Atlanta Beltline officials discuss preparing the pedestrian trail for the World Cup

Kelvin Collins Vice President of Economic Growth for the Atlanta Beltline Photo by Sherri Daye Scott In conjunction with their fourth quarterly briefing The Atlanta Beltline held a World Cup-themed panel on Dec at The Chandelier Room at Monday Night Garage in West End Moderated by local photographer Cam Kirk the panel featured Beltline President and CEO Clyde Higgins Grammy award-winning songwriter and producer Dallas Austin City of Atlanta Director of Initiative and External Relations and interim Director of Showcase Atlanta Lamar Stewart and Soccer in the Streets founder Kaseem Ladipo They discussed the Beltline s role in bolstering small businesses fostering relationships between locals and World Cup visitors and maintaining an impact that lasts beyond the sporting event next summer The World Cup is estimated to bring around visitors to Atlanta in June and July As one of host cities Atlanta will host eight World Cup matches at Mercedes-Benz Stadium including one semifinal By the World Cup the Beltline will feature miles of continuous trail Additionally the Beltline has created jobs to date not including an estimated temporary construction jobs We ve got to think about what Atlanta s going to look like in the future Higgins commented The World Cup is an economic engine for Atlanta explained Kelvin Collins Vice President of Economic Expansion for the Atlanta Beltline The World Cup is one of Atlanta s largest tourism pushes since the Olympics and one that Collins commented will strengthen the city as a global beacon The event at Monday Night Garage maintained an infectious strength that felt genuinely local Songs by Atlanta-based artists like OutKast and T I soundtracked the evening Attendees were encouraged to wear their favorite soccer club s jersey but a great number of took the opportunity to wear sharp colorful outfits in bold shades A meager younger children slept in their parents arms while others kicked a soccer ball around an alcove adjacent to the bar The Beltline s overview of the newly launched Beltline Information Hub Photo by Sarra Sedghi The event kicked off with a lengthy progress review from a series of Beltline leaders For example the Beltline will launch its Commercial Affordability Consortium and the Beltline Business Facade pARTnership Grant next year Beltline Vice President Lynette Reed noted that affordable housing remains one of the organization s highest priorities as the Beltline approaches completion Mayor Andre Dickens wants to extend the Beltline s Tax Allocation Districts through Kim Wilson Vice President of Design and Construction communicated that percent of the trail is either complete or under construction and that the Southside trail should be completed by the World Cup next summer Additionally two parks on Atlanta s west side are at present in evolution Collins unveiled the Beltline Information Hub a digital front door that will help prepare residents and guests for the World Cup matches Collins also declared the second cohort application of the Small Business Readiness Initiative discussed the Beltline Marketplace and unveiled the Beltline Fest a free weeks-long event providing a connected circuit of celebration More FIFA World Cup coverage After the updates Kirk segued into the panel portion of the night He requested the panelists questions including what success looks like after the World Cup how they see Atlanta s history music and beliefs shaping the city s identity on a world stage in citywide prep and planning updates and how World Cup activations will strengthen the Beltline s broader mission The brunt of the discussion focused on uplifting small businesses and local creators Stewart emphasized that plenty of materials are available to small businesses that openly communicate with the city FIFA Fan Fest for example is a state entity so businesses interested in working the event need to be a supplier within the city state and county Additionally any business interested in hosting watch parties must obtain a viewing party license through the Mayor s Office of Special Events There s so much out there and we want to help Stewart reported Kirk and Ladipo also discussed how the Beltline can become a launchpad for youth soccer Soccer drives economics for local communities like playing soccer in neighborhood parks and pubs with amateur teams seeking places to regularly host matches We need to show that we don t need to find a field to play Ladipo declared Left to right Clyde Higgs Dallas Austin Cam Kirk Lamar Stewart and Kaseem Ladipo Photo by Sarra Sedghi At last the panel addressed the importance of promoting a variety of communities and actual neighborhoods in Atlanta The Beltline is intentionally hosting Beltline Fest in the Pittsburgh neighborhood located in the city s southwest sector near Castleberry Hill Adair Park and Mechanicsville The panel closed with a Q A Discussions with audience members ranged from bringing international soccer beliefs to Atlanta to concrete efforts entrepreneurs can take to legally participate in World Cup activations The panel also addressed how the Beltline s ongoing projects and World Cup plans are being designed to include the neurodivergent population particularly those on the autism spectrum The games may happen at Mercedes-Benz Stadium but the real magic will happen on the Beltline Collins stated of the World Cup in Atlanta The post Atlanta Beltline bureaucrats discuss preparing the pedestrian trail for the World Cup appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta