Doraville, Georgia

History

Doraville was incorporated by an act of the Georgia General Assembly, approved December 15, 1871. From its development until the 1940s, Doraville was a small agricultural community that served the interests of a larger surrounding farming area.

At the end of World War II, Doraville was on a main railroad line, and had a new water system available. General Motors selected Doraville as the site for its new assembly plant. The growth of Doraville exploded in the late 1940s and the 1950s as a result. In the late 1940s, plans for Guilford Village, the first subdivision, were announced by Southern Builders and Engineering Company. The 112-home subdivision at Tilly Mill and Flowers Roads was to cover some 58 acres.

In 1950, Doraville's population was 472. By 1964, the city's population was 6,160 and land area was 1,722 acres. Part of the population growth during that period was because of the annexation of Northwoods in 1949 and Oakcliff in 1958.

By the 1980s, Doraville and neighboring Chamblee attracted immigrants relocating to the Atlanta area who settled along Buford Highway. The result is one of the largest Asian communities in the country. Many Latin American countries are also represented. 56% of residents speak a language other than English as a first language.

The Doraville MARTA Station was built in 1992, destroying the few buildings that remained of Doraville's downtown.

The GM Doraville Assembly Plant closed in 2009, and the economy has stalled plans to turn the site into a mixed-use town center. Nonetheless, Doraville is becoming an attractive destination because of its close proximity to Atlanta, its MARTA Station, and the promise of a new town center.

Geography

Doraville is located at 33°54′19″N 84°16′26″W (33.905302, -84.273870). Doraville is east of Chamblee, south of Dunwoody, west of Norcross, and north of Tucker.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.6 square miles (9.3 km²), of which 0.004 square miles (0.01 km²), or 0.11%, is water. Crooked Creek goes through Doraville. Crooked Creek is a tributary of the Chattahoochee River.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,862 people, 2,998 households, and 1,981 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,747.0 people per square mile (1,060.7/km²). There were 3,102 housing units at an average density of 864.1 per square mile (333.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 46.35% White, 14.77% African American, 1.28% Native American, 12.67% Asian, 0.16% Pacific Islander, 20.62% from other races, and 4.14% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 43.44% of the population.

There were 2,998 households out of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.6% were married couples living together, 13.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 21.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.24 and the average family size was 3.62.

In the city, the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 14.9% from 18 to 24, 38.7% from 25 to 44, 16.4% from 45 to 64, and 6.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 127.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 134.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $40,641, and the median income for a family was $41,903. Males had a median income of $23,681 versus $22,165 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,048. About 9.6% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.8% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over. Doraville is not a senior-friendly community.

Economy

On November 21, 2005, General Motors announced that it would close its Doraville automobile manufacturing plant on September 26, 2008. The plant assembled the Chevrolet Uplander/Pontiac Montana SV6/Buick Terraza/Saturn Relay family of minivans. The site is no longer being considered for the future home of the NFL's Atlanta Falcons. The plant has been bought as of September 2014 by a joint team of developers to create a Atlantic Station like approach to the site.

Architecture

Doraville contains a large stock of mid-century modern houses, arguably the largest concentration in metropolitan Atlanta. Mid-Century architecture was frequently employed in residential structures with the goal of bringing modernism into suburbs developed in the era immediately following World War II, which is when the majority of homes in Doraville were constructed. This style emphasized creating structures with ample windows and open floor plans, with the intention of opening up interior spaces and bringing the outdoors in. Many Mid-century houses utilized then-groundbreaking post and beam architectural design that eliminated bulky support walls in favor of walls seemingly made of glass. Function was as important as form in Mid-Century designs, with an emphasis placed specifically on targeting the needs of the average American family. While the style in seen throughout Doraville, the Northwoods and Northcrest neighborhoods are the most well-preserved Mid-Century modern neighborhoods in the city. In Northcrest, over half of the homes are Mid-Century moderns, while Northwoods is one of only three surviving mid-century planned communities in Georgia.

Based on these unique architectural and planning features, the Northwoods Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 2, 2014. The Northwoods Historic District consists of five adjoining residential neighborhoods, including Northwoods, Fleetwood Hills, Gordon Hills, Gordon Heights and Sequoyah Woods. The Northwoods, Gordon Hills and Gordon Heights neighborhoods are all located in the City of Doraville, and Sequoyah Woods and Fleetwood Hills are located in unincorporated DeKalb County.

Primary and secondary schools

DeKalb County School System serves Doraville.

The following elementary schools serve sections of Doraville:

The following middle schools serve sections of Doraville:

The following high schools serve sections of Doraville:

The Seigakuin Atlanta International School is located in Peachtree Corners, near Doraville.

Public libraries

DeKalb County Public Library operates the Doraville Branch.

Transportation

For mass transit, it is served by the Doraville MARTA heavy-rail station.

Parks

The Doraville Parks and Recreation Department Manages a variety of facilities, including Honeysuckle Park, Fleming Arena, the Paul Murphy Boxing Club, Autumn Park, Brook Park, Chicopee Park, English Oak Park, Flowers Park and Bernard Halpern Park.

Notable people