By Nancy Nethery
Thirty years ago, Candler Park neighbors banded together to prevent the building a highway that would have bisected the neighborhood. Neighbors rejected that plan, resulting in the walkable neighborhood and streetscape we enjoy today.
Now, neighbors are again seeking to shape our neighborhood’s future, to protect the ambiance of our streetscape, provide gentle density increases that are greater than city requirements, and help to preserve the tree canopy.
This modern historic district designation, the most lightweight and progressive in Atlanta, allows one more accessory dwelling unit (ADU) per property than city zoning currently allows, opening the door for more affordable density in our neighborhood.
Without this designation, we see today that developer-driven change always result in the demolition of older homes for expensive single-family construction. Recently, a triplex on Clifton was demolished to construct a large single-family home with a garage apartment, for sale for $1.7 million.
A “no” vote is a vote against affordable housing in Candler Park.
October’s vote empowers us to establish our own development standards and regulations that capture Candler Park’s priorities. These include:
- Protecting the timeless character of Candler Park, qualities like the character of your historic house, the ambiance of your streetscape and neighborhood that prompted many to move here in the first place.
- Preventing the unnecessary demolition of historic buildings and encouraging reuse, renovation and additions rather than clearing a lot.
- Providing minimal design regulations on the FRONT ONLY of historic buildings.
- Helping to preserve the tree canopy. With evident climate change occurring all around us, Candler Park’s trees are of critical importance to prevent the emergence of a heat island. Most neighborhood residents have likely experienced the temperature differential between Candler Park and the Edgewood Shopping center on many days. The proposed historic district will prevent overbuilding of lots and loss of tree canopy.
These regulations:
- DO NOT prevent green upgrades, like window replacement or solar panels, or accessibility upgrades, like ramps, on any portion of the house
- DO NOT prevent additions to your house. Except for the front facade of a house built between 1855 and 1945 (a “Contributing structure”) additions are not regulated by the historic district and may be in any style.
The final proposal for October’s vote is at https://www.historiccandlerpark.org/, along with a map of contributing structures. This aligns with the City of Atlanta’s future plans.
~ Nancy Nethery has been a Candler Park resident since 1991