Atlanta Beltline, Inc. announced today it has built or preserved 4,425 units of affordable housing to date, 79 perent of its goal, well before the self-imposed 2030 deadline.
In 2025, the Beltline and its partners “delivered” 299 affordable housing units, with more lined up for 2026. The Beltline has more than doubled the number of affordable housing units along the corridor of its 22-mile loop since 2018. If the organization can maintain its current rate of around 300 to 500 new units a year, it will exceed its 2030 goal.
Atlanta Beltline, Inc. President and CEO Clyde Higgs said the organization has built affordable housing with “urgency” to ensure “residents of all income levels can share in the benefits and enhanced quality of life offered by the Beltline.
About three-quarters of the units are reserved for people earning 60 percent or less of the Area Median Income, or AMI. Under the AMI, a four-person household earning up to $91,000 annually would qualify as low-income in the Atlanta region. Housing costs will meet low and moderate income levels in the city.
The Beltline units are also part of Mayor Dickens’ goal to create or preserve 20,000 affordable housing units citywide by 2030.
For Beltline Vice President of Housing Policy and Development Dennis Richards, affordability is an urgent issue. Household sizes are shrinking and the region is set to add almost 2 million residents by 2050.
Along the booming Eastside Beltline, housing prices have skyrocketed as the trail brings an added real estate value. The affordable housing initiative aims to prevent the Beltline from pricing out residents, and prepare the region for a rapidly growing population by increasing available units.
“As we bring in this catalytic infrastructure project through neighborhoods, that is going to create real estate increases and desirability for those adjacent properties,” Richards said.
The Beltline VP said it gives the organization a chance to buy up properties and plan them in collaboration with the community before the trail project is completed. That way, the Beltline can set aside more units and commercial space as affordable.
“You know, we have to make sure that we have mixed-income developments with attainable price points for folks of all socioeconomic backgrounds,” Richards said.
The affordable units are set at varied rates, depending on the Area Median Income. They’re all based on the standard expectation that a household should spend roughly 30 percent of its income on housing. With that data, Richards thinks there’s an “affordable” rate for every person.
“Everybody needs affordable housing,” Richards said. “There is a price point that is affordable to every single person.”
With growing real estate prices, the affordable price point has urgency. The Beltline wants to be open about its progress. At the start of 2026, it launched a new Affordable Housing Dashboard to update the public on its progress. The interactive platform will allow Atlantans to explore affordable housing developments on the Beltline, like the slate of developments set for 2026.
“We’ve got really good momentum right now,” Richards explained.
The upcoming developments also represent the Beltline’s amped-up land acquisition strategy. To date, the Beltline has secured 94 acres of land to expand affordable housing and commercial space along the corridor, while building out the trail into areas without a rail right-of-way.
Richards said the Beltline has not always been able to acquire land and build out affordable space as the trail grows. In the past, it had to retrofit affordability onto a booming trail. Now the Tax Allocation District has given the organization funds to move proactively – building affordability into the expansion in advance.
“The TAD has been performing well, which has consequently seeded the organization with the capital where we can proactively go and acquire these properties and position them for equitable redevelopment,” Richards said.
Some key project updates for 2026 include:
- Murphy Crossing: The fraught site has received rezoning approval from City Council and the Beltline is now working through predevelopment activities on the first phase of the project. Demolition is set to be completed by fall.
- 579 Garson Drive: This 130-unit affordable housing development is set to close in 2026, with an additional 8,000 square feet dedicated to commercial space. It’s funded in part by a $2 million Beltline loan and $43 million in equity investment through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.
- 350 Chappell Road: The 6.3-acre site with 218 affordable units, set between 30-80 percent of the Area Median Income, is set to close this year.
- 425 Chappell Road: The 30+ acre site is in its first phases of development after receiving rezoning approval from City Council. Once completed, it will deliver about 150 units and 5,000 square feet of affordable commercial space.
- 356 University Avenue: The 13.7-acre site adjacent to Pittsburgh Yards has completed rezoning and requests for proposals for a mixed-income and mixed-use development. There will be a public announcement later this year for developers on the affordable housing, light industrial and discounted commercial space.
- Bennett Street: The Beltline has completed a $29 million acquisition of a 3.2-acre parcel in Buckhead, a demolition is expected to be completed by the fall.
“As we support Mayor Dickens’ goal of 20,000 affordable housing units citywide, we are proud of these developments that reflect our commitment to preserve communities and expand housing opportunities,” CEO Higgs said.
There is a lot of “affordable housing” talk but it’s like panning for gold: how can I find out which of the properties along the east beltline are “affordable?”
Article mentions an Affordable Housing Dashboard: is there a link for that?