riding out west— ashby and bankhead stations (Atlanta: fit in, section 8)
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today i decided to ride out west on the line and look at all the stations on the west line. most of them i found fairly plain (west lake did have a really nice tile pattern), but the two most interesting stations were ashby and bankhead stations.
ashby station was interesting primarily because of the layout. for anyone who hasn't been to this station, the east and west platforms aren't next to each other as they are in every other station— they're directly on top of each other. so if you want to go west, you go into the station and go down one story, but if you want to go east, you have to take the escalator down and go to the bottom platform. it seems odd that the station was designed this way, but it must have been planned with a future expansion in mind— does anyone have any idea what this might be? there are also some beautiful tile mosaics, the one on the westbound platform is a tribute to westside village and the history of the area, the one on the lower platform is more abstract.
bankhead station is interesting, but for a different reason.
for those familiar with the atlanta area, bankhead is notorious for being the roughest part of town, but 'bankhead' can mean several different areas, or a whole group of areas, leading many to be unsure of where 'bankhead' actually is. the official 'bankhead' neighbourhood is designated so by the city, simply because the 'bankhead' station (which is named for the road, bankhead highway) is located there. but in reality the official designated neighbourhood isn't really much of a neighbourhood at all— it's basically a catch all for areas that don't neatly fit into other neighbourhoods on the map.
having heard how rough bankhead was since i was a little kid, i was sure the station would be in a dangerous area, and as i looked out the window coming up the line, we went under simpson street and i saw an abandoned apartment complex that i've heard called 'the pit' and i thought 'oh boy, where the hell am i going?'. but surprisingly, the train started going up in elevation, and pretty soon we're going through the middle of maddox park, which is hilly and has a lot of very old trees. even this time of year, it looked picturesque and even pastoral. from the platform you could see the hilly park and then the atlanta skyline in the distance. looking northwest, the future site of westside park can be seen, it appears to be not even a half-mile from the bankhead station. if you look around the station, most of the land between grove park and the future westside park and the quarry, is just old industrial land. these two parks could easily be connected to create a very large park, and i can imagine the beltline running right through them.
another interesting thing about the bankhead station is that the platform is the shortest of all the stations in the system— it is only two cars long, so every train that goes to the station (the "green" line) is only two cars long, so it will fit.
it seems like both of these stations and the surrounding areas are in places where they will have a very interesting future.
I've done the same thing, but by car. I wanted to see the Bankhead Courts housing project before they tore it down, so I took a little ride out there (this was a few years back). Then I took Bankhead Highway into town.
I noticed the same thing as you, there was a lot of great real estate with easy access to the city and stunning skyline views. There were even some homes that appeared to be very nice old homes that could be fixed up and turned into something special. I'm just guessing, I have no way of knowing what these homes look like on the inside or what condition they are in structurally, but from a glance it looked like they just needed a little TLC.
I remember talking to some of my friends about this, specifically a friend who owns a few section 8 rental units in the area. I talked about a possible turnaround for this area, and people who know and understand this area much more intimately than I ever could said the same thing: don't count on it in your lifetime.
I wish I could remember all the reasons I was given, but at that time I just assumed these people knew what they were talking about and I more or less struck the area off my radar. Realistically, I have to agree. Even if the area was aggressively redeveloped at a fever pitch, it would be at least a 10 year project. And I don't see an aggressive redevelopment plan happening any time soon. If it ever happens, it will be long and slow.
It's sad, really, because this area could be valuable real estate. I guess maybe every city has areas like this that could be great but can't seem to ever climb out of stagnation. If you plan on buying property in this part of town as an investment, you better be ready to pass it on to your grandchildren and hope for a profit for them. That's the general feeling about this area.
Incidentally, I went to a housing auction in Vine City one time. I was a little nervous because I had to park my car a few blocks away from where the auction was happening and I had to hoof it through the neighborhood. I've always heard it is drug dealers and hookers, and maybe it is at night. What I saw, though, appeared to be poor but decent people just trying to live their lives and wanting the best for their neighborhood.
the core of english avenue (the "bluff") is so far gone that i can really see why the people you talked to believe that. i don't know if you ever got in there or not, but it is like a third world country. however, as soon as you get out of that 10 square block area, it becomes a lot easier to see restoration in the next 10 years. even along ashby street, there are some impressive homes that even now are in good condition. on sunset avenue in vine city, there are a couple of grand homes that are at least from the late 1800s, however they are not in good condition.
right around ashby station, things are looking up. for the first time in forever, westside village actually has a grocery store. they've built row houses and there are a couple of cool restaurants there. however, i have only been there by car. i didn't get outside the ashby station today, i have to admit i was scared. i was the only white person there and i got quite a few stares. the clincher was when i was riding up the escalator, there was a man with his two sons behind him, when he saw me get on the escalator he told his kids to come on up in front of him while staring at me. it bothered me, so i got back on the train and left. i can see why he might do that, though— the only reason white people tend to go in that area is for heroin. he probably didn't want me around his kids for that reason. either way, though, it bothered me that his reaction was so kneejerk, i figured if i went out and started walking down lowery that somebody would try to sell me drugs, so i left.
either way, though, this area has been discussed a whole lot and i guess i kind of meandered around in my OP, but i didn't necessarily to start a discussion about the whole neighbourhood again, but two things in specific— maddox park, where the rail line ends, and how it could be incorporated into the beltline/westside park, and secondly i am very curious why ashby station has the unusual layout it does.
ashby station was interesting primarily because of the layout. for anyone who hasn't been to this station, the east and west platforms aren't next to each other as they are in every other station— they're directly on top of each other. so if you want to go west, you go into the station and go down one story, but if you want to go east, you have to take the escalator down and go to the bottom platform. it seems odd that the station was designed this way, but it must have been planned with a future expansion in mind— does anyone have any idea what this might be?
It is because the junction of the Green and Blue line are just west of the station and this set up prevented having to construct a flying junction, Flying junction - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. This prevents Candler Park bound Green line trains from clocking the tracks of H.E. Holmes bound Blue Line trains. The red and Gold lines have a flying junction just east of 400, north of Eclipse de Luna.
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right around ashby station, things are looking up. for the first time in forever, westside village actually has a grocery store. they've built row houses and there are a couple of cool restaurants there. however, i have only been there by car. i didn't get outside the ashby station today, i have to admit i was scared. i was the only white person there and i got quite a few stares. the clincher was when i was riding up the escalator, there was a man with his two sons behind him, when he saw me get on the escalator he told his kids to come on up in front of him while staring at me. it bothered me, so i got back on the train and left. i can see why he might do that, though— the only reason white people tend to go in that area is for heroin. he probably didn't want me around his kids for that reason. either way, though, it bothered me that his reaction was so kneejerk, i figured if i went out and started walking down lowery that somebody would try to sell me drugs, so i left.
I had that same feeling the day my friend and I had a MARTA day, rode the whole system. Getting on the Bankhead bound Green Line, felt like everyone was staring at us. Though we did exit the station at Bankhead and walk to Maddox Park, is it named after Lester Maddoox? That would be ironic if it was.
I took a trip out west a while ago just like bryant. I knew the layout of Ashby and I was interested to see it. I got out and it was kind of like those stations in DC that were bi-level, just not as nice. Definitely did not hang out long as I got the very strong feeling I was not welcome there. I am used to being the only white guy in a place, I know the difference b/t curious stares and non welcoming stares, that's what I experienced at Ashby. Never thought of it being because I was presumed to be there to buy drugs. That may be PART of the explanation. I don't think that is all of it though.
I can't wait for that area to diversify and be more open to the rest of the city. That should be some of the most valuable real estate in the city. One day it will change. I sure hope the Beltline catalyses that transformation.
Another cool thing on the Westside, Westview Cemetery. Those mausoleums are very cool. Never expected to see stuff like that in Atlanta...
Though we did exit the station at Bankhead and walk to Maddox Park, is it named after Lester Maddoox? That would be ironic if it was.
No, it's named after Robert Maddox, who was mayor of Atlanta back around 1910 or so. He was one of the founders of the First National Bank. His home on West Paces is now the site of the Governor's Mansion.
An interesting side note is that civil rights leader and Clinton adviser Vernon Jordan was Maddox's driver for a while back in the 1950s.
Neither Robert Maddox nor Maddox Park have any connection at all to Lester.
the thing about it is that i don't want it to be like a lot of the 'gentrified' areas on the east side where all the poor folks and black folks were run out, leaving it in terms of diversity as bad as it was before. why can't we have neighbourhoods in atlanta where poor and rich, white and black folks can live together? i know there are some crime issues over in that part of town, but wouldn't it be terrible if historic westside village, the site of paschal's and the site of the birth of the civil rights movement, became another lilywhite neighbourhood?
I would love for it to become a mid income mixed area area that is nice. But being where it is, once it becomes friendly to people who are not black, the sky is the limit. Unfortunately, I don't think in this area there will be much of a middle ground for too long. It may be transitional with the more brave folks moving in. Once it is established as a safe area, I imagine property values will skyrocket. I would love to be wrong, I just don't think there is room for the middle being that close to town.
I would love for it to become a mid income mixed area area that is nice. But being where it is, once it becomes friendly to people who are not black, the sky is the limit. Unfortunately, I don't think in this area there will be much of a middle ground for too long. It may be transitional with the more brave folks moving in. Once it is established as a safe area, I imagine property values will skyrocket. I would love to be wrong, I just don't think there is room for the middle being that close to town.
You've got some really nice neighborhoods out that way.
Westview is cool and some of the areas around the golf course are charming. Those are some of my old stomping grounds.
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