It’s been a happy 2023 so far for supporters of a proposal to cap part of Ga. Highway 400 in Buckhead with a multifunctional park.
A new federal spending bill finalized by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden in late December includes $750,000 for Buckhead’s 9-acre, highway-capping greenspace concept, HUB404.
Jim Durrett, executive director of the Buckhead Community Improvement District, which has been spearheading the HUB404 vision for nearly seven years, called the federal boost “a significant step toward building [the park], which will provide safe walkways, greenspaces, and easier access to MARTA for residents and visitors,” according to a prepared statement.
Congresswoman Nikema Williams, D-Atlanta, had requested the HUB404 funding as part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s annual spending bill released in July.
Anthony Rodriguez, HUB404 Conservancy’s recently appointed executive director, applauded Williams’ efforts and called the federal cash boost “a big step forward” that will provide “incredible momentum for our work to create a world-class, community-driven greenspace” in a Monday announcement.
A depiction of how HUB404 could be placed over Ga. Highway 400 with connections to Lenox Road. HUB404
Project backers have called HUB404 the country’s first transit-oriented park, an “agent of social change,” and an amenity that would afford Buckhead its own version of Dallas’ celebrated, highway-topping Klyde Warren Park—but at almost twice the size.
Planned HUB404 features include a grand plaza, cafes, an amphitheater, and paved walking and bike trails. Connections to the PATH400 greenway (and by extension, the BeltLine), Peachtree Road, and MARTA’s Buckhead rail station would also be built.
HUB404 most recently made headlines in November when a campaign called Gimme Four was launched to crowdsource funding and raise awareness for the park proposal.
Ambitions to cap Ga. Highway 400 with greenspace date back to 2015, when a feasibility study received its first $10,000 from the Buckhead CID.
A look at HUB404's multimodal possibilities. HUB404
Buckhead CID officials have said HUB404’s conceptual planning and surveying phases are complete. (Early, pre-inflation cost estimates for HUB404 hovered around $200 million.)
Officials say HUB404 is on pace to begin design and engineering work on bridges over Lenox Road this year. That would be followed in 2024 by engineering of the major park section from Lenox Road to Peachtree Road.
In the gallery above, have a look at the latest visuals for the HUB404 concept.
...
Follow us on social media:
• Buckhead news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta)
