Clearer vision for park along Beltline’s Southside Trail emerges

Proof that community input matters could come at an Atlanta Beltline meeting this week, where plans for a major park expansion next to the Southside Trail are expected to be detailed—with recommendations from Regular Joes and Janes included.

Plans to expand Boulevard Crossing Park—a five-acre green space in Chosewood Park with direct Southside Trail access, just south of Grant Park—have been percolating for more than a decade.

Boulevard Crossing Park’s initial phase debuted in 2011 with two large, multipurpose fields.

Beltline officials issued requests for qualified park creators last year and selected Cambridge-based Agency Landscape + Planning and locally based Perkins+Will (no stranger to Beltline development) in May. Design and community engagement phases launched soon after.

Now, design teams and Beltline reps are expected to unveil the park vision at a Thursday meeting near the existing green space.

Atlanta Beltline Inc.

The expanded park would be five times larger, incorporating “recommendations and feedback [collected] during previous community meetings that led to the design vision,” Beltline officials relayed this week.

Project leaders have said Boulevard Crossing Park additions could include trails, a playground, public art, expanded play fields, and the city’s fifth splash pad.

We’ve asked Beltline officials for information on park construction and opening timelines, as well as expected costs, and will update this post should that come.

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The meeting is schedule for 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Atlanta Community Tool Bank (401 Englewood Avenue SE), where free parking is available, though Beltline officials encourage attendees to walk, ride a bike, or use MARTA buses (No. 9 and 49) that service the area.

It’s open to the public but is focused on the Beltline’s Southeast Study Group area. That includes sections of Grant Park, Cabbagetown, Reynoldstown, Edgewood, Glenwood Park, Ormewood Park, Boulevard Heights, Chosewood Park, South Atlanta, and Peoplestown.

UPDATE: More images, just provided: