Demolition day is here for long-troubled Forest Cove Apartments in Atlanta

ATLANTA — It’s the beginning of the end for a long-troubled apartment community in Atlanta. Demolition of the shut-down Forest Cove Apartments began on Wednesday.

Channel 2′s Tyisha Fernandes was there as crews began tearing down some of the buildings.

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Since 2015, Forest Cove has been a focal point of several stories by Channel 2 Action News.

Since October, the apartment community has caught fire at least four times.

“This is the end of multiple decades of dilapidation and troublesome apartment complexes,” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens.

Watching the demolition was an emotional moment for the mayor, who has been fighting for the residents of Forest Cove for more than a decade when he was on the Atlanta City Council.

He visited residents in the community several times over the last 10 years who were living with no running water, no heat and had infestations of rats, roaches and more.

“I literally shed tears as I was driving away just thinking about what would my life be if I lived in these conditions and I had to cry for help over and over again and nothing meaningful was done,” Mayor Dickens said.

RELATED STORIES:

• Atlanta Mayor’s office confirms plan for Forest Cove to be bulldozed within 3 months
• Atlanta officials delay Forest Cove demolition after asbestos discovered during environmental review
• Last households at Forest Cove Apartments move out as city works to restore complex
• Mayor approves $1.5 million to help move people out of rundown Atlanta apartment complex

Crews started tearing down some of the buildings but will have to wait on others after they found asbestos and will have to follow a different process.

Business owners in the area gave the mayor a lot of credit for making it happen.

“It needs to go a little further,” Kecia McNease said. “A lot of them are uneducated and don’t have the resources that they need to have, so hopefully this will be a first step to getting them jobs and helping them get more education where they can do better.”

Demolition is expected to last about six weeks.

The City of Atlanta is inviting developers to share ideas for what should fill the space. They say they’re open to anything that would revitalize the area and elevate the folks in the area.

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Demolition Day starts at Atlanta's Forest Cove Apartment complex

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