Woodstock (Re)Generation

Woodstock, Georgia is not as famous as New York's, but the Bible-belt town and the home of rock's supernova have one thing in common: they've both had to figure out how to deal with a mammoth population explosion. Considered "out in the country," barely a decade ago, the Atlanta exurb, 30 miles north on I-575, has doubled in size since then. Where many burbifying areas have been swamped by that kind of growth, Woodstock is considered the poster child of the Livable Centers Initiative, which the Atlanta Regional Commission, helped by the feds, funds "live-walk-play" districts near shopping and transportation.

Woodstock's participation in the plan was to rezone to accommodate residential buildings with retail space below, including sidewalks with room for shoppers on foot. A developer, Hedgewood Properties, already had its eye on the town. They were given the master plan and told to come back with a project that fit in. We wanted a community focused on people rather than vehicles," town planning officer Richard McLeod told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "We can go down the road of being another suburban wasteland, or we can go the way of being economically and environmentally sustainable." Today nearly 1,000 homes (above, left) and condos are either underway or being planned in a lively downtown that used to shut down at the close of business every afternoon. A website dedicated to the revitalization (named, a little perversely, Olde Towne Woodstock) keeps residents and visitors abreast of events like farmers' market days, cooking classes and town council meetings. Nothing on there at the moment about a music festival.