Sylva, Latin for “forest”, describes the dense tree canopy that shades the streets and homes of Sylvan Hills. Once part of the Perkerson and Gilbert land holdings that are believed to date to 1831, Sylvan Hills as a neighborhood was established around 1920 during a post-WWI building boom.
Getting Here
With Sylvan Road as a major artery through the neighborhood’s heart, Sylvan Hills is bordered on the north end by Arden and Deckner Avenues, to the west by Murphy Avenue, to the east by Interstate 75/85 (Downtown Connector), and to the south by Langford Parkway (Hwy 166).
Click here for a list of the streets of Sylvan Hills.
View Sylvan Hills in a larger map
Sylvan Hills continues to be a vibrant, diverse, affordable, and convenient in-town neighborhood located minutes from downtown and midtown Atlanta and the Atlanta Station retail district off of Northside Drive. Sylvan Hills is a popular location for airport professionals because it provides an easy commute to Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport without the air traffic noise. Two Marta stations—Lakewood-Ft. McPherson and Oakland City—are readily accessible on the neighborhood’s western edge—a transportation region that will be connected to Atlanta’s future Beltline project.
Commercial Districts
Commercial districts in the West End neighborhood to the north and the City of East Point’s downtown area to the south provide shopping, dining, and banking opportunities. The Metropolitan Parkway corridor also holds possibilities for future commercial development thanks to neighborhood activists’ efforts to discourage negative businesses and activities and to its investment-encouraging tax allocation district designation. An industrial corridor along the railroad tracks on the neighborhood’s western edge is home to companies such as Kraft Foods/Nabisco and Unilever.
Surrounding Neighborhoods
Capitol View, Capitol View Manor, Westview and Adair Park are three historic neighborhoods north of Sylvan Hills along the Metropolitan Parkway corridor are not just good neighbors but represent some of Atlanta’s earliest suburbs.
Education
Sylvan Hills offers access to educational opportunities at all levels. Perkerson Elementary School at 2040 Brewer Blvd., serves the Sylvan Hills and surrounding neighborhoods. Its principal, Dr. Mable Johnson, is proud that the school as achieved its adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for the school year. Nearby Capitol View Elementary School at 1442 Metropolitan Pkwy., is proud of its AYP achievements and other honors also.
Atlanta Technical College
Sylvan Hills is also home to the Atlanta Technical College and Atlanta Metropolitan College campuses at 1630 Metropolitan Parkway. Although not in the neighborhood but in proximity is the Atlanta University Center, a cluster of historically black colleges and universities, Morehouse, Spelman, and Clark Atlanta, that are in the West End neighborhood to the north. Even Georgia State University in downtown Atlanta and Georgia Tech are easily accessible from Sylvan Hills thanks to MARTA and local roadways.
