Description

As we strive towards a healthier Atlanta and region, parks and greenspace are a driving force behind our progress. Not every greenspace needs a playground, though. How about rows of blueberry bushes? Lines of blackberry brambles? Crops of fresh vegetables?

This will be reality in the southwest Atlanta BeltLine neighborhood of Adair Park thanks to our multi-acre urban agriculture farm starting right now. For those of you familiar with the intersection of Allene Avenue and Catherine Street, you might know this stretch for the Harmon Brother bus repair facility and the Benoit wooden pallet manufacturing site. If these names are not familiar to you, don’t worry – you can simply start calling it the Atlanta BeltLine Farm.

In 2011, the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership, Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. and the City of Atlanta acquired this acreage adjacent to the Atlanta BeltLine right of way. This site represents a great opportunity to transform a formerly contaminated site plagued by erosion and depleted soil into a model urban farm using organic landcare methods.

So what’s been done so far to prep the site?

Buildings have been demolished and underground storage tanks removed.
Two acres of concrete and asphalt were removed along with construction debris, tons of rubbish and invasive species.
Soil was tested and remediated with the help of a grant from the EPA Brownfield Assessment Program.
A deep water well was established for on-site irrigation.
Rough grading was done and a cover crop was established.

Features