Figure 1 Source: http://www.skylinescenes.

com/products/perimeter-center-atlanta-v67082

Perimeter Center: An Edge City

of Atlanta
CHANGES, DEVELOPMENTS AND RETROFITS OVER TIME
Shriram Lele | Retrofitting Suburbia | 07/19/2017
Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Introduction
Perimeter Center is an area developed over the years primarily with office spaces and
commercial properties which brought in other inevitable changes to the regions
residential developments, landscape and socio- economic structure. As we have studied a
lot about retrofitting of suburban areas in this class, my aim is to analyze the Perimeter
Center area, keeping track of all the developments that are happening there and in this
paper, I am looking at a span of 24 years, from 1993 to 2017 to identify growth/ decline in
built forms, landscapes and connectivity networks in the region.

Perimeter center is recognized as an Edge City of Metro Atlanta. But, what is an Edge
City? And how did this concept emerge? What were the before and after thoughts of these
edge cities? In this case, the Perimeter Center.

What is an Edge City?

The edge city is a space of rapid growth and transformation. The edge city was born
because people did not consider the ill effects of poor accessibility and inconvenience as
they were surrounded only by the thought of big lot houses and a pleasant and quiet
suburban life. Businesses were growing and expanding and market was flourishing with
new commercial spaces and nearby areas of big cities provided these expanding businesses
with huge lands making them commercial opportunities. So, with all these supporting
factors businesses started getting away from downtown leading to large-scale office parks.
This change in trends of urbanization brought in density and due to limited amount of
land high rise office complexes started developing in such areas. Unfortunately, the
function of many edge cities emphasized businesses served primarily by the automobile
and therefore they were not designed for pedestrian, residential, or civic uses. Edge cities
function as a focus of employment and a great place for business. In many ways, they serve
as a new downtown. 1Joel Garreau established five rules for a place to be considered an
edge city (Garreau 1991):

1
Joel Garreau, Edge city: life on the new frontier (New York: Anchor Books, 1992).

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

1. Must have five million square feet or more of leasable office space.

2. Must have 600,000 square feet or more of leasable retail space. Garreau identifies that

commonly regional malls are primary places in the edge city;

3. Must have more jobs than bedrooms. In other words, the population should rise in the
morning and drop by the afternoon.

4. Should be perceived by the population as one place. It means that the place "has it all;"
entertainment, shopping, recreation, etc.

5. Was nothing like a "city" 30 years ago, this includes spaces what was once cow pasture.

How Perimeter Center transformed into an edge city?

Perimeter Center is in the north of Atlanta on the Interstate 285. The area lies between
two communities, Dunwoody and Sandy Springs, which rapidly suburbanized in the
1960s. Perimeter Center became the target of office development and a regional shopping
mall in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The strategic location of Perimeter Center, next to
the Perimeter Way to the south and Dunwoody residential area of DeKalb County to the
north and east and other nearby residential communities of Fulton County on the west,
made it a vital spot for expanding commercial development.

Going back to the history of the place, Until the 1960s, the area now known as Perimeter
Center was by no means rich in terms of being a favorable place for development of any
kind, not even farming. The area was avoided due to its hilly terrain and creeks flowing in
between. Later the land was plotted and suburban farmlands existed with small single
family residences. Key towns, communication stations, and areas of commerce such as
Cross Keys, Chamblee, and Dunwoody emerged in areas adjacent to Perimeter Center.
Many roads in the area were originally Native American trails.

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Initially, low-rise office parks were developed during 1970s, but now more recent
buildings are mid to high-rise buildings. Today Perimeter Center is booming as an
urbanizing suburban business district. Only a few decades ago the site was rural farmland
and in the 1960s developer Michael Gearon targeted it for a regional shopping mall and
office park complexes2. Today, it is one of many major business hubs in the Atlanta region.
Perimeter Center has extensive office developments, retail venues, and many other high
rise structures are being built. The area still lacks mixed use developments, residential
living space, public parks, and no specifically designed/ planned "town center" other than
the Perimeter Mall. The strengths of Perimeter Center include its modern infrastructure, a
strong retail market position, great hotels, number of prime hospitals and medical care
facilities, and it comprises of maximum Fortune 500 companies in Metro Atlanta. This
combination of retail and office land uses make Perimeter Center an Edge City.

Tracking changes over time from 1993 to 2017:

The area of Perimeter center, if observed carefully shows a pattern of development over
the years. Many developments that are required for communities have come up in last 20
years as the area is continuously increasing with residents. I tracked down number of
changes in the area, specifically looking at the years 1993, 2005 and 2017 to analyze what
developments have been added/ removed with 12 year intervals from the area.

I specifically looked at 6- 7 types of developments starting with increased residential units,

medical care facilities, recreational centers like athletic group, gyms etc., communal
spaces like restaurants, major commercial spaces, parks 9Green pockets) and lastly the
hotel developments. I have listed the various types of developments in the following table
which I will also explain graphically using Google map images and figure ground maps of

2
Pioneer developer recalls Perimeter Center's origins By Valerie BiggerstaffFor The Crier
thecrier.net | 0 comments, "Pioneer developer recalls Perimeter Centers origins,"
Dunwoody Crier, , accessed July 20, 2017, http://www.thecrier.net/news/article_8d16fa4a-
f5aa-11e3-8f01-0019bb2963f4.html.

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

the area for these 3 years: (I have made these observations comparing Google earth images
for 1993, 2005 and 2017, the table mentions only major changes)

Table 1 Developments at 12-year interval

Perimeter Center Year 1993 Year 2005 Year 2017

Type of
Developments:
Hotels: The Westin Extended Embassy
Atlanta Stay Plaza Suits
Homestead Hyatt Place
Studio Suites Courtyard
Atlanta Atlanta
Marriot Hilton
Crowne Plaza Garden Inn

Hospitals and Southwestern Northside Atlanta

medical care interventional Hospital outpatient
facilities: pain DaVita Lake surgery
associates Hearn center
Virtual Dialysis
imaging, Inc. center
Allscripts Atlanta
Peachtree infectious
neurosurgery disease
GA Medicare specialist
foundation
Commercial Perimeter Home Goddard
Developments: mall Depot school
major Publix
expansion supermarket

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Simmons Cox media Best Buy

Bedding group Easter Seals
Company Marshalls North GA
CCCi Wells Fargo Manheim
Keller bank auctions
Graduate Numerous
School beauty
Visionaire schools
Partners
Old Castle
Transit: Only road MARTA rail Direct road
access line connections
MARTA not Dunwoody added to
expanded station Perimeter
Multiple Center area
bus stops Fly over
near Atlanta
Delta
corporation
Parks: Surf Expo Hammond North run
corporate Park park
campus park Georgetown
Murphy park
Candler Park Pernoshal
park
No other
defined/
planned
green spaces

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Restaurants and Taco Mac Starbucks More

communal spaces: Panera Bread Seasons 52 Starbucks
Chequers Sea Capitol locations
Food Grille McDonalds
Flemings Alons La Grotta
Steakhouse Bakery Gravinia
FGT Bar
California
Pizza
Kitchen
Taki Sushi
Japanese
Place
Cantina
Perimeter
Little Italy

Residential Scarce, The Asbury
Developments: isolated Manhattan Apartments
single family 1160 Savannah at
houses on NE Hammond Parks Place
Most of the Apartments Apartments
land on NE Single High
undeveloped, family volume of
forest area houses single family
increased in houses on
Dunwoody NE of
area Perimeter
Mall

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Google Map images of the area:

Undeveloped Land
on NE Of
Perimeter Mall

Housing Clusters
on rise

Huge Parking lots/

Impermeable
Asphalt surfaces

Figure 2 Perimeter Center in 1993 Source: Google Earth Imagery

Figure 3 Perimeter Center in 2005 Source: Google Earth Imagery

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

New Single Family

of
Residences on NE
Perimeter Mall

Huge Parking lots

being replaced by
built forms

Figure 4 Perimeter Center 2017 Source: Google Earth Imagery

Issues at Perimeter Center & why it needs retrofitting:

The main issue in the Perimeter Center area is traffic congestion. The place is
concentrated with commercial developments which makes it active only during the office
times. After that, the place looks deserted. Now, there are residential developments but
these are surely not in the affordable range and most of the people working here are daily
commuters. The situation is much better after MARTA expanded in 2005 but still it gives a
feel of car oriented place. The daytime population departs in the afternoon, leaving the
area dependent on single-family neighborhoods for after-hours retail activity. I think this
is caused mainly by lack of housing compared to the number of jobs the place offers
making the ratio inverse. The overall region lacks identity due to deficiency of mixed use
places which offer communal gatherings and interaction.

Also, due to its complicated location the area is controlled by multiple

government/administration forces and non-governmental planning and development
organizations. These include the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), Perimeter
Community Improvement District (PCID), and the Perimeter Transportation Coalition
(PTC).

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Analyzing Perimeter Center through Figure Ground Maps:

Year 1993:

Year 2005:

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Year 2017:

Retrofitting efforts at perimeter center:

Retrofitting started with the creation of a Community Improvement District (CID). The
Perimeter Center Community Improvement District (PCID) was formed in 1998 to
represent DeKalb County businesses and Fulton County businesses. PCIDs main target
will not only be to improve existing lines of communication but to decrease automobile
traffic and emphasis. In this regard the PCID is involved in place making where the focus
is on separating pedestrians from automobiles. The PCID seeks to implement several
pedestrian improvements such as adding three miles of sidewalks and making twenty-two
intersections pedestrian friendly. The plan includes several streetscape projects to make
pedestrians feel safe and welcome. Along with that The Perimeter Livable Centers
Initiative (LCI) by ARC is planning to develop an identifiable town center next to to the
Mall with clearly defined open/ green spaces. The plan also comprises of walkable districts
to facilitate live/work, entertainment, and shopping. The land use pattern can be seen

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

changing at Perimeter Center in recent years. Most of the developments in this area are
now residential in-fill and brownfield redevelopment. The housing boom began nearby
Perimeter Center around 1960- 80s. But, the boom in office developments of the 1980s
increased land values and prompted zoning changes. Due to this, buildings were either
removed to build new structures along with the spaces in-between the existing properties
that were not originally targeted for development are now being developed.

Here, I would like to mention few efforts from PCID graphically. These are taken directly
from the PCID website and we can clearly see the way PCID is changing the development
pattern at Perimeter Center.

Figure 6 Ashford Dunwoody Diverging Figure 5 Perimeter Parkway Fly-

Diamond Intersection over Bridge

Figure 8 Hammond Half- Diamond Figure 7 Perimeter Park at MARTA

Interchange

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

Figure 10 Bike Implementation Strategy Figure 9 Commuter Trails

(Source: http://perimetercid.org/projects/)

The changes in residential development pattern started in 1980s along with the office
developments and one of the best examples is the residential neighborhood of Lake Hearn
at the south of Interstate 285 in the early 1960s was bought and torn down in the early
1980s. That same space now contains high-rise offices, hotels, and restaurants along a
parkway connecting the hospital district with Ashford-Dunwoody and Peachtree-
Dunwoody.

Similar changes can be seen regarding aging office developments built in the area. The
initial trend of large scale horizontal developments is now changing to high rise
developments. Many companies have stripped down their old establishments to replace it
with a more efficient high rise structure which offers more occupancy and parking spaces
on the lot. This has tremendously increased the surface parking area which is not
advisable as it covers more land with impermeable asphalt restricting the storm water
seepage into ground.

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 Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

I also tried to look at other private agencies working on retrofit projects near Perimeter
Center. One of the most interesting proposal was from Sizemore Group of Atlanta, where
they have design recommendations and strategies to improve walkability and mixed use
density in the area along with provisions for parks, recreational spaces and a whole new
connectivity model.

Figure 11 Retrofit Illustration Plan showing

Figure 12 Retrofit Proposal by Sizemore Group, for
improved connections (Source:
http://perimetercid.org/wp-
content/uploads/2016/09/PCID-2011_LCI_Update-
Nov-9-2011-Final-sm.pdf)
new clusters of developments and green
spaces (Source:
http://perimetercid.org/wp-
content/uploads/2016/09/PCID-
2011_LCI_Update-Nov-9-2011-Final-sm.pdf)

Applying the metrics:

I tried to apply 3 metrics to these changes at Perimeter Mall, Pedestrian Friendly Design
which is clear from the ongoing efforts from ARCS LCI, PCID and several private
organizations like Sizemore Group. some of these proposals have already implemented
and others are underway making the area pedestrian friendly, bikeable and safe. Along

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

with this, the next metric is the Public- space Design, which is also happening at
Perimeter Center as efforts are being taken to incorporate more mixed use developments
which will provide communal spaces like restaurants, parks and cafes. The last metric,
which is the most important and fundamental to any of the above-mentioned changes is
the Multi- Modal Accessibility, with drastic changes made to the connectivity factor with
additions of service roads and fly overs the area is now in a much better shape. The
expansion of MARTA into the region added railroad connectivity along with multiple bus-
stops improving the public transit and minimizing traffic congestion and pollution.

Future of Perimeter Center:

The PCID and The Perimeter Livable Centers Initiative (LCI) are taking continuous efforts
to create an identifiable town center next to to the Mall with a clearly defined open
space designed to be used for outdoor events/gathering. The plan will create thematic
walkable districts each centering on live/work, entertainment, and shopping respectively.

Conclusion:

The Perimeter Mall has also gone through significant changes in recent years. The malls
original design has undergone major changes adding more retail creating a street-facing
complex with several boutiques and restaurants. Retrofitting solutions that are in process
will keep on adding to perimeter Centers value as a prime location. By addressing
transportation, land use, and quality of life issues, Perimeter Center will continue growing
as a prime location for retail, business and professional services, and corporate
headquarters.

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Perimeter Center: An Edge City of Atlanta

References:

Online sources:

Lang, Robert E. "Edgeless Cities: Exploring the Elusive Metropolis - James A.

Johnson Metro Series (Hardback)." Edgeless Cities by Robert E. Lang | Waterstones.
July 31, 2002. Accessed July 20, 2017. https://www.waterstones.com/book/edgeless-
cities/robert-e-lang/9780815706120. "Dunwoody." Dunwoody Atlanta - Curbed Atlanta.
Accessed July 20, 2017. https://atlanta.curbed.com/neighborhood/73/dunwoody.

"MEMORANDUM - jkheneghan.com." Accessed July 20, 2017.

http://www.bing.com/cr?IG=6E2C81D4A54B4D559787D23A57D5B907&CID=0776BDEE698
E643F023BB72B688865D4&rd=1&h=peQ0JNSx7_mnleVZqhqWfGewIQ492Is7k3N3rpMNU
5M&v=1&r=http%3a%2f%2fjkheneghan.com%2fcity%2fmeetings%2f2011%2fJun%2f061320
11_PCID_10_Year_Update.pdf&p=DevEx,5060.1.

"PCIDs Improvement Projects." Perimeter Community Improvement Districts.

Accessed July 20, 2017. http://perimetercid.org/projects/.

"Resources Downloads." Perimeter Community Improvement Districts. Accessed July

20, 2017. http://perimetercid.org/resources-downloads/.

Pioneer developer recalls Perimeter Center's origins By Valerie BiggerstaffFor The

Crier thecrier.net | 0 comments. "Pioneer developer recalls Perimeter Centers
origins." Dunwoody Crier. Accessed July 20, 2017.
http://www.thecrier.net/news/article_8d16fa4a-f5aa-11e3-8f01-0019bb2963f4.html.

Books & Reports:

Dunham-Jones, Ellen, and June Williamson. Retrofitting suburbia: urban design

solutions for redesigning suburbs. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2011.

Garreau, Joel. (1991). Edge City: Life on the New Frontier. New York: Doubleday.

Page, Michael Chance, "Recovering a Sense of Place in the Edge City." Thesis,
Georgia State University, 2005.

http://scholarworks.gsu.edu/anthro_theses/5

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