Forced Family Fun Day. . . at the Atlanta Beltline

The Beltline as a 22 mile trail for walkers, bikers, runners, strollers, skateboarders, dog walkers, you name it, established on the existing railroad trail.  Since I had not been familiar with the project (yes, my head has been in the sand), and I was so impressed with our day, and it is such a beneficial project for our area, I did my research so I could better describe it to those of  you who haven’t visited.

Basically, the Atlanta BeltLine is the most comprehensive revitalization effort ever undertaken in the City of Atlanta and among the largest, most wide-ranging urban redevelopment and mobility projects currently underway in the United States. This sustainable project is providing a network of public parks, and trails  by re-using 22-miles of historic railroad corridors circling downtown.  It connects  45 neighborhoods directly to each other.  How cool is that?  Genius, I think.

The Atlanta BeltLine combines the trail, greenspace, housing and art. The project is to  ultimately connect the 45 intown neighborhoods and put Atlanta on a path to 21st century economic growth and sustainability. 

It was first conceived as a 1999 master’s thesis by Georgia Tech student Ryan Gravel.  Smart guy.  It began there and then became a “grassroots campaign of local citizens and civic leaders, into a robust new vision of an Atlanta dedicated to an integrated approach to transportation, land use, greenspace, and sustainable growth.”
Eventually,  33 miles of multi-use trails will follow this corridor and spur off from it and about 3,000 acres of underutilized land along the corridor will become available for public and private redevelopment opportunities. Funding  comes from a combination of federal, state, local, and private sources.

It was a great place to get out and take a walk.  It seemed as if everyone in the city wanted to be outside on Sunday!  That, too, made for great people watching!

Some of our sights . . .

It’s all fun and games until someone steals a hat . . .

All in all we had a great time outdoors, away from the TV, studies, laundry, electronics, chores, phones – you know what I’m saying.    Forced family conversation and fun at its best.  We were actually thanked when we got home. 

Do you make family fun? Forced?  What did you do to enjoy the weather?