Dekalb County has shared their plans for re-opening the park and RC field in the fall of 2026
- The runway will move West so it's not on the Millsap property, about 150 ft.
- We are going to ask Millsap if we can still use the space that was the heli area.
- What you see in the drawings is what we get. Once it's up and running, we can approach the county for permission to put up flight line tables and fencing along the runway.
- As far as we know there isn't power at the runway.
- There are no restrooms planned in phase 1, but they have offered to set up portalets. That should work.
- The parking area will have 28 public parking spaces. There's also a paved area for loading / unloading.
- The club hasn't collected dues for several years, so we don't officially have a membership roster, but we'll work out amongst the officers what the criteria will be for who can fly until we can start collecting dues again. I'm thinking we just allow pilots to come when an officer is present and show your AMA membership card. We will start collecting dues again in the beginning of 2027 (assuming this all happens as the county has planned).
- This is just the beginning of the new era for Atlanta RC... once we use the runway for a while we can work with the county to enhance the facility.
Reminder: The property belongs to Dekalb County, and it always has. We are invited guests on their land, and they have complete control of what happens at the park. We have no wrtitten agreement with them and we don't pay rent. We use the space entirely at their pleasure. - Please consider this if you have an idea or an expectation. They've been very accommodating to us. They didn't have to include us at all in the plan.
- Another reminder, and this is important: THE NO TRESPASS ORDER IS STLL IN PLACE. DO NOT GO TO THE FIELD. Ms. Cochrane-Johnson (Dekalb CEO) will lift the order when the construction is complete. She made that clear. DO NOT GO TO THE FIELD FOR ANY REASON. We're all curious and eager. Don't do it.
- We will provide more updates as they are available.
- We are planning to meet with the county admin next week, and will get more feedback from them then. There are a couple of new faces in the development roles in the county admin who have been very open and responsive to us. This is new and we're working to keep that relationship solid. Anyone stepping on that relationship could ruin this new chance for all of us. Please watch this space, and we'll keep you updated. We will also start posting on the website again and get it out of mothballs.
- The area is still called Intrenchment Creek, but the park will be named Michelle Obama park.
- Phase 2 is much more ambitious with expansion of the park. That will come over the next year or so. They are getting after it so it won't take long.
- There are new trails coming in and a lot of amenities being planned at the Bouldercrest section of the park... which means there will be a lot of people around and since this is a public park, we will need to share the space. That means honoring AMA safety rules not to fly over people, etc. Patience will be key. If you are not interested in sharing the space, then this runway is not the place for you.