At Atlanta’s inaugural “Downtown Day” on Oct. 22, local leaders unveiled a new, reworked plan for phase one of the highway-capping park project called “The Stitch.”
Central Atlanta Progress, a nonprofit dedicated to downtown development, released renderings for the park that show a 5.7-acre greenspace with a playground, perennial garden, shade pavilion and interactive water fountain.
The project is slated to bring in 4,500 jobs and create over $9 billion in economic revenue. Project leaders have said it will create an “economic and cultural transformation” of downtown.
“It reflects our vision for an inclusive and equitable Atlanta, a city where everyone has access and opportunities,” City of Atlanta Chief Operating Officer Lachandra Burkes said. “This project will link neighborhoods that have been divided for decades.”
The Stitch should be shovel-ready for phase one in 2026, according to officials. The project already has $20 million for the design phase — a welcome number after President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” Act gutted over $100 million in funds for the project.
But things are back on track for The Stitch. Mayor Andre Dickens said the park “will be transformative, and is still going to happen.”
Downtown Day displayed the park’s next steps. On Oct. 22, Project Manager Jack Cebe walked a crowd through the streets on a “virtual reality” tour of what the area could look like in the next few years.
Still, The Stitch isn’t the only project aimed at revitalizing downtown Atlanta — the rest of Downtown Day put a spotlight on the area’s progress. Central Atlanta Progress released data through the “State of Downtown” that showed the spot by the numbers.
“Downtown Day was created as both a celebration and somewhat of a call to action, a moment to look around at all that’s happening here and remind ourselves that downtown belongs to all of us,” CAP President A.J. Robinson said.
According to CAP, 34,000 people live in downtown Atlanta. That’s a 44 percent increase from 2010. The neighborhood remains a major employer, with over 200,000 jobs across 4,268 businesses — over 166,000 people factor into the so-called “daytime population” of workers and wanderers.
With most people working in person again, the 18.3 million square feet of office space is at 71 percent occupancy. The 2.6 million square feet of retail space is at 91 percent occupancy.
They’re big numbers. But local leaders see it as a sign of “momentum” downtown, and hope major projects like The Stitch will keep it going. The park joins a roster of major developments like the entertainment district called Centennial Yards, set to makeover “The Gulch” or SoDo, a 57-building reinvestment strategy into south downtown.
Cap President Robinson also highlighted smaller investments, like work on food access improvements, including the newly-opened Azalea Market, ongoing affordable housing efforts, and $2.4 million in mobility investments.
“Downtown is where Atlanta began, and it’s still where Atlanta really does come together,” Robinson said.
As downtown leaders celebrated years of growth and future development to come, Mayor Andre Dickens kept up his push to make the area a true hub for the city — not just a workplace locale or tourist destination.
“We know that downtown can’t just be a destination, we have to also make it a true neighborhood of choice, a place where people want to live, work and play,” Dickens said.
So excited for the Stitch project!
We should have small gardens at both ends of the Stitch, these gardens would be fed through the C02 emitted by cars passing underneath.
This would serve two purposes:
1) We could create a restaurant which exclusively serves produce grown by Stitch gardens.
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2) We can call the restaurant “The Stomach Stitch”
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3[bonus]) The Stitch would basically be the HEPA air-purifer for Atlanta