Connie Jones, 69, said homelessness has been a problem for the roughly 40 years she has lived in DeKalb County.
“It wasn’t as bad when I first moved here. You know, you had communities that helped each other. But now? It’s like there’s no community help. Neighbors don’t speak to their neighbors, or everybody’s afraid of everybody, so it’s hard to find out how to help people,” Jones told Atlanta Civic Circle at a community forum for DeKalb CEO and District 4 commissioner runoff candidates about their positions on affordable housing.
Jones said she volunteers at a food pantry, and frequently assists people experiencing homelessness, but, she said, “feeding them is not enough for me.” She wants to make sure that unhoused people have a place to “lay their head too.”
The Democratic primary runoff candidates for DeKalb CEO, Lorraine Cochran-Johnson and Larry Johnson, and District 4 commissioner, Chakira Johnson and Lance Hammond, met with the community on June 13 at Frontline Response in Gresham Park, which provides emergency shelter and services for unhoused people.
They discussed the county’s housing crisis and potential solutions at the community forum organized by the Coalition for a Diverse Decatur/DeKalb with the DeKalb NAACP, HouseATL, and Georgia Advancing Communities Together (GA ACT), a statewide trade group for nonprofit housing developers.
All four candidates expressed commitment for creating a master housing plan for DeKalb to clarify what programs and investments are needed to ameliorate the problem. They emphasized public-private partnerships for housing development and engaging with citizens.
“When it comes to housing, we have to be specific, and we have to bring people to the table that understand the space, because people want the government for what they can’t do for themselves,” said CEO candidate Cochran-Johnson.
Both Cochran-Johnson and her opponent, Larry Johnson, have said housing would be a top priority for them as DeKalb’s CEO, as increased rents and home prices push lower-income residents out of their homes. (Both candidates resigned from their county commissioner seats to run for CEO.)
Larry Johnson said one of his first actions in office would be to issue an executive order creating a streamlined countywide process for increasing the supply of affordable housing. He made the point that homelessness is not limited to certain zip codes.
Cochran-Johnson said she would create what she calls a comprehensive housing resource center for the county. This would track DeKalb’s funding and work with various private-sector and nonprofit partners, so there is no duplication of services.
District 4 commissioner candidate Hammond said his approach would focus on the “well being, stability and prosperity of family,” including those experiencing homelessness. His opponent, Chakira Johnson, said the housing crunch must be addressed holistically, by engaging with the community, addressing transit needs, and assessing public-private development projects, to expand the affordable housing supply.
One community member, Harold Blake Jr., who works for the DeKalb Housing Authority, said a key takeaway from the panel was not to isolate affordable housing development efforts to any one part of DeKalb or other metro-Atlanta counties.
“We got to go where opportunities are — with lenders and developers and businesses,” Blake said. “What will help them feel more comfortable coming to South DeKalb?”
Blake would also like to see a DeKalb community forum where those experiencing homelessness or struggling with housing costs can directly share their voices.
Jones agreed, and added another concern – the increased prevalence of guns in the county, which she thinks is making the streets people live on less safe. She said people often forget about Georgia’s 2022 constitutional carry law, championed by Gov. Brian Kemp, which allows gun owners to carry a concealed weapon in most public places without obtaining a state license.
Jones added that she wants DeKalb leaders to spur their words into actions. “If you’re not involved in the community, how can you hear us?” she asked.
Candidates’ top three housing priorities
Each CEO and District 4 commissioner candidate was asked what their top three affordable housing priorities would be in office. Here’s what they had to say.
Lorraine Cochran-Johnson – DeKalb CEO
- Understand the areas for DeKalb to invest in housing and develop strategic development partners accordingly.
- Incentivize private development of affordable housing through public subsidies.
- Provide hope that unhoused people can transition into affordable housing.
Larry Johnson — DeKalb CEO
- Crack down on slumlords who are “putting people in substandard housing.”
- Tear down blighted properties and replace them with affordable housing.
- Cut through the layers of permitting red tape to make it easier to build housing.
- Call out banks that discriminate against homebuyers.
Lance Hammond — District 4
- Cut the red tape to make DeKalb a place where it’s easy for investors and homebuilders to build affordable housing.
- Understand where communities want to be in the housing spectrum.
- Invest in repurposing, refurbishing, and improving homes people already have.
Chakira Johnson – District 4
- Increase DeKalb’s incentivization of public-private partnerships with developers to build affordable housing.
- Looking at ways for current homeowners to stay in their homes.
- Improve public transportation to make jobs in higher-priced areas accessible to people living in more affordable areas.
There are three other DeKalb races with a runoff election. Election Day is June 18.
– State Sen. District 55 (D): Iris Knight-Hamilton and Randal Mangham
– Board of Education District 5 (non-partisan): Donna Priest-Brown and Tiffany Tate Hogan
– State Court Judge Division A-3 (non-partisan): Yolanda Mack and Dionne McGee
Use the ACC x AJC Georgia Decides voter guide to see who’s on your ballot and learn more about the candidates.
