Berkeley Park: Atlanta's Next Big Neighborhood Makeover is Underway

Located off I-75 at Northside Drive south of the Buckhead area, Berkeley Park is currently undergoing one of the most dramatic makeovers in Atlanta. Once a forgotten area of motels and old houses just off the Interstate, its location now makes the neighborhood a desireable place to live, work and shop for those who are tired of Atlanta's endless suburban commutes. Last year saw the creation of the Berkeley Heights development of apartments, shops and restaurants on Northside, and the opening of The District at Howell Mill, which includes a landmark retail development for Berkeley Park. Together these two projects have added nearly 300,000 sqare feet of retail space and 400 residential units in one of Atlanta's busiest intown neighborhoods.

This 21st century success story, however, is just the latest chapter in the neighborhood's history. Berkeley Park was originally pastureland on Atlanta's outskirts in the early 1900s. Elias Hinton Wood was given the land by his father, and he began development of Berkeley Park in 1921. The streets in the neighborhood were named after Wood's family and friends: Tallulah Street he named for his wife, Leona Street for his oldest daughter, and his niece gave her name to Verna Street. Holmes Street and Antone Street were named for fellow Methodist ministers and friends of the family.

Eretus Rivers, an Atlanta realtor, financed new development along the Howell Mill corridor in the 1920s. There was a streetcar line that ran along Howell Mill Road into downtown, and Berkeley Park's modest homes provided affordable housing for those working at nearby railyards or Atlantic Steel (now the site of Atlantic Station, another dramatic neighborhood makeover). The Atlanta Water Works was a popular picnic spot featuring bandstand concerts in the summer, and there are photos of Soap Box Derbies taking place on the long hill of Northside Drive. In 1948 Berkeley Park received its own fire station, No. 23, at the corner of Howell Mill Road and Antone Street..