Bankhead (Atlanta)

Bankhead is a neighborhood on the west side of Atlanta, Georgia. It's surrounded by Grove Park on the west, West End on the south, Vine City on the east with Berkely Park and Home Park on the north. At its center is MARTA's Bankhead station and Maddox Park. The schools that serve the neighborhood are Grove Park Elementary, A.D. Williams Elementary School, Carter G. Woodson Elementary School, Alfred Blalock Elementary School, Frederick Douglass High School.

In 1953 white residents near Bankhead Avenue protested two black families moving into the neighborhood, and police patrols were called in. Today, Bankhead is a predominately black lower-class community.

Its name comes from Bankhead Highway (which has recently been changed to Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway, for a famed civil rights attorney who lived near Bankhead in the nearby Historic Collier Heights neighborhood), whose route passes through the neighborhood. The neighborhood gave rise to the Bankhead Bounce, a type of urban dance and later a song (by Diamond in 1995) about it.

Some revitalization has begun in the area with projects such as the [http://www.englishavenueyards.com English Avenue Yards] , which houses an artist community consisting of approximately 20 studio spaces, the workshop for the Alliance Theatre Company, Atlanta Ballet and Atlanta Opera. In addition new lofts are scheduled to be built by Donald Lee Hollowell Pkwy and Oliver Street, as well as a new Shell gas station that is currently under construction across the street. Problems still remain however as Bankhead is home to numerous public housing projects, and section 8 apartment complexes which the APD (Atlanta Police Dept.) say gave rise to the Atlanta's numerous local Independent Gangs. Such Independent Gangs like YSN, MDC, GMPL, YSM, SRP among others are constantly a thorn in the local police and civic leaders efforts to revitalize the area in Bankhead and suronding areas.

The Bankhead neighborhood has also been the location of one movie shoot, in September 2006. "One Missed Call" (a remake, released in 2008, of a 2004 Japanese horror movie) was partially filmed at the abandoned school building by Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway and English Avenue.

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