Advocates for greenway along Chattahoochee River scramble after needed property could be sold (Update)
Should key piece of land be a majestic park? Or a shipping terminal?
Advocates for a path trail and greenspace along the Chattahoochee River want to see the former Chattahoochee Brick Company land, a 75-acre swath of property with a notable and controversial past, turned into parkland along Atlanta’s only waterfront. The project called Riverwalk Atlanta would meet the Emerald Corridor, a proposed trailway along Proctor Creek, at the site.
But one supporter of the vision says a shipping company has other plans for the land, sending the advocates scrambling.
Keith Sharp of Groundwork Atlanta, a nonprofit pushing to build the greenspace and 5-mile greenway along the river south of I-75, says Lincoln Terminal Company has the “majority” of the land under contract and wants to build “a massive rail tanker terminal to service 90 rail tankers at one time with 24 hour operation, on-site holding tanks, and tanker truck distribution of Ethanol, BioDiesel, Butane, and light oil products.”
“The closing is scheduled imminently,” Sharp says.
The site is the former home of the Chattahoochee Brick Company, a company that has an important and sad role in Atlanta’s history. The company created bricks that were used to build Atlanta streets and neighborhoods in the late 1800s. According to Atlanta architect Daniel Scott, the factory was able to make 200,000 bricks in one day. Its president was Captain James English, a Confederate officer, postbellum Atlanta mayor, and namesake of English Avenue.
But according to Atlanta journalist Doug Blackmon’s Pulitzer-winning Slavery By Another Name, the company relied on convict labor, a post-Civil War practice in which predominantly black men and women arrested for common offenses were forced to work, often times in brutal conditions, to pay off their “debts.”
Much of the remaining buildings were demolished in 2010, Sharp says. According to the advocate, the former brickyard property is actually three parcels totaling 75 acres. Five acres are along the river, 50 acres lie in the floodplain, and 20 acres are “upland” property, he says. The city’s Department of Watershed Management years ago purchased approximately 28 adjacent acres. The property that Sharp says is under contract is owned by the General Shale Company.
Sharp’s group is one of several initiatives currently underway in northwest Atlanta aimed at connecting the city with the river. Chattahoochee NOW is envisioning a 53-mile stretch of public parks and private uses along the waterway south of Vinings. Emerald Corridor would connect the Beltline and Bellwood Quarry to the river with a greenway. Sharp’s group is creating a 5-mile PATH Foundation trail similar to the Tennessee Riverpark in Chattanooga and Shelby Bottoms Greenway in East Nashville. That path would connect with the trail connecting the Silver Comet and Beltline. The brick company land is key to the efforts.
Sharp and others are exploring what can be done to secure the property. If successful, they or another nonprofit would then attempt to win grants to remediate the land and ultimately convey it to the city. He says the site is a piece of Atlanta history and, with the right community engagement, it can be turned into a place where people can play sports, hear music, grow food, view nature, or any other use. Its location is key for making the river area an inviting place and at the nexus of different projects aimed at connecting people and places.
“This site is important because it’s the intersection of the river and Proctor Creek,” Sharp says. “It’s important because it’s the intersection of the proposed Riverwalk and Emerald Corridor... When you get to the river on the Emerald Corridor, the destination when you arrive is this property. It needs to be a spectacular jewel.”
Says Shannon Kettering of Chattahoochee NOW: ”While industry is an important component of a thriving Atlanta, Chattahoochee NOW believes that there are more appropriate uses for land directly along the river. This particular stretch of the river corridor could be a true community amenity, offering trail connectivity, access and park space. Perhaps the new developer would consider working collaboratively with Chattahoochee NOW and the adjacent neighbors to accommodate this vision as a viable use along the river’s edge?”
Advocates say Atlanta City Councilman Andre Dickens has been engaged on the issue. In a statement, Dickens says “this riverfront property on Atlanta’s Westside has the potential to be a great asset for recreational, residential, or educational purposes. I have had several conversations with the Mayor’s senior advisors as well as Keith Sharp to develop a plan to ensure this precious resource could be used for the public good.”
Mayor Kasim Reed was not available for comment on the issue. Debra Edelson, executive director of the Emerald Corridor Foundation, is traveling abroad and was not immediately available for comment. General Shale CEO Charles Smith and a Lincoln Terminal Company executive did not immediately return a voicemail.
NOTE: This post has been altered to include a comment from Dickens and to correct an error about the property purchased by the Atlanta Department of Watershed Management.