Atlanta's suburbs continue to become increasingly sophisticated (Marietta, Smyrna: rentals, school district)

[netdragon]

I think the difference between where suburbs have to go as a necessity with the arterial street grid, and where city grids go:
City grids should be inherently walk-able. That isn't always the case, such as in distressed neighborhoods in Atlanta. However, as they grow and evolve, they move in that direction. Grids are just nice for that. Grids have their problems, but that isn't one of them.

Suburban arterials lend better to building nodes that are walkable mixed-use areas, then connecting them up by trails. That may mean more bicycling and less walking. As people start using the trails over time, things will start filling in where the most pedestrians and bicyclists are (look at the "start" of the Silver Comet on E-W in Smyrna). Now, for those not lazy, you can still walk. E.g. For the Smyrna Birthday festival this weekend I just parked at the condo my father is renting off Spring Rd and walked about 1 mile on the Spring Rd trail and through the Williams Park neighborhood to Smyrna Market Village and back (in the rain, on the way back :-/ ) and that was fine. That was a choice, and I wouldn't do that out of necessity. However, were I to live where my father does and had only a bicycle, I could survive pretty easily.

However, you're not going to see a place like Smyrna ever look like midtown. Nor even Cumberland. Why? Simple - no grid. The Lenox area shows what these areas may evolve to, if you throw in better trails and more parking at the MARTA stations to what Buckhead has.

As I said before, for the next 100 years, we have the street systems in the suburbs that we have. They are already so densely populated, they can't be rebuilt. So, through mixed-use developments in nodes, trails, and learning experiences, we're going to learn how to densify the suburbs. In may cases, without losing single-family homes with areas for recreation. In time, things will evolve in suburbs towards small villages of row houses built around parks, versus every single house having its own yard. That has a very high density and highrise doesn't need to be everywhere. If ALL suburbs in the U.S. with enough density to be considered "urban" were rebuilt over time into suburban row houses and townhomes of density of 18 people per square mile, we could probably fit about half the world's population into the United States with about 90% of the Untied States left as open land.

Math for 2025 urban area population at a moderate 4,500/km^2, or about 18 people per acre (ignores Alaska): .092 * (9,629k km^2 - 1,717k km^2) * 4,500 = 3,275,568,000

So to summarize: Our challenge this century is figuring out how to densify suburbs in a healthy way.
Here's an interesting article: http://persquaremile.com/2012/02/15/...burban-future/

[arjay57]

Whoa!

Just about two months from opening its first phase, set for Oct. 30, Alpharetta’s $600 million mixed-use project Avalon announced Wednesday it’s already landed tenants for its next phase of development.
Avalon developer North American Properties, the same company involved in the turnaround of Atlantic Station, says it has recently secured commitments from Lilly Pulitzer, Brooks Brothers and Peek Boutique, which will join 12 more retailers and three restaurants in the project’s second phase.

More....Avalon lands retailers Lilly Pulitzer, Brooks Brothers and Peek Boutique for second phase

[demonta4]

Gillem Logistics Center
Website for the redevelopment of Fort Gillem in Forest Park.
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/p....html?page=all

[arjay57]

Boomers show they still have what it takes to create an urban vibe. Just get a few of them together and they will create their coffee shop environment without $100 million worth of streetcars.

Status updates and “liking” on social media posts are slowly replacing gatherings of friends in public, but virtual reality takes away the warmth of a handshake, hug and a smile.

“People don’t say to your face what they will say behind a machine,” Chuck Batcheller said.

These are some of the reasons Dan McMahan sticks with Batcheller and several others he joins for coffee just about every morning, before everyone rushes out to fulfill the day’s duties. They call themselves the Dunwoody Think Tank, and they invite everyone to stop by and say hello. Well, almost everyone.

More....Gas station ‘Think Tank’ offers up coffee, politics and daily conversations

[arjay57]

Sandy Springs moving on.

Sandy Springs oks City Center plan with performing arts center - Reporter Newspapers)

[bu2]

The death of America's suburban dream | Cities | theguardian.com

Interesting article. Talks about the decline of older, inner ring suburbs. Mentions DeKalb as one example.

[netdragon]

Originally Posted by bu2

The death of America's suburban dream | Cities | theguardian.com

Interesting article. Talks about the decline of older, inner ring suburbs. Mentions DeKalb as one example.

I didn't read the article, but the decline of most inner ring suburbs throughout the nation happened approx 30 years ago and many have turned around.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by netdragon

I didn't read the article, but the decline of most inner ring suburbs throughout the nation happened approx 30 years ago and many have turned around.

Read the article. They are not saying inner ring suburbs like the street car suburbs that have now turned around, they are saying inner ring like 1950s suburbs like Northlake area where I grew up that has fallen off in the last decade.

[Ohhsweetconcord]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Read the article. They are not saying inner ring suburbs like the street car suburbs that have now turned around, they are saying inner ring like 1950s suburbs like Northlake area where I grew up that has fallen off in the last decade.

You're expecting too much...

[jsvh]

What am I expecting?