BeltLine: Murphy Crossing clears hurdle toward groundbreaking

Nearly three years after its search began again, Atlanta BeltLine Inc. has officially installed a development team to transform vacant but historic property abutting a section of popular trail in Southwest Atlanta, bumping the project to its next phase.

In separate meetings this month, the board of directors for both the Atlanta BeltLine and Invest Atlanta voted to select Culdesac and Urban Oasis Development as developers for the vacant Murphy Crossing property along the Westside Trail in Oakland City.

The approvals provide a green light for BeltLine officials to enter into a contract with the developers—and to move forward with “substantial development activities” including entitlement and community engagement for the "transformational" project, ABI announced today.

The 20-acre site—situated where Oakland City meets Adair Park and Capitol View—once operated as the Georgia Farmers Market and currently includes about a dozen warehouses and other buildings.

(Observers will recall that both Arizona-based Culdesac and Urban Oasis Development, a minority-owned firm in Atlanta, were picked as finalists to remake Murphy Crossing in September 2022; that generated buzz for the relatively dense, transit-oriented project’s prospects, but little has happened in the way of progress in the year and ½ since—at least not publicly, or in terms of physical changes on site.)

Culdesac won the BeltLine’s favor for its innovative approach to creating thriving, walkable districts less reliant on vehicles than typical developments. Joel Dixon, an Urban Oasis Development principal, predicted in today’s announcement that Murphy Crossing will evolve into “a beacon for economic inclusion, job creation, and affordable housing and commercial spaces” not far from two MARTA stations (West End and Oakland City).

Murphy Crossing site rendering by Culdesac

According to BeltLine officials, the public-private partnership will require that developers deliver about 1,100 new housing units—with 30 percent of the rental component reserved for tenants earning between 60 and 80 percent of the area median income for at least 30 years.

Any for-sale affordable housing component must be accessible for individuals and households earning up to 120 percent AMI, per BeltLine leadership.

“Culdesac also intends to market a portion of the retail and light industrial spaces at an affordable rate to small businesses in the area, for a period of 30 years,” the BeltLine announcement notes. “Inaugural small businesses occupying the affordable commercial spaces will receive one-time business grants.”

Other aspects of the Murphy Crossing remake call for pathways, bike lanes, plazas, courtyards, a dog park, and a community garden. High-speed Wi-fi throughout the property, rotating public art exhibits, and interpretive signage made by local artists are also in the works.

Murphy Crossing's 1050 Murphy Avenue site (bottom, left) in relation to downtown Atlanta. Google Maps

Overview of the 20-acre site today, where three Southwest Atlanta neighborhoods meet. Courtesy of Atlanta BeltLine Inc.

The next phase before development calls for gathering more community input. BeltLine officials say an advisory committee with stakeholders from nearby neighborhood planning units and other groups has been put in place, in addition to a business advisory committee comprised of locals that will aim to ensure small and minority businesses are included in Murphy Crossing investment.

“We will have more community engagement opportunities as the vision for this transit-oriented, accessibility-focused neighborhood comes to life,” BeltLine president and CEO Clyde Higgs said in a prepared statement.

“The revitalization of Murphy Crossing is only possible because the BeltLine controls the land, helping us secure long-term commercial and residential affordability within a walkable, transit-oriented development," Higgs continued. "This is a great example of public-private partnership.”

Culdesac