Central Atlanta Progress hired Interface Studio to lead a comprehensive master planning process for Downtown Atlanta, including nearly four square miles between Boulevard, Northside Drive, North Avenue, and I-20.
Our tasks for the 15-year action plan were to synthesize the many plans, initiatives, and new investment programs at work in Downtown and position Downtown to build upon the current momentum in the real estate market; take advantage of the significant new resources available to upgrade local infrastructure; and capitalize on the area’s history and character to help Downtown evolve as a full service neighborhood, complete with new housing and commercial services, balanced streets, a lush and humanized public realm, and a range of policies and programs that enable Downtown to remain home to a diverse community.
Interface Studio teamed with Stoss Landscape Urbanism on the one-year process that concluded in December 2017. Interface Studio was also charged with integrating the accompanying market analysis completed by Bleakly Advisory Group and coordinating with Kimley-Horn Associates on the Downtown Transportation Plan component, which was folded into the Downtown Atlanta Master Plan.
Design concepts were developed for critical sites along with new policies to better manage off-street parking.
Instead of designing streets according to their traffic role, the plan developed a personality profile for every Downtown street that combines the street's function and the adjacent land use. The street personality map help to guide design decisions going forward.