Issue link: http://maconmagazine.uberflip.com/i/1536125
58 maconmagazine.com | June/July 2025 to Macon, and protect the physical memory of one of our community's most celebrated legacies. Because of federal regulations like NEPA, GDOT was required to provide mitigation for potential negative impacts of interstate construction. After a series of community meetings, GDOT agreed to relocate Little Richard's childhood home as part of their larger mitigation plan. Construction crews worked to prepare the house for relocation, removing the roof and separating the home from its foundation before loading it up for a short, albeit unusual journey to the other side of the interstate But Little Richard's childhood home was just one of many homes affected by the creation and expansion of I-75 through Pleasant Hill. All in all, the Georgia Department of Transportation agreed to relocate, rehabilitate, or re-construct a total of 26 homes, create two parks, add improved sound a visual buffering, and create a virtual library of resident experiences and stories. While these mitigation efforts may have counteracted some potential problems created by the interstate expansion, there is simply no denying the continued impact of interstate construction through one of Macon's most culturally significant neighborhoods. A quick drive down Walnut Street will show ongoing unfinished work along a pedestrian bridge that crosses the interstate. L O C A L L E S S O N S Pleasant Hill is still reckoning with damage created from the original construction of I-75 that split the neighborhood in two, and the relocation of the Little Richard Penniman house represents one of many ongoing challenges nearly 50 years on. Through the hard-fought fight to protect the character of our community, the relocation of Little Richard's home "Our communities are more than just the roads that travel through them. Our communities are the people who live here, and who lived here before us." RIGHT A major effort was made to preserve and relocate the house. Photo from "Pleasant Hill History and GDOT" project on Facebook. LEFT The condition of the Little Richard House before the revitalization process. Photo from "Pleasant Hill History and GDOT" project on Facebook.