HGOR & AMLI celebrate ASLA "Award of Excellence" for City Place/Marie Sims Park in Buckhead

News Release

March 28,2019

Atlanta, GA

HGOR's planning and landscape architecture firm received the Georgia Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects "Award of Excellence" for City Place/Marie Sims Park in Buckhead. Built as an important part of AMLI Residential's two new luxury apartment communities, AMLI 3464 and AMLI Buckhead, the 1.5-acre Marie Sims Parks not only serves as much needed greenspace in Buckhead's urban core, but also serves an environmental purpose, handling stormwater runoff. AMLI is developing two additional communities adjacent to the park, AMLI Lenox and AMLI Flatiron.

City Place/Marie Sims Park in Buckhead, GA

HGOR's design utilized a multi-tiered approach to storage - capturing the two-year storm and water quality within the lower wet pond and allowing major storms to spread out over otherwise usable space. "We embrace green infrastructure approaches because they offer social, economic, and environmental benefits while addressing water challenges," states HGOR Design Principal, Chris Mutter. "City Place/Marie Sims Park demonstrates the important linkage between planning and design, which promotes how people-oriented places can produce economic value while simultaneously providing long-term environmental benefits."

HGOR worked closely with AMLI to develop a master plan that sought to create efficient, walkable urban blocks with required open space aggregated into collective commons. The plan sought to extend existing streets providing clear walkable connections to the nearby MARTA Transit Station. The complete rethinking of the master plan—from product-based to place-based—transformed not only the surrounding site, adding substantial economic value, but has resulted in a positive influence on existing properties within the area and the larger community.

"We worked with the community to design this amazing public space, which adds another gathering space for a vibrant community. Additionally, it allowed AMLI to expand our sustainability efforts across property lines. Marie Sims Parkprovides a welcoming and meaningful greenspace for both AMLI residents and the entire Buckhead neighborhood," said Fred Schreiber, AMLI Co-COO.

"HGOR is at the forefront of how private development can exert community," said HGOR's Founding Principal, Bob Hughes. "The new master plan provided a deeper stewardship of resources, returning the property to its full pre-recession value and the "private" aggregated open space is known today as City Place/Marie Sims Park, serving the entire community, not just AMLI residents."