Preserving 148 Edgewood Avenue: A Call for Integrity in the Heart of Atlanta's Historic Legacy

ATLANTA, May 27, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- By any measure, 148 Edgewood Avenue NE is more than brick and mortar according to Jeff Notrica, a Georgia-based historic property preservationist and President of Inman Park Properties, Inc.. It is a rare survivor—a lone sentry—standing firm on a street that has endured the insults of a Federal highway slicing through its core and the disruptions of urban renewal that razed much of Atlanta's Black business and residential districts. Now, it faces a final and unnecessary blow: demolition at the hands of Georgia State University.

Let us be clear—148 Edgewood is a contributing structure to the Martin Luther King, Jr. - Local Landmark District, designated in 1989. It lies squarely within a protected zone that commemorates one of the most vital and historically rich Black communities in the United States. The building's destruction would not only diminish the physical fabric of this district, but would also deepen the slow erosion of its soul—piece by piece, building by building.

Edgewood Avenue has already paid a high price for Atlanta's appetite for growth and real estate. Development pressures, unchecked, have turned what was once a thriving cultural corridor into a fragmented memory. 148 Edgewood is now under siege—not by time, but by expedience and institutional disregard for context. Replacing this structure with a mural or a plaque—as has been suggested—is an insult masquerading as a tribute. Paint peels. History, once erased, does not come back.

This building's significance is not abstract. It is a vital thread in a larger tapestry of Black achievement, civil rights, and urban resilience. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic District is not simply about landmarks like Ebenezer Baptist Church or Dr. King's birth home. It is about the ecosystem that supported him: the barbershops, schools, offices, churches, and yes, the modest but enduring buildings like 148 Edgewood that collectively shaped his worldview.

According to the Historic Preservation Division (HPD) of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, the project calls for the demolition of the circa 1916 Georgia Railway and Power Company Building, also known as 148 Edgewood Avenue NE. The HPD's review, based on the site's characteristics and available records, finds this building individually eligible for listing in the Georgia and National Registers of Historic Places (G/NRHP). Yet, Georgia State has submitted no public plans for the new construction—raising serious transparency concerns and undermining public trust in the stewardship of Atlanta's historic resources.

The impact doesn't end there. Within the project's Area of Potential Effect (APE) are several other significant properties, including the National Register-listed The Coca-Cola Bottling Company Plant at 125 Edgewood and the broader Sweet Auburn Historic District, as well as multiple other historic resources that may also be eligible for future listing. This is not a vacant lot being repurposed. It is a historically dense corridor whose architectural and cultural context will be irreparably harmed by shortsighted redevelopment.

The district, as further noted in HPD's findings, is already vulnerable. Encroaching development and incompatible construction threaten its very foundation. SHPO's letter makes clear that the proposed demolition "will have a significant impact on historic properties" and "is not consistent with the State of Georgia's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties." That should end the conversation.

And yet, this is not an isolated decision. Georgia State University also plans to clear-cut and demolish the nearby Sparks Hall, removing the historic structure, mature trees and green space to create an outdoor area. Taken together, these moves suggest a troubling land grab—one that prioritizes campus expansion and aesthetic uniformity over preservation and meaningful community engagement. The fact that the university wishes to convert the 148 Edgewood site into something as disposable as a basketball court only deepens the concern. It's not thoughtful development—it's urban disregard.

It's also worth noting that this action seems to directly conflict with Georgia State's own 2014 Master Plan, which touted values of preservation, integration, and stewardship. What we are witnessing instead is the systematic dismantling of a legacy and the erasure of community memory. The proposed demolition of 148 Edgewood—an architecturally significant, historically important building—resembles a form of urban colonialism, where institutional ambition overrides the values and voices of the people most affected.

There are legal implications as well. Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act and state stewardship laws, any federally or state-affiliated institution undertaking a project that affects historic properties must fully consider alternatives and provide for public involvement. The public has not only the right to be informed—but the obligation to intervene.

Architecture is not just shelter; it is memory made visible. Destroying 148 Edgewood erases one more page from the book of Atlanta's Black history and furthers the displacement of a community that has endured more than its share. To lose this building would be to signal that cultural preservation is only skin deep—worthy of a mural perhaps, but not of actual survival.

If Georgia State University wishes to be a civic institution and not merely a corporate landlord, it must lead with respect for the past. It must recognize that communities are not blank slates for institutional ambition. The public has a right to demand better.

In a time when cities around the country are reckoning with how best to preserve and honor marginalized histories, Atlanta should not be destroying one of its few remaining connections to a neighborhood that gave rise to one of the greatest leaders the world has known.

148 Edgewood deserves more than demolition. It deserves dignity. It has earned preservation.

Public Meeting Notice:

A public meeting regarding the future of 148 Edgewood Avenue will be held on Wednesday, May 28, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at Centennial Hall, Room 120.

All concerned citizens, preservation advocates, and community members are encouraged to attend.

CONTACT:
David Yoakley Mitchell
[email protected]

SOURCE Inman Park Properties Inc.