Located in southwest Atlanta, Westview is a historic intown neighborhood that has a rich past. The Westview Cemetery, located to the northwest of the area, inspired the name of the neighborhood. Homes in the area range from Arts and Crafts bungalows to Four Squares and Tudors to Minimal Traditional designs and Ranch styles.
The Westview neighborhood is a model of a traditional streetcar community in Atlanta, GA. The present-day location of Westview Cemetery was established in 1884 after land was acquired for the purpose. The West End and Atlanta Street Car Company was subsequently inspired to begin grading in 1886 in order to extend its street car line 2 (the Ponce de Leon – Westview line) to the Westview Cemetery as a result of this. The end of Line 2 for the Westview Cemetery was located just in front of the main gate off of Ralph David Abernathy Boulevard, which it reached from downtown Atlanta via Lucile Avenue. The streetcar encouraged more growth in the neighborhood because of its easy accessibility.
The Ontario Property Company decided to build a suburban community in the area they dubbed Westwood Park, and so they bought a number of plots of land in 1888. Westwood Park was originally bounded by New Green’s Ferry Avenue (now Westview Drive), Inman Street, Green’s Ferry Road (now Ralph David Abernathy Blvd.), and Sandtown Road (now Cascade Avenue) to the southeast. Following the blueprint for the new community, the Ontario Land Company leveled and landscaped the area and offered facilities including croquet and tennis courts.
Although bidding wars are still commonplace for desirable properties, the real estate market in this historically significant, culturally varied, and formerly depressed area along the Westside Trail has showed anecdotal signs of cooling off recently. Previously unheard-of buyer incentives are now again being offered. Some locals have recently complained that the Westside Trail hasn’t been the catalyst for outside investment that was promised, while others have expressed relief that it hasn’t resulted in the gentrification and displacement that was expected. However, it’s still early.
While it’s not uncommon to find homes selling in the $400,000s in Westview right now, there are plenty of fixer-uppers out there with enough character to blow your mind for much less. The bulk of the roughly 1,100 single-family homes in the area have recently been upgraded to the “good” condition category, according to the City of Atlanta. Westview is one of the few areas left in Atlanta where people who want to fix up a house and live in it themselves are not likely to be priced out by wealthy speculators and house-flippers.
Include the Beltline’s Westside Trail, the beautiful 600-acre Westview Cemetery (the largest in the Southeast), and Slutty Vegan’s One Night Stand (burger), and you might never want to leave.
East Atlanta
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