Boulevard (Atlanta)

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Boulevard is a street and corridor in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia. It runs east of the Downtown Connector, starting at Ponce de Leon Avenue in the north (north of which it continues as Monroe Drive) and ending at McDonough Boulevard near the Federal Penitentiary in the south. Along the way it passes through the Old Fourth Ward, Cabbagetown, and Grant Park, and forms the border between Chosewood Park on the west and Boulevard Heights and Benteen Park on the east.

In 1895, writer Margaret Severance described Boulevard as a beautiful and prestigious avenue with large homes and spacious lawns, a street Atlanta could be proud of for years to come. Boulevard remained a white neighborhood through the 1910s while nearby side streets grew more African-American as people moved east after the 1906 race riot.

Morris Brown College anchored Black presence on Boulevard. Founded in 1885 at Boulevard and Houston Street, the college expanded in 1922 by acquiring land at the southeast corner of Boulevard and Irwin Street. It moved to the Atlanta University Center in 1932; the old site is now the Helene Mills Senior Center and Mt. Zion Second Baptist Church.

From the 1920s through the 1940s many Boulevard homes were bought by Black professionals such as doctors, bishops, ministers, and attorneys. As better-off residents left Intown Atlanta, many houses became apartments and later came under Section 8 housing. Continental Wingate, based in Boston, manages about 700 Section 8 units on or near Boulevard.

Redevelopment and gentrification are seen by many as likely, since surrounding areas increasingly feature mixed-income or upscale housing. In January 2012, City Councilman Kwanza Hall announced a seven-point plan called Year of Boulevard (YoBoulevard!) to revitalize the corridor, including mentoring programs and efforts to reduce street-level drug activity. By July 2012, Creative Loafing reported some early success in mentoring local youth and decreasing street drug dealing.