One of Atlanta's trendier, historically rich, and most rapidly changing neighborhoods laid claim to two new public spaces in May 2024 -- including one in the shadow of a well-known, and frequently misunderstood, art installation by the late artist Sol LeWitt.
The first project, 54 Columns Park, took shape at the highly visible corner of North Highland Avenue and Glen Iris Drive. Upgrades around LeWitt's "54 Columns" -- Fulton County's most valuable art holding, according to nonprofit Fourth Ward Neighbors -- included seating areas, a terraced wall, a winding pathway, improved landscaping, fresh signage, and new entry points. LeWitt installed the piece, a collection of 54 concrete columns between 10 and 20 feet tall meant to evoke Atlanta's ever-changing skyline, on donated land in 1999. Not everyone got the reference: two decades ago, irked neighbors planted trees to block it from public view (the city later removed them), and Atlas Obscura once noted the installation has been mistaken for an incomplete construction project.
The greenspace upgrade came through the Fulton County Board of Commissioners' Highland & Sampson Revitalization Plan, at a cost of roughly $100,000, with additional funding from Park Pride's Grantmaking Program and the Mark Taylor family, who helped fund the original 1999 installation. "We're excited that the neighborhood is taking the sculpture to the next level, inspiring more visitors and more conversations about this fabulous piece of artwork," said family spokesperson Chuck Taylor. Fulton County Board Chairman Robb Pitts, who spearheaded the initiative, called it a way to "enhance the enjoyment of arts and culture for the residents and visitors" of the city and county.
The second new space, the Highland Avenue PATH Greenspace, sits next to breakfast spot Bomb Biscuits Atlanta at a popular O4W entrance to the Freedom PATH Trail, which links downtown to Stone Mountain. Both projects followed earlier Old Fourth Ward Neighborhood Association cleanup efforts at a small park where Corley Street meets Highland Avenue -- now home to free yoga sessions, new median planters, a bike corral, and painted crosswalks. "This has been a two-year journey," said Fourth Ward Neighbors president Tom Boyle, "and it could not have been achieved without the support of dedicated neighbors, elected officials, committed donors, and the business community."
Original reporting by Josh Green for Urbanize Atlanta, published May 2024.