Onward We Will Go – A community's effort to preserve their urban forests We thought it would be worthwhile to tell our story in a video. It's a nutshell take on Intrenchment Creek Park, our ongoing battle to Stop The Swap, the South River Park Vision, and of course, the Old Atlanta Prison Farm.
Our hope is that it can help inspire our community to carry on despite the difficulties, help us to hold onto the bigger vision, and maybe even reach some more folks who don't yet know the story. As 2019 comes to a close, we hope you'll continue to help us protect our environment into 2020 and beyond!
SAVE THE OLD ATLANTA PRISON FARM
The Old Atlanta Prison Farm property is a beautiful green space jewel located just outside of Atlanta city limits, very close to East Atlanta in Southwest DeKalb County. This land has been neglected and abused, harboring a variety of problems like tire fires and illegal dumping.
We formed Save The Old Atlanta Prison Farm (STOAPF) to bring attention to and resolve these issues.
The Old Atlanta Prison Farm is over 300 acres of land, making it the largest greenspace inside the perimeter. We see that it is full of enormous potential for our community.
In a spirit of hope and opportunity, we are envisioning a beautiful, multi-use, regional park that will be of benefit to everyone. With over 300 acres, we see a wide variety of both active and passive recreational opportunities.
STOP THE SWAP
Next door to the Prison Farm is Intrenchment Creek Park, a beautiful DeKalb County greenspace that we have always included in our park vision. Unfortunately, this land is now under threat of destruction by Blackhall Studios, a movie production facility just south of the park.
Enabled by DeKalb officials, Blackhall is proposing to “trade” our forested, public park for their own inferior, clear-cut land. Despite the fact that our park is legally protected as public parkland under the Trust For Public Land, both DeKalb officials and Blackhall are ignoring the public outcry to preserve our park. Even the Georgia director of the TPL is failing to step up for the community.
In an effort to protect our irreplaceable park, we've teamed up with local environmental organizations, businesses, and concerned citizens to put a stop to this so-called “swap”.
SOUTH RIVER PARK
The Next Great Regional Park in Atlanta, Georgia
As part of our park vision for the Old Atlanta Prison Farm, we see the land as a regional hub for a network of trails. We share this vision of a large regional park with South River Watershed Alliance, Ryan Gravel, the Atlanta City Design, and many more.
In Southeast Atlanta / Southwest DeKalb County, there are several large, interconnected greenspaces that have great potential for our whole community – But we must protect what's left of our precious urban forests from being destroyed before it's too late! We have an unprecedented opportunity to come together and do the right thing for ourselves and future generations. Let's create the South River Park!
From Ryan Gravel, designer and visionary behind the Beltline:
"Building on earlier concepts from the community, the Atlanta City Design envisioned a park on this land – stretching from Southside Park on Jonesboro Road eastward across the city limits at Moreland Avenue into unincorporated DeKalb County to include the Crown site, Honor Farm*, and Intrenchment Creek Park, and connecting as far north as Custer Avenue. Such a vast regional park – which could be as large as 3,500 acres inside I-285 – could become a nationally-significant model for climate and community resiliency."
* "Honor Farm" refers to the Old Atlanta Prison Farm.
We believe a large, regional eco-park is truly an excellent vision for our community and worthy of sharing with others. This land is well worth saving for ourselves and future generations.
Instead of letting these corporations and corrupt politicians destroy what's left of our legacy, let's instead lead the way for the green city of the future! The choice is ours. Call or write your representatives, vote, and spread the word!
Save The Old Atlanta Prison Farm
SaveThePrisonFarm@gmail.com
Follow Stop The Swap:
Donate to the legal fund to save Intrenchment Creek Park:
Donate to help STOAPF with ongoing expenses:
Thank you to all our supporters – You mean the world to us!
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