Macon's most ambitious neighborhood revitalization effort has gone from moving paper to moving dirt.

Streets and sidewalks in phase one of the project will be renovated by the end of the year. The rebuilding of a centerpiece bridge could begin soon after. And developers are starting to sign up.

The work is one of the first signs of construction in a multi-million-dollar renaissance planned for Beall's Hill, the area between Mercer University, Mount de Sales Academy and the headquarters of the Macon-Bibb County Fire Department.

Those involved in restoring this historic neighborhood say their effort is a historic partnership of public, nonprofit and private groups, and one that could result in at least $70 million in new construction.

About $600,000 has been allocated for street renovations, said Greg Popham, who is helping oversee the work for the city. That includes new sidewalks, crosswalks, curbs, landscaping, street lighting, bike lanes, and street resurfacing.

The money comes from about $3 million in bonds issued by the city in 2001 and another $6 million from Mercer, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the federal government, Popham said.

Additionally, 13 existing homes were given a face-lift last month, thanks to about $196,000 from the same sources.

All of those homes are on blocks in the phase one area, and Popham says they'll be used as showpieces to entice developers - to show them what the neighborhood can become.

"They hear it. It sounds good," said Popham, whose primary job as executive director of the Beall's Hill Development Corp. is to lure developers. "But they keep waiting for the first person to make that step."

Popham acknowledges that developers might have to be nudged a bit more into the first of five planned stages. For example, he said, lots in phase one have been discounted as much as 32 percent, and many of the takers were already associated with the project.

Of the 36 new single-family homes planned for the first phase, 11 likely will be done by not-for-profits such as Habitat for Humanity or corporation partners such as Mercer.

The test is to get private and out-of-town developers to bite. Three companies have committed to the area thus far, including one Midwest firm that plans to build seven town homes in phase one, Popham said.

"That's an important milestone," said John Hiscox, executive director of the Macon Housing Authority. "I wish it were moving more quickly. ... Patience is not my greatest virtue."

But Hiscox adds that "very solid progress" is being made, and he said a process invented by Beall's Hill partners to speed developers through the work of acquiring property titles has been nominated for a prestigious statewide award. (The winner will be announced today.)

The process is important because, though many new developments start from the ground up, this one involves building many new homes in a neighborhood that dates back more than 100 years.

To protect the history of the area, the corporation controls how new homes will look: the slope of the roof, the size of the porch, the direction the house faces, many of the materials used, the colors chosen and a host of other particulars.

The strict guidelines - and a process for expediting building permits - could be approved by the Macon-Bibb County Planning & Zoning Commission early next year.

The commission also could approve smaller lot sizes for higher density housing, signaling a move away from suburban guidelines and toward what is being called "new urbanism" - or as Popham says, "annexation" growth by building within existing city limits.

Popham is setting out to have about 25 single-family detached homes sold in the 60-acre neighborhood each year, at a price of between $95,000 and $230,000.

After the first phases, the project should support development without the aid of bond money or grants, he said. Studies show the market would support about 90,000 square feet of commercial development, which is the next step, Popham said.

An important piece of phase one is a $460,000 reconstruction of a bridge over Hazel Street, Popham said. He said that like a man-made lake or a golf course in suburbia, the rebuilt bridge - exclusively for pedestrians - would become a focal point for developers.

For more information, visit www.beallshill.net/.