For Atlanta’s Freedom Park, a dazzling bridge concept emerges

The message is clear: The people of Candler Park, Little Five Points, Poncey-Highland, Inman Park, and all points nearby don’t want some humdrum bridge ferrying them over car-clogged Moreland Avenue.

They want a statement.

The idea for Freedom Bridge Atlanta — a means for pedestrians, bicyclists, and other non-drivers to safety travel to and from Freedom Park over Moreland — isn’t new, but it started gaining traction two years ago.

Then, in October 2015, more than 100 community members attended a charrette planning session, applying stickers like votes to pictures of concepts they liked most and least.

Now, that input has inspired a rendering for a contemporary-style bridge that leaders say the people want.

More than 80 percent agreed a pedestrian bridge is needed. Here’s one sample comment from a survey participant:

“We have a great chance to make a landmark/signature statement that can be an icon for our neighborhoods and a structure for regional, national, and possibly international recognition. Let’s do it!”

The approval ratings make sense. According to one highly scientific study from 2015, a vast majority of Atlantans believe the bridge is needed.

The design is hardly set in stone — it’s basically a guidepost — but it displays features people have said they want. A tipster sent over images today.

Here’s a before-after look at what potentially could be:

Freedom Bridge Atlanta

At last check, the movers and shakers behind the project — including Ken Edelstein, a longtime Creative Loafing editor and current president of the Candler Park Neighborhood Association, Ryan Gravel, the Beltline visionary, and Don Bender, a developer credited with helping revitalize Little Five Points — were stressing that this nascent idea would try to avoid taking funding from other deserving projects.

No updates on a timeline or funding were provided.

• Atlanta's Freedom Bridge Concept is Divisive. So Let's Vote! [Curbed]