#juniper street

[tomartphoto]

Juniper Street, San Francisco

[themidtownarchive]

Southeast corner of Juniper St at 6th Street - 1967 (Atlanta)

House recently demolished (2015)

[themidtownarchive]

"Midtown church told to save historic buildings" (2008)

For more than five years, Elston Collins has been a member of the St. Mark United Methodist Church at the corner of Fifth and Peachtree streets.

That is, until now.

Collins resigned from the congregation in protest of the church's desire to demolish three historic buildings along Juniper Street and to replace them with a surface parking lot.

"It's really disappointing for me on lots of fronts," said Collins, who also serves as president of the Midtown Neighbors Association. "Neighbors couldn't believe my church was doing this."

Originally, it appeared as though the church was willing to work with the community and historic preservation leaders to explore solutions that would keep the buildings yet provide parking and future development opportunities. In May, St. Mark agreed to defer its demolition permit request for at least 30 days to explore those solutions.

"We pulled in so many resources from the community," Collins said. "We had experts who presented them alternatives with potential funding streams. What really sent me over the edge was that while we were trying to find solutions, the church decided to go ahead with demolition. I was just appalled that the church could be so two-faced."

Collins is not alone with his frustration.

At a meeting of the Development Review Committee Thursday evening, not one member of the public spoke in favor of the church's plans.

The committee then voted unanimously to oppose the demolition permit and against any variances that would permit the church to develop a parking lot. The committee's vote reaffirmed similar votes taken by the Midtown Neighbors Association and the Neighborhood Planning Unit - E.

St. Mark member Bill Sanders, who spoke on behalf the church, said preservationists "made some excellent suggestions, but it involves land we don't own and money we don't have." Later he described the alternative solutions as "half-baked."

In addition, Sanders said the church wanted to consolidate its land holdings on its block so it eventually could develop the site into a 20-story building. But he said that could five, 10 or 50 years out.

After committee members voted in a closed door session, Clifford Altekruse summed up the group's position that the church did not seriously explore alternatives.

"It's our sense that the church is turning down that opportunity so it can demolish the buildings," Altekruse said. "That strikes us as wrong because it's hurtful to the neighborhood and it's unnecessary because financing was available. The committee is srongly opposed to granting any of the variances."

Currently the three buildings, built around 1905 as residences, have no historic designation. Committee members acknowledged there might not be a legal standing to prevent their demolition.

But they also read from land-use and zoning regulations that the church's proposal to build a surface parking lot on that site is not permitted.

NPU-E Chair Penelope Cheroff, who sits on the committee, explained that having driveways and parking lots fronting major streets only take away from Midtown's growing pedestrian environment. "It flies in the face of all we're trying to do in Midtown," she said.

The committee's recommendation and the demolition requests are now headed to City Hall. If the city denies the permits, the church then could appeal the decision in the courts.

In the meantime, Elston Collins will be looking to join another congregation.

Credit: Saporta, Maria. The Atlanta Journal Constitution [Atlanta, Ga] 10 July 2008.

[themidtownarchive]

Periphery shots of a Vietnam War protest that was led down Juniper Street in 1967 . Midtown Atlanta

[themidtownarchive]

A pretentiously beautiful staff and sleek facade lure trendy diners and visitors sporting expense accounts in search of entertainment and indulgence by way of elaborate dishes and sublime service. They seek it at Spice, Midtown's recent spark of resurgence at the corner of 5th and Juniper streets. There they flock to dine on lobster-lacquered prawns, foie gras and wild mushroom-crusted rack of lamb among patrons who mirror the perfectly sculpted glass constructions of the human form that line the restaurant's walls. After paying mightily for the ambiance -- and audience -- they saunter out into the night only to encounter the stark barrenness of Juniper Street. Save the local residents of the newly built condo compounds out for their nightly stroll and a few raucous Poncey peddlers, the streets are empty. But not for long...