For an Atlanta bike shop like no other along the Beltline, the big year that is 2025 continues.
Back in May, Bearings Bike Works (aka, Bearings Bike Shop), a philanthropic youth enterprise that’s been operating in Adair Park for 15 years, cut the ribbon on a new direct link to the Atlanta Beltline next door.
Funded by donations, the 200-foot ramp between Bearings and the Westside Trail makes access to the shop easier and safer for young Atlantans who work there, fixing up donated bikes and honing work skills through a series of unique programs.
The bridge also makes accessing the shop easier for customers bound for Bearings’ retail and repair shop, where nearly every dollar they spend is channeled back into youth programs.
The new Bearings-Beltline bridge connection, upon opening in May. Courtesy of Bearings Bike Works
Courtesy of Bearings Bike Works
The next phase of expansion, now fully under construction, calls for turning an old storage shed into a fully operational retail and repair shop literally overlooking the Beltline. (The Beltline section in question, it should be noted, will soon officially be known as the Southwest Trail.)
The $1-million project, as designed by the ASD/SKY architecture firm, is being funded by cash and in-kind donations.
The new space will triple the size of Bearings’ current small basement workshop. It’ll include an expanded workshop—becoming the primary hub for Bearing’s workforce development and training programs—and space for displaying up to 100 bikes, alongside accessories, gear, and parts.
The reimagined shed will serve “as a paid job training space for teens and young adults in Southwest Atlanta,” Jessie Kate Joiner, Bearings development specialist, wrote to Urbanize Atlanta via email. “Alongside that, we continue to run our free youth cycling and earn-a-bike programs for elementary through high school students.”
A rendering showing the new Bearings 3,000-square-foot retail bike shop overlooking the Westside Trail/Southwest Trail. Courtesy of Bearings Bike Works
How the 982 Murphy Ave. bike shop location relates to the Westside Trail today. Google Maps
According to Becky O’Mara, Bearings cofounder and director of development, the new shop is scheduled to open in December this year.
The future could also hold another growth spurt for Bearings—as illustrated in early conceptual renderings recently put together by the Peachtree City-based Jefferson architecture firm—though all plans are tentative.
No funding or timeline has been established.
Overview of the Bearings property, prior to the Beltline connection, with the new retail shop location shown at top. Courtesy of Bearings Bike Works
The bike complex's location along Murphy Avenue in relation the Lee + White district and other Southwest Atlanta landmarks. Google Maps
Overview of Bearings' main building in Adair Park and the nearby elevated MARTA line. Courtesy of Bearings Bike Works
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