For highway-capping ‘Stitch,’ new visuals, construction outlook emerge

Leaders of downtown’s highway-capping The Stitch hope fresh visuals and a Thursday event with Atlanta movers-and-shakers will help propel the project forward, as actual construction—albeit vastly scaled back—is on the horizon. 

The latest round of Stitch renderings was unveiled today during a summit at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, as led by Atlanta Downtown Stitch Inc. president and CEO Jack Cebe and other officials.

Panelists included Georgia State University president Dr. M. Brian Blake, Truist leadership, Atlanta’s chief of staff Courtney English, and CP Group founding partner Chris Eachus, whose company owns nearby Bank of America Plaza and The CTR (formerly CNN Center), per organizers.  

At the downtown event titled “You Are the Thread,” Stitch leadership revealed that Phase One construction is set to start in 2027. But as of now, that will include only street improvements near the project site—on Ralph McGill Boulevard, as well as Peachtree and Courtland streets—meant to set the stage for later work. 

Actual cap construction will begin once funding allows, with a goal of eventually creating a thriving new neighborhood between Midtown and downtown.

“Today’s event rallied city leaders around the project’s progress and future,” a rep wrote to Urbanize Atlanta via email, “inviting them to become stewards of the project within the community.” 

Fresh visuals show more detailed plans for a Gateway Pavilion and other Phase One structures that would be used for social gatherings such as concerts near a large greenspace, with a backdrop of downtown skyscrapers (and possibly future new high-rises) beyond. 

Now formally in the works for a decade, a retooled, smaller version of The Stitch’s 5-acre first phase was unveiled a year ago. 

Officials have said $50 million is secured to move the design phase forward and help create The Stitch Special Assessment District, a measure approved by the Atlanta City Council in spring 2025 intended to help cover The Stitch’s operations, administration, maintenance, and programs costs, as funded by property-owning taxpayers within the district. 

Considerable organizational progress, community engagement, and overall momentum for the Stitch in recent years appeared to be for naught when federal government officials rescinded $151.4 million in grant funding in 2025. But project spearheads have insisted that was a temporary setback and not a death knell. Find more fresh renderings and context in the gallery above.

Below is a Before/After preview of how The Stitch’s initial highway-capping phase is now expected to look and function (pending funding). The set of three images is from the north view (first), east, and then west. 

[UPDATE: 2:45 p.m., Oct. 9: Please note: Our "scaled-back" phrasing has been a reference to how The Stitch was initially presented for years as a 14-acre project that could conceivably be tackled at once, as opposed to starting with infrastructure work on existing streets and/or a smaller initial phase. On that note, The Stitch reps send the following clarifications: 

"We wanted to clarify one key point regarding the scope of the project. The Stitch has not been scaled back, and the plans for Phases One, Two, and Three remain consistent with what was originally outlined in the Master Plan, which you can view HERE. The new renderings we shared reflect refinements to the architecture and design for buildings within the future park, rather than a reduction in the project’s scope.  

We also had a few last-minute changes to yesterday’s event panel due to scheduling conflicts. The final panelists who participated in the discussion were: Chris Eachus, Founding Partner of CP Group; Katie Saez, Regional President for Georgia and Alabama at Truist; Amanda Rhein, Chief Housing Officer for the City of Atlanta; Dr. Thomas J. Vicino, Dean of the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State."]