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In the heat of last summer, amidst redistricting, an Atlanta municipal election, and a Buckhead secession threat, a rezoning proposal surfaced from city council that sent many Atlantans into a complete tailspin. Sponsored by Councilmember Amir Farokhi and crafted by the city planning department, the stated goal was to increase housing density to promote additional affordable housing. It would have allowed auxiliary dwelling units behind more single family houses, and rezoned all parcels within a half mile radius of MARTA stations to allow multi-family structures, among other changes. After howls of protest from Neighborhood Planning Units, and individuals, the proposal was quietly dropped in December.
Farokhi now says, “If anything goes forward in the future…we should probably take a more scalpel-like approach, especially around MARTA stations,” referring to any increased density.
“Zoning is the most important way to create a denser city.” says Kyle Kessler, policy and research director for the Center for Civic Innovation. “But, I wouldn’t say that any single thing is going to be the path to more affordable housing. Just having more density does not mean that properties suddenly become more affordable.”
There is no question that affordable housing is a current need in Atlanta and it is noble of Farokhi and the city planning department to try to tackle it head on. We certainly have a shortage of housing in all price points, both for renters and home buyers. But according to GSU professor Dan Immergluck, “The biggest problem and biggest need is still low income renters, and it’s been a more severe problem during the pandemic.”
Increasing density would provide more opportunity, but the best way to increase the amount of affordable housing, is to actually build affordable housing. To do this in a costly city like Atlanta requires some type of financial subsidy, be it from the city, state or federal governments. Historically, the Atlanta Housing Authority (AHA) has owned and managed low income public housing projects, financed largely through the federal government. The AHA’s Techwood Homes became the very first federal public housing project built in the nation during the Roosevelt administration in 1935, and was long considered a model for low income housing around the country. But gradually large projects like Techwood, Bankhead Homes, and Capitol Homes deteriorated and had a variety of problems resulting from concentrated poverty.
In the 80’s, President Ronald Reagan changed federally funded public housing to a model where low income families could qualify for what became known as Section 8 housing. Payments to landlords were used to make up the difference between what an eligible tenant could afford and the fair market rental value of an eligible apartment. We still have this program and it works well for some families. But many apartment units are outside the city of Atlanta, far from family and friends, mass transit, and other safety net amenities that help lower income families survive. In any case, there is a long waiting list for Section 8 housing.
Consequently, businesses are having difficulty finding lower wage workers. It’s hard for someone making $10 an hour to get to a job downtown from an area with inadequate or no transit, 10 or 20 miles from the job. Most Atlantans see value in a vibrant, economically mixed city where all are able to live, work and thrive. Most importantly, we recognize that everyone deserves a stable, safe, and affordable place to live.
Atlanta is an expensive city that is quickly approaching the cost of living of New York City, or Chicago. But because we are a newer city, we don’t have an established record of affordable housing that is subsidized by local or state entities, such as the rent control system of apartments in New York City. To tackle this problem now requires a concerted effort by governmental entities, developers and citizens to move the needle and create more affordable housing.
Acquiring land and the cost of building today has risen dramatically in Atlanta over the last decade. Private developers demand a healthy return on their investment as they build either single family homes to sell, or units to rent. Financing is perhaps the biggest barrier to additional affordable housing.
Also, Atlanta residents must acknowledge we have exclusionary zoning. Atlanta is a city of neighborhoods. Part of the attraction and charm of intown living is the unique character and history of each area. We certainly have some neighborhoods of historical significance. But the history of exclusionary zoning in the South has roots in racism and segregation.
Zoning can be a tool for protecting property rights and investment and for preserving the character of neighborhoods. But it too often is used to exclude low income homes –the NIMBY defense. The zoning changes like those proposed last summer would have helped increase intown density, but were not sufficient for affordable housing. At the same time, any new zoning must require projects to preserve the character of our neighborhoods. It might be fine to build a four story apartment house on commercial DeKalb Avenue within a half mile of the Inman Park/Reynoldstown MARTA station where there is already a variety of housing density, but not on the nearby residential streets. City planners must use professional judgment to protect historic neighborhoods street by street.
There are a range of ways to create affordable housing, but increasing the supply of affordable units requires a large and dedicated source of revenue. “The new mayor and city council and ideally the state have to come up with regular funding support for low income renters.” says Immergluck. He also points out that most large, high-cost cities like New York City, Boston or Chicago have large housing trust funds or other sources of finances, sometimes a mix of local and state revenue, set aside for affordable housing. Atlanta needs to do the same.
One opportunity to create a revenue stream for housing is through accurately assessing commercial property for taxation. “These downtown commercial properties are valued on average at 55 percent of what they sell for,” says Jullian Bene, former Invest Atlanta board member. “Your house and my house are not valued at 55 percent of what they sell for. If you could get this totally turned around, it would be worth a half a billion dollars per year across the three jurisdictions of the city [City of Atlanta, Fulton County and Atlanta Public Schools]. The city’s share of that would be 125 million a year.” Some of this money could be set aside for low income housing.
Another opportunity to increase affordable housing is to use vacant public land currently held by MARTA, Atlanta Public Schools and the city or Fulton County. Perhaps the greatest amount of vacant acreage is owned by Atlanta Housing (AH, and formerly called AHA). This agency tore down multiple low income housing projects over the last several decades and have built few replacements. AH estimates that they own around 400 acres. This is a huge opportunity that should not be wasted. AH and other owners of public vacant land must collaborate to smartly use this land to address some of our affordable housing needs.
Vacant land can also be a source of financing by selling off portions of land to help subsidize construction costs. The downtown Civic Center site is a perfect example of this type of opportunity, says Bene. “In a location like that, they should build as much housing as they can and sell off the rest of the land to the highest bidder to help finance the subsidy.”
There are reasons for optimism. Kessler points out that we have a new mayor and new city councilmembers, “There is no question that Andre Dickens has been an advocate for affordable housing when he was on council, and during the campaign. And we have other groups that are beginning to emerge. Also, the city will be hiring a new planning commissioner. “We can proactively seek out someone who has a vision for affordable housing,” Kessler says.
Newly elected Councilmember Liliana Bakhtiari says, “We are a city that’s growing fairly rapidly and we’re going through the growing pains of actually becoming a real city, which is not easy for a lot of people. But being late to the game of development has given us the privilege of seeing all the mistakes that all the other cities have made. So it’s not going to be just inclusionary zoning, or the land trust model, it’s going to be a diversity of tactics and a lot of intentionality, and bringing a lot of different partners to the table. But not just throwing up housing. It's also making sure we are setting up people to succeed and creating pathways to wealth building.”
“It's time to stop talking about affordable housing and start doing deals,” says Deborah Scott, executive director of Georgia Stand-Up. “The only thing missing is the political will to get it done. We should prioritize housing because it’s a human right. The city of Atlanta is a city that prides itself as a city too busy to hate and has a special brand of public-private partners that come together when necessary to creatively build affordable housing and to do what is necessary to find a way to become the Beloved Community. It’s hard work but worth it!”
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