Following 'pivotal' year, highway-capping Stitch enters new phase

Following what’s being called by backers of downtown’s Stitch project a “pivotal year” in 2023, the ambitious, highway-capping greenspace project is transitioning to a new phase that aims to use public input as a tool for hammering out final designs.

Central Atlanta Progress and its partners have scheduled a community workshop in early May—on the top floor of Bank of America Plaza, Atlanta’s tallest building, no less—to carry 2023 momentum and project support from local officials, federal agencies, and other public events into this year, according to CAP.

Meanwhile, an online portal for sharing input about how the Stitch should look and function will remain open until the end of next month, officials report in a February project update.

Alongside the City of Atlanta, CAP’s Atlanta Downtown Improvement District began the process of Stitch master-planning in April, and thousands of community members and stakeholders have chimed in so far via public events and online questionnaires, according to project leaders.

The Stitch has also collected more than $42 million from local and federal partners—including $12.5 million from federal grants—to help pay for environmental studies and preliminary engineering for the project’s first phase.  

That initial phase will include up to 4.5 acres of interstate-capping infrastructure and public spaces spanning between Peachtree and Courtland streets, or just east of MARTA’s Civic Center station.

Plans also call for multimodal street, safety, and aesthetic improvements across the area in question.

All specifics remain TBD, but Stitch leaders say the project’s design phase, which is beginning now, is on track to finish this summer.

Other aspects of phase one planning will include improvements to MARTA’s Civic Center station, an affordable housing plan, a framework for sustainability and resiliency, and an implementation strategy.

A crucial component of building phase one would be $157 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation—in the form of a FY23 Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods grant—that would fund construction. The Stitch’s planning team applied for that money in September.

Eventually, the Stitch’s scope calls for 14 acres of new public space spread across 3/4th of a mile, all intended to restitch neighborhoods torn apart by downtown freeway construction.

In the near term, the aforementioned Community Design Workshop for the Stitch project will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 1 on the 55th floor of Bank of America Plaza in Midtown (600 Peachtree St.) Free MARTA passes and free onsite parking will be offered to attendees who register, according to organizers.

Expect a half-hour update from project leaders on where the Stitch stands today, with the rest of the meeting devoted to community input that will help draft a master plan, officials say.

Alternately, to share thoughts on Stitch planning online, visit the comprehensive questionnaire on this page between now and March 31.  

In the meantime, CAP has provided this quarterly Stitch rundown for the eventful year that was: 

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