Doraville Archives

Citizens For Progressive Transit – July 2018 Newsletter

July 9, 2018 by Thom Abbott

Somewhere, somehow, I stumbled upon this organization and their monthly newsletter.

Citizens For Progressive Transit

…their website seems to be a tad behind…I’m sharing the July, 2018 newsletter with you here, and the website has April, 2018…so the best way to keep up with them would be to subscribe to receive the newsletter. But the highlights of July are:

Marta Takes Over Atlanta Street Car –$1 Fare Continues

The Atlanta Streetcar was turned over to MARTA on July 1. But they opted to keep the $1 fare, which has been blamed for the dramatic drop in ridership. It should probably be included in your regular MARTA fare, and you could transfer to the Streetcar.

I’ll give Atlanta credit for trying, in getting the Streetcar started. (You remember the plans called for it to run from Downtown to Buckhead on Peachtree Street, but the funding was not there, along with some lack of interest, challenges with it being on Peachtree, etc, etc.) But, to go from Centennial Olympic Park to the King Center….not much service there.

ARC Grants to Expand Suburban Bus Service

Douglas County (that’s way out West for us In-Town folks) will get its first fixed-route bus service, and Cobb and Gwinnett will get to expand, due to new federal funding by the ARC.

Bond Money to Go For GA 400 Bus Service

Gov. Deal announced that recently approved bonds to raise $100M will be used in North Fulton County to facilitate MARTA bus service along GA400.

A Faster Path to Regional Rail (THIS one caught my eye big time!)

We’ve talked about regional passenger rail. And talked. And studied. And talked and studied…..but nothing. Yet North Carolina has launched a fourth daily round-trip on its state-funded Amtrak line, running from Charlotte to Raleigh. The three round trips carried 427,000 people last year. HELLO GEORGIA? It’s the 21st Century…and we can’t keep widening roads or adding cars.

This is why I love reading the Citizens For Progressive Transit newsletter….it keeps me informed.

You can read the entire newsletter here.

You can JOIN CFPT, and subscribe to the newsletter HERE.

Buford Highway: Food From Around the World

November 2, 2016 by Thom Abbott

Buford Highway Food From Around the World

If you love to eat out, then you probably keep tabs on the restaurant opening and closings. And that can almost be a full time job. They can be in a prominent location like Mi Cocina in Midtown which just closed this past week! And then, you’ll see an opening of another restaurant someplace else….

But there might be World Restaurant Row that you have yet to experience…..and that is Atlanta’s Buford Highway Food From Around the World!

First impressions many have are of run-down apartment complexes, less-than-pretty strip malls…and lots of people walking on man-made trails due to the lack of sidewalks. All of the above is starting to change, but the exotic cuisine from some 20 plus countries is still there for the enjoyment.

The Buford Highway Corridor runs through Brookhaven, Chamblee and Doraville. Here you will find Chinese, Mexican, Korean, Central American, Vietnamese, Taiwanese, Indian, South America, Japan and some delish bakeries including Sweet Hut, which has a store right in Midtown at Metropolis!!

To learn more about this food-arama that is not to far from you…check out this great article by the Travel Channel —

Atlanta’s Buford Highway : Global Food Paradise

Getting to Buford Highway is a pretty straight shot from Midtown! If driving, you just take West Peachtree to the Buford Highway Connector (which will take you to the GA400 merge as well as I-85 North. But you take neither…you just head North on Buford Highway.

10th Annual Taste of Chamblee – October 1, 2016

September 26, 2016 by Thom Abbott

There is nothing better than a “Taste of something” to, well get a taste of something.

Enter, the Taste of Chamblee, now in it’s 10th Year!!!

The 10th Annual Taste of Chamblee returns with cuisines that range from Mexican to Italian and celebrate the diverse restaurant community in Chamblee. In addition to amazing food, the event will have live music and a family friendly kid zone. The 10th Annual Taste of Chamblee will be held on Saturday, October 1, 2016 from 5-9PM in Downtown Chamblee, at the corner of Peachtree and Broad.

Admission to the event is free, and tickets for tastings will be sold for $1. Tickets may be redeemed at participating restaurant booths for a wide selection of tastings that will range from 1 – 5 tickets per sample.

Restaurants participating in the 10th Annual Taste of Chamblee include:

Crawfish Shack
Frosty Caboose
Galla’s Pizza
Galley Gourmet
Hello Gorgeous Cafe
Jardi Chocolates
King of Pops
Chilango’s Group
Shane’s Rib Shack
Mad Italian
Warren Technical
Hovan
Vintage Pizzeria
Takorea
Monarch Beverage

Entertainment lineup for the 10th Annual Taste of Chamblee includes:

5:15 – 6:00pm – Georgia Shine Band
6:15 – 7:30pm – AJ Ghent Band
7:45 – 9:00pm – Have Gun Will Travel

Parking is available at Chamblee Plaza, with a trolly running from the Plaza to the Festival entrance off of Broad Street. Street parking is also available nearby. Coming from Midtown? Then just take MARTA and on the Gold Line You to Chamblee Station. Once you exit the station, turn right, go under the tracks on Chamblee Tucker Road and then head North( turn right) on Peachtree Road to enter the festival.

Click here to learn more about the 10th Annual Taste of Chamblee.

Located just 14 miles from downtown Atlanta, Chamblee is a vibrant urban city with a diverse community and international flair. The City of Chamblee began as a small rail town and was incorporated in 1908. Through multiple annexations, the City has grown to over 7 square miles and 26,000 residents. The downtown district has experienced significant commercial development including lofts and townhomes since 2000, while maintaining its vintage buildings and architecture

To See Homes For Sale in Chamblee, CLICK HERE!

Doraville Homes For Sale | Monterrey Mexican Restaurant

August 13, 2016 by Thom Abbott

A good real estate agent is always on the lookout for the next hot market and area! I’m certainly no different. While I keep tabs on Midtown Atlanta, the current construction boom is all FOR RENT apartments, and not new condo construction. Hence, we search.

Doraville Homes For Sale | Monterrey Mexican Restaurant

Along with the search for the next hot market, you look for restaurants that the residents visit, so you can let your new buyers know where to dine. Doraville is a sleepy (but not for much longer) city that is 1) ITP …Inside The Perimeter, 2) Affordable for housing, 3) has a MARTA train station, and 4) has some interesting dining options.

One of those is Monterrey Mexican Restaurant, located at 5406 Buford Highway. In fact, it’s just a couple blocks walk from the Doraville MARTA station, so you if you wanted to venture out of Midtown Atlanta, hop a train and have some good Mexican food for a great price, then this just might be the place.

I’ve known about Monterrey for many years. But had not been there for about the same time! I ventured back in a couple months ago when I felt the need for a cold, adult beverage. A margarita did the trick! But the food here is pretty good. I have to highly recommend the Texas Fajitas. They probably call it “Texas” because of the size! It’s certainly a dish you can order and split! But as with the usual fajitas, it comes on a sizzling cast iron skillet….packed with chicken, beef AND shrimp, along with onions and green peppers. The side dish of guac, pico de gallo and sour cream is to small for this order…so best order up a side of these fixin’s!!!

The last couple times I’ve been in, it’s been a bit “toasty” inside, and I finally learned they are having air conditioning issues. I’ll have to venture back and let you know. They have an outdoor patio, but it sadly lacks for an inviting atmosphere….(I’ve got to mention this to the owner…..it could be a fun place with!)

The Doraville area offers affordable single family homes, built in the 1960’s. Perfect for a retro-renovation, and a possible addition depending on your lot and the home style. On the other side of the aforementioned MARTA station, you will find the currently empty site of Assembly Doraville. The former GM plant is planned to be an exciting mixed-use development of offices, shops, apartments and condominiums. The developer had hoped for a tax allocation district to move the infrastructure portion of the site along, but the Dekalb County School Board thought otherwise. So it remains to be seen when, and how the site will develop. But when it does, rest assured the home prices you see in surrounding neighborhoods like Northwoods, will be a thing of the past.

I think I’ll grab another margarita.

Search Doraville Homes For Sale Here

Interested in knowing more about the Doraville area? Just fill out the Contact Form, and we will be in touch in a jiffy!

Huntley Hills Chamblee

March 3, 2016 by Thom Abbott

Huntley Hills Chamblee

It seems almost daily, I’m asked the question, “Thom, where is the next best cool place to live?” Does that mean “up and coming” or “on its way” or WHAT? I can answer that question with two areas…Doraville and Chamblee…and Huntley Hills Chamblee is a great neighborhood to start with!

Located between Peachtree Boulevard (formerly Peachtree Industrial Boulevard) and N. Shallowford and Chamblee-Dunwoody Roads, this neighborhood consists of single family homes that were developed in the 1950’s. The first phase of homes was built up to Plantation Lane, including the pool. Somewhere in the 1960’s other builders came in and finished the subdivision back to North Shallowford. Hence, you will see different styles of homes as different architects designed them. An example of an original brochure is displayed on the right.

Huntley Hills in Chamblee offers commuting convenience in many ways. Numbers surface streets will get you to I-285 for access to Dunwoody and the Perimeter Mall/Business District in Dunwoody and Sandy Springs. Access to Peachtree Boulevard will take you North to Norcross, Peachtree Corners and beyond. And South, to Brookhaven, Buckhead and Midtown. Chamblee offers a MARTA station, so commuters to Downtown or even to the airport can drive (or Uber) to the station and have mass transit as an option.

The entire Chamblee area is seeing some cool retail development that is making the area even more exciting. The recently announced Peachtree Crossing Plaza will feature a Whole Foods Market as an anchor store! Also nearby, the Parkview on Peachtree and the Olmstead are both under construction! These developments are rental apartments, but will feature retail and restaurants.

Located in Assembly Doraville is the new Third Rail Studios and Huntley Hills is a hop, skip and a jump from the studio for crews looking for a place to live!

Home improvement and gardening buffs will be delighted at the Lowe’s Home Improvement, just down Peachtree Boulevard from Huntley Hills.

Huntley Hills has an active neighborhood association and Facebook Page to get information and keep up-to-date on what is happening in the area!

Families looking at the area will find Montgomery or Huntley Hills Elementary, Chamblee Middle and Chamblee Charter High School will be their school cluster.

With all the new housing development around Chamblee (options like new home construction and new townhome developments) along with the nearby redevelopment of Assembly Doraville, Chamblee is an exciting area to consider living in! And Huntley Hills is a great neighborhood to look at!

MARTA Brookhaven Chamblee Station Developers Announced

September 4, 2015 by Thom Abbott

The rock and roll of development keeps on going!

MARTA has announced the developers for mixed-use projects at both the Brookhaven and Chamblee Stations.

MARTA Brookhaven Chamblee Station Developers Announced

Integral Group…already a HUGE player in the area with the redevelopment of the GM Plant into Assembly Doraville.…along with Transwestern Development Company are proposing 330 apartments (gasp……), 25,000 square feet of retail and some 117,000 square feet of office space in the first phase of the project. It’s anticipated that they would not start before Summer, 2017. Further development plans call for senior housing, civic spaces and a hotel. (Brookhaven could use one of those…they are lacking on hotel space!)

Closer to Integral’s Assembly Doraville, a joint venture between Pattillo Industrial Real Estate and Parkside Partners LLC is proposing some 38,000 square feet of office and 13,000 square feet of retail. The article that appeared in the ABC did not indicate which of the lots around the Chamblee station would be used for this building. (Photo/rending below)

Citizens For Progressive Transit

Buford Highway Food From Around the World

To See Homes For Sale in Chamblee, CLICK HERE!

Doraville Homes For Sale | Monterrey Mexican Restaurant

Huntley Hills Chamblee

MARTA Brookhaven Chamblee Station Developers Announced

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