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Abstract
The Atlanta BeltLine is an ambitions 22-mile urban greenway development project currently under way in Georgia’s largest metropolitan area. Completed sections of the trail have been wildly popular with recreationists and some residents of the city, but concerns about gentrification and displacement associated with the trail raise questions about the equitability of the project. A proposed segment of the trail—the Westside Trail Extension—offers a unique opportunity to explore resident perceptions of support and gentrification related to an urban greenspace prior to its construction. Comprehensive door-to-door surveying of communities within one mile of the proposed trail produced data which was explored through the use of a modified Importance-Performance Analysis and Multiple Linear Regressions. Findings from this thesis may shed light on issues of equitable access to natural resources in cities and inform managers of similar projects how to best engage with nearby communities.