Atlanta’s affordable housing strike force wants to fast-track projects

Mayor Andre Dickens’ Affordable Housing Strike Force introduced projects and funding allocations it wants to fast-track during Monday’s Atlanta City Council meeting.

The city council is expected to begin taking up the strike force’s legislative recommendations during its upcoming committee meetings.

Here’s a breakdown of the projects and funding requests:

143 Alabama Street
Legislation was introduced to authorize the acquisition of two final pieces of the land assemblage to allow Invest Atlanta to enter into a development agreement for 143 Alabama Street. The initial request for proposals (RFP) for this project was initially issued in 2016, however development was delayed due to a number of complications. The legislation places 143 Alabama Street back on track to deliver affordable housing while preserving the historic Atlanta Constitution building.

181 Forsyth Street NW
Legislation was introduced seeking the development of 181 Forsyth Street — a city-owned surface-level parking lot next to the Garnett MARTA Station. Invest Atlanta will solicit a developer to build a transit-oriented development with affordable housing units.

$400,000 in Land Bank Funding
Legislation was introduced to allocate $400,000 from the affordable housing trust fund to Metro Atlanta Land Bank Authority to clear the titles of and redevelop vacant sites for use as affordable housing units.

Funding for Public Land Due Diligence
Legislation was introduced to allocate funds and authorize a contract expansion with a city vendor to conduct due diligence on public land sites, positioning the sites to be quickly developed for affordable housing.

Grove Park Housing
Legislation was introduced to transfer single-family parcels in the Grove Park neighborhood to the Metro Atlanta Land Bank Authority to allow the Land Bank to work with a local community development organization which could become a large-scale multi-family affordable housing development.

Dickens convened the Affordable Housing Strike Force earlier this year with a mission to prioritize development projects on publicly-owned land

“Reaching our Administration’s goal of 20,000 affordable units will require expediting the development of public land,” Dickens said in a statement. “Significant collaboration across public agencies and City departments is necessary for projects of this scale, and I am grateful for the Metro Atlanta Land Bank Authority, MARTA, Invest Atlanta, members of our Housing Strike Force and everyone else for making today’s legislation possible.”

According to the mayor’s office, 1,240 affordable units in Atlanta have been completed. There are an additional 4,044 affordable units currently under construction.