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Atlanta BeltLine - Coggle Diagram
Atlanta BeltLine
What is it?
Atlanta is the capital of Georgia. The Atlanta BeltLine is a 22 mile long multi-use corridor used from old, abandoned railway tracks. They use these in a redevelopment plan which forms a loop around midtown and downtown Atlanta, making a light rail transit, trails and green space.
Largest redevelopment and infrastructure projects in the country
Atlanta's population has grown from 2 million in 1970 to over 6 million in 2013
Fastest growing metropolitan city in the USA
How has this attempted to solve the urban problem?
30,000 permanent jobs from new businesses in retail, entertainment, education, health care, professional services, hospitality, light industry, and the arts
Will create more jobs for such an overpopulated city
5600 new workforce housing units
Affordable workforce units will reduce the problem of expensive housing as when there’s a higher demand for land, prices go up and since land is limited, it makes it even more expensive. This cheap housing can also save people money which they can spend on leisure activities which can also benefit the economy.
Also if there’s cheaper housing for workers then more people want to work in Atlanta, which will increase their workforce numbers and furthermore, benefit the economy
50,000 new housing units anticipated along the corridor
This will increase the amount of houses and fix the problem of housing shortages and high population density in one area as the new houses that are being built will be spread out
More people can also move in from other places
People that live outside the perimeter of Atlanta can also have access to shops, restaurants and bars and aren't 'cut-off' from society. This also means they don't have to drive, or drive as far to go to the grocery store as this path connects shops and even has new shops opened along it, which can reduce greenhouse gas emmisions
Walkable neighborhoods reduce gas emissions, have social benefits as people can interact more and can also attract more tourists in some cases as tourists can just walk everywhere and don't have to pay for a taxi.
Can help remove the divide from the rich and the poor as the point of the project is to connect and develop undeveloped neighbourhoods. This will help remove the divide as rural areas will also get developed and look more like urban areas
The increased number of jobs and affordable housing can make people more equal
Connects people from rich neighbourhoods and poor neighbourhoods
What problems/conflicts have been caused by the BeltLine
Even though they attempted to solve the lack of affordable housing and make housing more affordable, they failed
Housing prices have increased rapidly on and around the Beltline which means that a lot of residents have had to move away since they can't afford to live there anymore
They also tried to close the divide between the rich and the poor but they didn't quite succeed
As housing prices increased, only high -income families could stay there and even though you were originally a resident there you could be driven away because you can't afford to live there anymore
Their plan was to complete 5,600 new housing units but they only managed to complete 785
“They had a target of 5,600 and they built 785,” he says. “About a third of those have now expired and are market rate. It’s terrible.” -Gravel
They wanted the belt to be environmental friendly but the housing isn't environmental friendly
The energy being used for this project is also causing a lot of greenhouse gas emissions and increases the city's carbon footprint
“There are lots of tools available – affordable housing, zoning, other strategies – we know what we should do, but we’re not doing it. There is a lot of support for affordable housing in this city but politics means it is not happening." - Gravel
They can build environmental, affordable housing but they decide not to
Many people think that the BeltLine is only for rich white people and not black people so it might create community tension between people
Problems due to rapid urban growth
Rapid urban growth can cause a series of problems
Dirty streets
This can spread a lot of diseases and also turn your country into a slum as trash is being dumped anywhere and everywhere.
Lack of jobs
Raises unemployment percentages since there are more people than there are jobs available.
Leaves a lot of people in poverty
Expensive housing/ Lack of affordable housing
Causes a lot of people to live in illegal housing or squatter settlements which can turn the country into a slum and leave a lot of people in poverty
Air/water pollution
Spreads lots of diseases like typhoid and chlorella through water pollution
Lack of fresh, clean water
Makes the air unfit to breathe and can cause a series of heart and lung problems
For example; asthma, coronary heart disease and lung cancer which can be fatal and increase the country's death rate
Increased death rate can also be a problem for the economy because it can mean that more young people are dying and it reduces the amount of young people in the workforce and can reduce the production rate, which can reduce the amount of money the country's making.
Over 1 million Atlantans use septic tanks which often leak and it increases demand for water supply
Urban Sprawl
More cars, more infrastructure buildings because there are more people
Increases greenhouse gas emissions and pollutes the air and water
Bad for the environment as well as it ruins natural habitats to make room for more infrastructure projects
Farmland is replaced by urban housing
Traffic Congestion
Time is money. It can make a lot of people late for work and reduce profits. Increases greenhouse gas emissions as more people are on the highways at the same time and for long periods.
90% of residents drive to work experiencing 68 hours of delay each year
Loss of green space/ecosystem
1982-2002 over 38% of green space within Atlanta's city boundary was built on and the city loses an average of 125 hectares of trees per day by deforestation