Exciting changes for the east side
For the past six years, I’ve lived just a few blocks north or south of Memorial Drive, in between Covington Highway and Moreland Avenue.
The three places I’ve lived during that stretch, City of Decatur, Atlanta’s Kirkwood neighborhood, and unincorporated DeKalb, have varied pretty drastically. However, recent developments are starting to blur the lines between the desirable areas and the spots that need a little love.
The news about a $40 million-plus renovation coming to Belvedere Plaza, the Vela Park and Vela Park Food Works development off Glenwood, the Publix shopping center coming to the intersection of Candler and Glenwood, and luxury apartments and townhomes sprouting like weeds in every bit of open space down Memorial Drive feel like the payoff from a decade-plus long effort to revitalize this pocket of DeKalb County that sits just east of Atlanta and south of Decatur.
The response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive from my perspective. People in these areas, myself included, have been clamoring for more shopping, dining, and entertainment options, and now it looks like we’re going to get them.
My biggest hope is that the commissioners, developers, and other entities involved take a good look at other recent developments and carefully listen to community input to ensure that the developments are filled with tenants who will stay and support the community.
While there might not be a Beltline trail or a large natural anchor, this stretch of DeKalb is home to the East Lake Golf Course, large parks, and is in the direct path of Atlanta’s sprawl. Well planned developments could change the future of this area, much like East Lake, East Atlanta, Kirkwood, and other areas just west of this strip saw in recent years.
My residential neighborhood has steadily changed even in the short time I’ve been here, with several new houses under construction, a few under contract, and more of the same likely on the horizon. I can’t wait to see what this area looks like in the coming years.
