Imagine Downtown Envisioning Central Atlanta’s Future November 2005 Downtown Atlanta stands on the threshold of growth and development not seen since before the 1996 Olympic Games. New attractions, retail shops, office buildings and residential buildings have construction cranes reaching to the sky and bulldozers moving the earth. To capture the energy and excitement accompanying this activity, the central city community has come together to imagine the future of Downtown. Important questions have been asked relative to the goal of keeping Downtown the region’s hub for business, government, education, conventions, entertainment, sports, the arts, transportation and other activities that keep this region an integral whole – What kind of new development do we need and want to remain vital? What should it look like and how will new building contribute to Downtown’s unique urban character? Where can we accommodate the growing demand for new housing? How do we attract private investment? How will we get to and around Downtown? Where can we build new parks? The collective answers to these questions can be found in the Imagine Downtown plan. The emphasis of the Imagine Downtown plan is on bringing together the Downtown community to share one collaborative vision for how our community should grow and prosper. The plan provides a framework for the growth of Downtown neighborhoods and recommends transportation and open space infrastructure improvements necessary to support the plan. The Imagine Downtown plan reflects the hundreds of stakeholders who participated in its development. Our thanks to all who helped make this plan a reality, in particular the 1,900 online survey participants and the hundreds of stakeholders who participated in the Focus Area workshops. Their contributions in developing this plan will resonate throughout the improvements made to Central Atlanta’s environment during the coming years. We hope you’ll join us in seeing that the vision of this plan is accomplished. President Mayor Central Atlanta Progress, Inc. City of Atlanta Atlanta Downtown Improvement District, Inc. Table of Contents Planning Overview 1 The Context 2 Planning Legacy 4 The Process 6 Online Survey 6 Focus Areas 8 Workshops 12 Core Teams 13 One-on-one Interviews 13 Livable Centers Initiative 14 Georgia Institute of Technology Studio 14 Market Potential 15 The Vision 22 The Plan 24 Development Framework Plan 24 Transportation Network Plan 26 Public Spaces Plan 28 Illustrative Plan 30 Neighborhood and Districts Plans 32 Achieving the Vision 44 Implementation Principles 44 Implementation Structure 46 Implementation Projects 48 Achieving Livable Centers Initiative Goals 56 Development Summary and 25-Year Projections 60 Priority Implementation Projects: Five-Year Action Plan 60 Acknowledgements 64 Planning Overview The beginning of the new millennium has brought renewed energy and excitement to Downtown Atlanta. Since 2000, over $3 billion worth of new investment and development has generated momentum for new residential, commercial, institutional and government activity in the center city. New projects range from the Georgia Aquarium and expanded World of Coca- Cola, to new housing on Centennial Hill and the redevelopment of Capitol and Grady Homes, as well as the expansion of Emory Crawford Long Hospital and the Omni and Sheraton Hotels. This explosion of activity holds tremendous potential, but needs the guidance of a solid, visionary plan to make the difference between piecemeal redevelopment and a bright future for a world- class Downtown Atlanta. More than $3 billion has been invested in Downtown Atlanta in the past five Building on this existing development momentum, the Imagine Downtown vision years. plan seeks to take the next step and refine previous comprehensive master plans for Downtown Atlanta with a more detailed and strategic focus to guide future public and private investment in the community. The planning process sought to derive a vision for future neighborhood development by assessing the needs and interests of all Downtown stakeholders, including residents, business owners, property owners, students, developers and elected and appointed officials. The resulting plan identifies future development opportunities and related public space and transportation improvements to support their implementation. The Imagine Downtown plan promotes the responsible growth and development of a vibrant and attractive Downtown Atlanta. As a collective effort and coordinated plan, the Imagine Downtown vision has engaged the community to develop its vision for the future. Imagine Downtown is about a guiding vision for the future of Downtown. Page 1 Imagine Downtown C o n t e x t Understanding the strengths and opportunities that generate excitement and interest in Downtown Atlanta is a necessary first step in guiding future growth. Downtown Atlanta is a four- square-mile area centered on the intersection of Peachtree Street and Andrew Young International Boulevard. The area is generally bounded by North Avenue on the north, I-20 on the south, Northside Drive to the west and Boulevard to the east. Downtown Atlanta bustles with office workers, students, visitors and conventioneers, in addition to a growing residential population. With more and more people opting for urban living, the residential population of Downtown is increasing annually. Over 20,000 people live within this densely populated four-square-mile area, which represents a 24% population increase since 1990. With 136,776 people working in Downtown, it is also the region’s most dense Key Demographics concentration of employment. Additionally, 3.5 million people visit the area annually for conventions, trade shows and tourist attractions. With a variety of racial, ethnic Population and age groups, Downtown is one of the most diverse and dynamic places within the Metropolitan region - 4.2 million City of Atlanta - 450,000 metro region. Downtown Atlanta - 24,000 Downtown differs from other Atlanta submarkets in its great variety of economic Median household annual income activity and its balanced physical inventory of buildings and public spaces. It is a Metropolitan region - $52,000 regional hub for business, higher education, government, conventions and tourism, City of Atlanta - $35,000 Downtown Atlanta - $38,000 medicine, sports and special events, communications and transportation. In addition, a strong residential base has emerged, as has interest in preserving the historic fabric Average household size of the area. Downtown Atlanta is not only the region’s largest center for jobs and office Metropolitan region - 2.7 space, but also its heart and brains, its center of influence, policy, transportation and City of Atlanta - 2.3 governance. Downtown Atlanta - 1.8 Commute to work using public transit Downtown Atlanta serves as the symbolic center of both the metropolitan region and Metropolitan region - 4% all of Georgia – the key to the region’s identity can be found in Downtown. Downtown is City of Atlanta - 15% a place that belongs to everyone regardless of where they live or work. It is a symbolic, Downtown Atlanta - 20% economic, cultural and recreational extension of each community in the region. Page 2 Imagine Downtown The growth and success of suburban development has led many to question the importance of Downtown. At this juncture in the growth of our region, it is even more critical that these communities and neighbors understand how closely their prosperity is tied to the future of the core of our City. A plan that promotes the responsible growth and development of a vibrant and attractive Downtown Atlanta is important to the entire region because: • A strong center city encourages centralized dense development that discourages sprawl and development of rural land. • A healthy Downtown neighborhood offers urban living opportunities for all citizens. • Investment in the redevelopment of Downtown provides a center of urban density required to function as a central node for transit destinations and local and regional transportation connections. • A pleasant and inviting center city supports unique uses and activities such as convention facilities, performing arts and sports venues that serve the region. The key to the region’s identity can be found in Downtown Atlanta - a place that belongs to everyone regardless of where they live or work. Imagine Downtown Page 3 Planning Legacy Downtown Atlanta is no stranger to planning documents prepared to chart a course for the future of the center city. Each plan – some broad and overarching, others geographically or topically focused – has provided input and insight that is invaluable to considering the future growth and development of Downtown Atlanta. These earlier efforts laid the groundwork that the Imagine Downtown vision is built upon. Of particular interest and importance are the following plans and studies completed recently: Central Atlanta Action Plan (CA2P) – Sponsored by Central Atlanta Progress with the support of the City of Atlanta, this document serves as the ten-year strategic plan for Downtown Atlanta. CA2P identifies priorities and partnerships to ensure the continued vitality of metro Atlanta’s important urban core. The plan contains ten challenges, 32 action steps and more than 80 strategies to address the physical, economic and social environments of Downtown. The intent of the plan was to create a more livable, secure, diverse and prosperous Downtown through partnerships and innovative tools and policies, including public safety