Assignment 1: David

1. Here we have Fairlie-Poplar Lofts located in the Fairlie-Poplar Historic District near Five Points. In fact, GSU owns several buildings in this historic district. This photograph represents the historic preservation dimension of the revitalization of skid row. Ford discusses five arguments for applying preservation policies on skid row, at least two of which can be found in this photograph: cultural memory and antique texture. These buildings are a vary rare example what the city looked like before the sky-scraper emerged. The scale and architectural style of commercial buildings in the CBD of Atlanta in the 1880s is embodied in these buildings, and therefore they are protected, preserving the “cultural memory” of early Atlanta. Additionally, this block of buildings provide contrast to some of the city’s tallest buildings locate just a few blocks away, retaining the antique texture of the CBD.

2. This is a photograph depicting the “Gulch” just southwest of Five Points in downtown Atlanta. This area was the epicenter of Atlanta’s railroad industry, which gave rise to the city in the first place. This scene is a perfect example of what Ford calls an “uninhabited zone of discard,” which is an industrial zone close to the original CBD that provided the economic foundation on which the city was built. Once upon a time this area was nothing but rows of railroad tracks, as can be seen here: http://www.atlantatimemachine.com/downtown/aerial_pc_121.htm. The parking lot in the foreground of this photo is located in the bottom right of the large rail yard visible in the foreground of the photo provided in the link. With the decline of the railroad industry and the construction of the nearby sporting arenas (Philips Area and the Georgia Dome), the once massive rail yard that birthed the city has been converted into a parking lot. However there has been talk of redeveloping this space as a Southeastern passenger rail terminal, all part of a national effort to develop high-speed rail in the U.S. Such a goal has yet to be realized.

3. This photograph illustrates a phenomenon Ford calls “Linking the Parts.” Pictured here is the Old Fourth Ward Park that is set to open this spring, the empty City Hall East in the distance (supposedly on the verge of redevelopment), and a new condo building in what has long been a zone of discard in the frame of the city. This area is changing with the construction of the Beltline, which passes to the right of City Hall East in this photograph. In his book “Cities and Buildings”, Ford describes the importance of linking together architectural realms of the city. The Beltline project embodies this idea and will one day tie together residential, industrial, commercial, recreational, abandoned and undeveloped realms surrounding the CBD while bringing revitalization and investment. The park and condo building illustrate this quite clearly. Supposedly the Sears distribution center in the distance will become a dynamic mixed-use space, completing the revival of this portion of the city’s zone of discard.