The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) has awarded $12 million in transportation funding to 11 communities that have previously implemented completed LCI studies. The LCI program is funded with federal transportation dollars. The grants provide 80 percent of funding for each study or transporation project, with the recipient making a 20 percent match. The City of Avondale Estates has been an LCI Community since 2004.

The City of Avondale Estates received $128,000 from the ARC as part of the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) to complete Phase I of the Redesign of U.S. Highway 278, which includes the engineering of pedestrian improvements as outlined in the tentative design that came out of the 2015 Feasibility Study. The City will hold public meetings as the design becomes more realistic. The total project cost is $2.8 million for engineering, right-of-way acquistion (as needed) and construction. Since the City of Avondale Estates is an LCI community, additional applications for Phases 2 and 3 are not needed. The additional funds will be allocated based on project progress and availability of funds.

Doug Hooker, ARC Executive Director stated that "Communities all over the region are eager to revitalize their town centers and underutilized properties to create places that foster a vibrant, neighborhood feel and environment. LCI is helping communities re-imagine what they can be and then helping make those visions a reality." The LCI program has assisted from planning to implementation. The City looks forward to a safer, aesthetically pleasing, pedestrian oriented corridor in the near future.

To learn more about the LCI program and the impact it has had on the Atlanta region, visit their website.