Atlanta Beltline officials are planning to kick off large-scale demolition work in coming days near Piedmont Hospital to clear the way for bridge repair, future affordable housing, and more in Buckhead.
Crews are scheduled to start bringing down the vacant section of the Bennett Street commercial district now owned by the Beltline—six buildings totaling 75,000 square feet—in mid-August, as Beltline leadership announced Wednesday.
The work, described as “another pivotal milestone” toward completing the Beltline’s Northwest Trail, will set the stage for infrastructure improvements—including carving out a trail corridor where none exists today—and long-term redevelopment in coming years, which officials have said will include commercial space and non-market-rate housing.
As seen from over Peachtree Road, acreage the Beltline now owns just north of Piedmont Hospital along Bennett Street. LoKnows Drones; courtesy of Atlanta Beltline Inc.
How Segment 2 is planned to pass under Peachtree Road, just north of Piedmont Hospital. A lounge space and The Fresh Market are depicted at top left, on opposite sides of Peachtree Road. PATH Foundation/Atlanta Beltline Inc.
Beltline officials purchased the six parcels in August last year where Peachtree Road meets Bennett Street. It's a section of a commercial district along the Northwest Trail corridor just north of Piedmont Hospital, Shepherd Center, and other employment centers—collectively the largest jobs hub along the entire 22-mile Beltline loop. Next door, the Beltline bought troubled former nightclub Elleven45 Lounge and adjacent property in 2024.
All told, the Beltline owns 3.2 acres on Bennett Street—the agency’s first acquisitions along the Peachtree Road corridor—having paid $29 million total for both sections.
The site will become part of Northwest Trail – Segment 2A, and Beltline officials expect demolition work to finish by the end of 2026. (Businesses situated at the western end of Bennett Street will remain open through demo.)
Atlanta Beltline Inc.
Atlanta Beltline Inc.
Clearing the Bennett Street buildings will make way for trail construction and allow the Georgia Department of Transportation to start its planned replacement of the Peachtree Road bridge next door. The bridge replacement is scheduled to start sometime in 2028, per Beltline officials.
Plans call for creating a temporary, at-grade crossing for the Beltline at Peachtree Road while bridge work is underway, then building the trail beneath it.
Long term, the Beltline plans to build up the Bennett Street site with mixed-income housing and Northwest Trail commercial pitstops, but how that will look and function has yet to be determined, pending a planning and community engagement process. Project officials describe the site as a “housing and economic opportunity in one of Atlanta’s most sought-after neighborhoods.”
In the gallery above, find a closer look at Bennett Street’s current conditions and plans for its future. Any requests?
Breakdown of acreage the Beltline now controls, just west of Peachtree Road in Buckhead, spending $29 million total. Atlanta Beltline Inc.
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