Placemaking Community: Lithia Springs Community Development Training

Identity building in the Douglas County community

Head west out of Atlanta on Veterans Memorial Hwy and you’ll soon come upon a small crossroads not far into Douglas County. At the intersection of Sweetwater Road and Veterans Memorial is an inconspicuous node that was once the focal point of a resort destination, downtown Lithia Springs. Look closely beside the railway running parallel and you’ll notice a tall iron clock that’s a local historical landmark. 

Like nearby Indian Springs, Lithia Springs was one of several hamlets named for the naturally occurring mineral springs that contributed to their popularity as tourist destinations, where health-conscious visitors in the late 1800s came to bathe and enjoy world-class lodging in accommodations like the Sweetwater Park Hotel. Unfortunately, the hotel was lost to fire in 1912, and not much remains that harkens back to the springs’ heyday, but the unique identity of the place remained intact. Lithia Springs was twice incorporated and dissolved—most recently, it was a city from 1994 to 2000—and is now a census-designated place in unincorporated Douglas County. 

Through the support of Atlanta Regional Commission’s Community Development Assistance Program, Douglas County Planning and Zoning partnered with the Georgia Conservancy to prepare a community development toolkit and training session in an effort to organize civic leaders around preserving and enhancing aspects of the community. The toolkit covers a wide array of topics, from aesthetic enhancements to ways to fund infrastructure improvements, drawing examples from across Georgia and beyond. The training session introduced local leaders and lawmakers to policies, initiatives, and grassroots efforts that could be implemented in Lithia Springs. The Georgia Conservancy collaborated with Douglas County planners throughout the effort and conducted interviews with local stakeholders to identify viable tools of interest to the community.  

The Lithia Springs Community Development Training pulls from a curriculum developed as part of the Georgia Conservancy’s Good Urbanism seminars. This popular smart growth planning seminar teaches planning and design professionals, government officials, and neighborhood residents about the importance of creating sustainable communities.

PROJECT PARTNERS

Questions? Reach out to Georgia Conservancy Design Lead Luben Raytchev at lraytchev@gaconservancy.org