New Look for Virginia Highland
New Look for VaHi
Many empty storefronts sprung up in downtown Virginia Highland at the beginning of all this, and it was hard not to worry that they would stay empty. Now it’s becoming hard to keep track of all the new businesses moving in. Just two weeks ago, Farm Burger opened a new location in the building vacated by YEAH! Burger last year. Savannah-based coffee roaster PERC opened its second retail shop on Highland Avenue in April and will soon be joined by Marietta-based Doughnut Dollies opening on Virginia Avenue. Those openings alone would be a significant change for a neighborhood that is home to multiple of Atlanta’s oldest restaurants and bars, and yet...there’s more. Opening in the next couple of months- an indie bookstore, a pizza by the slice, a new Morelli’s Ice Cream, an artisan butchery & sundry shop, and honestly- I think I forget something. It’s exciting to see that many of the mainstays like Moe’s & Joe’s, Highland Tap, and Fountaine’s appear to have made it through and will still provide their old charm, but a burst of new places will add a new charm of their own.
It’s like the sea. But of people.
Remember crowds? Like more than ten people in one place? Like in the picture shows? The Atlanta Braves and Atlanta United are bringing back this long-forgotten concept. In May, both Trusit Park and Mercedes-Benz Stadium will be allowing 100% occupancy. Even the Atlanta Hawks will be increasing their occupancy for the playoffs from 3,000 to 7,625 or 43% attendance. So, you know, like a normal Hawks game. I kid! I kid! (Side note- the Hawks in the playoffs?! Was they’re a rule change or something?) I’m glad full stadiums will be back for the football season because it’s not really a Falcons game unless 71,000 people are booing Matt Ryan as he trouts off the field after the fourth straight three and out. What a joyous moment that will be.
Art and Nature- AT THE SAME TIME
Don’t you hate it EVERY WEEKEND when you want to go on a hike, but your partner wants to go to an art exhibition? And then you get into a knock-down-drag-out fight about the merits of natural and interpreted beauty? Well, have I got relationship-saving news for you. The Blue Heron Nature Preserve has begun its outdoor art exhibit “The Art of Nature”, which will feature several installations throughout their 30 acres of wetlands, meadows, and woods. The preserve is already home to many permeant murals and outdoor artwork scattered throughout the three miles of trails, so there is plenty of art and nature to see. Blue Heron Nature Preserve is off Roswell Road in East Chastain Park. There is no admission fee, and parking is free. And! Kindly pick up after your dogs.
Affordable Housing Coming to O4W
Old 4th Ward has been the fastest gentrified neighborhood in Atlanta over the last decade. Home prices and rents have increased more in the small area between Ponce de Leon and Highland more than almost anywhere else in the city. This has created a long-standing fear of displacement to its long-time residents that have given the neighborhood its charm and characteristics that have made the neighborhood such a popular destination. That is why it is excellent news that ground was broken this week on a building that will bring 750 affordable housing units to the neighborhood. The building is a public-private partnership that will ensure that those living in the affordable housing units won’t pay more than 30% of their income in rent. The first units should be available by next spring. It is an earnest start to a quickly developing affordability problem for long-term O4W residents.
You read that right
This week on The Landis Look, our past client Carla was not…. kidding telling us how she used goats to clear her ivy covered back yard. For more cute pictures and the GOAT of all landscaping stories watch the full video. Check it out.