Three days in D.C.
I spent three days earlier this month in Washington, D.C., for a National Press Foundation fellowship, learning how local governments can respond to the Trump administration’s norm-shattering actions that are adversely affecting their communities.
I flew back to Atlanta with a pit in my stomach — the sinking feeling that cities can no longer rely on the federal government’s greater resources to confront the affordable housing crisis. During the “Federal Action, Local Impact” journalism summit, policy experts and public officials, plus reporters and PR pros, told us that the federal government no longer values evidence-based policymaking — housing-related or otherwise.
Instead, they said, the White House and Congress are in the grips of a hard-right ideology that threatens to dismantle the social safety net that people facing housing insecurity and homelessness have long relied on and replace it with policies that punish and even criminalize poverty.
But all hope is not lost. If anything, this moment makes more urgent the need for local governments to test novel housing solutions in Atlanta and beyond. To counteract the loss of federal support, however, there’s no time to waste: Local leaders must go ahead and pilot new programs and legislation as they assess the impact of federal policy and funding shifts, instead of wasting time debating what responses may or may not work.
Read my full report here.
HEARD ON HOUSING
Where the candidates stand on deeply affordable housing
ACC asked the Atlanta City Council candidates about affordable housing. Here’s how District 7 candidates Jamie Christy, Allen Daly, Rebecca King, and Thomas Worthy said they’d advocate for housing production for people at the lowest income levels.
Jamie Christy: The licensing and permitting process needs to become streamlined and less expensive. Developers pass these costs into the total cost of the development which increases the cost of rent and the cost of homes.
Allen Daly: The key to housing affordability is through cutting red tape and incentivizing development in a manner that makes these deeply affordable housing projects viable for developers.
Rebecca King: Continue advocacy for the Atlanta Land Trust (ALT) to receive city-owned land or discounted land in large-scale developments, especially near transit and trails. Support community land trust (CLT) models in new mixed-use or TOD (transit-oriented development) projects — this ensures long-term affordability, not just temporary rent caps.
Thomas Worthy: I’ll advocate for using city-owned land to build deeply affordable, mixed-income developments near transit and job centers. I also support a dedicated revenue stream for the Housing Trust Fund, funded by inclusionary zoning fees and updated permitting revenues, to ensure stable, long-term investment.
See their full responses to these questions and more by visiting ACC’s Election Hub. Note: Thad Flowers did not respond to the questionaire.
Permanent supportive housing debuts in Midtown
The city has revived a nearly century-old apartment building in Midtown as housing for Atlantans who once experienced homelessness.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and the city’s top housing officials celebrated the grand opening of The Winnwood on Monday afternoon, showcasing 48 units of permanent supportive housing in the two-story Georgian Revival structure built in 1931.
The ribbon-cutting marked the fifth project delivered through the city’s rapid housing initiative, which aims to create 500 affordable apartments for previously unhoused Atlantans. Permanent supportive housing also offers wraparound services, including jobs training, substance use, and mental health treatment.
The initiative launched early last year with The Melody, a 40-unit shipping-container village downtown for people who’d spent years living on the street. This new offering, however, looks much different.
Located at 1460 W. Peachtree St., The Winnwood’s apartments “are the nicest we’ve ever done,” Cathryn Vassell, the CEO of homeless services nonprofit Partners For Home, told Atlanta Civic Circle in a text. “Since it was previously a short-term rental operation, the finishes, furniture, linens, etc. are all just beautiful.”
A community land trust for DeKalb?
DeKalb County leaders are spending $122,000 to determine whether the county should form a community land trust to provide more affordable housing.
A community land trust is a nonprofit entity that separates the ownership of a parcel from the buildings on it, often selling the structures themselves to low- and moderate-income residents. By removing the cost of the land from the price tag, these trusts can offer lower home prices.
“As a proven tool to address the housing crisis, a community land trust will preserve long-term affordability, prevent displacement, and ensure that residents have access to safe, secure housing for generations to come,” the legislation’s sponsor, DeKalb Commissioner Michelle Long Spears, said in a press release.
Stay tuned for Atlanta Civic Circle’s full report on DeKalb’s community land trust ambitions.
Atlanta Housing lands funding for Atlanta Civic Center
Last week, just before thousands crowded into the Atlanta Civic Center parking lot to protest President Donald Trump at an Oct. 18 “No Kings” rally, Atlanta Housing (AH) announced it had secured $60 million in public and private capital for 148 affordable senior apartments at the long-idle Old Fourth Ward property.
The news marks a major step forward for the overdue revitalization of the city-owned Civic Center site, which has produced little more than weeds since it was vacated in 2014.
The ambitious mixed-use project, located at the corner of Piedmont Avenue and Ralph David Abernathy Boulevard, is currently in the environmental remediation phase. It’s expected to break ground soon, AH executive Paul Vranicar said during an Oct. 14 briefing to the Atlanta City Council’s Community Development and Human Services committee.
The senior housing component should be move-in-ready by late 2027, an AH spokesperson told 11Alive. The Civic Center’s revitalization is slated to produce 1,500 new residences in all — roughly a third affordably priced — as well as restaurants, retail, office space, and a hotel.
Today’s newsletter was written by Sean Keenan and edited by Meredith Hobbs. Your donation makes Housing Happenings and ACC’s housing reporting possible. Support local, nonprofit journalism that empowers Atlantans to improve their communities.