It took Brookhaven about eight years to own all of Brookhaven Park at 4158 Peachtree Road NE. Since then the city has used it in a way the original master plan never described. The most popular spot in the park this year is not the tall playground or the dog splash pad. It is a concrete slab where a county office building stood until last November. That slab has no permanent plan, and that is why the park can now hold the city's largest gatherings.
The record shows how that happened, and it also shows why the next decision about the slab will shape the park for years.
A Park With Two Owners, Settled for a Dollar
For most of Brookhaven's history as a city, the park was two parcels with two owners. Brookhaven bought the western half in 2017 for $992, and DeKalb County kept the eastern half along Peachtree Road, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The county had considered building a library on its half. In January 2021 Brookhaven sued, arguing that state law required DeKalb to hand over county parkland inside the new city's limits, the AJC reported.
Here is how the pieces came together:
| Date | Step | What it settled |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | City buys western half for $992 | Brookhaven controls the back of the park |
| January 2021 | City sues DeKalb County | Ownership of the Peachtree Road frontage is disputed |
| April 26, 2022 | Council approves settlement | Eastern parcel transfers for $1; city pledges $1.6 million toward a future county library in Brookhaven |
| Feb. 25 council meeting | Separate agreement with Claratel Behavioral Health | Former DeKalb Services Center building goes to the city |
| November 2025 | Building demolished | Slab and sidewalks left in place |
The library pledge came with a condition. The $1.6 million is payable only after the county picks a site and starts construction. The building was handled in its own deal. When DeKalb gave up the land, it kept the Services Center building, and Claratel was operating there. That is why Decaturish covered a second agreement to bring the structure under city control.
The $8.8 Million Version Opened Before the Map Was Finished
The city started building before it owned everything. After the 2022 settlement, Rough Draft Atlanta reported that construction could move ahead under the park master plan, which called for better parking, dog park updates, a new pavilion and playground upgrades.
That work grew into an $8.8 million park bond project. Unsuitable soil and utility coordination held it up, and as late as October 2024 Rough Draft was reporting a December finish. The listed scope included three pavilions, a dog park and dog splash pad, an expanded playground with restrooms, a walking path, a stage, a lighted parking lot, stormwater changes and a community garden.
The park reopened in November 2024. The city's newsletter described one of the tallest Kompan playgrounds in the U.S., a larger parking lot, a turfed play area, pavilions, the new garden and restrooms on the non-dog-park side. On the dog park side, it listed improved walkways, fresh turf and a doggy splash pad.
Even with all that new equipment, a county-era office building still stood out front along Peachtree Road for another year.
The Building Came Down, and the Slab Stayed
On Nov. 4, 2025, KMD Management brought an excavator to the Claratel Services Building, the former DeKalb Services Center, and started tearing it down. Demolition was done by mid-November. The crew left the sidewalks and the concrete slab in place. Decaturish reported that the city had set aside $500,000 for the demolition.
District 3 Council Member Madeleine Simmons was open about what came next. In the city newsletter she said:
"While there are no definite long-term plans for this area of the park, we are excited that it will be available for the Holidays in the 'Haven ice skating rink which begins next month."
Leaving the slab was a practical choice. A flat, paved area with sidewalks already running to it can take a rink, food trucks or a stage without any new construction. Once the city owned both halves of the park, the frontage had no permanent job, so it could take any temporary one.
A Blank Slab Has Already Drawn 18,000 People
The holiday event shows what that open space can do. The first Holidays in the 'Haven ran at Brookhaven Park from Dec. 7, 2024, through Jan. 5, 2025, with activities Friday through Sunday. The building was still there that season.
The second season ran Dec. 20, 2025, through Jan. 4, 2026, about a month after the demolition. It had an ice rink, inflatables and bounce houses, and food trucks. According to the city's January 2026 departmental report, more than 18,000 people came over those two weeks. The second season was roughly half as long as the first, and it still drew a crowd larger than many small towns.
The city has not announced dates for a third season. The past two winters show a pattern, but neither one commits the city to a 2026 rink.
October Was the Test of a Bigger Crowd
This year the city brought one of its signature festivals to the park. The fourth annual Brookhaven International Festival was scheduled for Oct. 17 and 18 at Brookhaven Park, which the city's festival announcement called "the event's new location." The city booked Cumbiatron to headline Saturday and the K-pop group DROP to headline Sunday.
The festival began in 2023 as the city's first major event along the Buford Highway Cultural Corridor. Moving it to Peachtree Road was a real change. To handle the crowd, the city planned free shuttles from Apple Valley Road behind the MARTA parking lot. The Sunday 5K benefiting We Love Buford Highway stayed on the Peachtree Creek Greenway at 1793 Briarwood Road. According to Executive Director Lily Pabian, that race supports the group's free Buford Highway Orchestra Program, which has served 96 young musicians.
The council members quoted in the announcement explained the move in terms of ownership. Mayor Pro-Tem and District 4 Council Member John Funny pointed to MARTA and shuttle access. Simmons said:
"Brookhaven Park is ready to show off some of its amazing improvements to a wider audience since the City became its official owner!"
The festival's program called for live performances, art installations, international food, a Kidz Zone and a global marketplace, all at a park that became a single city property only after the frontage changed hands and the old building came down.
What the Next Few Weekends Look Like
The park has a few quiet weeks after the festival, and the city's fall and winter events move to other parks:
- Paint the Park, Saturday, Nov. 7, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Rain postponed it, and it now takes place at Lynwood Park, 3360 Osborne Road. Canvases and supplies are first come, first served, and artists can bring their own. King of Pops and face painting are part of the day. Prizes go to three age groups, 7 and under, 8 to 13, and 14 and up, and winners appear in the city's Paint the Park calendar.
- Light Up Brookhaven, Thursday, Dec. 3, 6 to 9 p.m. The city calendar puts it at Blackburn Park, 3493 Ashford Dunwoody Road. Check that listing before you go in case the location is updated.
- Holidays in the 'Haven. The last two seasons began in December at Brookhaven Park. For 2026, wait for the city to announce dates.
Brookhaven Park's own amenities stay open through these weeks. That includes the Kompan playground, the turfed play area, the community garden and the off-leash dog park with its splash pad. The city's January report also mentions permanent water work for the community garden.
The Footprint Still Has No Name
Every step so far shows the city taking the park over one piece at a time: land, then equipment, then the building, then the events. The slab is the one piece still undecided. When Claratel relocated, Rough Draft reported in February 2025 that the city planned to reclaim the land, but no specific use was named. Simmons's "no definite long-term plans" is still the latest word on the record.
If the frontage stays open, it can keep hosting rinks, stages and food truck rows. A permanent amenity there would limit what the park can hold at that scale. Any council item about that footprint is worth following for anyone who walks to Brookhaven Park.
Whether you live near Brookhaven Park or are thinking about a home within walking distance of Peachtree Road, I'm happy to talk through what changes like this mean for your block. Josephine Traina has followed Brookhaven's parks and its real estate market through more than three decades of Atlanta real estate, and every closed transaction includes a $500 donation to Gateway Center. Book Your 15–30 Minute Consultation.
