Decatur's Decks

Below are examples of three parking decks in Decatur, Georgia that provide convenient parking for neighboring office buildings. In all three cases, the parking decks take up more land than their associated office buildings, serving as great examples of how cities like Decatur had to "eat themselves" in order to remain relevant in the automobile age.

This first pic of the DeKalb County Courthouse parking deck (built with urban renewal funds in the mid-1960s) sits behind the courthouse but along two major streets, Trinity and Commerce Drive. Construction of both the deck and the parking lot in the foreground required the demolition of many small commercial buildings to accommodate them.




The second and third pics are of decks that front city's main road, Ponce de Leon.

To deal with the problem of ugly decks creating gaps in the urban landscape, the city has done what it can to mitigate the effect. With the second example, which was probably built a bit later (1980s?) than the other examples since it has a lovely brick facade, the city has planted large trees in front of it to hide it.




The third deck does a better job of blending into the Ponce streetscape because it sports ground-level retail. Quite an accomplishment considering what an eyesore the deck is from the rear.