The EcoCommons supports the research pedagogy of the university through environmental monitoring of habitat, air quality, water quality, and soil percolation, fostering Georgia Tech's sustainability initiatives and providing research opportunities for students and faculty. The stormwater is captured on site for reuse and infiltration. This capture and reuse reduces stormwater flows into the city sewer system by 50% from the previous conditions. In addition to its ecological and scientific purpose, the EcoCommons highlights a significant story of the site.

During the research and discovery phase, the design team learned that the site had been home to the Pickrick Diner, an important place in civil rights history. On July 3, 1964, one day after the passing of the landmark Civil Rights Act, George Willis Jr, Albert Lee Dunn, and Woodrow T. Lewis, three local Black students, asked to be seated in the Pickrick Diner. The owner of the diner, Lester Maddox, incited a mob and threatened violence against the students, who then departed peaceably. This event led to the first federal lawsuit which upheld by the Civil Rights Act.

Unity Plaza is a commemorative space dedicated to the agency and bravery of Willis, Dunn, and Lewis, acknowledging the history of racial injustice on-site and providing space for reflection, commemoration, and inspiration.