Walking Proctor Creek with Local Stakeholders

In December of 2018, the project team walked the first phase of the new Proctor Creek Greenway with stakeholders from the area, including members of the Proctor Creek Stewardship Council, West Atlanta Watershed Alliance, Groundwork Atlanta, Atlanta City Council Member Dustin Hillis, and Grove Park Residents. The Proctor Creek Greenway begins at the Bankhead MARTA Station at Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway and follows the creek along the west side of the new Westside Park at Bellwood Quarry Park. As we walked, the design team heard about the history of the area, the recent improvements along the creek, and visions for the area moving forward. Donna Stevens noted the Proctor Creek Stewardship Council’s role in protecting the people, land, and water from the impacts of adjacent industrial land-use. Juanita Wallace, a long-time resident of the area, grew up catching crawfish in the creek and singing under its crossing bridges. Today, she collects water samples and sends them to the Chattahoochee Riverkeeper once a week for testing. The Proctor Creek Greenway will eventually connect Atlanta’s BeltLine to the Chattahoochee RiverLands.

This visit was part of the 100-mile Windshield Driving Tour – a multi-day driving tour along the banks of the full 100-mile river corridor from December 10-14, 2018. The tour allowed the Design Team to ground truth GIS data with on-the-ground site explorations, photography and video documentation. The Design Team engaged with the community members and interviewed stakeholders on the river as face-to-face research that informs the project and forces an authentic identity for the Chattahoochee RiverLands Greenway. Download the full summary of the tour to learn more.