ATLANTA-- Some folks in the neighborhood alongside the new stadium say things have actually changed for the better there since the project started four years ago. Revitalization of that neighborhood was a promise made by city officials and Falcons owner Arthur Blank.
"This is a community that has for years been in despair," said Howard Beckham, pastor of a church in the English Avenue / Vine City community.
But Beckham says there are signs of new life in the community adjacent to the new Falcons stadium.
"Not only do we see the tangible evidence that change is happening, but hope has been brought to this community," Beckham said.
He sees another church nearby that has been abandoned and burned out for years – and men with equipment who now show up here regularly to eliminate the weeds and debris that covered it for decades.
"The grass was maybe as tall as we are. But this is the third time we’ve been here and we’re doing it on a biweekly basis. We’ll maintain the property," said Tony Dunlap, of the the Westside Beautification Project, one of several programs started here since construction of the stadium started.
Another is the Promise Center, a Westside facility devoted to keeping young people out of jail. Down the road is the vast empty space destined to become Cook Park, which is expected to become a centerpiece for residential development. Further west, there's a new job training center Westside Works – which Pastor Beckham also runs.
English Avenue / Vine City is still a tough neighborhood – with far too many abandoned buildings, too many men idle on street corners in a place still notorious for its drug trade. This, despite the presence of the Georgia Dome nearby for 25 years.
"When they constructed the Dome, people were denied many of the services promised to them," Dunlap said.
But Pastor Beckham says this new dome is different. "It was the beginning, and momentum has been moving ever since. So on every front in our community, there is momentum, there is revitalization and there is movement," Beckham said.
