For the first time since 1988, Habitat for Humanity’s Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project is headed to Atlanta. The annual event is known as the “world’s largest building blitz,” with thousands of volunteers descending on a different city each year to construct dozens of homes.
An estimated 2,000 volunteers will head to the Sylvan Hills neighborhood on May 3-8 to build 24 homes in the Atlanta Habitat for Humanity Langston Park development.
It’s a landmark moment for Atlanta Habitat for Humanity. In 1988, the Carters came to Atlanta to build 21 homes in the Edgewood neighborhood. Many of those homes still stand today, and residents like Sally Mae Hollis still call the properties home — or “Jimmy’s House.”
In the decades since President Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter started the project, the pair have built over 4,400 homes with the help of over 108,000 volunteers across the globe. In recent years, the event has been held in Charlotte, Nashville and Memphis. The 2025 build will take place in October in Austin.
“We’re excited to have the project come back and transform our city, just as it has these cities in the past years,” Atlanta Habitat for Humanity President and CEO Rosalyn Merrick said.
The build is coming up fast. In 270 days, the local Habitat for Humanity chapter will need to secure funding for the entire project and prepare for the nonprofit’s first densely planned community.
“This will be our first dense community where most of the homes are actually townhomes and duplexes,” Merrick said.
The Langston Park master plan development will span eight acres with 68 homes. Of those 68 homes, 40 will be townhomes, 18 will be duplexes and ten will be single-family houses.
The Carter Work project will help to build the first 24 homes. Merrick said the local nonprofit will aim to complete the rest of the construction within three years. But it’s a pricey project. At an Aug. 5 luncheon, the Atlanta Habitat for Humanity team announced a $10 million fundraising goal for the large-scale effort.
Of the $10 million, about $2.5 million will go to developing the site. Another $6 million will go towards construction, and $1.5 million will go to bringing over 2,000 volunteers to the site.
The thousands of volunteers are typically a mix of corporate sponsors, local workers and a “fan club” that follows the Carter Work Project around the world. Merrick said the crowds will come in the midst of global attention on Atlanta with upcoming events like the FIFA World Cup in 2026.
“What a great opportunity to welcome the world with this amazing development moment,” Merrick said. “It also gives us an opportunity to showcase our muscles, our innovation plans for the future and what affordable home ownership can look like everywhere.”
To prepare for the major project, Atlanta Habitat for Humanity leaders kicked off neighborhood engagement in 2018. The Neighborhood Engagement Director hosted local barbecues and talks with residents to hear what the community needed from the project. The nonprofit also pulled from previous projects like Browns Mill Village to make the development possible.
Habitat for Humanity International CEO Jonathan Reckford also attended the Aug.5 “Launch and Learn” program at the Atlanta headquarters, where he discussed the choice to hold the annual event in Atlanta during the 50th anniversary of Habitat for Humanity International.
“When we thought about our 50th year, we asked where should the Carter project be?” Reckford said.
Georgia has a rich history with Habitat for Humanity. The international nonprofit was founded in Americus, Ga., and was supported by Georgia’s own President Jimmy Carter. Today, the administrative headquarters are in Atlanta. But Reckford’s reasoning went deeper than logistics.
“We really want the Carter project to be a spotlight on how fundamental the need is for safe, decent and affordable housing in Atlanta,” Reckford said.
The CEO said Atlanta used to be a city where Habitat for Humanity could thrive because land was cheap. In recent years, that’s changed dramatically — and a national housing crisis doesn’t help.
But Reckrod said it “creates the opportunity to do things that might not have been possible.”
“This is our global headquarters, and we thought, how fitting for Habitat’s 50th anniversary to be in our hometown,” Reckford said.
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