Urbanists of Atlanta, rejoice: 25 years after the idea was initially hatched, the BeltLine’s multipurpose march through the heart of Piedmont Park has finally begun!

At multiple points around Midtown’s most famous greenspace, concrete slabs for the mainline, 22-mile BeltLine loop and two offshoot trails are now being poured.

The work is part of phase two of the Northeast Trail’s construction, the last missing piece before the ever-popular Eastside Trail links with other new BeltLine sections shooting north into Buckhead.

Construction of granite-clad walls and grading work is painting the picture of exactly where the BeltLine corridor will run through Piedmont Park in the unfinished section between Evelyn Street and Monroe Drive. An ADA-accessible ramp is also being installed between the trail and the park’s largest meadow areas.

Looking north toward Buckhead, a view of Northeast Trail construction in July from Piedmont Park's historic Park Drive Bridge. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

North of Park Tavern, a zigzagging concrete ramp is being installed to connect the BeltLine's Northeast Trail to Piedmont Park's main meadow. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Another section of Northeast Trail work, considered phase three, will reconfigure and implement safety measures where the BeltLine meets Monroe Drive. The intersection was shut down for a full week last month, and single-lane closures (on weekdays, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.) to finalize sidewalk construction are scheduled to wrap up in September.

Key changes at the intersection call for a new 10th Street bike lane, a raised pedestrian crossing, and new traffic signals at Monroe Drive and Kanuga Street.

Meanwhile, Piedmont Park’s Clear Creek bridge closed a few weeks ago, restricting some access to the popular gravel pathway (and interim BeltLine trail) that runs along the eastern side of the Midtown greenspace.

The gravel trail—referred to as the “Transit Trail” in BeltLine communications—will remain open to the public in largely the same state once construction of the BeltLine’s mainline trail is finished through Piedmont Park. The paved trail section will sit below the gravel trail and be separated by “dense planting,” a BeltLine rep recently told Urbanize Atlanta.

Construction on new stairs and a pathway connection immediately south of the Park Drive Bridge. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

The section of the Northeast Trail in question is scheduled to open in late fall, per ABI. Atlanta BeltLine Inc.

The bridge closure and refurbishment follow the completion of Segment 1, Phase 1 of the Northeast Trail earlier this year, which marked the first completed new BeltLine project to debut across the city in 2024.

As for the wooden Clear Creek bridge, a construction team is refurbishing the structure with a new boardwalk walkway and wooden handrails and replacing large timbers. That work is expected to last for another few weeks.

According to BeltLine officials, the Northeast Trail work through Piedmont Park and the connection to the Eastside Trail remain on schedule to be finished this fall.

Find more context—and a preview of what’s to come—in the gallery above.

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