Photos: Crucial, long stretch of Atlanta Beltline is starting to exist

Two years (and change) since the Beltline’s Southside Trail Segments 4 and 5 broke ground, this key neighborhood-connecting swoop of the 22-mile loop is starting to come together in encouraging ways.  

The segments in question—now technically referred to as the Southeast Trail—stretch for 1.2 miles between Glenwood Avenue and Boulevard. In between are neighborhoods Grant Park, Ormewood Park, and Boulevard Heights. 

Here’s a quick overview: 

According to Atlanta Beltline Inc., Segments 4 and 5 are still on pace to open sometime this fall, though as the below photos illustrate, much work remains to be done. 

Unexpected hurdles involving underground utilities at United Avenue wiped out the Beltline’s earlier goal of opening the trail last spring, officials have said.  

On a positive note, signs of progress made by Beltline contractor Reeves Young Construction in recent weeks are obvious. Let’s have a peek. 

^^ Looking west from over the Trestletree Village Apartments, most of Segment 4 has been paved, stretching from United Avenue to Boulevard, as seen in the distance above. 

^^ Where the United Avenue bridge has been installed, along with railings. Backfilling just to the north of the bridge is mostly complete, as Beltline officials recently reported. 

^^ Here, the finished trail pour between United Avenue and Boulevard heads off toward the southwest. Installation of light poles along this stretch is ongoing. 

^^ Just north of the United Avenue bridge, columns for a new ramp up to the trail and retaining walls are installed, per the Beltline.

^^ There’s no paved trail yet between United Avenue and Glenwood Avenue/Glenwood Park. But the Beltline reports a ramp system just north of here, at Delmar Avenue, is now installed. Work on the Ormewood Avenue bridge continues. 

^^ Meanwhile, on the private development front just east of the trail, the multifamily section of TPA Residential’s next Boulevard Heights project is rounding into shape, now that the site’s unsightly “trash mountain” has been removed. 

Plans for the 8.2-acre site call for nearly 300 apartments and rental townhomes, with first deliveries scheduled for early 2026.

Note: A closer look at Beltline construction progress near Boulevard and elsewhere was planned here, but a drone malfunction is interfering. Those pics will be added to this post or used for a second update should they become available. 

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