Today GDOT released an animated video about what the new Top-End I-285 project will look like. I also attended a meeting today with Council Members Henshaw and Patrick with a couple of residents from the Winters Chapel Hills neighborhood where we could ask questions of the Project Managers.
If you forward to about 7 minutes, you’ll start at about the area of Perimeter Center and see what the lanes will look like as they go through Doraville.
A couple of points I noticed:
- The lanes are pretty high as they go along the new Carver Hills Sub-Division. The owners of Carver hills have already sold GDOT some land for these lanes.
- At 8:30 in the video, you’ll see the new Flowers Rd Extension which will be a new bridge that crosses over I-285 and connects District 1 to Assembly on Flowers Rd. You’ll see the lanes then go higher to cross the Norfolk Southern railroad at New Peachtree Rd.
- The lanes then drop down close to grade level in most places closest to the Northwoods Subdivision
- Most astonishingly both lanes then go in the air 40 feet HIGHER than any of the existing lanes at Spaghetti Junction!
- Notable buildings that will be purchased and demolished to make room for this project: Two buildings across from the Doraville Maintenance Department. Three of the Office/Warehouse buildings on Flowers Rd next to the Dekalb County Schools Transit facility. The building in front of the Buford Highway Farmers Market that currently houses a bus company, two apartment buildings on the Dunwoody/Doraville line next to Carver Hills. These are technically in Dunwoody.
- Most of the Pebblewood Apartments on New Peachtree in Doraville seem to be saved.
- The City of Doraville and Citgo will have to sell some land but will not lose any of their facilities on Flowers Rd.
- There have been no details shared about how they are going to connect the managed lanes to the Doraville MARTA station. The current plans show the lanes ending at Assembly on the wrong side of the railroad tracks.
- There will be NO improvements made for the severe and dangerous backup on 285 coming from Dunwoody going north or South on Peachtree Industrial Blvd or Buford Highway other than getting the through traffic out of the local traffic.