Tucker recently paid $1.2 million to purchase land in the city’s downtown area, which is poised for redevelopment into a multiuse trail and public greenspace.
The City Council closed the deal Monday with the Cofer family, the longtime owners of the four parcels along Railroad Avenue and Second Street. Mayor Frank Auman told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution the land purchase is a “lynchpin” deal that allows the city to begin a network of multiuse paths.
“We’ve been anxious to get started on that leg of the trail for a long time,” he said.
In 2019, the city adopted a Trail Master Plan that includes a vision for five interconnected paths, spanning nearly 32 miles. The properties that the city just purchased were identified as part of the first segment of the trail. It will cut through downtown Tucker along Main Street and continue alongside the CSX railroad tracks.
According to DeKalb County property records, the four parcels add up to nearly two acres and are appraised at roughly $200,000.
Auman said he wants this portion of the trail completed first since it’ll be in a highly visible area, given its proximity to Main Street. The Cofer family, who have been present in the Tucker area for more than a century, currently use the land as an RV rental lot, so Auman said they have to give ample notice before the city can begin transforming the area into greenspace. He hopes to break ground by the end of the year.
“We’ve been talking to (the Cofer family) for several years as we’ve developed our trail plan and where it’s going to go and all of that,” Auman said. “That particular parcel works out in such a way that we can do the trail across the back edge of it and open up the rest for some greenspace and gathering space.”
The city is treating the trail and the greenspace as two separate projects. Auman said the city hired a firm to do some preliminary research for greenspace development, but public planning discussions will take place before work starts.
He added that the city is close to opening another greenspace area on the other side of downtown Tucker along Lavista Road and Church Street. Auman expects it to open within the next six weeks.
The city’s Trail Master Plan is available at tuckerga.gov/plans_and_studies/trail_master_plan.php. In December, the city also adopted a Downtown Master Plan, which includes the city’s vision for the next 20 years. That plan is available at tuckerga.gov/plans_and_studies/downtown_master_plan.php.
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