Settlement reached between Atlanta Housing and Egbert Perry

By Maria Saporta and Sean Keenan

The era of lawsuits and countersuits at Atlanta Housing and the city of Atlanta appears to be nearing an end.

Eugene Jones, president and CEO of Atlanta Housing, said through a spokeswoman that the authority has reached a settlement agreement with developer Egbert Perry, CEO of the Integral Group.

In an email, Perry confirmed that an agreement had been reached.

The settlement will still need to be approved by the Atlanta Housing board, which is scheduled to meet for its regular board meeting in January.

“This settlement with Egbert Perry was an important step toward preserving the relationship between Atlanta Housing and The Integral Group and starting a new chapter,” Jones said in statement provided by spokeswoman Karen Young.

“I’m elated that we were able to reach a settlement that works in the best interest of both parties,” Jones continued. “I look forward to Integral’s continued partnership on future projects that advance our affordable housing mission and the mayor’s One Atlanta plan through community developments that make a place for Atlanta residents at all income levels.”

Perry also sounded upbeat about the progress under the leadership of Jones, who became CEO in October after nearly five years running the Chicago Housing Authority.

“We are encouraged by the presence of the new and experienced leadership at the Atlanta Housing Authority,” Perry wrote in an email. “Undoubtedly, the execution of a settlement Agreement is a positive sign, and we are hopeful that it will be approved by its board of commissioners.”

The news of a settlement with Perry and Integral comes exactly one month after the authority voted to settle all legal claims with Renee Glover, who headed the authority from 1994 to 2013.

The board authorized payments for legal fees and potential taxes of up to $1.3 million to Glover, who had said she had been smeared by the city of Atlanta for alleging she had brokered sweetheart land deals with the Integral Group.

After the vote to settle with Glover, the authority issued a statement saying: “Atlanta Housing acknowledges Ms. Glover’s past contributions serving as CEO of AHA.”

The city, the authority, Glover and Integral have been embroiled in lawsuits since 2017 when Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed pushed to discredit both Perry and Glover both locally and nationally.

Shortly after he became mayor in 2010, Reed started trying to fire Glover as head of the Atlanta Housing Authority. She finally left three years later.

The authority has had steady turnover in leadership ever since with several interim CEOs and CEOs.

When Jones came to Atlanta to lead the authority, he said one of his priorities was to settle the lawsuits with Glover and Perry so the agency could focus on building and developing affordable housing within the city of Atlanta.