Transit-oriented redevelopment is essential to the Atlanta BeltLine vision.  There are approximately 3,000 acres of underutilized or idled industrial property around the BeltLine.  The Atlanta BeltLine is working to ensure that those areas redevelop in ways that enhance livability and quality of life.

Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) provides a new and effective way of creating vibrant, livable communities while reducing congestion. TOD generally refers to a compact, mixed-use neighborhood located around a transit station that is designed to invite people to drive less in favor of walking, cycling, and using transit. TOD has gained popularity across the country because it provides such accessibility – to work, school and errands – while reducing auto dependency, air pollution, and energy consumption.  Studies have shown that TOD can reduce automobile travel by 20 to 25 percent compared to conventional development.  TOD has also been proven to catalyze community revitalization by stimulating economic and social activity and increasing land values.

The BeltLine Redevelopment Plan (2005) and BeltLine Master Plans (2009 to 2010) include recommendations for transit oriented development that accomplish these goals and protect and reinforce Atlanta's single-family neighborhoods.  These plans apply national best practices for transit-supportive development to the Atlanta BeltLine area and include mixing uses, strengthening the pedestrian and bicycle realm, compact development, and managing parking.

The Atlanta BeltLine Zoning Overlay, approved in early 2007, institued a regulatory approach that anticipates, manages, and encourages quality BeltLine development opportunities and impacts. The Overlay helps to preserve the integrity of the BeltLine, and to ensure that development along and adjacent to this corridor incorporates the framework and certain design standards adopted in the Atlanta BeltLine Redevelopment Plan, to the extent possible. For more on the BeltLine Zoning Overlay, please visit the City of Atlanta Bureau of Planning's website.