Summerhill, Atlanta

Living in Summerhill seems kind of like being on a permanent Atlanta vacation, except instead of staying in a Lysol-and-smoke-scented hotel room, you can lay claim to your very own spankin’ new, neo-traditional abode or ready-to-build lot for a lot less than $200 a night.

You’re walking distance - yes, even for the kiddies - from Atlanta must-sees like Turner Field, the Atlanta Zoo and the Cyclorama; and just a few more blocks from Oakland Cemetery and the glossy highlights of Downtown (the Aquarium, Centennial Olympic Park, World of Coke…)

Summerhill used to look a lot more like Mechanicsville and Peoplestown - its less fortunate neighbors to the south and west - until developers descended in the mid-1990s to give the old ‘hood a facelift before the 1996 Olympics. An active neighborhood association and a stringent developer approval process have ensured that the “right” people, houses and businesses are allowed in (though the area could really use a lot more of the latter - so the HOA might want to ease up a bit).

And don’t fret, diversity-seekers! (The rest of you can fret all you like, then move to Alpharetta.) Thanks to its downtown locale and budget-friendly home prices, “right” doesn’t always mean middle-class white. Instead the "right" residents for Summerhill are typically younger to not-quite-so-young singles and couples (many with families) who like to feel hip and urban, while also satisfying their love of new construction and private garages. Cheers!

During Atlanta’s real estate boom in the 1990’s, real estate developers brought historic Summerville from a run-down stack of row houses to a stylish community with deceptively large homes which neighbor Turner Field (the home of the Atlanta Braves baseball team).

My most vivid recollection of Summerhill accompanied my first visit to this community. You see, I was visiting an old college friend and her family. They had just bought an enviable, new home in Summerville. Imagine a home with an inviting wrap-around front porch, a formal parlor, separate living and dining rooms, hardwood floors, a huge gourmet kitchen, spacious bedrooms, and marble and polished chrome laden bathrooms with separate steam showers and Jacuzzi tubs. No expense was spared in her $300,000 plus home. Like many of the homes on her block, hers was a strange but inviting blend of hominess and opulence. I think you get the picture.

But, here’s the strange part about my first visit to Summerville. As soon as I parked my car across from her house, I was approached by a homeless man who asked me to give him $5.00 to ‘look after’ my car to make sure it was safe while I was visiting! My friend did not discourage me from capitulating to his request!

If you can overlook possible safety issues, and terrible traffic and parking problems when the Atlanta Braves are playing at Turner Field, you can find a great home here with access to everything.

I moved here a little while ago and it has been great. All of my neighbors are great and they love the area too. Grant Park is very close and the zoo is as well. There is also Phoenix Park II which I use to go jogging sometimes. I also love the fact that I'm walking distance to Turner Field! It is convenient for me because I do not have a car and there are plenty of buses that come by and it is only 1 mile away from a Marta station. My only complaint would be the lack of businesses in the area. I have a hard time going to the grocery store without a car. By the time I get back home from being on the bus, sometimes the food is not cold anymore. The only "grocery stores" nearby are more of "convenience" stores and prices are not the best.