Quote:
Originally Posted by shivtim
I like the aesthetic (brick and black), but the site plan is pretty bad. It's just a suburban style corporate campus. It doesn't really address the MARTA station or the beltline, and doesn't connect into the surrounding neighborhood. The closest thing to the MARTA station is a surface parking lot - really? (I realize the developer may not own that block, in which case, that's on MARTA). It's an inward focused superblock. I love that there is development in this area, and it's way better than a standard Fuqua strip mall design, but there are some pretty simple fixes that could make this a lot better.
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Generally, I feel the same way. However, there's a part of me feeling they're trying to echo Historic Fourth Ward Park with a more active use at the ground level. This part I don't mind, as Atlanta in general is going through a weird phase of turning its back on historic commercial corridors and building out new commercial corridors along our expanding trail system (we need both). Like you've already stated though is they're missing some easy wins by not connecting to the surrounding neighrohood, having the buildings on the west side follow a grid like pattern, and MARTA should really get on board and put out an RFP for Bankhead TOD or put out a rendering for how that surface parking could/should better integrate with the project.
I want to note, I believe the BeltLine does not travel directly adjacent to Bankhead Station. Last I checked it was connecting to the east via the Kudzu Trail:
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