History of West End Neighborhood Development
The West End (White Hall) and Atlanta (Terminus) have a long independent, adjacent, overlapping, and interdependent history from 1835 to the present. The WEST END NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT, INC. (WEND) is a relatively new organization of area residents that works to preserve its beauty, to prevent its deterioration, conserve the history character of ante bellum and post bellum architectural charm, and to continue its prominence as a trend setter for other Atlanta neighborhoods. In 1978 WEND registered as a private and not-for-profit corporation. As a result WEND has been able to appeal to and to attract multicultural and multitalented artists, writers, communications-radio and television personnel, government employees, politicians, banking and business leaders and innovative educators. WEND’s mission is to
provide leadership in promoting the revitalization of the West End neighborhood. WEND is a neighborhood organization comprised primarily of the residents and residential property owners of West End and is organized for the purpose of preserving and enhancing the residential character and livability of the area. WEND's committees such as the, Tour of Homes, code enforcement and beautification, to name a few continues to carry on in the manner in which the organization was conceived.In 1991, The West End became the The West End Historic District by the Atlanta City Council, and subsequently was placed on the Georgia Register and the National Register insuring their historic preservation status. Thus, the leadership skills of Mr. Lionel Alexander, WEND's chair, architect Mr. Karl Barnes, community activist Mrs. Janice White Sykes, and others have ensured the cultural continuity of such historic architectural gems as Dr. Otis Thrash Hammond's Hammonds House, Joel Chandler Harris' Wren's Nest, St. Anthony's Catholic Church, West Hunter Baptist Church and others. Our Zoning and Land Use and Preservation and Urban Design committees ensure that new construction and renovations are done with our historic guidelines in mind.
In 2007, WEND was instrumental in the design and layout of Atlanta's first Beltline path. The path will run along White Street to Peeples Street, turn on Beecher Street, then connect to Lawton Street Bridge. We are a neighborhood on involved residents and we are very proud of this fact.