Busted Southwest Atlanta parking lot on track to become art-filled police precinct

The Atlanta Police Department’s future Zone 3 precinct won’t look like just any other station.

A partnership between the City of Atlanta’s Department of Enterprise Asset Management and the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs promises to bring abundant public art to the under-construction station at 2353 Metropolitan Parkway, just south of Capitol View and Sylvan Hills.

The program would fund the creation of three locally made art installations at the Southwest Atlanta site, which is currently a worn-out parking lot across the street from a MARTA bus stop.

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The city is now searching for local artists to tackle three sizable installations worth more than $100,000 collectively.

The first project calls for a statue standing up to 15 feet outside the station.

The artist selected would claim $47,000 for their work, and finalists would each receive an $800 stipend.

“We encourage proposals for contemporary work that speaks to the use of the building and has an uplifting message,” says the call for artists.

Inside the station, the city is looking for two pieces of visual art that could be as large as 5 feet-by-5 feet.

That gig would pay $8,000, with a $200 stipend for finalists.

Then, there’s the $50,000 tower window project, which asks artists to create graphics that would be laminated onto some of the station’s windows, visible from inside and out.

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Local artists—only applicants from metro Atlanta are eligible—have until June 10 to respond to the city’s requests for qualifications, and all of the artwork is expected to be complete before the end of the year.

The City of Atlanta purchased the Metropolitan Parkway site, about four miles south of The Met, in 2013 for $600,000, according to Fulton County property records.

For the past few months, officials have been securing permits to begin work on what’s slated to be a roughly 19,000-square-foot facility that would serve City Council District 12.

We’ve inquired about a timeline for the station’s opening and will update this post should that information come.