Protected bike lanes in Midtown, pub crawls in Woodstock and a trail network connecting the Southside’s “Tri-Cities” to Clayton County — what do all of these have in common?
They were supported by an urban planning grant program that has changed how metro Atlanta approaches its town centers and walkable districts.
Over the past 25 years, the Livable Centers Initiative has provided more than $312 million to improve infrastructure and planning projects across Atlanta’s 11-county metro. The Atlanta Regional Commission, the metro’s regional planning agency, implemented the LCI program to award federal grants to communities looking to rethink their urban centers with a focus on pedestrian activity.
Leaders across Atlanta and its suburbs recently celebrated the program’s anniversary, touting its transformative effects.
“It’s amazing how much impact the LCI program has had in creating some of our favorite places to live, work and play,” Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said Nov. 1 at the ARC’s State of the Region event.
Through an annual application process, the ARC selects several plans to award LCI grant funds, which cover 80% of each study or transportation project. The project types vary from improving individual intersections and corridors to studying an entire area’s available housing or street grid.
The LCI program’s genesis was to incentivize metro Atlanta communities to reduce vehicle traffic, improve air quality and create “15-minute cities,” where residents could access most of their daily needs within roughly a mile radius.
“Reconnecting the region is about much more than infrastructure,” Anna Roach, ARC’s executive director and CEO said. “It’s about communities.”
Some projects, such as the Melody in downtown Atlanta, focus on rethinking housing availability. Located at 184 Forsyth St., it consist of 40 units of traditional housing made from shipping containers to assist the city’s homeless population.
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com
Others, such as Clarkston’s greenway feasibility study, received LCI funding to identify and plan connective trail networks, aiming to offer transportation alternatives and outdoor recreation akin to the Atlanta Beltline.
Woodstock Mayor Michael Caldwell said his city was among the first to receive an LCI grant in the early 2000s, which helped establish a mixed-use city center within the bedroom community.
“I remember when a trip to downtown Woodstock meant a trip to the hardware store,” he said. “… But now, we are the example in the nation of what a thriving, revitalized, vibrant downtown can look like.”
Credit: Courtesy Atlanta Regional Commission
Credit: Courtesy Atlanta Regional Commission
Metro Atlanta’s sprawl presents challenges to both locals and transplants, including high-profile sports stars.
Former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan spoke at ARC’s recent event about some of the issues facing the region, including systemic barriers facing Black youth, which his nonprofit ATL: Advance The Lives works to combat. Since being drafted by the Falcons about 17 years ago, Ryan said he’s seen the metro’s transportation network improve, adding there’s work still left to be done.
“For a metro area like ours, you cannot enjoy the sights and sounds if you cannot get to them,” he said. “... We have a long way to go, but we are getting there.”
