Sometimes the right thing comes along at the right moment, and you can overdo a bit. I was looking for ways to enjoy the outdoors and get some exercise, and along comes the Beltline’s temporary trails, and for now, that’s my go-to place to explore the city, relax and be wow-ed either by nature or by the sunset or both.

So I was back on the trail Thursday night, in part to see the art works that had been vandalized (you can hear a piece on the vandalism by my fellow WABE freelancer Aleck Ragsdale here).

The vandalism sucks, obviously but I have other things on my mind.

Like, how will I be able to get from the Beltline to the Freedom Parkway Trail and vice versa? You can see the intersection of the two paths, and the steep drop that separates them in the photo above. (Note, I think the answers to some of my questions have been discussed, but I’m not sure where we are in the adoption or implementation processes).

I’m also curious when they are going to start reworking the intersection at Monroe and 10th. I rode there last week, and basically just wanted to barrel through the intersection, either to continue on the Beltline trail or to access 10th Street and other destinations in Midtown.

I know from perusing the mountain of docs on the Beltline’s site that there had been a plan to re-do intersections and tweak the streetscape. But I’m confused as to where we are in that process, and regardless, I just wonder how easy it will be to remake a complicated intersection like 10th and Monroe that’s busy and heavily watched.

(I downloaded one of the last presentations on the Midtown/Monroe portion of the Beltline, and I think without being at the meeting where the report was shared, I can’t fully understand all the diagrams in the 80-page report. I also think, diagrams or no, this could be a difficult process — on top of the fuss caused by real estate development plans at that intersection.).

I’m also wondering when people will start to gather for Beltline bike rides. There are some obvious gathering points to begin a ride: Drip in Glenwood Park; Parish in Inman Park; or the Starbucks (among other places) in the shopping complex on Monroe in Midtown.

I mention it because I really think the Beltline needs to quickly become a regular and/or special thing that you do; an activity; a hipster destination. And it also needs to have an economic impact on the existing development around it if there’s any expectation that it will lure additional development.

You might be thinking, “Hey there Speedy, hold the phone. The trails just opened up!”

And you’d be right. But I’m eager to see the Beltline become part of the fabric of the city; even Mayor Reed said he thinks the timetable development should be significantly shortened.

I see some people on the trail; in fact on Thursday, someone was driving his large truck on the trail (uh…wtf?), and last night, I passed a fellow mountain bike rider. But it’s not hordes of people. I mean, Thursday at 8 p.m./9 p.m. was the perfect time to be on the trail; the weather had finally cooled down and the sunset featured a fuzzy orange-pink blaze of fire that reflected off of the buildings in Midtown visible from the trail.

I mean, now’s the time folks!

Maybe you’ve got questions, or shoot, maybe some answers. Or even just thoughts. If so, fatevi sentire, as they say in Italian.

Housekeeping: A while back I posted a disclaimer about a freelance assignment I completed for the Beltline, at the organization’s request. Just wanted to reiterate that I did some work for these folks once. It was strictly a one-time thing and the assignment consisted of covering an event for developers. But I wanted to mention it again so that you can decide for yourselves if I might be biased when I write about the Beltline.

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It details Atlanta’s second, much more modest attempt at winning federal dollars for a streetcar line while, Charlotte…wait for it….learns it’s already won federal money for streetcars!

Those lucky son of guns! I’m so happy for them. I mean, really. I mean, shoot, maybe I should move to Charlotte!

You can read his post here.

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I was back on the Beltline’s temporary trails over the weekend, and I saw something that was a bit amazing. And I don’t mean the art (but more on that in a minute)

Like conquering heroes, runners from the Peachtree Road Race were slowly walking from the race’s finish in Piedmont Park back to their homes/cars in Inman Park and beyond along the Beltline.

It just made the trail seem so useful!

By heading back to the Beltline on Sunday, I got in some traffic-free biking, which is key for someone like me who is really not ready to brave Atlanta’s drivers.

But my main objective was to snap a few photos of the art installations on the Beltline. (Just as a brief reminder, I access a short spur of the Beltline on Memorial Drive, and then take the Krog Tunnel to connect to the rest of the Northeastern section of the trail. Oh and I use a sturdy mountain bike — it would be tough-going on less robust bikes.)

There’s been a lot of hype, in my humble opinion, but I can tell you I was truly impressed by the innovative works of art I encountered along the path. They reference the South’s history, agriculture and economy. And it’s almost like an obstacle course where you want to check off each challenge. As I’ve mentioned, I still need to check off one big challenge: visiting the installations on the less developed Southwestern portion of the Beltline.

Anyway you can see my favorite work of art, and others in photos after the jump.


This is my fave. I saw something similar a few years back at the South Carolina Botanical Garden at Clemson University. I don’t know much about the work, but I’m guessing this form of natural sculpture dates back centuries. If anyone knows anything about it, I’d be thrilled to get schooled.

Other cool things I saw:

Here’s a little “settlement” (above) I found under the Freedom Parkway trail. I love this little “field” of paper flowers below. It just cheers me up!

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This is another post about the Beltline.

But this post is unlike anything else I’ve written about the Beltline.

That’s because yesterday I used the Beltline for what it’s intended for: I rode my bike on the Beltline from Glenwood Park to Piedmont Park.

I went somewhere. I changed my scenery. I took in the skyline. I got some exercise. I enjoyed some art. I peeked in the backyards of folks who are not even my neighbors. And I did it all on the Beltline, and so can anyone else in the city.

As usual, I’m late to the party, in this case in terms of what’s happening on the Beltline. I’ll blame it, and the unwitting hiatus this Web site’s been on, on my vacation.

But I hope you’ll find my bike ride interesting, because I really did.

I had written last year about the Beltline folks opening up temporary trails, and then promptly forgot about it, even as the calls for art went out, and radio pieces told me the art was up, and Angel Poventud’s Facebook statuses told me something was happening.

You know, the best things in life need to be experienced first-hand.

Now, to be sure, I really want to take a streetcar or light rail from my spur of the Beltline to other parts of the city. For all the hype and the money and the press releases, and the sense of importance, I want the thing to actually help solve a problem that desperately needs a solution. But that’s clearly going to have to wait. So……

….So putting that dream aside, the second-best thing, for me, at least, is to ride my bike from my spur of the Beltline to Atlanta’s main park, Piedmont Park, which is in the city’s most exciting neighborhood. That’s what I’ve wanted to do, and I did it and I’m going to keep doing it. Arriving at Piedmont Park yesterday reminded me of Dorothy seeing Emerald City off in the distance.

So what about the photo above? Well you know how hipsters are.

They have to do kooky stuff to commemorate life. And what you see above is a modern version of a small-town traveling show. It was truly entertaining! But I’m publishing this photo because it shows people ON THE BELTLINE.

And they’re not bush-whacking!

Here are a few more photos of the events from yesterday:

The traveling show attracted quite a crowd.

There were drummers on the Beltline and there were acrobats hanging from the Beltline and wrapping themselves in silky ropes and running and jumping.

All very well and good. But the main show was riding my bike on the Beltline from point A to point B.

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There are so many great points here but I would like to just highlight one paragraph.

“When down-on-the-heels cities are not simply holding their hands out, they tend to work the same frayed ropes over and over again: building convention centers that will never make money, betting the farm on light-rail systems that always underperform, shoveling tax dollars at stadiums and sports franchises that don’t generate any new revenue, redeveloping the waterfront. If the basic definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over again while praying for different results, then huge swaths of urban America are certifiably nuts. For its part, Cleveland has turned all the usual tricks and more while manifestly failing to address the most basic quality-of-life building blocks that might generate jobs, attract people, and build hope. What Cleveland and other slump towns refuse to do is decentralize and deregulate, pushing decisions and dollars back to the people so they can navigate their own courses through life.

You can find the whole story here.

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I’ve been meaning to post a story I produced about the old Macy’s building in downtown Atlanta since last week. And a story in yesterday’s AJC reminded me to get going.

My piece was for WABE 90.1, and focused on one aspect of this building’s renewal: it now has two addresses. The upper floors of the building will remain 180 Peachtree Street, but the lower three floors, which are being converted to event and conference space, have been “re-addressed” to 200 Peachtree because the owners think that has more cachet.

You can find my piece here, and the AJC piece here. The AJC piece is very interesting, and goes into much more detail about the history of the building.

Addresses can be an interesting thing for companies. There are companies off of Powers Ferry Road in COBB COUNTY that have an Atlanta mailing address. I always find that one funny because the companies didn’t see fit to locate in Atlanta, but they know that around the country and around the world, no one knows Marietta but everyone knows Atlanta.

I hope the investors succeed in turning 200 Peachtree into a grand space. As I told one of the investors, even if I have a natural skepticism about any real estate development now and especially in downtown Atlanta, I am at the same time naturally excited by the idea of restoring a grand old building like the Macy’s building.

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I have nothing against renters, and I understand that buying and rehabbing properties is a way to make money and also a means by which a neighborhood can have a new life.

But this house in my neighborhood tells a different story.

It’s a story of someone — I’ll leave his name out of it — buying a house in Grant Park in 2001 and NOT fixing it up. And then renting it to people who sat on the porch all night, carrying on and occasionally chasing after the dog rather loudly.

House in so-so shape = tenants who aren’t going to pay top dollar and hence probably don’t require the landlord to mow the lawn, maintain the property, etc.

I think the photos make this house look better than it is — probably because it does have potential. But the front and back yards are completely overgrown (see below); the netting is ripped from the screened-in porch you see in the photo; the paint is peeling; and there’s a note on the window warning trespassers to go away (too late; three air-conditioning units were stolen).

The tenants who carried on eventually moved on. And the house sat empty. It’s been empty for at least a year. And at first, that was good. I mean, there were no more disputes with drunk girls who thought nothing of yelling in the middle of the street at 4 a.m. on a Monday night.

But you can’t deny that the house is a hole in an otherwise vibrant neighborhood.

A hole that’s now attached to a foreclosure notice. The bank bought it in December, and has tried to sell it since. Friends went to visit it, and I guess the internal configuration of the house’s two units is a bit odd, and of course, the house needs a lot of work.

So now who’s going to buy it? Someone nice? Someone local? Or someone else from Fayetteville, which is where the last owner may have lived, and which is far enough away that regular oversight is just not likely (and in this case did not happen).

And I tell this story because everyone who reads the blog can relate, unfortunately. This is just one house in Grant Park. Two blocks away there’s another house with a large For Rent sign in the front window. And yet the front lawn is completely overgrown, and the man from Bartow County who was working on the house recently either didn’t notice or didn’t care.

Hey Bartow County man: is YOUR lawn unmowed?

Why do you think it’s okay to treat OUR neighborhood this way?

Interestingly, I passed this house recently and saw the same car in the driveway and a woman on the front lawn. When I looked closer, I noticed the front window was broken. She said someone had thrown a brick through it but didn’t break in.

Uh, hmmm, I wonder why? I mean, I don’t want any homes near me to be victims of burglaries so I do sincerely sympathize with her. But on the other hand, what made her think she could just leave a house that’s obviously vacant and not run into trouble?

And again, why does she think it’s okay to do it in this neighborhood? Would she considerate it acceptable in her own neighborhood?

I think we know the answer to that one.

While in the past, I’ve had issues with the tenants who lived in this home, the real culprit is the owner. That’s the person who conveyed in one way or another that he couldn’t be bothered to make the house nice; he just wanted to make a profit.

There are nice renters everywhere, and these renters just took their lead from the owner, who clearly didn’t care what happened to the house as long as the rent was coming in.

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