Atlanta may retire a fenced-off street with an affordable-housing backstory

Shirley Place NW is already fenced off to cars and pedestrians, according to an Atlanta ordinance. Now the city is considering removing the right-of-way from its public street system, with Transportation Committee review listed for Oct. 14 at 10 a.m.⁠[1]

The proposal says the street has been blocked since the Verbena Gardens property was demolished because it no longer provides access to occupied or actively used properties. It also says Atlanta’s transportation commissioner has determined the right-of-way is no longer useful or necessary for public use.⁠[1]

There is a housing connection—but it is not a housing approval. The ordinance cites a 2023 resolution supporting abandonment for the street’s potential inclusion in a larger affordable-housing site, conditioned on the transportation commissioner’s finding. The pending measure concerns the street’s status; the records reviewed do not establish an approved housing project.⁠[1]

Ordinance 26-O-1535, sponsored by Councilmember Byron D. Amos, would preserve existing public and private utility easements so utility facilities could still be operated, maintained or replaced.⁠[1]

The committee held the proposal Sept. 30, and City Council returned it as held Oct. 5. The Oct. 14 listing is a pending review—not a completed abandonment or a guaranteed final vote.⁠[1]