Kirkwood

Since the 1980's, Kirkwood has seen an influx of middle to upper-middle class couples and families--most of which are small (0 to 2 children). Due to the gay-gentrification of the 1990's, the community has become a haven for homosexual couples, families, and business owners.Renovated homes and apartments are more expensive and are therefore not ideal for college students or unestablished adults. Kirkwood is also home to a number of low-income, largely black families many of which have inhabited the area since the racially segregated 1960s. This dicotomy has caused conflict in the past, and Kirkwood is as socially and economically heterogenous as ever.

Though there are still a lot of poor people living in Kirkwood, over 90% of the population is white collar.  That’s great, considering that, compared to surrounding neighborhoods and to Georgia in general, household expenditure for residents is about 10% below average.  Demographically, average household income is $45,000 (pretty low, but comfortable for the area).  Over half of residents have some college education, but few hold degrees.  And half of adult residents are single (never been married), much higher than related neighborhoods.

Since 2003, the Kirkwood community leaders have been drumming up business along their main drag, Hosea Williams Drive.  For the most part, it’s worked.  In addition to the welcome of several offices for small businesses, residents will find a small slew of shops, restaurants and bars along the strip.  Recommendations are:

Ann’s Snack Bar – a cheap, greasy little hamburger/hot dog shop on the southwest corner of the neighborhood, right on Memorial Drive.  They actually have a “ghetto burger” on the menu.

Urban Pie is a nice little neighborhood hangout on Hosea Williams.  The only bad thing is that you’ll probably have to park on the street.  Like many places in the area, it’s really cheap.

For chain food, you’ll find a Mrs. Winner’s on Hosea Williams and a Checker’s on Memorial.

Bluebird Café, now called ‘Ria’s Bluebird Café, is a long standing hole-in-the-wall southern restaurant on Memorial, facing the cemetery just west of Kirkwood.  They’ve got the best soul food of any place in the entire metro area, making for a great lazy day lunch.

Travel just over the I-20 bridge and into East Atlanta.  There are several bars, shops and restaurants in the East Atlanta Village  The Earl is a great spot for indie rock bands, local and national.  Mary’s is an infamous gay and lesbian dive, hosting weekly trivia.  Gravity Pub is a place where a lot of people from Little Five Points migrate to when the shows are over. on Flat Shoals Road.

If you live in Kirkwood, you’re also relatively close to Little Five Points and Inman Park.

You’ll get more square footage for a dollar in Kirkwood than any surrounding neighborhood.  But!  Crime is way, way above average here.  Foot traffic is heavy and thieves break in with no regard or respect for your beautifully restored bungalow.  Century year old glass means nothing to druggies strolling by looking for a quick thrill.  Many residents report break-in’s by passersby who just come in to steal a pair or shoes or a clock – the kind of people who are too lazy to even bother with carrying your stereo equipment down the street on a hot summer’s day.  It’s usually the case in Kirkwood that crime costs more in home and car damage that in actual stolen goods.

To access restaurants and shops, a bicycle or scooter is the best option throughout the city, and Kirkwood is no exception. There are also a number of bus stops, and while there is no Kirkwood MARTA, these busses will transport you to the nearby East Lake or Edgewood/Candler Park MARTA stations. However, if the automobile is your prefered method, traffic is never a problem in Kirkwood (although the high number of seemingly superfluous traffic lights and stop signs are a nusance). In a city where parking is a notorious problem, and parking tickets and meters are a daily annoyance, Kirkwood has managed to solve this problem by including parking plans in its busiest area. Parking specific to businesses are clearly marked,  while off-street parking is the prefered method for the more residential areas.

Try using sites such as Craigslist to find owners who are looking to rent out their homes.  Kirkwood is an area where driving around and looking for ‘for rent’ signs might be helpful.  This is especially true when it comes to home rentals, where multiple people might be going in together, where you could possibly find a steal if you’re single.  Subleases cut the price even further.

Because of the low property values and high crime rates, it’s not really worth it to realty companies to advertise rentals.  Checking the front of local restaurants and shops for homemade rental flyers is a good idea.

If you find a house to rent that you like, negotiate, negotiate, negotiate!  Chew down the price if you’re handy; barter rent for fixing things around the house gradually, or mowing the lawn.  Look for anything to save the landlord a buck and you’ll be helping yourself.

The Kirkwood community is quite pet-friendly. In addition to a mid-sized park and a pet shop with an impressive inventory of food and accessories, many of the community's businesses cater to pet owners with outdoor water bowls and places to tie up your dog.

AtlantaVeterinarian.com is a great resource for finding all kinds of pet related businesses in the Atlanta area.  They list vets, groomers, house sitters and other needs/interests regarding all kinds of pets.

The Starlight Drive-In is just south on Moreland Avenue, past the East Atlanta Village area.  It makes for cheap fun any night of the week.  It’s $7 per person, and you can pretty much park and do whatever you want (drink, pull out the lawn chairs, grill out), barring disturbing others during the show.  Be sure to take your own FM radio and food – buying from the snack bar can get expensive.  Also, for daytime fun, the Drive-In hosts an open air market every weekend.  It costs almost nothing to sell there ($5), and is free to browse.

Little Five Points hosts a variety of entertainment, including restaurants, bars, tattoo shops, clothing, accessory and specialty shops, theatres and music venues.  Aside from nightlife fun, L5P is a great place to hang out during the day.

For walking yourself or your dog, Cabbagetown Park is a great daytime getaway.  Candler Park is bigger and better.  It has great tennis courts and a golf course.

The northernmost side of Kirkwood is the nicest, and a lot of that has to do with it butting up to Lake Claire, a more ‘uppity,’ green sub/urband type of community.  Memorial Drive is convenient; you’ll find everything you need there.  But it tends to be a more physically dirty main drag, full of junky cars and trash, quite literally.  You want to find trees and grass and some semblance of quiet.

The Branham Park area tends to be quiet, along and off Ridgedale and Delano Roads.  Also, those locations are closer to Hosea Williams, but minute the cars and foot traffic.  You can easily walk to both the park and restaurants on Hosea Williams from the side streets between Ridgedale and Williams.

As a growing community, new businesses open regularly inKirkwood, however the community has yet to establish many of the staples needed to call itself "all inclusive." There are fire and police stations as well as a public library within the community, and while there are a few small markets, restaurants and specialty shops, there is no major grocery store. There are also no major banks or gyms within, however, these essentials are found just outside of Kirkwood in neighboring communities.

Though outside the neighborhood, it’s easy to take Hosea Williams west to Moreland and visit the new Edgewood Retail District, which as been there since only 2005.  Though long time residents complain, really about it’s ‘newness’ and the awkwardness of its presence, it really is an all inclusive one-stop essentials shop for the community.  This complex includes a Target, Lowe’s, Best Buy, Office Depot, Kroger, Ross, PetCo, multiple restaurants and other shops of interest.

Unless you plan to put up the money to send your kids to private schools in other parts of the city, they’ll be attending Atlanta Public Schools.  Inner city Atlanta schools generally have a bad rap.  But, that said, the zone in which Reynoldstown lies is better than others.  Local public schools include Mary Lin Elementary, Inman Middle and Grady High, and they’re all pretty close to the neighborhood.