{"403311":{"#nid":"403311","#data":{"type":"external_news","title":"The Beltline, conceived by Ryan Gravel (MCP + M. ARCH \u002799), is one of the largest urban redevelopment projects in US history","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EAn important factor in the healthy growth of any city is how it handles aging buildings and corroding infrastructure. Maintain or demolish? Revitalize or ignore? The choice can have a huge impact on the vitality and character of an urban area. Nowadays, many cities are looking to revitalize under-used or abandoned structures and areas.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne of largest-scale urban redevelopment programs ever undertaken in the United States is the Atlanta BeltLine, a sustainable redevelopment project in Atlanta, GA. The project is converting 22 miles of disused Civil War-era railroad tracks encircling the city into a new transit greenway \u2013 a walkable green space \u2013 that links over 40 neighborhoods across the city like never before. The project is still in its early stages, but has already stimulated dramatic changes in people\u2019s understanding of where they live and how they interact with their space. With plans underway to incorporate the city\u2019s existing subway system, its new streetcar, and a system of multi-use trails across the city, the BeltLine is fast becoming one of Atlanta\u2019s defining features.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe project\u2019s origin is just as remarkable. The BeltLine began as a \u201ckernel of an idea,\u201d the subject of a Georgia Tech graduate student\u2019s 1999 Master\u2019s thesis on architecture and urban planning. Now an urban designer at Perkins+Will,\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003ERyan Gravel\u003C\/strong\u003E\u2019s original vision for the BeltLine has expanded beyond what anybody imagined in the project\u2019s early days.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cToday the vision\u2026include[s] ideas like 1,400 acres of new parks, a linear arboretum, public art, new streetscapes, brownfield remediation, significant investments in affordable housing, and a list that continues to grow,\u201d says Gravel.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":"","field_summary_sentence":"","uid":"28044","created_gmt":"2015-05-11 08:46:17","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 02:27:31","author":"Jessie Brandon","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","publication":"the humble chair","field_article_url":"","publication_url":"http:\/\/urbanmilwaukee.com\/2015\/04\/07\/yp-week-how-the-beltline-project-is-changing-atlanta\/","dateline":{"date":"2015-04-07T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2015-04-07T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1224","name":"School of City \u0026 Regional Planning"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"506","name":"alumni"},{"id":"125851","name":"Atlanta transformation"},{"id":"471","name":"beltline"},{"id":"92041","name":"gravel"},{"id":"125861","name":"urban revitalization"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}