The block of College Avenue between Broad and Clayton now has brick pavers where the asphalt used to be. It also has mature trees, shade sails strung overhead, new lighting, and tables and benches set out for anyone walking by. At the corner of Washington and Lumpkin, the old parking lot beside the Costa Building is now a small park. Flagpole reported that it sits below a mural by Miami artist Elio Mercado and Athens artist Brodrick Flanigan celebrating local Black musicians and entrepreneurs.
Downtown spent 2026 turning pavement into places to sit, and this fall's calendar is built around those places. Wild Rumpus on Saturday ends its parade on the stretch of Washington Street that runs up to that new park. The Parade of Lights on Dec. 3 finishes at the City Hall stage right next door. College Square handles the everyday use in between.
How a Covid-Era Street Closure Became a $6.5 Million Plaza
Athens-Clarke County closed the block to cars in October 2020 as part of its Covid-19 response, as a six-month pilot that turned the street into a pedestrian and dining plaza. In spring 2021, the Mayor and Commission voted to keep it closed permanently.
The arguments over the block are older than the pandemic. When the Athens Downtown Development Authority pitched the redesign in 2024, Flagpole reported that some merchants had opposed closing it in earlier decades because it meant losing 16 parking spaces. In that same report, ADDA's David Lynn said he had heard no calls to reopen the road since the closure.
From there, the timeline went like this:
- Nov. 6, 2024: The Mayor and Commission approved an intergovernmental agreement with the ADDA to redesign the square for the long term.
- January 2026: Crews were ready to tear up the block, replace the asphalt with brick pavers and remove the trees, with new mature trees to follow. "Phase One is going to be jarring," Lynn told Flagpole. "It's going to be a complete demolition."
- April 2026: Georgia Power asked to pause the work for five weeks so it could replace equipment in two underground vaults. That would have pushed completion from early September to mid-October. Flagpole reported that county project manager Diana Jackson was working on an alternate plan that would add $80,000 to the cost and keep the schedule.
- Early September 2026: The square opened for public use before the first UGA home game.
- Oct. 24, 2026: The county scheduled the formal opening with an 11 a.m. ribbon cutting, Squarefest from 1 to 4 p.m., and an evening concert by the 1990s tribute band BTBTE.
According to the county's announcement, the project cost about $6.5 million. The ADDA paid for most of it through financing and parking revenue. SPLOST and TSPLOST funds put in $900,000, and the county added about $1 million for streetscape items. So downtown parking revenue largely paid to turn a former parking block into a plaza. The work isn't finished, either: the county says minor improvements and installations will continue through early 2027.
What the Square Is For on an Ordinary Afternoon
The county built College Square for daily relaxation as well as large events, and most days look like the first of those. The ADDA's project site describes it as a place to walk, linger and connect, and the shade sails are a big part of that. The old block was mostly bare pavement. The new one gives you shade and a table, and a reason to stay.
The ADA-accessible connections matter too. The county describes the square as a link between major downtown destinations and the University of Georgia, which makes it the natural crossing point at the north end of downtown.
For coffee on the square, Sunroof Coffee opened at 198 College Ave. in March, the same season the block was being torn up for the rebuild.
The Park at Washington and Lumpkin Took Longer
The second new space opened later than planned. In January, Flagpole reported that the pocket park in the old Costa Building parking lot was expected to open in March. The Costa Building had just been renovated and now houses Athens-Clarke County government offices. The park plan included a stage for live music, and Mayor Kelly Girtz suggested it would suit AthFest's kid-friendly programming.
By April the opening had slipped. Flagpole reported that officials toured the site with the original designers, who found that the contractor had installed the walkways incorrectly and planted the wrong, non-native species. By late June, Flagpole was calling it newly opened.
The park may get a name soon. At a Juneteenth festival, Historic Athens formally submitted a petition to name it Richardson-Davis Park, after Alf Richardson and Madison Davis. In 1868 they became the first two African Americans from Athens elected to the Georgia legislature. Flagpole reported that the petition had 1,000 signatures and counting. The name still needs approval from the ACC Commission, which Mayor Girtz called all but certain. Richardson-Davis is the proposed name for now. Michael Thurmond, Athens' third Black state representative, told the Juneteenth crowd he decided to run for office after coming across a dissertation about the two men at the UGA library in the 1970s.
The location matters as much as the name. Both of downtown's biggest parades this season finish within steps of Washington and Lumpkin.
Saturday Night, Wild Rumpus Ends at the New Park
Wild Rumpus XVIII takes over downtown on Saturday, Oct. 31. The parade steps off at 8 p.m. sharp from the corner of West Hancock and Pulaski, next to Creature Comforts Brewing Co. It winds through downtown and ends on West Washington Street between Pulaski and Lumpkin. That stretch hosts the spectacle: multiple stages, fire and trapeze performers, dance and step troupes, and a street dance party that runs until 11 p.m. Admission is free and all ages are welcome.
The plan for the night:
- Before the parade: The official Rumpus Rally meetup is at Creature Comforts.
- Festival zone, 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.: Washington Street will be barricaded from Pulaski up to Lumpkin, which ends at the new park's corner.
- Wristbands: The event's rules require a wristband and 21+ ID to drink beer or wine outdoors inside the zone. Wristbands are sold at Creature Comforts, Paloma Park, Cheba Hut, Rook & Pawn, Ted's Most Best, Trappeze Pub, Flicker, Clocked and El Paso Tacos + Tequila. Organizers note that drinking outdoors outside the zone is illegal.
- Main stage: The Booty Boys return, with DJ Ellwin opening. The Treatster second stage has DJs Charlie Flower and De La Luna, Belli Dance Company, Danza Azteca, Homicyde Step Team and Dance FX.
- Food: The Union Fare food truck park sits next to the Treatster stage and the Historic Morton Theatre.
- After midnight: The Midnight Howl and Rumpus Rave after-parties are both at Paloma Park Athens.
The festival zone is all on Washington Street, so College Square stays outside the barricades. On Saturday night it is the quieter end of downtown.
November Fills In Between the Two Parades
Between Halloween and the holidays, the busiest spot on that end of Washington is Union Fare. Its outdoor Fare Grounds are at 169 W. Washington, and the indoor space is at 166 W. Clayton. The Union Fare calendar lists watch parties for UGA at South Carolina on Nov. 21 and UGA vs. Georgia Tech on Nov. 28, plus a Thanksgiving Eve event on Nov. 25 at 9 p.m.
Groups hoping to ride in the Parade of Lights have a deadline that falls inside this stretch. The county takes entry applications until Tuesday, Nov. 3, at 5 p.m., the fee is $40, and late entries are not accepted. Details are at accgov.com/parade.
Dec. 3, the Same Starting Corner and a Finish Next Door
The 2026 Downtown Parade of Lights is Thursday, Dec. 3, at 7 p.m. This year's theme is "Holiday Party." The parade usually draws more than 80 floats and performing units, competing for prizes like Most Original Float and Best Use of Lights, and the best overall float takes the Mayor's Award.
It starts at Hancock Avenue and Pulaski Street, the same corner where Wild Rumpus steps off. It ends in front of the stage at City Hall for the traditional tree lighting. The new park sits next door to City Hall, so this year's tree lighting happens right beside it, five weeks after Wild Rumpus fills the Washington Street blocks up to the same corner.
Wherever you watch from this season, whether that's the College Square shade sails, the curb on Washington Street or the new park under the Washington Street mural, our team at Sold by Ashley & Associates is always glad to hear what's changing downtown. If a move is on your mind, from an in-town Athens home near these blocks to somewhere across Northeast Georgia, Schedule a Consultation and we'll walk you through what comes next.
