Preserve plan advances for Buckhead's hidden forest
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A plein air painter claimed a spot along Nancy Creek during the recent Olmsted Plein Air Invitational on the property. Photo: Thomas Wheatley/Axios
A 30-acre Buckhead forest that Atlanta photographer and arts patron Lucinda Bunnen turned into a sanctuary is on its way to becoming a public nature preserve.
Why it matters: Buckhead is one of the fastest-developing parts of the city but has surprisingly few accessible parks.
- There's nothing within 20 miles like the property — an older forest with ample acreage, a weaving waterway and rich biodiversity.
Driving the news: The Conservation Fund, a nonprofit that buys and holds green spaces for future public parks, purchased the property late last year for roughly $13.5 million.
- It is raising an additional $2.4 million through the summer to prepare the land to turn over to the city.
Catch up quick: In the late 1950s, Lucinda and her husband, Bob, an oral surgeon, purchased the house designed by noted Atlanta architect Cecil Alexander.
- Over the following decades, the mid-century modern house and the dense woods became a refuge for Bunnen, her children, their kids (concrete moldings of their footprints are placed throughout the property) and the arts community.
Fun fact: Bunnen, who died in 2022, started creating a hilly two-mile perimeter trail after being arrested for walking her dog off its leash at the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.
- She hiked the path daily — sometimes twice a day — into her 90s, her son Robb, the oldest of the Bunnen's three children, told Axios.
- "It was everything to her. It was a rite of passage if you got invited over to walk the property with mom."
What they're saying: "We were thrilled we didn't have to endure 12 McMansions going up," Robb said.
Follow the money: Stacy Funderburke of The Conservation Fund told Axios the city chipped in $5 million from its Tree Trust Fund to buy the property.
- That money comes from fees that people pay to remove large trees inside the city limits.
- Buckhead has contributed significantly to the fund, according to Funderburke, but has few options for investment on the level of the Bunnen property.
- Private donors contributed $6 million, Funderburke said, and many neighbors and arts groups have rallied to support.
What's next: Potential plans include renovating the sprawling home to become an arts center and retreat, an environmental education hub or guest lodging for visiting dignitaries, Robb said.
- TCF could hand off the property to the city as early as this summer or fall, Funderburke said, with city-led community planning sessions following.
The big picture: "This was her spiritual place," Robb said. "She would be the most ecstatic person in the world to think the city bought the property to create the Lucinda Bunnen Nature Preserve.
- "She would be thrilled that other people can walk it, so the public can enjoy what she created."