Redevelopment of the civic center could begin this year. Are 1,500 homes enough? – Capital B News

This story was originally published May 22 by the Atlanta Civic Circle. Subscribe to their newsletter here.

Crews could begin the long-awaited redevelopment of the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center before the end of the year, kicking off a potentially 13-year plan to bring new restaurants, retail, offices, a hotel and about 1,500 residences — about a third of them affordable housing — on the site of the mostly empty and overgrown Old Fourth Ward.

Bringing new life to the 19-acre Atlanta Housing property — which has provided little more than parking spaces for the past decade — will represent a big win for the neighborhood. However, the housing component leaves much to be desired, said Atlanta City Council member Amir Farokhi, who represents the district including the Civic Center.

“There should be thousands of housing units there,” he told the Atlanta Civic Circle in an interview. “The current vision for the site, while an improvement over a parking lot, falls short of what the city needs and deserves, which is more housing on a site that can support a significant housing density.

“It’s one of the few blank slates left in the center of the city,” Farokhi added — and near a MARTA station, no less. “We are living in a period where there is a significant demand for housing and a limited supply of housing. We should build as much housing there as possible – both affordable and market-rate.

It’s possible to adjust the current master plan — developed by the joint venture of Republic Family of Companies, Michaels Development Co. and Sophy Companies — but the grand vision won’t change much until the ground is broken next November or December, a declared AH. on Wednesday, Trish O’Connell, senior vice president of real estate planning and development.

“We went through a pretty comprehensive neighborhood engagement process,” she said. “The plan you see in place reflects many of the desires and concerns of the community. »

O’Connell said neighbors of the Civic Center site have made it clear they don’t want it to be too densely built. “They didn’t want the whole site to look like a little piece of New York, with skyscrapers on top,” she said.

Historic preservation considerations pose another challenge to ensuring housing density. At the heart of the Civic Center site is the iconic performing arts center for which it is renowned. Built in the late 1960s, it once hosted musicals, operas, Broadway concerts, speeches by Georgia governors, senators and a president – ​​and a Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions.

On May 20, the Atlanta City Council approved a resolution authorizing AH, the City of Atlanta and the developers to enter into a 10-year partnership with the Georgia State Historic Preservation Office to ensure the auditorium renovation maintains its historical fiber.

David Mitchell, executive director of the Atlanta Preservation Center, praised the council for passing the legislation authored by Farokhi. “The resolution illustrates that the preservation of historical heritage is finally considered as an economic attribute of development and sustainability,” he said.

He also cautioned against developing too densely, so that AH and his development team don’t overshadow the historic civic center with gleaming skyscrapers.

“With an initial number of 1,500 homes – and the potential to build more – we risk using what we seek to protect to become the shield that allows us to conduct business as usual,” Mitchell said , referring to urban development ambitions.

“If historic preservation is a conversation with our past about our future, we should be very careful and focus on listening rather than talking – and letting the Civic Center guide that, without being potentially suppressed by it,” he said. he added.