Cascade Heights is located in southwest Atlanta. Once known as an affluent white neighborhood, Cascade Heights of Atlanta was drawn into a nationwide controversy after Black families began moving into the segregated neighborhood in the early 1960s. At the urging of the area's white citizens, then-mayor Ivan Allen, Jr. called for the construction of a concrete barrier designed to block Black homebuyers from the Peyton Road access to Cascade Heights in Georgia. This proved an ill-advised move on the Atlanta mayor's part, and the barrier was eventually judged unconstitutional and ultimately destroyed. The historic incident is known as the Peyton Road Affair. Although Cascade Heights remains an affluent neighborhood, today its residents are predominantly African-American. Well-known figures residing in Cascade Heights of Atlanta include Hank Aaron, Atlanta mayor Shirley Franklin and former UN Ambassador Andrew Young.
Recent years have seen a westward expansion in Cascade Heights, as the neighborhood has moved towards I-285 by adding new subdivisions and retail centers.
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