Since April, the Buckhead Community Improvement District (BCID) has been abuzz with preliminary plans to build a nine-acre park that would sit above GA 400 and the MARTA rail line—thus creating a park “out of thin air.” This week, however, members of the BCID board decided to postpone issuing RFPs (requests for proposal) for the project. Instead, they will hold a yet-to-be-scheduled work session to hammer out the proposed plan’s details and potential challenges.
The park would emulate the Klyde Warren Park in Dallas, which was built over an interstate highway. Since it opened in 2012, the $110 million park has attracted two million visitors in just two years and tripled the value of surrounding office space, according to its structural engineers, Jacobs Engineering Group. Based on the Klyde Warren Park’s success, Jacobs was hired by BCID to study the feasibility of creating a similar park in Buckhead.
In Jacobs’ preliminary rendering of the project, the park would connect to the Buckhead MARTA station and create a one-third-mile corridor from the Atlanta Financial Center on Peachtree Road to Lenox Road. The park would include a green plaza space at the Buckhead station’s main entrance and a central area with a series of gardens. The northern end of the park, which would link to the Lenox Road loop, would feature a performance area that would hold 4,000 to 7,000 people and include a small stage for performances. The Buckhead pedestrian bridge over 400, completed last year, would bisect the green space. The plan also shows a ramp over Lenox Road that could potentially link the park to the PATH400.
Initially enthusiastic about the park project, the BCID then realized the enormity of the undertaking—particularly its probable cost, estimated at $150-200 million. The organization thus decided to take a “breather” to consider the idea in greater detail. Bringing the park to fruition would likely require a public-private partnership, as happened with the Klyde Warren Park, 46 percent of which was funded by private contributions through a specially created foundation.
In addition to funding issues, BCID board members have expressed concerns about being diverted from their primary purpose, which is to manage transportation issues in Buckhead, and about possibly having to expand the BCID’s capacity in order to manage the park.
Fortunately, the project has no set timetable, and so the BCID’s slowed momentum will not prevent progress. Jacobs will continue to benchmark the visual plan with renderings and graphics before moving into the more precise feasibility study, which will be the next step if approved and funded by the BCID board. Meanwhile, the board will gather more information, including input from architect and engineering professionals who will conduct detailed planning, design, and cost studies. The board hopes to determine what the community wants in the park and to examine possible funding models, says Jim Durrett, executive director of the BCID.
If it proves feasible, a park like the proposed “park in the sky” would surely be an asset to Buckhead, just as Piedmont Park has been for Midtown. It would create a true live-work-play atmosphere in the heart of the Buckhead business district, thereby positioning Buckhead to become even more appealing to large corporations. The “park out of thin air” could become the jewel in Buckhead’s already enviable crown.
Blog contributed by Brooks Morris, Vice President, Cresa Atlanta. Brooks has over 17 years of executive experience. Prior to starting his real estate career, Brooks was with Enterprise Holdings, a $17 billion global transportation company. Brooks has a mission to deploy his years of experience through client advisement. His unique perspective from multiple angles of real estate transactions allow him to take a holistic approach while consulting on each of his clients needs. His proven results assure the focus will always be to use real estate as a platform to support employee engagement, customer satisfaction, brand recognition, growth, and profitability. Brooks enjoys life in Atlanta with his wife and two children. Since Joining Cresa, Brooks specializes in representing office tenants in the Buckhead and Midtown Atlanta submarkets. For more information, please contact Brooks at 404.446.1564 or bmorris@cresa.com.
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