Buckhead’s parks are in good shape, with some new ones coming soon, Atlanta’s Parks and Recreation Department leader said.
“What we’ve been able to do under Mayor [Andre] Dickens is move our vision to reality,” said Justin Cutler, the department’s commissioner.
Cutler, who has been in charge of the department since 2022, provided an update on Buckhead’s parks at the Buckhead Council of Neighborhood’s monthly meeting Feb. 13 at Piedmont Center. He thanked the representatives of Buckhead neighborhoods who attended the meeting for their hard work in volunteering to improve and maintain their communities.
“As our mayor says, Atlanta is a group project. … He wants to create more volunteer opportunities,” Cutler said.
His update included info on parks under construction, parks planning improvements, and newly acquired properties that likely will be transformed into parks.
Cutler’s presentation included some park projects still in the planning phases:
Cutler also took questions from attendees, including neighborhood group representatives, about issues with their park projects.
Cutler ended his speech with an update on 16 Moving Atlanta Forward projects. Moving Atlanta Forward is the city’s 2022 infrastructure package that included three measures Atlanta voters approved in a referendum that year (two bonds and a special sales tax being renewed) to collect $750 million. These are all park projects in council Districts 7 and 8. Three are in the planning/scoping phase, three are in the engineering/design phase, four are under construction, and six are closed out.
In an interview after the meeting, Cutler was asked which park project he’s most excited about.
“It’s like picking your favorite child,” he said. “It’s a tough question. I’d say all of them, but what we’re most excited about? I think really it’s to continue to improve maintenance. Recently, we received an increase in our millage going to parks and recreation services, so we’ve been making a lot of investments in repairing parks, updating parks, increasing trash pickup and reducing graffiti, as well as providing our park ranger program. That’s been able to reduce crime in parks and increase safety.”
When asked which projects may be the most challenging, Cutler first said the biggest issue could be having a large enough staff to handle all of them.
“I mean we have the resources but with our milage program we’ve been able to hire more staff,” he said. “I think that anytime you’re building anything, you don’t know what you’re going to get, being able to have flexible enough plans to address any challenges that come up.”
The spirit of Buckhead heads forward. This is the way it has been, and perhaps this is the way it will always be. The spirit of Buckhead points forward. You see it in the way we work, and you see it in the way we play. The reach is always extending further. The search is for excellence and beauty and grace and vibrancy.
We are a community of individuals. We are diverse, we are dynamic, and we are discerning. We are builders. We are connected to one another with a common bond. A common dream. A common quest. Pointing life in one direction. Forward.
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