Buckhead

Coordinates: 33°50′22″N 84°22′48″W / 33.83942°N 84.37992°W / 33.83942; -84.37992
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about a district in Atlanta. For the mixed-use development in this district, see Buckhead Village District. For other uses, see Buckhead (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Bankhead, Atlanta.

Buckhead
EDT
)
ZIP Codes
30305, 30309, 30318, 30324, 30326, 30327, 30342

Buckhead is the uptown commercial and residential district of the city of Atlanta, Georgia, comprising approximately the northernmost fifth of the city. Buckhead is the third largest business district within the Atlanta city limits, behind Downtown and Midtown, and a major commercial and financial center of the Southern U.S.

Buckhead is anchored by a core of

high-rise office buildings, hotels, shopping centers, restaurants and condominiums centered around the intersection of Peachtree Road and Piedmont Road near Georgia State Route 400, the Buckhead MARTA station, and Lenox Square
.

History

In 1838, Henry Irby purchased 202 1/2 acres surrounding the present intersection of Peachtree, Roswell, and West Paces Ferry roads from Daniel Johnson for $650. Irby subsequently established a general store and tavern at the northwest corner of the intersection.[2] The name "Buckhead" comes from a story that Irby killed a large buck deer and placed the head in a prominent location.[3][4] Prior to this, the settlement was called Irbyville.[4][5] By the late 1800s, Buckhead had become a rural vacation spot for wealthy Atlantans.[6] In the 1890s, Buckhead was rechristened Atlanta Heights but by the 1920s it was again "Buckhead".[7]

A cycling event, "Georgia Rides to the Capitol," on Piedmont Road

Buckhead remained dominated by country estates until after

1906 Atlanta race riot and the Great Atlanta fire of 1917, which drove black residents from the city center.[8] Predominantly black neighborhoods within Buckhead included Johnsontown, Piney Grove, Savagetown, and Macedonia Park.[8]

Despite the stock market crash of 1929, lavish mansions were still constructed in Buckhead throughout the Great Depression.[6] In 1930, Henry Aaron Alexander built one of the largest homes on Peachtree Road, a 15,000-square-foot (1,400 m2) house with 33 rooms and 13 bathrooms.[6] During the mid-1940s, Fulton County decided to acquire the land comprising Macedonia Park to build what is now Frankie Allen Park.[8] This process, which entailed both eminent domain and "outright coercion" displaced over 400 families.[8]

During the mid-1940s, Atlanta Mayor William B. Hartsfield sought to annex Buckhead, and a number of other predominantly White suburbs of Atlanta.[9] Fearing that the city's "Negro population is growing by leaps and bounds", and was "taking more white territory inside Atlanta", Hartsfield sought to annex these communities to counteract the threat of increasing political power for the city's Black residents.[9] The annexation of Buckhead was put to a vote in 1947, but it was rejected by Buckhead voters.[9] Atlanta annexed Buckhead and a number of other nearby communities in 1952, following legislature which expanded Atlanta's city boundaries.[9]

In 1956, an estate known as Joyeuse was chosen as the site for a major shopping center to be known as

modernist buildings.[citation needed] When Lenox Square opened in 1959, it was one of the first malls in the country, and the largest shopping center in the Southeastern U.S. Office development soon followed with the construction of Tower Place in 1974.[citation needed
]

To reverse a downturn in

better source needed] Many bars and clubs catered mostly to the black community in the Atlanta area, including Otto's, Cobalt, 112, BAR, World Bar, Lulu's Bait Shack, Mako's, Tongue & Groove, Chaos, John Harvard's Brew House, Paradox, Frequency & Havana Club.[11][12] The area became renowned as a party spot for Atlanta area rappers and singers, including Outkast, Jazze Pha, Jagged Edge, Usher and Jermaine Dupri, who mentioned the neighborhood's clubs on his song "Welcome to Atlanta."[citation needed
]

Following the events of the

"Buckhead Atlanta" multi-use project, and many of the former bars and clubs were razed in 2007.[13]

Charlie Loudermilk Park and the Buckhead Theater in Buckhead Village

Proposed secession from Atlanta

In 2008, a newsletter[14] by the Fulton County Taxpayers Foundation began circulating that proposed the secession of Buckhead into its own city after more than 50 years as part of Atlanta. This came on the heels of neighboring Sandy Springs, which finally became a city in late 2005 after a 30-year struggle to incorporate, and which triggered other such incorporations in metro Atlanta's northern suburbs. Like those cities, the argument to create a city of Buckhead is based on the desire for more local control and lower taxes.[citation needed]

Discussions revolving around potential secession from Atlanta were revived in late 2021, with proponents of secession arguing that splitting from Atlanta would enable Buckhead to better tackle crime in the area.

Piedmont Heights, and West Midtown, murder was up 63% in 2021 compared to the previous year, going from 8 cases to 13. However, in the same period crime overall was down by 6%, and according to police chief Rodney Bryant, Zone 2 had only a fraction of the violent crimes seen in other neighborhoods of Atlanta.[17]

Buckhead, one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Atlanta, would deprive the city of upwards of 40% of its tax revenue if it seceded.[15] Political scientists and journalists have also highlighted that Buckhead is significantly more conservative and white than the rest of Atlanta.[15] Commentators have also noted that this secession attempt is "more serious" than earlier efforts,[15] due to polling data showing 54% to 70% of Buckhead's residents favor the move,[15][16] and due to pro-secession organizations raising nearly $1,000,000 to promote the split.[15] A referendum did not occur in 2022 or early 2023, as the Georgia General Assembly tabled the bills that would have provided for this referendum during the 2022 legislative session.[18]

During the 2023 session, on April 27, the issue of incorporation was brought to the Georgia State Senate in the form of SB114. The bill prompted a response from governor Brian Kemp on the legality and workability of incorporating Buckhead as a city, but was ultimately rejected 33-23. The against votes consists of all Democrats in the Senate, and ten Republicans who broke rank to join them. Republicans on the for side argued that the citizens of Buckhead where not being represented by their municipal government and that the decision to form their own municipality should be up to the citizens themselves. Additionally, it was noted by the media that there was no Senator from Buckhead[clarification needed] in the Senate at the time of the vote. If the bill succeeded, it would have begun the referendum process to secede from Atlanta.[19][20][21]

Geography

Buckhead was originally the central area now called "Buckhead Village". The current usage of the term Buckhead roughly covers the interior of the "V" formed by

North Druid Hills in DeKalb County to the east, Midtown Atlanta to the south, and West Midtown
to the west.

Neighborhoods

Buckhead comprises most of the

neighborhoods of Atlanta's north side, 43 in total.[22][23]

The southernmost area around the Brookwood and Ardmore neighborhoods is sometimes regarded as a separate neighborhood of "South Buckhead".[24][25][26]

Demographics

The Waldorf Astoria, Atlanta

Since at least the 1950s, Buckhead has been known as a district of extreme wealth, with the western and northern neighborhoods being virtually unrivaled in the Southeast. In 2011, The Gadberry Group compiled the list of the 50 wealthiest zip codes in the United States, ranking Buckhead's western zip code (30327) as the second wealthiest zip code in the South (behind Palm Beach's 33480) and the second wealthiest zip code east of California and south of Virginia.[27]

The same group reported the average household income at $280,631, with an average household net worth of $1,353,189.

Washington D.C. suburb of Great Falls, and east of the Phoenix suburb of Paradise Valley to be among the 50 wealthiest communities in the country.[28] However, according to Forbes magazine, (30327) is the ninth-wealthiest zip code in the nation, with a household income in excess of $341,000.[29]

The Robb Report magazine has consistently ranked Buckhead one of the nation's "10 Top Affluent Communities" due to "the most beautiful mansions, best shopping, and finest restaurants in the Southeastern United States".[30][31][32][33][34] Due to its wealth, Buckhead is sometimes promoted as the "Beverly Hills of the East" or "Beverly Hills of the South" in reference to Beverly Hills, California, an area to which it is often compared.[35][36]

Economy

A portion of the Buckhead skyline seen from Lenox Square

At the heart of Buckhead around the intersections of Lenox, Peachtree and Piedmont Roads, is a shopping district with more than 1,500 retail units where shoppers spend more than $3 billion a year.

"Buckhead Atlanta" mixed-use development brought even more exclusive boutiques, restaurants, hotels, condos and office space to the heart of Buckhead in 2014.[13][39] The name of the project was rebranded as 'Buckhead Atlanta'.[40]

The Alhambra, historic apartments in the Garden Hills neighborhood

Buckhead is also a center for healthcare, and is home both to

Piedmont Hospital and the private, catastrophic care hospital Shepherd Center which specializes in spinal cord injury and acquired brain injury. The two hospitals are located adjacent to one another along Peachtree Road. (This location is known as "Cardiac Hill" by runners of the annual Peachtree Road Race.[41]
)

Buckhead is also the location of a large share of

Consulate of Greece.[46]

Buckhead
skyline, circa 2007

Cityscape

The Sovereign Building completed in late 2008, is Buckhead's tallest building.

In 1982 the Buckhead Business Association created an official boundary map for Buckhead. The Georgia House of Representatives adopted that boundary, as did the Atlanta Regional Commission.[47]

While much of west and north Buckhead is preserved as

high-rise construction. The first 400-foot (121 m) office tower, Tower Place, opened in 1974. Park Place, built in 1986, was the first 400+ foot (121+ m) condominium building. 1986 also saw the completion of the 425-foot (129 m), 34-story Atlanta Plaza, then Buckhead's tallest and largest building. In 2000, Park Avenue Condominiums pushed the record to 486 feet (148 m).[48]

Since that time, a wave of development has followed. The 660-foot (201 m)

Mandarin Oriental, now renamed the Waldorf-Astoria, were completed in 2008. Many luxury high-rise apartment buildings have been built recently, including the 26-story Post Alexander High Rise in 2014 and the 26-story SkyHouse Buckhead in 2014. Today, Buckhead has over 50 high-rise buildings, almost one-third of the city's total.[48]

Education

Elementary and secondary schools

Public schools in Buckhead are administered by Atlanta Public Schools.[47]

The following public elementary schools serve Buckhead:

The area is served by Sutton Middle School and North Atlanta High School.[54][55]

The Galloway School

By 2012, due to overall population increases in Buckhead, many schools became increasingly crowded. Brandon Elementary was at 97% capacity, Garden Hills was at 102% capacity, E. Rivers was at 121% capacity, and Sutton was at 150% capacity. In the round of school zone change proposals in 2012, Ernie Suggs of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said that the zones of Buckhead "remained pretty much intact."[56]

There is an area charter school, Atlanta Classical Academy.

Local private schools include the

The Lovett School, Pace Academy, and The Westminster Schools
.

Colleges and universities

Georgia State University's J. Mack Robinson College of Business' Buckhead Center is located in the heart of Buckhead. This facility houses Georgia State's Executive MBA program. Its "Leadership Speaker Series", which showcases an agenda of executive officers from prestigious, well-known companies is also hosted at their Buckhead Center.[46]

The University of Georgia's Terry Executive Education Center located across from Lenox Square Mall

The

executive MBA
program and Terry Third Thursday, a lecture series featuring business leaders.

Public libraries

There are two branches of the

Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System in Buckhead: Northside Branch and Buckhead Branch.[57]

Transportation

Roadways

The Georgia Governor's Mansion, located on West Paces Ferry Road

The main north–south street of Buckhead is Peachtree Road, which extends south into the heart of the city as

West Paces Ferry Roads, other arterial roads include Piedmont Road (Georgia 237), Roswell Road (Georgia State Route 9
), and Northside Parkway.

Mass transit

In the early 1990s, after a bitter fight against

Sandy Springs.[58][59][60]

MARTA operates three stations in Buckhead, the southernmost being

Peachtree Streetcar" because it would run along Peachtree Street in Downtown Atlanta and Peachtree Road in Buckhead) would provide street-level service with frequent stops all the way to downtown Atlanta, complementing the existing subway-type MARTA train service for the area.[61][60][62]

Pedestrians and cycling

  • North Beltline Trail (Under construction)
  • Chastain Park Trail
  • Mountain To River Trail
  • Paces Ferry Trail
  • PATH400,[63] which provides a 5.2 mile pathway throughout the heart of Buckhead that connects different trails and parks. PATH400 connects the people of Buckhead to surrounding neighborhoods, offices, and retail locations.

Bike Share
In 2017, the Relay Bike Share program expanded into Buckhead. Three new stations were installed with plans to add more in the future.[64][65]

Notable residents

See also: List of people from Atlanta

See also

References

  1. ^ "Stats show Buckhead is still majority-White and wealthy; police use of force is low". July 7, 2020.
  2. ^ Garrett, Franklin M. (1969). Atlanta and environs; a chronicle of its people and events. University of Georgia Press. p. 160.
  3. ISBN 0-915430-00-2
    .
  4. ^ a b "How Buckhead Got Its Name - 90.1 FM WABE". Wabe.org. October 28, 2013.
  5. ^ "Atlanta, Georgia – History, historic". Buckhead. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d "Buckhead, Atlanta". Forbes.com.
  7. ^ "In the 1980s an effort was made to change the name to Atlanta Heights, to no avail. The people preferred the picturesque name of Buckhead." in The Atlanta Historical Bulletin, Volume 1 (1927), p.26
  8. ^ a b c d Henry, Scott (June 6, 2012). "Buckhead's black past". clatl.com. Creative Loafing. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d Johnson, Larry (May 20, 2016). "The 1952 Atlanta Annexations". cobbcountycourier.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  10. ^ "Buckhead Village BAR BRAWL: Critics try to pressure landlords of busy clubs". Thebuckheadalliance.org.
  11. ^ a b Lyles, Harry Jr. (January 31, 2019). "How Ray Lewis' Super Bowl night in Buckhead changed Atlanta forever". SBNation.com. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
  12. ^ Scott Henry, "Buckhead Rising", Creative Loafing, 2006-05-31
  13. ^ a b Clark Dean, "Lost in Buckhead Atlanta", Atlanta Business Journal, June 29, 2011
  14. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 26, 2011. Retrieved November 22, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  15. ^ a b c d e f Pulley, Brett; Mock, Brentin (October 1, 2021). "Atlanta's Wealthiest and Whitest District Wants to Secede". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  16. ^ a b Jones, Valencia (September 1, 2021). "Buckhead Inches Closer To Seceding From The City Of Atlanta". atlanta.cbslocal.com. WUPA. Archived from the original on December 2, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  17. ^ Crime concerns behind neighborhood's idea to secede from Atlanta from ABC News
  18. ^ "Lieutenant governor throws up roadblock for Buckhead cityhood bill in Georgia Senate". 11Alive.com. January 13, 2022. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  19. ^ Wheatley, Thomas. "Georgia Senate bucks Buckhead cityhood push". Axios. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  20. ^ Amy, Jeff (March 3, 2023). "Georgia senators reject Buckhead efforts to leave Atlanta". Associated Press. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  21. ^ Mock, Brentin (March 2, 2023). "How Buckhead's Secession From Atlanta Would Destabilize the Entire State". Bloomberg News. Retrieved May 22, 2023.
  22. ^ "Atlanta, Georgia – Buckhead Neighborhood Map". Buckhead. Retrieved March 29, 2011.
  23. ^ NPU B Map, City of Atlanta Online Archived 2011-08-13 at the Wayback Machine
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  25. ^ "Atlanta Neighborhoods Guide - Find Hotels, Events & More". Atlanta.net.
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  27. ^ a b "America's Richest Zip Codes 2011". Bloomberg.com. December 7, 2011.
  28. ^ "EXPLORING AMERICA'S RICHEST ZIP CODES". Adage.com. April 4, 2005.
  29. ^ Excess household income of Buckhead
  30. ^ Buckhead: A Place for All Time Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine
  31. ^ "AmeriSuites Buckhead in Atlanta". Worldres.com. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
  32. ^ "Mobil Travel Guide 49th Annual Five-Star Awards". Mobil. Archived from the original on November 21, 2007. Retrieved January 16, 2007.
  33. ^ "Atlanta–Discover the Possibilities Of the 'Athens of the South'". Pn.psychiatryonline.org\accessdate=11 July 2018.
  34. ^ . August 29, 2006 https://web.archive.org/web/20060829002325/http://www.commerce.virginia.edu/career_services/Students/Handouts/city-sheet-Atlanta2006.doc. Archived from the original on August 29, 2006. Retrieved July 11, 2018. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
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  40. ^ "Home". The Shops Buckhead Atlanta.
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  42. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
    . Retrieved on July 28, 2009.
  43. ^ "THE CONSULATE GENERAL OF FRANCE IN ATLANTA IS MOVING Archived 2011-07-18 at the Wayback Machine." French Consulate General, Atlanta. Retrieved on September 19, 2010.
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  50. ^ "Garden Hills Zone: 2018-19" (PDF). Atlanta Public Schools. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
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  63. ^ "First phase of PATH400", Buckhead Patch
  64. ^ "Buckhead will officially launch its bike share program this week". Atlanta.curbed.com. July 24, 2017. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
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  67. ^ Hood-Cree, Cameron. "Does Elton John really live in Buckhead?". Retrieved January 17, 2023.
  68. ^ Brett, Jennifer (March 27, 2008). "Who is Deltalina? Flashback to 2008". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
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  71. ISSN 1539-7459
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External links

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