City Approves Old Fourth Ward Plan

The Atlanta City Council voted unanimously Monday to approve the Old Fourth Ward Master Plan. The plan will guide the redevelopment of the historic neighborhood for decades to come.

The vote is the culmination of a year-long planning effort, involving hundreds of community members, led by Atlanta District 2 City Councilmember Kwanza Hall and the Department of Planning and Community Development.

“This is a great day for the Old Fourth Ward,” said Hall. “The plan that has emerged through this year-long process reflects the values of this historic neighborhood: values of social justice, diversity, and innovation. Community members want a family-friendly neighborhood with a wide range of housing options so that renters and home owners can live there all their lives. They want high-quality streetscapes and green spaces that will invite them out of their homes and cars and encourage them to interact with their neighbors. And they want to be a hub for small, independent businesses, a neighborhood that sets the pace for the City as a whole when it comes to entrepreneurial innovation.”

Martin Luther King Jr. was born and raised in the Old Fourth Ward. The neighborhood played a central role in King’s adult life as well. He preached one block away from his boyhood home, at what is now Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, and led the Southern Christian Leadership Conference from a now historic building just two blocks further to the west. These sites and others nearby offer a rich civil and human rights heritage experience to hundreds of thousands of visitors annually.

The new master plan endorses smart growth principles while protecting the existing character of the neighborhood. It sets higher design standards for new buildings and streetscapes. The plan also recommends improvements for future transit connections and proposes increased density along selected corridors in return for increased affordability.

Community leaders praised the process, which was led by staff of the City of Atlanta Department of Planning and Community Development. “We are thankful for the City’s professional staff who made this long-awaited and tremendously needed project a dream come true for the residents of the Old Fourth Ward,” said Lydia Meredith, president of Central Atlanta Neighbors Association and executive director of Beacon of Hope, Inc. ““The features that are of particular interest to us are the family-friendly enhancements, including the recommendations that developers design their buildings and streetscapes in a way that discourages crime.”

“As a member of the Atlanta Medical Center’s senior management team, I am pleased to see the approval of the Old Fourth Ward Master Plan,” said Lynne E. Scroggins, vice president of community and physician development for Atlanta Medical Center. “Particularly pleasing is the focus on encouraging a diverse and sustainable mix of housing, employment, shopping and business.”

The Old Fourth Ward, which dates back to the 1880s, is bordered by Piedmont Avenue to the west, Ponce de Leon Avenue to the north, the proposed Beltline to the east, and DeKalb Avenue to the south.

The first project to emerge from the master planning process will be the construction of the new Historic Fourth Ward Park, on North Avenue across from City Hall East. The initial phase of park construction includes an innovative water feature that will double as a stormwater detention pond. Groundbreaking for the park is slated for mid-October.

For more information, please contact Councilman Hall’s office at (404) 330-6038 / khall@atlantaga.gov

To view the master plan and to access materials from the year-long planning process visit:
www.o4wplan.com.