Site work and paving for a mixed-use development in Atlanta, Georgia. Working plans call for site work for a road / highway; for paving for a road / highway; sidewalk / parking lot; and sidewalk / parking lot.

Construction of Segments 3 and 5 of the South Peachtree Creek Trail system, including multi-use pathways, upgraded intersections, traffic-calming improvements, buffered side paths, pedestrian safety enhancements, and future links to regional trail networks. A multi-use trails project that will provide off-street access to schools, job hubs, and retail centers between Interstate 85 and Emory University has bagged crucial funding to get started, according to Decide DeKalb officials. Today, the South Peachtree Creek Trail system is a popular route through a diverse array of nature—towering forests and swampy wetlands among them—that links Emory’s campus with greenspaces Mason Mill Park, Medlock Bridge Park, and other points of interest. Completed segments span about 2.6 miles. Last week the board of directors for Decide DeKalb, the county’s chief economic development organization, approved funding to help develop two additional (yet unconnected) South Peachtree Creek Trail sections that will add roughly 1.7 miles between key destinations. The South Peachtree Creek Trail system, a partnership effort between the PATH Foundation and DeKalb County government, calls for Segment 3 to ultimately link up with the existing Peachtree Creek Greenway in Brookhaven, creating a key connection for a planned regional web of trails across the metro. Segment 5, meanwhile, will wend along Knob Hill Drive NE and Mount Mariah Road NE to serve residents of the Briarcliff Heights neighborhood and students and visitors at the school. (That route will also lead to the area’s Target along North Druid Hills Road.) Other aspects of the project—estimated to cost $2.6 million overall—will include upgraded intersections, traffic-calming measures, and buffered side paths to boost pedestrian safety. Next steps call for DeKalb County officials to start the process of right-of-way acquisition and procure a design firm to put together construction drawings. Project officials expect design and permitting to be wrapped in 2027, followed by construction in 2028 and 2029. When finished, the full South Peachtree Creek Trail will link existing greenways near Emory with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and other regional trails—including, eventually, the Atlanta Beltline. Created in 2007, the Briarcliff TAD is meant to spur economic vitality and infrastructure improvements, including new greenspaces and pedestrian and bicycle projects, per Decide DeKalb officials. “These new segments will extend the trail network, improve pedestrian safety, and expand access to jobs, schools, and retail centers for people who walk or ride to work, or simply enjoy community benefits,” said Tiffany Wills, Decide DeKalb’s vice president of redevelopment and strategic initiatives, in an announcement.