Your Mission, should you choose to accept it.......
The City of Dunwoody, and the Dunwoody Village shopping center is at a crossroads. The Village is an icon of the small town ideal we want to live in. But it was built in the early 1970s in a commercialized "colonial" style that is causing more problems than solutions.
The Future of Dunwoody Village has a list of requirements to be successful. Do you have an idea that fits them all? Post in the comments or send an email to dhaadmin@dunwoodyga.org and we'll start you on a thread of your own.
(Edited to add: it is no longer possible to force posting of images in comments. If you have a really creative visual idea, contact us at the email address above and we'll work something out.)
Dunwoody Village is privately owned. The largest owner is Regency Centers which is a HUGE developer that owns the "Dunwoody Village" shopping center, Dunwoody Hall (Publix) and Williamsburg (at the intersection of Mt Vernon and Jett Ferry) Regency, plus any other owner, has to agree to your plans. They have the right to tell you to buzz off if they don't like it.
Just like Classic Coke, there are hundreds (thousands?) of people who have a strong attachment to the Colonial style. Eliminating that style will alienate that community permanently and you can forget about their support for other innovations in the future. The successful solutions will incorporate some elements of "past", "present", and "future".
Unlike developments in Chamblee and Brookhaven, Dunwoody Village is embedded in a long-established community of single-family homes. There isn't a freeway and a bunch of undeveloped or abandoned property buffering it. Whatever you create has to complement those communities, or at the very least, not interfere with them. Don't forget the townhomes that will eventually be incorporated along Dunwoody Village Parkway.
Dunwoody, the residential community is not the Perimeter Center. The whole point of having a village overlay is to define something distinct. If it's already being done in the Perimeter, it's not distinct. Be creative and unique!
Dunwoody is also not a former industrial area Believe it or not, those industrial-loft-looking buildings are paying homage to an industrial heritage while moving toward a future vision. Dunwoody was never a city - it was a farm community with cottage industries and a light railroad that connected to Roswell. That's your starting point.
The time frame that this new development must meet is 30 years to life. A restaurant or bar has a 90% chance of failure in the first year. The successful plan will endure for decades even as tenants come and go.
Most importantly of all: those who want respect, give respect. There are people who want no change at all to come to this district. Their opinions are valid just as your desire for change. Don't shoot yourself or your ideas in the foot by eye-rolling, or groaning, or hashtagging your disdain for people who disagree with you. This is about moving forward as a diverse community, not staying in the same old rut.
Now with that - let's see some creative visuals. VISUAL! Pictures! Drawings! Bland one-word references to other cities will be deleted because this is a boring-free zone! Find or create your image of Dunwoody's future and....
SHOW US YOUR VILLAGE!!
The Future of Dunwoody Village has a list of requirements to be successful. Do you have an idea that fits them all? Post in the comments or send an email to dhaadmin@dunwoodyga.org and we'll start you on a thread of your own.
(Edited to add: it is no longer possible to force posting of images in comments. If you have a really creative visual idea, contact us at the email address above and we'll work something out.)
Dunwoody Village is privately owned. The largest owner is Regency Centers which is a HUGE developer that owns the "Dunwoody Village" shopping center, Dunwoody Hall (Publix) and Williamsburg (at the intersection of Mt Vernon and Jett Ferry) Regency, plus any other owner, has to agree to your plans. They have the right to tell you to buzz off if they don't like it.
Just like Classic Coke, there are hundreds (thousands?) of people who have a strong attachment to the Colonial style. Eliminating that style will alienate that community permanently and you can forget about their support for other innovations in the future. The successful solutions will incorporate some elements of "past", "present", and "future".
Unlike developments in Chamblee and Brookhaven, Dunwoody Village is embedded in a long-established community of single-family homes. There isn't a freeway and a bunch of undeveloped or abandoned property buffering it. Whatever you create has to complement those communities, or at the very least, not interfere with them. Don't forget the townhomes that will eventually be incorporated along Dunwoody Village Parkway.
Dunwoody, the residential community is not the Perimeter Center. The whole point of having a village overlay is to define something distinct. If it's already being done in the Perimeter, it's not distinct. Be creative and unique!
Dunwoody is also not a former industrial area Believe it or not, those industrial-loft-looking buildings are paying homage to an industrial heritage while moving toward a future vision. Dunwoody was never a city - it was a farm community with cottage industries and a light railroad that connected to Roswell. That's your starting point.
The time frame that this new development must meet is 30 years to life. A restaurant or bar has a 90% chance of failure in the first year. The successful plan will endure for decades even as tenants come and go.
Most importantly of all: those who want respect, give respect. There are people who want no change at all to come to this district. Their opinions are valid just as your desire for change. Don't shoot yourself or your ideas in the foot by eye-rolling, or groaning, or hashtagging your disdain for people who disagree with you. This is about moving forward as a diverse community, not staying in the same old rut.
Now with that - let's see some creative visuals. VISUAL! Pictures! Drawings! Bland one-word references to other cities will be deleted because this is a boring-free zone! Find or create your image of Dunwoody's future and....
SHOW US YOUR VILLAGE!!
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