ATLANTA — Developers broke ground Tuesday on an apartment building in Atlanta near the Southside BeltLine that promises to provide 250 new affordable housing units.
The Skyline Apartments development on Hank Aaron Drive in Peoplestown came together by a $2 million contribution by Atlanta BeltLine Inc. (ABI), the private-public partnership that oversees BeltLine development.
ABI is working toward eventually getting 5,600 affordable units built around the BeltLine. According to ABI, it's a little more than halfway (53%) there.
“We’re proud that ABI, alongside our partners, has now exceeded 50% of our affordable housing goal,” said Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. President & CEO Clyde Higgs said in a statement back when the development was announced in February. “We continue to aggressively build the pipeline of housing around the Atlanta BeltLine and explore new avenues to help residents remain in their homes.”
The BeltLine Twitter account posted pictures of the groundbreaking Wednesday morning.
According to ABI, the complex will include a "community room, a fitness center, an outdoor pavilion, central laundry facility, and access to public transportation."
According to the BeltLine, the development will include 46 studio units, 101 one-bedroom apartments and 103 two-bedroom apartments. ABI says this development will contribute to a total of 600 apartment units that are under development currently in the area.
The apartments will be available to people earning 60% or below of the Area Median Income - in Fulton County, it is $85,700, so about $51,420.
The development group is led by Exact Capital Group, LLC with New York-based Aleem Construction handling the building.
ABI explains its affordable housing funding process like this:
Funding for developments like Skyline Apartments comes from the Atlanta BeltLine Affordable Housing Trust Fund (BAHTF), created in 2005. The BAHTF contributes to the creation and preservation of affordable units within the BeltLine Tax Allocation District (TAD). The TAD is a financing tool that is projected to cover approximately a third of the costs to build out the Atlanta BeltLine. Invest Atlanta administers BAHTF funds on behalf of ABI and, for Skyline Apartments, served as the bond issuer and handled application intake, underwriting, and board approvals.
ABI notes that pre-leasing is already available for 156 affordable units at The Milton in Peoplestown, as well.
The nearby portion of the Southside BeltLine is currently unpaved but set to begin construction next year thanks to a U.S. Department of Transportation RAISE Grant.