City of Atlanta, Atlanta BeltLine Acquire Land from CSX to Expand Multi-Use Trail

ATLANTA — The City of Atlanta and Atlanta BeltLine Inc. (ABI) have acquired 1.8 miles of former railroad corridor from freight rail operator CSX on Atlanta’s Westside to expand the city’s BeltLine urban trail. Upon full build-out in 2030, the 22-mile loop trail will connect 45 intown neighborhoods. The $6.3 million acquisition of the stretch of track formerly known as “the Kudzu Line” represents the final purchase of inactive rail corridor in the Atlanta BeltLine loop. The purchase will provide points of contact for potential spur trails that would connect the neighborhoods of Bankhead, English Avenue, Knight Park and Howell Station. In addition, the corridor will allow access to the Bankhead MARTA station, Maddox Park, the future Westside Park at Bellwood Quarry and the newly opened Proctor Creek Greenway. The funds to pay for the land came from TSPLOST, a transportation sales tax Atlanta voters approved in 2016. Under the purchase agreement, the City of Atlanta and ABI control approximately 80 percent of the corridor needed to construct the BeltLine trail and transit loop. The other 20 percent includes railroad and non-railroad properties. Over the next six months, CSX will remove the rails. ABI also recently acquired 2.5 acres at Murphy Crossing in southwest Atlanta, growing the site to 20 acres. The site, which was once home to the State Farmers Market, includes several industrial buildings and has potential for future mixed-use development. Roughly $500 million has been invested in the Atlanta BeltLine since its inception, spurring more than $8 billion in completed and planned commercial and residential development surrounding the trail.