History of the Conservancy

At the time AMPC was created, the park suffered from decades of neglect and deterioration: trees were dying, invasive plants were increasing and walking trails around the park were either eroded or nonexistent, leaving pedestrians to run and walk on the street with vehicular traffic. The portion of Peachtree Creek running through Atlanta Memorial Park was an environmental and ecological hazard to wildlife and to people and prone to periodic and damaging flooding, erosion, and sewer spills.

After raising $75,000 in donations to master plan the park, AMPC hired landscape architect firm, HGOR, to assist AMPC with the visioning process.  In 2013, AMPC held 3 public workshops to hear from the surrounding neighbors and users of the park on their vision for the future of Atlanta Memorial Park.  The resulting draft master plan was presented to the City of Atlanta’s Department of Parks and Recreation in January 2014.

While the draft master plan was under review with the City of Atlanta, AMPC continued to meet with surrounding neighbors and users of the park to hear their ideas and concerns for the park.  Then, on November 1, 2016, the City of Atlanta and State of Georgia announced they had transferred ownership of the land on the east side of Northside Drive, including the Bobby Jones Golf Course and Bitsy Grant Tennis Center, to the State.

With the AMPC no longer having any purview or control over the design, construction or management of the golf course, the AMPC continued to advocate for the park by coordinating with surrounding neighborhoods to meet with the Bobby Jones Golf Course Foundation to discuss concerns over the golf course design, future traffic patterns, tree loss, and other golf related issues.  Those conversations continue today.

AMPC remains committed to its ongoing efforts and focus on three key areas within Atlanta Memorial Park – greenspace, watershed and connectivity. Working with the City of Atlanta, the Georgia Department of Transportation, our others partners, constituents and supporters, AMPC has achieved several meaningful objectives: installation of a new playground, new sidewalks and nature trails within Atlanta Memorial Park; green infrastructure projects; tree canopy restoration including native tree plantings and invasive species mitigation; significant improvements to the sewer and watershed infrastructure affecting Atlanta Memorial Park as well as other initiatives.