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Buford Highway
Buford Highway (also Buford Highway Corridor), a.k.a. the DeKalb International Corridor, and in the 1990–2000's as the DeKalb County International Village district, is a community and major arterial road northeast of the city of Atlanta, celebrated for its ethnic diversity and spanning multiple counties including Fulton, DeKalb, and Gwinnett counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. The area generally spans along and on either side of a stretch of Georgia State Route 13 (SR 13) in DeKalb County. It begins just north of Midtown Atlanta, continues northeast through the towns of Brookhaven, Chamblee, Doraville, and Norcross. The name of the corridor originates from the name of the highway which connects to the city of Buford. Creative Loafing's Atlanta edition named Buford Highway Atlanta's "best neighborhood for diversity" in their March 2012 Neighborhood Guide. The population exceeds 50,000.
Buford Highway is an ethnically diverse, linear community made up of apartment complexes, suburban neighborhoods and shopping centers. Similar to other sun belt cities, immigrants who relocated to Atlanta in the 20th and 21st centuries went straight to the suburbs, where residential and commercial real estate was affordable and where many second-generation immigrant communities were already established. Along Buford Highway, there are few wholly distinct ethnic areas. The more than 1,000 immigrant-owned businesses are owned by and patronized by a wide variety of ethnic groups, notably Korean, Mexican, Chinese, and Vietnamese, and also Indian, Bangladeshi, Central American, Somali, and Ethiopian. The DeKalb County Chamber of Commerce calls the area the "International Corridor."
The Buford Highway community is home to one of the highest concentration of foreign-born residents in the country, notably Mexican, Central American, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese. The area attracted many Latino workers during the construction boom that preceded the 1996 Olympic Games. Asian business owners were attracted to the stretch of highway by cheap leases and reliable traffic flow.
In 2017, the man who came up with the idea for the BeltLine ring of trails around Atlanta, Ryan Gravel, announced that he would turn his attention to Buford Highway. His new non-profit named "Generator" would partner with another non-profit, We Love BuHi, to find ways to celebrate the diversity of the community and preserve its culture, with the aim of coming with realistic civic proposals around issues such as gentrification, transit and affordability.
Often described as one of the most culturally diverse corridors in the Southeastern United States, Buford Highway has become a key point for immigrant communities from Latin America, East Asia, and West Africa. This diversity is reflected in the numerous international markets, language-specific services, and community organizations that line the route. The corridor is frequently referred to as an “international village,” attracting visitors seeking global cuisine and cultural experiences. According to regional planning studies, more than 20 languages are spoken in neighborhoods surrounding the highway, making it one of the most linguistically diverse areas in Metro Atlanta.The growth of immigrant-owned businesses has played a central role in shaping the area’s identity, contributing significantly to its economic activity and cultural visibility across the region.
Buford Highway originated as a non-descript state roadway connecting Atlanta and points northeast, including the then-railroad towns of Chamblee and Doraville, as well as points farther north. The towns of Doraville, Chamblee and Norcross had long been home to a blue collar, largely white, lower middle-class population. The highway was characterized by strip mall development, and apartment complexes sprouted up in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1976 the first ethnic restaurant opened, the Havana Sandwich Shop. In the 1980s, immigrants settled in the area due to affordable housing, available public transportation, and proximity to construction jobs in growing Gwinnett County. The area attracted many Latino workers during the construction boom that preceded the 1996 Olympic Games. Asian business owners were attracted to the stretch of highway by cheap leases and reliable traffic flow.
During the 1996 Olympics, Chamblee embraced the growing international character of Buford Highway, while more conservative Doraville resisted it. As the Southern Foodways Alliance reported:
"Why would we want to attract more immigrants when we got all we want?" asked Doraville mayor Lamar Lang to the press. "That's just not our way of life here," agreed the city council. "We’re basically Baptists and Methodists and Presbyterians."
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Buford Highway
Buford Highway (also Buford Highway Corridor), a.k.a. the DeKalb International Corridor, and in the 1990–2000's as the DeKalb County International Village district, is a community and major arterial road northeast of the city of Atlanta, celebrated for its ethnic diversity and spanning multiple counties including Fulton, DeKalb, and Gwinnett counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. The area generally spans along and on either side of a stretch of Georgia State Route 13 (SR 13) in DeKalb County. It begins just north of Midtown Atlanta, continues northeast through the towns of Brookhaven, Chamblee, Doraville, and Norcross. The name of the corridor originates from the name of the highway which connects to the city of Buford. Creative Loafing's Atlanta edition named Buford Highway Atlanta's "best neighborhood for diversity" in their March 2012 Neighborhood Guide. The population exceeds 50,000.
Buford Highway is an ethnically diverse, linear community made up of apartment complexes, suburban neighborhoods and shopping centers. Similar to other sun belt cities, immigrants who relocated to Atlanta in the 20th and 21st centuries went straight to the suburbs, where residential and commercial real estate was affordable and where many second-generation immigrant communities were already established. Along Buford Highway, there are few wholly distinct ethnic areas. The more than 1,000 immigrant-owned businesses are owned by and patronized by a wide variety of ethnic groups, notably Korean, Mexican, Chinese, and Vietnamese, and also Indian, Bangladeshi, Central American, Somali, and Ethiopian. The DeKalb County Chamber of Commerce calls the area the "International Corridor."
The Buford Highway community is home to one of the highest concentration of foreign-born residents in the country, notably Mexican, Central American, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese. The area attracted many Latino workers during the construction boom that preceded the 1996 Olympic Games. Asian business owners were attracted to the stretch of highway by cheap leases and reliable traffic flow.
In 2017, the man who came up with the idea for the BeltLine ring of trails around Atlanta, Ryan Gravel, announced that he would turn his attention to Buford Highway. His new non-profit named "Generator" would partner with another non-profit, We Love BuHi, to find ways to celebrate the diversity of the community and preserve its culture, with the aim of coming with realistic civic proposals around issues such as gentrification, transit and affordability.
Often described as one of the most culturally diverse corridors in the Southeastern United States, Buford Highway has become a key point for immigrant communities from Latin America, East Asia, and West Africa. This diversity is reflected in the numerous international markets, language-specific services, and community organizations that line the route. The corridor is frequently referred to as an “international village,” attracting visitors seeking global cuisine and cultural experiences. According to regional planning studies, more than 20 languages are spoken in neighborhoods surrounding the highway, making it one of the most linguistically diverse areas in Metro Atlanta.The growth of immigrant-owned businesses has played a central role in shaping the area’s identity, contributing significantly to its economic activity and cultural visibility across the region.
Buford Highway originated as a non-descript state roadway connecting Atlanta and points northeast, including the then-railroad towns of Chamblee and Doraville, as well as points farther north. The towns of Doraville, Chamblee and Norcross had long been home to a blue collar, largely white, lower middle-class population. The highway was characterized by strip mall development, and apartment complexes sprouted up in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1976 the first ethnic restaurant opened, the Havana Sandwich Shop. In the 1980s, immigrants settled in the area due to affordable housing, available public transportation, and proximity to construction jobs in growing Gwinnett County. The area attracted many Latino workers during the construction boom that preceded the 1996 Olympic Games. Asian business owners were attracted to the stretch of highway by cheap leases and reliable traffic flow.
During the 1996 Olympics, Chamblee embraced the growing international character of Buford Highway, while more conservative Doraville resisted it. As the Southern Foodways Alliance reported:
"Why would we want to attract more immigrants when we got all we want?" asked Doraville mayor Lamar Lang to the press. "That's just not our way of life here," agreed the city council. "We’re basically Baptists and Methodists and Presbyterians."
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