"I hope it exists forever," Diana Powers told Atlanta Magazine this spring. Her parents helped found the Lake Claire Community Land Trust, and she grew up on the land. "But there's part of me that's really afraid it won't."
Candler Park Fall Fest wrapped up on October 3 and 4, and its website already says "See you in 2027." A few blocks away at 270 Arizona Ave NE, the Land Trust's calendar keeps going through the end of the month. The land is protected for good. Keeping it running depends on volunteers, and every event between now and Halloween is a chance for a new neighbor to get involved.
A Conservation Easement Covers the Land, Not the Labor
Lake Claire families founded the Land Trust in 1983. In 1986 they bought 1.5 acres from MARTA for neighborhood greenspace. Founder Norman Glassman's history puts the price for the three parcels at $26,500. The IRS granted 501(c)(3) status in 2008. A grant added the neighboring pond in 2009, and a 2012 conservation easement now protects the land permanently. The trust's homepage now describes a 1.7-acre site with more than 50 community garden beds, a children's garden, a playground, an amphitheater stage and the pond. Atlanta Magazine still calls it one and a half acres. The gap probably comes from the pond addition, so the honest answer is somewhere between the two figures.
That easement settles the development question. According to Atlanta Magazine's May 2026 feature, the trust is the only undeveloped property on DeKalb Avenue. The same article says that while the trust looks like a public park, it is privately owned and governed by a five-member volunteer board of trustees. There's no formal membership, dues or buy-in.
The magazine reported that few of the original trustees are still involved. Board chair Miriam Herbers and Bernard Spenle, who maintains the structures, have tended the land for decades. Powers recently joined the board. "We're still trying to find the young people who can come and make it their own," she told the magazine. The trust's own site says it depends heavily on volunteers and donations.
The Rest of October, Sorted by What It Asks of You
The October listings on the Land Trust's events page do more than fill a month. They offer several ways in, from doing nothing but bringing a blanket to signing up for regular work. Here's what's left as of October 12.
| Date | Event | Time | What it asks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, Oct. 13 | Monthly Community Potluck | 6 to 8 p.m. | A dish, dessert or drink to share, plus your own plate, cup and utensils |
| Saturday, Oct. 17 | Community Work Day | 9 a.m. to noon | Work gloves and drinking water |
| Sunday, Oct. 18 | Sunday Slow Down with John Mickelson & Rex Hussman | 5:30 to 8 p.m. | A blanket or lawn chair. Free |
| Saturday, Oct. 24 | WEST Annual LCCLT Fundraiser, "Neil's Dead Phish" | 5 to 10 p.m. | A $10 donation at the door |
| Sunday, Oct. 25 | Pumpkin Carving | 3 to 5 p.m. | Kids, knives and candles. The trust provides the pumpkins |
| Sunday, Oct. 25 | Halloween Sunday Slow Down with The Noisy Neighbors and The Mid-Rangers | 5 to 8 p.m. | A blanket or lawn chair. Free |
Families with children 6 and under can also go to the Monday Nature Play Group. It meets from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. every Monday except the first of the month, for a $10 drop-in or $15 monthly contribution per family.
The easiest place to start is the music. The trust calls Sunday Slow Down a free neighborhood series with local musicians from Lake Claire and surrounding communities on the amphitheater stage, every Sunday in October. The general listing gives 5:30 to 8 p.m., and the Halloween edition on October 25 starts earlier, at 5. The lineups range from folk, bluegrass and Americana to country, rock and jam. The October 18 show is billed as "Strings & Keys," with guitar and piano from Mickelson and Hussman. The trust describes both as neighborhood music teachers. So the performers come from the same blocks as the audience.
The Potluck and the Work Day Go Back to the Beginning
Two items on the calendar are older than any concert series. Atlanta Magazine reported that from the start, the founding families "hosted weekend work parties and regular potlucks, with a devotion to land stewardship and strong neighbor relationships."
Both are back in 2026. The trust's listing says, "We're excited to bring back our monthly Community Potluck Dinners!" They'll be held on the 13th of every month at 6 p.m. on the Greenfield, or under the Gorilla Grill if it rains. The Gorilla Grill is the site's only indoor space. It also hosts board meetings and Friday Night Jams, and its covered patio handles food and drinks during festivals.
The Community Work Day is on the third Saturday of every month, with the fourth Saturday as the rain date. The trust lists the tasks as weeding, spreading wood chips and special projects. Its own description makes the case for coming: "The Land Trust was created by countless hours of volunteer labor. That tradition continues with our Community Work Day." If October 17 rains out, the work day moves to October 24, the same day as the evening fundraiser.
Of everything on the list, the work day answers the Atlanta Magazine piece most directly. Powers said the trust needs people who will make the place their own, and three hours on a Saturday morning is how a regular visitor becomes a volunteer.
WEST Has Played Here Since 2005
The fundraiser on October 24 shows how the trust raises money. The neighborhood band WEST, formerly Webster, has played the Land Trust since the DeKalb Avenue mural project in 2005. People commonly call it the venue's house band, and it has raised meaningful funds for the greenspace over the years. This year's theme is "Neil's Dead Phish," and the local band FunkMaysons joins the bill.
That mural has its own history. The November 2005 Lake Claire neighborhood newsletter described a 340-foot "Watershed Mural" planned along DeKalb Avenue between Connecticut and Arizona avenues, focused on the area's watershed and natural history.
"The Land Trust is our Greek Theater," founding member and Lake Claire resident Bill Chanler says in the trust's event listing. "There's no place like it around. It brings out our best music and the engaged audience makes it a uniquely fun experience."
Paying for the place through shows is an old habit. Atlanta Magazine traced it through the Peace and Love Springfest, which started in 1986, and the Jerry Jam, which began in 2009. Before the trust had nonprofit status, members built and sold wooden Adirondack chairs to pay a property tax bill. Each $10 at the gate on October 24 carries on the same model.
The magazine also described drum circles on the first Saturday evening of every month. Neighbors have held them since early 1991. Check the trust's site for the next date before you go.
Pumpkin Night Is the Easy Ask
October 25 is the most family-friendly day on the calendar. The pumpkin carving listing reads, "Bring kids, knives and candles. We provide the pumpkins!" It ends by inviting everyone to photograph the jack-o'-lantern lineup afterward. The trust also asks for cleanup volunteers through [email protected]. Two hours later, the Halloween Sunday Slow Down starts on the amphitheater stage with The Noisy Neighbors and The Mid-Rangers.
Neighbors who come for the pumpkins get a lineup to photograph. The trust gets help putting the place back together afterward.
What's Open, and What Isn't, on the Way Over
If you're coming from the Candler Park side, the corner of McLendon Avenue and Clifton Road is still a promise. Little Tart Bakeshop's announced Candler Park cafe will take over the former Kelly's Closet at 1643 McLendon Ave NE, according to What Now Atlanta. Midi, the owners' new concept, will go in next door. The AJC described Midi as sandwiches, salads, small bites, wine, cocktails and soft serve. As of October 8, Rough Draft Atlanta still called Midi upcoming and expected it to open "later this fall." Little Tart's own site still lists only its Grant Park, Krog Street and Summerhill cafes.
Kirkwood neighbors heading north have two newer options for after a show. WABE reported in August that Jolene Jolene, Atlanta's first women's sports bar and restaurant, is open at 1963 Hosea L. Williams Drive SE. The Infatuation's openings guide lists Beefies as a September arrival at 225 Rogers St. NE, in the former Peckish space. For more on the streets around the trust, see our Intown East neighborhood guide.
The trust's site lists monthly donations and annual supporter options for anyone who would rather give than weed. The next potluck is tomorrow, October 13, at 6 p.m. on the Greenfield, with your own plate.
Places like the Land Trust shape what living in Lake Claire and Candler Park feels like, and we pay attention to that when we talk about value on these blocks. If you own a home within earshot of the amphitheater and want to know what it's worth right now, Molly Carter Gaines will put together a home valuation built on your actual street.
