Atlanta Beltline
HR&A positioned the Atlanta Beltline to achieve inclusive economic development through a commercial affordability strategy protecting small businesses and businesses of color. Working with Atlanta Beltline, Inc. and the Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative, our stakeholder engagement and data analysis produced actionable recommendations to preserve affordable commercial space amid the corridor’s transformation.
The Atlanta Beltline’s rapid transformation has brought significant investment and growth, but also created mounting pressure on local businesses facing rising rents and changing market conditions. HR&A facilitated detailed conversations with business owners, property owners, and community stakeholders to understand the complex challenges facing small businesses and businesses of color in the corridor. These insights revealed critical gaps in affordable commercial space and identified specific displacement risks that required immediate attention. HR&A paired these qualitative findings with comprehensive economic, real estate, and business data to map commercial market trends and quantify the scale of affordability challenges across different segments of the Beltline.
HR&A’s analysis produced a strategic framework with both immediate interventions and long-term solutions to preserve commercial affordability. The roadmap included specific policy recommendations, financing mechanisms, and implementation strategies designed to help existing businesses remain viable while creating pathways for new entrepreneurship. By combining community voice with rigorous market analysis, HR&A delivered a practical strategy that positions the Atlanta Beltline to achieve inclusive economic development that benefits both longtime residents and new arrivals to this rapidly evolving area.
