Midtown Mile

History

Although Peachtree Street has long been Atlanta's most famous roadway, the idea of building a dense mixed-use corridor along a stretch of the road in Midtown began in 1997 when a neighbourhood group known as the Midtown Alliance published "Blueprint Midtown," a wide-ranging report advocating the need for pedestrian and transport-based development throughout Midtown, focusing specifically on the Peachtree Street Corridor, which has since been nicknamed "Midtown Mile," a pun on Chicago's Magnificent Mile. Such development had been planned for decades - the Midtown Alliance began in 1978 - but only in recent years has the potential for growth been fully realised.

Retail and landmarks

One of the main goals of the Midtown Mile development is to massively expand the retail footprint in central Atlanta. From 2010 through 2013, over 700,000 sq ft (65,032 m²) of retail space is expected to open in addition to existing space, bringing the total amount to over 1,000,000 sq ft (92,903 m²).

Skyscrapers

Many of Atlanta's most important and well-known skyscrapers are located along Midtown Mile. These include:

Road transport

Peachtree Street NE is one of the busiest streets in Atlanta. At both ends of Midtown, it connects to the Downtown Connector () with the northern entrances corresponding to the end of the concurrency between Interstates 75 and 85; traffic does not immediately head onto Interstate 85 after the split, but rather continues onto Georgia 13, merging onto 85 south of Buckhead.

Public transport

MARTA has three subway stations in the Midtown area, although none have entrances from or exits onto Peachtree Street itself. From north to south, these are Arts Center, Midtown, and North Avenue. To relieve traffic along Peachtree Street, the Peachtree Corridor Partnership has proposed a 16.5 mi (26.6 km) streetcar running from southern Atlanta through Midtown to Buckhead along Peachtree Street.