With the construction of the new stadium in Cobb County, the 77 acres of public land that made up the Turner Field Stadium area was poised for new development in the summer of 2015. Housing, transportation options, and all other aspects of creating a livable community were on the table. To take advantage of this huge opportunity for positive growth in the area, ECO-Action worked with members of the surrounding NPU-V community and other partner organizations to create The Turner Field Community Benefits Coalition (TFCBC). This coalition sought to connect the residents, stakeholders, business owners and students of the surrounding neighborhoods in an inclusive development planning process that honors their needs as the area is developed.
Once Georgia State purchased the stadium and Carter Associates was selected as the property developer, ECO-Action continued to work with neighborhood organizations and individuals from the Turner Field Stadium neighborhoods of Summerhill, Peoplestown, Mechanicsville and Pittsburgh. Together these organizations in collaboration with both American Rivers and Carter Associates created the Intrenchment Creek/Custer Avenue One Water Task Force. The One Water concept, according to the US Water Alliance, is an integrated planning and implementation approach to managing finite water resources for long-term resilience and reliability, meeting both community and ecosystem needs while facilitating equitable development. Simply put, One Water means doing more with less water. Task Force activities include the advancement of a master plan to address flooding issues from the source that will benefit the former Turner Field stadium communities. The “One Water approach views all water—drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, grey water and more—as resources that must be managed equitably, holistically and sustainably.
Links to other Turner Field and coalition-building projects are provided below.
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