by Jim Martin
james.martin@me.gatech.edu
This is a DRAFT resolution to be voted on by the BPNA membership at the June meeting. If approved, this statement will be sent to the Atlanta Development Authority as the official position of Berkeley Park with regard to the Beltline project. Please attend this meeting on June 19, 2006 to give your input and vote.
The consensus opinion of the Berkeley Park Neighborhood Association is that the development of a public park at the site of the Hemphill pumping station, the Atlanta Waterworks Reservoirs, and the adjoining Public Works site is a necessary element of the first work-plan for the Beltline project. The rationale for this opinion is as follows:
1. The Waterworks Park site has all of the necessary elements already in place to make for a stable successful public park. In this regard the site has the most potential of any new park site proposed in the Beltline redevelopment plan. The Waterworks Park is anchored by residential users in 4 adjoining single-family neighborhoods (Berkeley Park, Home Park, Loring Heights, and Underwood Hills) along with the residents of nearby high-density residential developments including Atlantic Station, Midtown lofts, M-Street apartments, Berkeley Heights, and the District on Howell Mill (currently under construction). Other nearby high-density residential projects are planned (some have recently received zoning approval) for sites along Ellsworth Industrial Blvd and Huff Rd. The park is also anchored by Georgia Tech and by retail and restaurant businesses in the area. Noteworthy among these sites are Atlantic Station, the West Side Urban Market, the Chattahoochee Industrial Blvd discount stores, and the shops along Howell Mill Corridor between Collier Rd and Bellemeade Ave. These diverse neighbors will provide users for the park throughout the day, which is necessary for the security and stability of any public park.
2. The Waterworks Park site is well served by existing transit. The park site fronts two major north-south thoroughfares – Northside Dr and Howell Mill Rd. The site has easy connections across the freeway along 14th St, 17th St, and Deering Rd. The West side of town is accessible along Huff Rd and Chattahoochee Industrial Blvd (which is slightly to the north of the park site). At least two MARTA bus lines (#37 and #12) have stops on the park’s perimeter. It could also be served by the Atlantic Station shuttle. In addition to the Beltline, the Waterworks Park Site is along a BRT route proposed in the Northside Drive Corridor Study and is across the street from a possible site for a multimodal transfer station.
3. The Waterworks Park concept has already been vetted by the community. A park on this site is called for in the Upper West Side LCI Study, the Northside Drive Corridor Study, and the Berkeley Park Blueprints Plan. These documents have been incorporated into the CDP and have been endorsed by the affected neighborhoods and NPUs. This is in contrast to the overall Beltline Redevelopment Plan, which has not been through the NPU process and is unlikely to go through this process before the first Beltline work-plan is completed.
4. The Waterworks Park site has excellent visibility. The site is on high ground and is frequently passed by commuter traffic along Northside Dr and Howell Mill Rd as well as being viewed by nearby residents and the destination-oriented traffic of local businesses. The development of a park on this site would be a tangible success for the Beltline that could be seen by more Atlanta area residents than any of the other Beltline Park sites (possibly including Piedmont Park). Since the Waterworks Park site adjoins the most problematic Beltline transit segment (the active CSX rail line), the park represents an opportunity for a visible public project in an area that may not see any other development directly related to the Beltline for many years. Since it is not already a park, Waterworks Park provides an uncontroversial high-visibility naming opportunity for the Beltline.
5. Most of the Waterworks Park land is already owned by the city. The Waterworks site and the adjoining Public Works site are city property. Some smaller parcels may need to be added to these, but the total cost of land for this project should be very low. Appropriate zoning and progressive development would allow privately owned green space to supplement the park.
6. The development of Waterworks Park will catalyze new commercial and residential development in the immediate area and add to the tax increment within the Beltline TAD in the short term. This will maximize the revenue available for Beltline improvements over the life of the TAD. Most of the land adjoining the Waterworks Park site currently has industrial zoning and relatively low land value. These sites are ripe for redevelopment as either mixed-use residential and commercial or high-density residential properties. Redevelopment has already begun in the area of the park. Several nearby properties, such as the Georgia Steel site on Huff Rd and the Russell Image Processing site on Howell Mill Rd, are currently on the market. These will certainly see a change of land use in the next few years. Many of the industrial sites adjoining the waterworks are large parcels of land that could be redeveloped without the need to assemble smaller parcels or rezone single-family residences. The Beltline itself, along with existing roadways, will buffer single-family residential neighborhoods from new development. Land-use recommendations consistent with the Beltline redevelopment plan have already been incorporated into the CDP as components of the Upper West Side LCI Study and the Northside Drive Corridor Study.