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First Round: (8) Old Fourth Ward vs. (9) Midtown

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The Curbed Cup, our annual award for Atlanta's neighborhood of the year, is kicking off with 16 'hoods vying for the prestigious fake trophy. This week we'll have two match-ups per day, and all the results and the full tourney bracket will be reviewed on Friday. Voting for each pairing ends 24 hours after it begins. Eliminations begin right now!

Next up: Two intown neighbors with penchants for new construction square off. These are two of Atlanta's most dynamic neighborhoods, and each has been slotted higher in this tourney in recent years. Whatever the seeding, both Old Fourth Ward and Midtown typically go far, but that won't be the case this year. Deciding which one advances is up to you …

(8) OLD FOURTH WARD:
Last year, Old Fourth Ward pulled the No. 1 seed by a long shot. And 2014 has only increased this historic neighborhood's popularity. Pieces of Ponce City Market — a project that's attracted global attention — have begun to open. Links from the Beltline to Historic Fourth Ward Park and Murder Beltline Kroger were completed. A historic building near Edgewood Avenue was spared. Countless homes were built and revitalized. And the YoBoulevard! campaign soldiered on. A wave of investment continues in O4W, from the apartment scene near North Avenue to the Little Streetcar That Almost Could. Drawback: Single-family home prices have become prohibitively expensive, and several pockets of the neighborhood remain blighted.

(9) MIDTOWN:
In 2014, the crane returned as Midtown's unofficial bird. Apartment towers geared toward disposable-income-rich Millennials and college students are rising up all over this vibrant submarket, Atlanta's second largest business district. Midtown hosts a robust dining and nightlife roster, the High Museum and the city's crown-jewel greenspace, Piedmont Park. And it's ground zero for some of Atlanta's most spirited get-togethers, from Pride and Music Midtown to the Peachtree Road Race finale. With all its walkability, however, Midtown can't offer much of the large living spaces and yards many Atlantans crave. The cost of standalone houses has long been high, even on Midtown's fringes.

Poll results