust” in 2024—a 4.31 percent increase, up significantly from 2.88 percent the previous year.

Both the City of Atlanta and suburban markets saw a year-over-year increase in what’s called the Rental Competitiveness Index score: 69.2 for the city, and 66.9 for the suburbs. (The national average, for context, is 74.4, but most markets haven’t logged as much new product as Atlanta’s.)

Considering all the factors above, Atlanta was ranked as the 53rd hottest rental market in the U.S. for 2024, followed by the city’s suburbs in 60th place. 

Hmmm.

RentCafe

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• Analysis: Atlanta is the worst U.S. city for driving in 2024 (Urbanize Atlanta) 

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Many of the Midtown high-rise rentals shown here in December 2022 delivered last year, continuing a multifamily boom. Urbanize Atlanta

Subtitle City’s stock of rentals grew by nearly 2 percent, though fewer renters vied for deals, analysis finds

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From WABE Arts and Culture News:

In the fall of 2024, three Atlanta artists showcased their works at the prestigious Venice Biennale in Italy, which has often been referred to as the “Olympics of the art […]

From WABE Local News:

The annual Martin Luther King Celebration Concert represents a proud piece of modern Atlanta history, with decades of performances by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra alongside guest musicians, singers and composers […]

From WABE Local News:

As of the beginning of 2025, a local nonprofit dedicated to keeping some of Atlanta’s most vulnerable residents out of prison is no longer contracted with the city. Policing Alternatives […]

MARTA to temporarily halt Atlanta Streetcar services Josh Green Thu, 01/02/2025 - 10:36 A new year has barely dawned, but already it’s shaping up to be eventful for Atlanta’s transit agency.

Just days after marking its 10-year anniversary as Atlanta’s first new streetcar since President Harry Truman’s administration, as the AJC recently noted, the Atlanta Streetcar’s 2.7-mile Downtown Loop will be out of service for several days this month to allow for time-sensitive Georgia Power work to take place.  

MARTA announced this week that streetcar services will be suspended between Jan. 13 and 17. The closure will allow Georgia Power crews to make emergency repairs on Carnegie Way. Meanwhile, city contractors and utility companies will use the five-day break to conduct adjustments and any necessary repairs near the streetcar’s tracks, according to MARTA.

Expect services to resume at 8:15 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 18.

The Atlanta Streetcar's initial Downtown Loop spans 2.7 miles and passes numerous attractions. Shutterstock

MARTA plans to run its shuttle vans—wrapped to look similar to the streetcar vehicles—along the streetcar’s downtown route as utility work is underway. Those shuttles were also deployed when the streetcar system was shut down to repair all four of its vehicles in late 2022.  

President Carter visitation shuttles 

MARTA has also detailed plans for ushering Atlantans to and from a days-long visitation for the only U.S. President from Georgia.

The body of President Jimmy Carter will lie in repose from 6 p.m. Jan. 4 (this Saturday) to 6 a.m. January 7 (Tuesday) at The Carter Presidential Center.

Carter, who died at age 100 on Dec. 29, will then be taken to Washington, D.C. for memorial services.

MARTA will provide free direct bus service from the King Memorial rail station to The Carter Center for anyone wishing to pay tribute at the visitation. Rail service to the station will operate continuously for 60 hours, MARTA recently announced.

From there, the free shuttles will depart to The Carter Center every three to five minutes all day and night, beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Officials note The Carter Center will offer no public parking, so attendees to Carter’s visitation must take the shuttle bus—unless they plan to walk, ride a bike, or take a ride-share service and be dropped off nearby.

Regular rates for MARTA’s rail service will apply.

MARTA Mobility services will operate every 15 to 20 minutes from King Memorial station, but local buses will be rerouted. (Find reroute details here.)

Prior to his presidency, Carter served two terms as a Georgia State Senator and as the state’s 76th governor from 1971 to 1975—during which voters passed a 1 percent sales tax to fund MARTA’s operations, as transit officials noted.

“MARTA is especially grateful for [Carter’s] leadership in bringing public transportation plans to fruition in metro Atlanta,” said Collie Greenwood, MARTA general manager and CEO, in a prepared statement. “We are proud to help pay tribute to him.”

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Subtitle Transit agency also planning free bus shuttles to Jimmy Carter's visitation, where no parking is offered

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From WABE Politics News:

It was a decision that robbed hundreds of athletes of their once-in-a-lifetime chance at Olympic glory, and for more than four decades, it weighed heavily on the man who made […]