About the Conservancy
Securing
the Land and Serendipity
After the unveiling of
the BeltLine in 2004, the small group’s timeline escalated
toward greenspace preservation, as the area began to attract the
attention of developers. Property control was clearly the most difficult
obstacle. Nearly half the proposed park was in the control of likely
supporters, but several critical pieces were not. The group recognized
that a supporter willing to bring major resources to the table was
desperately needed.
The Trust for Public
Land (TPL) was approached a few months later. Because so much advance
diligence and disposition information was compiled about Historic
Fourth Ward Park by the PAC, TPL’s decision to be supportive
was fostered. Consequently, in 2005 TPL’s first four allocations
made for the future park were its first purchases made for all of
the Atlanta BeltLine. By the end of 2005, TPL had secured almost
ten acres.
As this was taking place,
Mayor Shirley Franklin formed the BeltLine Coalition, and the TAD
funding was passed at year’s end. This enabled the as-yet-unnamed
Park to be slated as the first new Atlanta BeltLine park.
During 2005 and 2006,
the group reached out at the neighborhood level and strategies were
discussed with the Neighborhood Planning Units on how to combine
greenspace with a higher density urban neighborhood. A list of development
standards was crafted that would support a “quality of life”
focus, specifically how properties should interface with the proposed
park. This marks the beginning of how City policy began to be affected
toward a more sustainable community.
Convergence
By 2007, the small group
grew to include twelve development entities whose properties lie
in both the Old Fourth Ward and Poncey-Highlands neighborhoods.
A dues-paying coalition was formed called the Park Area Coalition
(PAC). Several of the original participants of the small group still
played strong leadership roles, while the park design was consistently
refined and altered to reflect the changing ownership and redevelopment
plans by each developer as they came on board.
Over the last half of
2007, the PAC worked closely with Atlanta BeltLine Inc. (ABI) to
devise an updated plan that reflected both the neighborhood’s
and the PAC’s wishes, and the current realities of available
properties and funding. Since the group had been working on the
park for four years, it had a clearly defined vision and a successful
plan that everyone could support.
After a visit from the
PAC, the Woodruff Foundation pledged $8 million for land acquisition
for the Park, the combination of which would allow a first phase
of 10-15 acres to be completed in the next 2 to 3 years.
Conservancy Board ...also see "friends of the H4WPC"
- Bob Bridges: Executive Vice President, Simpson Organization
- Chris Brown: Director of Finance, Carter Center
- Kevin Burke: Clear Creek Basin Project Manager, Atlanta BeltLine Inc.- ex officio
- Alan Cablik: President, Cablik Enterprises
- Lenn Chandler: Region Manager, Metro East Region, Georgia Power
- Forrest Coley: Chair, NPU- M
- Cindy Cox: Landscape Architect, Open Air Architecture
- Liz Coyle: Chair, BeltLine Network, Inc.
- Evan Cramer: Development Manager, Southeast Capital Companies
- Julie Dalia: Promotional Coordinator, Smith Dalia Architects
- Isaac Farris: Executive Vice President Chief of Staff, The King Center
- Sharon Gay: Partner, McKenna Long & Aldridge
- Martha Porter Hall: Member, City of Atlanta Board of Zoning Adjustment
- Natalie Hall: End User Support Division Manager, The City of Atlanta, Department of Information Technology
- Matt Hicks: Friends of Historic Fourth Ward Park
- David Laube: Vice President, Noell Consulting Group
- Jonathan Miller: Chair, NPU-N
- John Perlman: Principal, Adams & Company
- Markham Smith: Founding Principal, Smith Dalia Architects
- Esther Stokes: Board Chair, Park Pride
- Kit Sutherland: President, Fourth Ward Alliance
- Scott West: President, Fourth Ward Neighbors Association ; Owner, West Architecture
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