by Mike Ososki, PMP
Jack Cebe has his hands full. As President and CEO of Stitch Inc., his work is to oversee, manage and guide The Stitch, an ambitious community-building reconnection project in the northern heart of downtown Atlanta.
Other cities have had great success with similar projects. The Stitch includes new development, infrastructure, policies, and programs emanating from a new 17-acre iconic, community park that completely covers the 75/85 Downtown Connector. Its vision is to spark a vibrant and family-friendly neighborhood area, with a promise to:
- Ignite an estimated $5B in Private Sector Investment to Redevelop 50+ Acres of Downtown
- Catalyze an estimated 25,000 Multi-Family Homes
- Support other Major Developments by Attracting Permanent Residents to Downtown
The project encompasses a wide variety of attractive amenities:
As you can imagine, the stakeholders and involved parties are many and varied, totaling 6000+ engaged individuals: the local residential community, Stitch, Inc., ADID (Atlanta Downtown Improvement District), CAP (Central Atlanta Progress), GDOT, NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act), a new SSD (Special Services District), engineers, architects, designers, governmental entities, investors, and a myriad of other business and personal interests.
$50M in funding has been secured so far for design and construction, plus $3-4M annually from The Stitch SSD for admin. and operations. Inter-agency agreements to build & operate The Stitch are completed, and Phase-1 is a 5-acre park that can begin construction in mid-2027.
Phase-1 is “the heart of the park,” providing elements such as Downtown Green, Perennial Gardens, Terrace Meander, Piedmont Playground, Shade Pavillion, and Fog Forest—with specialty lighting and interactive play features.
Phase-1 consists of 3 design components:
- Interstate caping structure - delivered by GDOT
- Park features- delivered by Stitch Inc.
- 7 street projects – delivered by ADID
Shovel-ready design & NEPA certification is expected by this summer.
As a unique Special Services District, The Stitch ...
- Targets support from properties and businesses that will accrue direct benefits
- Estimates a 7.5% – 15% value increase for properties within ½ mile
- Captures multifamily residential rental properties not currently assessed by CID
- Is statutorily designed for redevelopment and infrastructure capital or operations needs
- Provides a reliable funding stream over the lifetime of the project
- Does not require a broad referendum or caucus of electors, but a City council action
- Is a proven tool already used for the highly successful Atlanta Beltline & The Battery / Truist Park
It would seem that there is only upside for Atlanta in this significant undertaking.
The next Special Interest Joint Dinner Meeting will be Tuesday, April 21, 2026. Registration will open soon.