Piedmont Park Expansion Announced (Atlanta, Druid Hills: neighborhood, high income, clubhouse)

[bryantm3]

I'm fine with the strip mall and ugly buildings going. However I think the hobnob and the historic brick house (the one sort of shaped like a barn, just down Monroe) ought to be saved- the Hob Nob is an old gas station from the mid century and it could sort of grow to become a northern version of the park tavern if they start holding events in the new end of the park.

When are they going to get rid of the self-storage though? Just have 'the boy next door' border on the park and take all that junk behind it and make more parkland.

As for Ansley and the gay bars... if that goes, that neighborhood will have completed its transformation from a quirky, generally affordable & nationally known epicenter for the LGBTQ community into yet another sterile playground for the globe-trotting elite. Who would be excited about that loss? Only a rootless high income individual who would benefit from that arrangement, or perhaps an urbanist with some serious obsessive-compulsive tendencies.

For the former I wouldn't expect anything better. For the latter... if the existence of parking lots and one story buildings bothers you to the point that you believe it's worth pricing out everyone in the neighborhood and destroying a community just to see the parking lots go... Well, you're stepping on your own philosophy and prioritizing form so far over function that it makes me wonder whether you have some kind of weird blindness that allows you to see buildings and cities and not the people and communities that move through them. This isn't "the SIMS".

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by bryantm3

I'm fine with the strip mall and ugly buildings going. However I think the hobnob and the historic brick house (the one sort of shaped like a barn, just down Monroe) ought to be saved- the Hob Nob is an old gas station from the mid century and it could sort of grow to become a northern version of the park tavern if they start holding events in the new end of the park.

When are they going to get rid of the self-storage though? Just have 'the boy next door' border on the park and take all that junk behind it and make more parkland.

As for Ansley and the gay bars... if that goes, that neighborhood will have completed its transformation from a quirky, generally affordable & nationally known epicenter for the LGBTQ community into yet another sterile playground for the globe-trotting elite. Who would be excited about that loss? Only a rootless high income individual who would benefit from that arrangement, or perhaps an urbanist with some serious obsessive-compulsive tendencies.

For the former I wouldn't expect anything better. For the latter... if the existence of parking lots and one story buildings bothers you to the point that you believe it's worth pricing out everyone in the neighborhood and destroying a community just to see the parking lots go... Well, you're stepping on your own philosophy and prioritizing form so far over function that it makes me wonder whether you have some kind of weird blindness that allows you to see buildings and cities and not the people and communities that move through them. This isn't "the SIMS".

There are still many affordable options in the neighborhood in the form of older apartment buildings like Ansley Forest or moderately priced condos and coops along Monroe Drive.
The 'historic brick house' is a 1920's Dutch Colonial that once housed Agnes and Muriel's restaurant. Cute house, but I can't see that it merits saving in lieu of the proposed plan. Better to focus your opposition on the Fuqua plan at the other end of the park, which will take out several houses of this vintage in favor of what looks like Communist-era housing in Warsaw.

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by aries4118

Ansley Mall is iconic.

I agree. The gay community should rise up and fight any attempt to destroy that neighborhood. Some things are worth preserving no matter how dated.

[arjay57]

Dumb question but is it still important to have "gay areas"? That is places, where a good many gay people live and where there are businesses and clubs that cater to gays?

Or have we reached a point yet where gay folks are simply integrated into the rest of the community? Gay people live all over the place these days, and it's my impression that has been the case for a good while.

Regardless of where people live, however, I can see the value in having bars and clubs where gays can go and feel confident about being in a safe and friendly environment.

[primaltech]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Dumb question but is it still important to have "gay areas"? That is places, where a good many gay people live and where there are businesses and clubs that cater to gays?

Or have we reached a point yet where gay folks are simply integrated into the rest of the community? Gay people live all over the place these days, and it's my impression that has been the case for a good while.

Regardless of where people live, however, I can see the value in having bars and clubs where gays can go and feel confident about being in a safe and friendly environment.

Considering that only 10% of us or so are homosexual, yeah, it's important, and probably always going to be important to have gayborhoods and gay bar areas. Because single people are not going out just to be treated nicely, they're going out to meet and mingle with other single people, in this case of their same sex and orientation.

As a straight person, the dating and romance life is still really difficult enough. So I can imagine how even more difficult it would be if everywhere social I went, 90% of the people I'm potentially attracted to are not even attracted to my gender at all. Which would be the case for gay folks if not for gay bars and gayborhoods and such.

So yes, I would say important and merited.

[aries4118]

Gayborhood/Gay Village
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_village?wprov=sfti1

[JMatl]

Originally Posted by Iconographer

Better to focus your opposition on the Fuqua plan at the other end of the park, which will take out several houses of this vintage in favor of what looks like Communist-era housing in Warsaw.

I couldn't agree more, the design is hideous in my opinion.

The original design for this project by Smith Dalia was inspired though, and actually won an award from the AIA: https://atlanta.curbed.com/2016/5/12...right-dazzling

[demonta4]

Originally Posted by bryantm3

I'm fine with the strip mall and ugly buildings going. However I think the hobnob and the historic brick house (the one sort of shaped like a barn, just down Monroe) ought to be saved- the Hob Nob is an old gas station from the mid century and it could sort of grow to become a northern version of the park tavern if they start holding events in the new end of the park.

When are they going to get rid of the self-storage though? Just have 'the boy next door' border on the park and take all that junk behind it and make more parkland.

As for Ansley and the gay bars... if that goes, that neighborhood will have completed its transformation from a quirky, generally affordable & nationally known epicenter for the LGBTQ community into yet another sterile playground for the globe-trotting elite. Who would be excited about that loss? Only a rootless high income individual who would benefit from that arrangement, or perhaps an urbanist with some serious obsessive-compulsive tendencies.

For the former I wouldn't expect anything better. For the latter... if the existence of parking lots and one story buildings bothers you to the point that you believe it's worth pricing out everyone in the neighborhood and destroying a community just to see the parking lots go... Well, you're stepping on your own philosophy and prioritizing form so far over function that it makes me wonder whether you have some kind of weird blindness that allows you to see buildings and cities and not the people and communities that move through them. This isn't "the SIMS".

Getting rid of the parking lots creates more density which would allow more people to move in the area, thus lowering the cost of living there while increasing the quality of life. Dense environments save money. Imagine if you suddenly didn't have to pay for car notes, car insurance, maintenance and parking fees because everything you need is within walking distance or short train ride.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by JMatl

I couldn't agree more, the design is hideous in my opinion.

The original design for this project by Smith Dalia was inspired though, and actually won an award from the AIA: https://atlanta.curbed.com/2016/5/12...right-dazzling

Much better.

My own vision for the property would be something that paid homage to the original Park Tavern Building (fka the clubhouse for the golf course), using stone and Terra Cotta tile.

http://www.thestudiobphotographyblog...8/DSC_5214.jpg

http://hitchhikershandbook.com/wp-co...sa-town-14.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...distillery.JPG

http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/ima...stonehouse.jpg

http://interstateautobodyandtruck.co...building-1.jpg

And tear down that hideous addition, which provides no context to the original building whatsoever. A mistake from the get-go.

[JMatl]

Originally Posted by Iconographer

Much better.

My own vision for the property would be something that paid homage to the original Park Tavern Building (fka the clubhouse for the golf course), using stone and Terra Cotta tile.

http://www.thestudiobphotographyblog...8/DSC_5214.jpg

http://hitchhikershandbook.com/wp-co...sa-town-14.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...distillery.JPG

http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/ima...stonehouse.jpg

http://interstateautobodyandtruck.co...building-1.jpg

And tear down that hideous addition, which provides no context to the original building whatsoever. A mistake from the get-go.

Very cool! These designs mixed in with some steel and glass would be wonderful.

And the cheap stucco addition to the Park Tavern is hideous, I've hated it ever since they added it.