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Atlanta Botanical Garden will open a front door on the BeltLine

A $160 million expansion will add about 8 acres along Piedmont Avenue and make the garden the first major cultural institution you can walk or bike into straight off the BeltLine.

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Rendering of the Botanical Garden expansion’s fountain plaza.
Project renderingRendering of the Botanical Garden expansion’s fountain plaza.Atlanta Botanical Garden
Rendering of a garden plaza in the Botanical Garden expansion.
Project renderingRendering of a garden plaza in the Botanical Garden expansion.Atlanta Botanical Garden / Developer Rendering
Site plan for the Botanical Garden expansion beside the Beltline.
Site planSite plan for the Botanical Garden expansion beside the Beltline.Hoerr Schaudt landscape architects
Rendering of the fountain garden.
Project renderingRendering of the fountain garden.Hoerr Schaudt landscape architects

Published Aug 17, 2026

The Atlanta Botanical Garden is spending $160 million to grow by roughly 8 acres along Piedmont Avenue and the BeltLine's Northeast Corridor, about a quarter larger than its current 30 acres. Plans call for a BeltLine-facing visitor center with an indoor and outdoor cafe and bike parking, a plaza for free community events, water terraces, a walled garden and an orangerie for rentals and classes.

The capital campaign has already raised more than $130 million, led by a $40 million grant from the Lettie Pate Evans Foundation and a $25 million gift from the James M. Cox Foundation. Demolition on the site has begun, and the garden is targeting completion in 2028.

Why it matters

It turns a garden tucked inside Piedmont Park into a place people reach directly from the trail, and it sets a template for how the BeltLine's next cultural anchors will face the path.

LocationPiedmont Avenue and the Beltline Northeast Trail, Atlanta, GA
JurisdictionCity of Atlanta
Scale~8 new acres · $160M campaign
TimelineTargeting 2028
WhoAtlanta Botanical Garden
LinksAtlanta Botanical Garden · BeltLine
Sources and documents4 sources
↗ Urbanize Atlanta↗ Atlanta Botanical Garden↗ Atlanta News First↗ Atlanta Botanical Garden

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Rendering of the new orange steel pedestrian bridge carrying the Atlanta BeltLine Northwest Trail over Northside Drive near a QuikTrip station, with people walking and biking on the approach path.
A new, elevated trail runs behind an apartment complex. People are walking and biking along the trail.
Northwest Atlanta

Shared topicAtlanta BeltLine

Opening

BeltLine Starts Northwest Trail Segment 3B

Construction has started on Atlanta BeltLine Northwest Trail Segment 3B, a nearly one-mile link from Trabert Avenue to Tanyard Creek Park. The route will bridge Northside Drive, pass through Atlanta Technology Center and under I-75, connecting five northwest Atlanta neighborhoods to the completed Segment 3A and Northside Trail. Atlanta BeltLine lists late fall 2028 as the expected opening.

Northwest Atlanta Sep 10, 2026
Project: Atlanta BeltLine Northwest Trail Segment 3B