It was 2019, and the demolition permit had been issued. 220 Sunset Avenue — the apartment building developed by Rev. Maynard Jackson Sr. and where his family lived — appeared destined for the scrap heap.
There was such history in the red brick building. The Jackson family lived on the top floor of the building, and Atlanta’s first Black mayor, Maynard Jackson Jr., lived there from the age of 13 and while he attended Morehouse College.
It just so happened the building was next door to 234 Sunset, the home where Martin Luther King Jr. lived with his family until he was assassinated in 1968. Two buildings, standing side-by-side, captured a significant piece of Atlanta’s history.
Initially, the King family wanted to tear down the Jackson apartment building and sell the property to the National Park Service along with 234 Sunset.
But the Vine City community fought back saying it was important to preserve both the Jackson and King history.
In 2020, a deal was made between the King Center and the Westside Future Fund, which bought 220 Sunset for $250,000 (the same price NPS had offered) with the goal of returning the building to its former glory, providing affordable housing for people affiliated with the Atlanta University Center.
Now, five years later, the dream has been realized.
“I think it’s wonderful,” said Bernice King, CEO of the King Center. “That’s why we were delighted to do it.”
A ceremonial ribbon-cutting was held on April 28th with people who were involved in the successful restoration of 220 Sunset.
“The Jackson family home stands as a beacon of what is possible when we honor the past while building for the future,” said Atlanta City Councilman Byron Amos. “Revitalization without displacement is possible… We aren’t just restoring a home. We are restoring hope.”
John Ahmann, WFF’s president and CEO, said restoring the Jackson building and providing affordable housing for faculty and staff of Spelman College is a way of continuing Atlanta’s special place in history.
“It was the right thing to do,” said Ahmann, adding that the renovation cost more than what a new building would cost. “If you consider what the building and its story means to our city, it’s worth it. It is the story we are telling about ourselves.”
Invest Atlanta, the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and other donors helped realize the success of the $3 million project. “This is Maynard Jackson’s dream coming true,” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens at the ribbon cutting.
Only a few blocks away along the Martin Luther King Jr. corridor, other historic gems need to be preserved.
Two of the most important ones are Gaines Hall, one of the oldest buildings in Atlanta where W.E.B. Dubois wrote the “Souls of Black Folk” in 1903, and the historic Paschal’s restaurant (1947) and Paschal’s Motor Hotel (1967) locations that became key gathering spot during the civil rights movement. Both Gaines and Paschal’s are owned by Clark Atlanta University.
“The preservation of 220 Sunset benefits the City of Atlanta now and for generations to come,” said David Mitchell, executive director of the Atlanta Preservation Center. “It would be spectacular to see the same opportunity be given to Gaines Hall.”
T. Dallas Smith, a real estate leader who currently chairs the Westside Future Fund, declared the prospective new residents of 220 Sunset would be part of a living legacy.
Smith, however, said that the legacy of revitalization can be extended to the Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. (formerly Hunter Street) corridor.
“When it was Hunter Street, if you were Black and had money, you lived on Hunter Street,” Smith said. He pointed to developer T. M. Alexander, baseball legend Hank Aaron, the Scott family of the Atlanta Daily World as examples. “Can we restore these programmatic elements that were there? You have to see the value first.”
After several texts seeking updates on Gaines Hall and Paschal’s, CAU President George French responded that the Board of Trustees “will likely have a statement” after their next meeting. Previously, French has expressed the university’s commitment to preserving the historic buildings it owns.
Ahmann said Atlanta will need to be intentional when it comes to preservation.
“As a community we need to decide which buildings are foundational to Atlanta’s story, especially when it comes to history on the Westside,” Ahmann said. “It is a unique place that can’t be replicated, like 220 Sunset. To keep that story, you need to keep the building.”
Mitchell also said the word “never” is not in the preservation vocabulary, saying Gaines Hall still can be restored.
“There has to be the desire to do it,” Mitchell said. “Restoring 220 Sunset is great. It would be wonderful to see the same energy that came together to restore 220 Sunset now transfer to Gaines Hall.”
