An Atlanta Neighborhood’s Vanished Street Grid

Ever heard of Atlanta’s Vine City? No? That could be because it was largely obliterated by urban renewal two generations ago.

These side-by-side images shared today by Darin at ATL Urbanist show the street grid in Vine City, near downtown Atlanta, in 1911 and today. And Darin says the city is poised to expand this hole in the city’s fabric:

I found this image on the PEDS Twitter feed: look at the wonderful street grid we lost when the enormous state-owned Georgia World Congress Center/Georgia Dome complex was built on land connecting Vine City to Downtown.

The footprint of this property is actually being expanded with construction the new Falcons stadium, demolishing two community churches along the way.

This GWCC complex is a remnant of 1960s-70s “urban renewal” developments that aimed to revitalize city centers, like Downtown Atlanta, that were suffering from suburban flight.

Far from a success. the urban-renewal movement was a failure when it comes to good placemaking. It has left us with disconnected neighborhoods that are surrounded by megablocks and wide roads built for maximum car capacity.

Elsewhere on the Network today: Bike Portland shares a cool video showing off temporary pedestrian spaces Portland recently created as part of a “Better Block” event. Greater Greater Washington examines migration within the DC area for different demographic groups. And Bikemore reflects on the death of a local cyclist, killed on a cross-country charity ride.