• What: Organizational meeting for The Chamblee Organic/Locally Grown Market
• When: March 10th, 2010 at 7 p.m.
• Where: the Community Room of the Chamblee Library (map it!)
• Please RSVP to thechambleemarket@gmail.com
• Bring your ideas, experience, skills, relationships and resources with you!

Keep up with the market on facebook with the Chamblee Farmers’ Market fan page.

And get updates on the Chamblee Farmers’ Market organizational meeting on facebook.

But enough of my pessimism, the plans to redevelop the “day use area” of Mason Mill Park show great promise. The day use area includes the current tennis courts, dog park, and fitness circle at the end of McConnell Drive (see a map here). This area seems to be the main focus for now (so I will save my energy for fighting to save the woods later) and I like the incorporation of more features while not losing the heart of the park’s value with the tennis courts and senior community center.  With playgrounds, picnic shelters, refurbished buildings, a community garden, water quality pond, a trail to the new library, and grassy, pervious surface parking lots, the new features have potential to revitalize the park.

Click the image for a detailed view of plan one for the Mason Mill Park day use area!

And click the image here for a detailed view of the second proposed plan for the Mason Mill Park redevelopment!

Want to weigh in your two cents? DeKalb Parks and Recreation is holding the next public information meeting regarding the redevelopment of Mason Mill Park next month.

• What: a public information meeting regarding Mason Mill Park redevelopment plans
• When: Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 6:30 p.m.
• Where: Avis G. Williams / Toco Hill Library at 1282 McConnell Drive, Decatur, 30033 (map it!)
• Who: DeKalb County Parks and Recreation Department and our Decatur neighbors in the surrounding communities
• For more information, contact Revonda Moody, Project Manager, at 404-687-3708.

Many governing, advisory and informal bodies are looking at various travel modes, from high-speed trains, to commuter rail and buses, to streetcars – all intended to serve different purposes and various types of movement. Georgia Department of Transportation is undertaking studies for linking Atlanta and Chattanooga with a high-speed passenger rail line and has raised its Office of Intermodal Transportation to Division level.  The Transit Implementation Board has adopted a governing structure to implement its regional transit plan.  Application has been made for stimulus funds to begin the construction of a portion of the Peachtree Streetcar project.  MARTA has recently completed a new overview and drafted guidelines for transit oriented development.  Groups such as Citizens for Progressive Transit have been formed to advocate for regional transit.

What will it take to implement and build support for better transit services and transit oriented development in the region?  Who is on board and who must be won over?  How can transit help shape a more livable and satisfactory future?   Find some answers at the December Roundtable.

Here are the details:

• What: Sustainable Atlanta Roundtable’s monthly program for December: “Atlanta’s Transit Oriented Future”
• When: Friday, December 4th, 2009; doors open at 7 a.m. for networking and the program runs from 7:30 – 9 .m.
• Where: All Saints’ Episcopal Church at 634 West Peachtree, Atlanta
• How much: $15 for individuals, $10 for students, $20 for individuals receiving AIA CEUs and for all walk-ins; $5 for Southface members with a valid discount code
• Register online now!
  

You can also check out a map of combined existing and proposed transportation projects throughout the metro Atlanta area and beyond here on the Citizens for Progressive Transit website!

View of Arabia Mountain near Lithonia in DeKalb County. You can bring the whole family and bike or walk along the PATH, which leads through woods, over streams, across fields, and, of course, alongside Arabia Mountain, where you can explore its granite geology. (photo courtesy of DeKalb Parks, Bond, and Greenspace Program)

In metro Atlanta, many of us are aware of our severe lack of parks (trees, too), and next Thursday, December 10th, the DeKalb County Parks, Bond, and Greenspace office will host a forum to give the public the latest from the county greenspace program.

The county has used bond money to buy and improve land for parks and recreation, acquiring more than 3,000 acres since 2001, according to the office of county CEO Burrell Ellis.

• What: Officials will discuss DeKalb County’s greenspace program
• When: 6:30 p.m. on December 10, 2009
• Where: The Maloof Auditorium, 1300 Commerce Dr. in Decatur

For more information, call the county Parks Bond and Greenspace Office at 404-371-2082 and visit their website here!

• What: Monthly meeting of the Metro Atlanta Group of the Georgia Chapter of the Sierra Club
• Topics: Biking, walking, and transit as part of the community transportation plan for the City of Decatur with Fred Boykin
• When: Tuesday, April 14th; 7 p.m. refreshments and 7:30 p.m. the meeting begins (to join the group for dinner before, meet at Twain’s in Decatur at the intersection of Trinity and Church streets)
• Where: Church of the Epiphany, 2089 Ponce de Leon Avenue NE in Atlanta

The new Comprehensive Plan is a policy document that guides future development of the county. Rezoning is a way to implement the Comprehensive Plan by putting regulations into place that will make it easier to bring recommendations into reality. The updated ordinance will also provide design controls and unique land development options for achieving the vision adopted by the county.

• When: April 16th, 2009 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
• Where: DeKalb Maloof Auditorium, 1300 Commerce Drive, Decatur, GA 30030 (map it!)
• Hosted by: DeKalb County Planning and Development Department
• What: The second round of community workshops with a presentation for DeKalb citizens, including an overview of zoning and the status of the project. Preliminary recommendations will also be provided. Residents will be encouraged to give their feedback during the meetings (there will be one more community workshop after this one).

Below is an excerpt from an email sent out to our Laurel Ridge yahoo group:

Generating public awareness and creating partnerships with residents, elected officials, local agencies, businesses, educational organizations and civic associations are critical to the success of the DeKalb County Zoning Update Project.

In early December 2008, approximately 120 people attended the first series of community input workshops designed to gather input from the public on the current zoning code for DeKalb County. The first of three workshops targeting land developers and property owners was held in mid-January 2009.

The workshop gathered input from more than 60 individuals regarding the residential and commercial aspects of the code, as well as issues with actual zoning and rezoning processes.

To learn more information the public is encouraged to view the project website at www.co.dekalb.ga.us/planning/zoningCode.html. Comments may also be submitted online, and citizens may join the project mailing list to receive mailings. For more information, please contact Arthur F. Duncan at afduncan@co.dekalb.ga.us.

The BeltLine Quarterly Briefing drew a crowded full house for the February 2009 meeting

On Friday, March 6th, AMTRAK laid down its sword in the battle over the Northeast Corridor (or “Decatur Belt”) of the Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. Yay! The BeltLine is no stranger to controversy or roadblocks, but to face a federal organization on the scale of AMTRAK (while the Georgia DOT did a 180 degree turn against the BeltLine) was a bit unnerving. So this is great news and the BeltLine is moving forward as planned!

Of course, at the Quarterly Briefing the week prior to the decision, you could hardly guess that the BeltLine was up against such a potentially damaging decision. As the Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. closes in on its first five-year planning phase, plans are as ambitious as ever. President and CEO Terri Montague outlined the BeltLine’s current priorities:

• To receive stimulus money. The BeltLine is a very versatile project of “regional and national significance,” with transit, housing, parks, etc. – all worthy of federal funds and reauthorization.
• Community benefits framework. This includes working with the TAD Advisory Board on first-source hiring when creating jobs around the BeltLine.
• Refinancing. The time is coming up to refinance the $64 million in bonds sold last October and to sell the next $60 million installment.
• BeltLine Master Planning. As the end approaches for the first five-year planning phase, it’s time to plan the next five years (including continued transit planning).
• Community Land Trusts. The goal is to set up an orgaization to head up community land trust development for both the BeltLine and the city of Atlanta.
• More parks & trails. Get ready for more ground-breaking on parks and trails this year! Some of the parks underway right now:

1. Historic Fourth Ward
2. Boulevard Crossing
3. DL Stanton
4. Four Corners
5. Murphy’s Crossing
6. Enota
7. Westside Reservoir (which will rival Piedmont Park in size with ~200 acres)

Of course, Terri did address the issue of AMTRAK and its threat to the BeltLine, but that’s a mute point now.

Rob Brawner and I have been working together for almost a year now on having volunteers help get the word out about the BeltLine by having the booth set up at local festivals. If you are interested in helping staff the booth, please email me! jenny.p@mac.com (Here we are in front of the wall of the booth)

Rob Brawner from the BeltLine Partnership presented the segment on the Capital Campaign (you can donate online on the BeltLine’s website) as well as upcoming events and the Equitable Development Plan (to ensure geographic balance, incentives for growth, advanced transit options, and affordable housing along all neighborhoods on the BeltLine). For more on the Partnership’s plans for 2009, please click here for a blog I posted previously!

We’re always looking for volunteers to help us spread the word about the BeltLine by manning the BeltLine booth at local festivals! We have an ambitious schedule this year and will need a lot of help. If you’re interested, please email me for more information (jenny.p@mac.com) or sign up on the BeltLine’s volunteer page here!

Mark your calendar for these upcoming events!

April 18th: BeltLine Clean-Up Day (click here to register!)
April 26th, 1-4 p.m.: BeltLine Bike Ride (click here to sign up!)
April 25th-26th: the BeltLine booth with be at the Inman Park Festival (click here for more information about volunteering for a shift at the BeltLine booth!)

Stay tuned for more details!

• When: Thursday, February 26th, 2009 from 6-8 p.m.
• Where: 130 Trinity Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30303

Topic will include:

The BeltLine clean-up of the northeast "Decatur" corridor in Nov. 2008 with the City Hall East in the background (photo by Christopher Martin)

• 2009 BeltLine priorities
• BeltLine Partnership Capital Campaign update (in 2008, the capital campaign raised $30 million raised and invested $10.9 million in parks and trails)
• BeltLine implementation update
• Affordable Housing Trust Fund update

Plus, what to expect in 2009!

• More money raised toward $60 million capital campaign goal
• Additional investments in parks & trails
• BeltLine Earth Day clean-up (April 18th)
• BeltLine Bike Ride (April 26th)
• More groundbreakings and grand openings
• More BeltLine tours and monthly BeltLine 101 sessions
• BeltLine booth at 10-12 neighborhood festivals (if you’re interested in volunteering, please email me! jenny.p@mac.com. I help the BeltLine coordinate volunteers for these festivals and it’s a ton of fun!)
  

  BeltLine clean-up along a stretch of track that is currently in dispute with AMTRAK and the Georgia DOT (photo by Christopher Martin)

• Expanded volunteer opportunities at www.BeltLine.org
• Social networking and other opportunites to engage with the BeltLine online
• Creation of an independent Community Land Trust organization
• Distribution of resource guide for residents of being economically displaced
• Strategy to connect residents with new jobs created along the BeltLine

• Monday, February 23rd 2009
• 7:00 p.m.
• North Decatur Presbyterian Church

If you live in the Medlock area, but aren’t quite sure if you fall within the MANA boundaries, then click here for a map to see what streets are included. MANA also works closely with the Clyde Shepherd Nature Preserve and the Clairmont Heights Civic Association to support and protect our neighborhood. So be sure to check out their organizations, too!

So far, the meetings have been productive and the planners that DeKalb County have appointed seem receptive to ideas and suggestions from the neighbors. The plans they have come up with show a respect for existing structures and preserving the woods included in the park (which is something that concerns me greatly). The planners are leaning towards a newly structured park with an improved tennis center, less parking lot and larger greenspace (and with additional “reinforced turf” that could be used for additional parking), a driveway loop that would allow for access to the lower floor of the senior center (if the building isn’t renovated to allow interior access within the building), defining the trails through the woods with crushed natural stone or boardwalk, and clearing the woods in Melton Park for a play area. I’m not a particular fan of running a driveway through the middle of a park, or messing with the trails and clearing the woods so I’m hoping they will leave those areas alone (please let me know if you hear anything). And the dog park would be relocated to the end of McConnell Drive to be closer to the woods and out of the flood plain that would become a retention pond.

The final community meeting was Thursday, January 22nd and here are a few notes from the meeting posted on our Laurel Ridge yahoo group:

Nature Districts (Burnt Fork and South Peachtree Creek):
> Lots of nature trails, using either crushed stone or boardwalk
> Connection from South Peachtree Creek Trail at stone bridge to McConnell Road via bridge over CSX railroad.
> Dog Park would be moved from current location to end of McConnell across from Water Works.

Water Works
> Recommended mitigation of stormwater runoff through installation of “energy dissipators” (rocks) below CSX railroad culverts and construction of a “bio-swale” before water reaches the creeks.
> Interpretive signage and trails.
> Found remnants of old asphalt road extending from current Water Works ruins up the north side of Burnt Fork Creek.

Day Use District:
> Lots of stormwater mitigation proposed from the impervious surfaces which includes the Mack Love Center and the Tennis Courts and associated parking lots.
> Significant reduction in parking and asphalt in return for expanded greenspace but the proposed new access road cuts the greenspace in two.
> Recommended use of pervious pavers and “reinforced turf” to cut down on stormwater runoff.
> Replacement of dog park with drainage detention pond.

Melton Park :
> Formalize loop trail
> Clear a “play area” in the middle
> Bridge to Water Works.

For more info on the master plans and to leave your comments and suggestions, please visit the website here: http://www.co.dekalb.ga.us/parks/mason_mill.htm

Atlantans are no strangers to having to fight to preserve our neighborhoods and promote a more sustainable way of life. This time, the Atlanta BeltLine, Piedmont Park, and our intown neighborhoods are at risk (not to mention the future of public transportation in Atlanta). At the eleventh hour, the Georgia Department of Transportation and Amtrak have surfaced to try and lay claim to the northeast corridor (the “Decatur Belt” section) of the Atlanta BeltLine with the intention of putting in a high speed rail line. This high speed rail line would result in trains running from a multi-modal transportation hub downtown (which currently doesn’t exist), heading east along DeKalb Avenue and then going into a large curve to turn north along the BeltLine corridor, through Poncey-Highland, through Virginia Highland, across Monroe and 10th, and directly through Piedmont Park on its way out of town.

This would not only include the high speed trains, but would also include massive right of ways, protective barriers put up to keep pedestrians out, and, ultimately, the elimination of the BeltLine project. It also cuts through some of out most historic intown neighborhoods, would divide Piedmont Park in half (ironic considering the massive expansion underway now), and puts Atlanta in jeopardy of not receiving any federal funds for transportation from the pending economic stimulus package.

The real kicker is that Amtrak has no actual funds and no actual plans to support this move – they merely want to “preserve their options” for potential use of the rail later. They’ve been saying this since 1995 and still, no efforts to bring their plan to life. So it appears that they would put an effective end to the BeltLine without actually making progress themselves.

Those of us who so strongly support the BeltLine are clearly accepting of the advancement of public transit, both on a local and regional level, so this opposition is not to Amtrak itself. It’s in opposition to Amtrak’s choice to run this through our neighborhoods at the expense of one of the greatest projects Atlanta has seen in a long time – when there are viable alternatives for Amtrak!

I will be posting more info about these developments coming up (but for now I have to get to work). So what can we do right now? Attend the rally this Saturday at 2 p.m. in Piedmont Park! Share this blog and news articles with friends and spread the word! And here are snippits you can use from Liz Coyle (Chair of the BeltLine Network) to write our legislators, write editorials, write mass emails to people asking for support, etc.:

If you have questions, please email me at jenny.p@mac.com! And thanks to Liz Coyle who did a great job moderating the meeting last night with the BeltLine Network!

Here is an email that was sent out earlier today by Elizabeth Coyle (with the BeltLine Network) that I wanted to share with you (you can read Mayor Franklin’s letter here to Congressman John Lewis about this issue):

I am calling a special meeting of the BeltLine Network on this Wednesday, January 28, at 4:30pm at Trees Atlanta, 225 Chester Avenue.  The purpose of this meeting is to discuss and strategize a community response to a threat to BeltLine transit.  I will provide more details as available at the meeting, but to summarize the situation and get right to the point, AMTRAK has begun condemnation proceedings on the NE Corridor of the BeltLine.  This is in response to Norfolk Southern Railroad (NSR), Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. (ABI) and Atlanta Development Authority (ADA) pursuing rail abandonment on the Northeast Corridor (aka the “Decatur Belt”) with the federal Surface Transportation Board (STB), a necessary step to advancing light rail transit in the BeltLine corridor.  Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and AMTRAK have filed Motions to Stay the abandonment proceedings.

Some of you will remember that AMTRAK and GDOT had floated the possibility some years ago of putting heavy freight and high-speed intercity commuter rail in this long-inactive corridor to a proposed multimodal station in downtown Atlanta.  However, the Concept 3 Plan recently adopted by regional leaders on the Transit Planning Board (TPB) and supported by the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) calls for the AMTRAK commuter rail line (IF it ever happens) to run along the West side of the City in an existing active heavy rail corridor.  AMTRAK’s action to “preserve its options” could delay BeltLine transit planning indefinitely and if not resolved quickly, will hamper ABI and MARTA’s momentum in this regard.  And quite frankly, GDOT’s failure to stand behind the regional transportation plan, which includes the BeltLine, also threatens the region’s competitiveness for federal transit dollars that are tied to local agreement on priorities.

I am confident there will be overwhelming public opposition to heavy rail in the Northeast Corridor, including in Piedmont Park.  I have copied the impacted NPU chairs and other community leaders on this email for that reason.

The Mayor, ABI, ADA, and MARTA with assistance from ARC are working diligently to resolve this matter with STB, GDOT and AMTRAK, while seeking support from Congressman Lewis, Senator Isakson and Senator Chambliss.  A letter from the Mayor is attached.  On Wednesday, we will discuss ways to  mount a strong community response to this threat.  I’m sure many of you will not wait to contact the Governor’s Office and GDOT to express your support for the Concept 3 Plan and the BeltLine while opposing AMTRAK’s unnecessary actions that threaten both.

Liz Coyle
Chair
BeltLine Network, Inc.
1117 St. Charles Place NE, Atlanta, GA 30306
ebcoyle@mindspring.com
404-895-1613 (cell) | 404-815-0853 (office) | 404-815-1563 (fax)

Greenprints Conference and Tradeshow: This green-building symposium attracts people from all over the Southeast and will be held this year on March 25th and 26th, 2009. The conference brings together experts to explore ways to make Atlanta more sustainable with smart growth including strategies, initiatives based on the latest technology and trends. Check it out here and register soon if you would like to be a part of it at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta this year!

Sustainable Atlanta Roundtable: Once a month, Southface hosts a roundtable that is open to the public (next month’s is on February 6th, 2009). This month’s topics include addressing the budget challenges Georgia faces when it comes to a clean water supply, clean and inexpensive energyand funding for transportation initiatives. How will our elected officials handle these environmental issues? Join the discussion by signing up here!

Southwest Study Group Meeting BeltLine Subarea 1 Master Plan Launch and Orientation

Meeting Purpose: Introduction to the BeltLine, Smart Growth and Master Planning

When: Thursday, January 29th from 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Where: Hammonds House Museum 503 Peeples Street, Atlanta, GA, 30310

Northeast Study Group Meeting: BeltLine Subarea 6 Master Plan Draft

Meeting Purpose: To review and provide input on the SA 6 Draft Master Plan

When: Thursday, February 12th from 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Where: Hillside 690 Courtenay Dr. NE or 1301 Monroe Dr. NE Atlanta, GA 30306

BeltLine Quarterly Briefing

Meeting Purpose: Update on BeltLine Activities

When: Thursday, February 26th, 2009 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Where: Atlanta Public Schools Auditorium 130 Trinity Avenue Atlanta, GA 30303

Want to learn more about the Atlanta BeltLine project? Visit the website here!
Want to see the BeltLine up close and personal? Take a tour and see where exactly the trails, transit, and parks are going to be and to find out the latest developments! Click here to sign up for a tour!
Already know all about the BeltLine and want to help spread the word and bring the project into reality? Click here to sign up to volunteer!