A new residential tower at Centennial Yards, the mini-city being built within downtown Atlanta’s Gulch, will not feature any apartments set aside at rents affordable to lower income residents — and the developer will instead pay a fee to the city of nearly $8.5 million.
Centennial Yards Co., a subsidiary of Los Angeles-based developer CIM Group, opted to pay Atlanta an “in-lieu fee” rather than reserve any apartments at rents below market rate at its 19-story, 304-unit tower called the Mitchell. The high-rise, which is expected to open next year, is the first new tower erected as part of the $5 billion redevelopment of the Gulch, a 50-acre expanse of parking lots and rail lines between the Five Points MARTA Station and Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The decision to solely provide market-rate housing at the Mitchell was first reported by Atlanta Civic Circle and garnered controversy from residents wary of Centennial Yards’ commitment to affordable housing goals and its city-backed incentives. Atlanta leaders in 2018 approved an incentive package of up to $1.9 billion — the largest in city history — to support the project.
One of the incentives package’s conditions required Centennial Yards Co. to reserve 20% of all new residential units built in the project at subsidized rents. The developer, however, could opt to pay an in-lieu fee — roughly $140,000 per unit in the Mitchell’s case — to forgo that requirement.
As part of its incentive package, CIM separately provided $28 million to the city’s affordable housing trust fund.
Credit: Connor Barber Freelance Photographer
Credit: Connor Barber Freelance Photographer
In a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Centennial Yards Co. said it remains in compliance with its development agreement with the city and plans to add new affordable units at future towers.
“As construction on Centennial Yards progresses, we are dedicated to fulfilling our commitment to provide affordable housing units and aspire to exceed the expectations set forth in our original development agreement,” the statement said.
Centennial Yards will include a mix of apartments, hotels, retail, entertainment concepts and future office space, but housing has emerged as the project’s cornerstone. Brian McGowan, the CIM executive helming Centennial Yards, previously told the AJC the entire project could include up to 3,000 units, which is triple the district’s initial plan from 2018. That would require 600 affordable units or an equivalent in-lieu fee.
The fee goes into a city fund to prepare foreclosed Westside properties for affordable housing redevelopment. ThreadATL, a nonprofit group that advocates for urbanist policies in Atlanta, questioned whether Centennial Yards is setting a concerning precedent.
“Providing funds for affordable homes elsewhere is fine,” ThreadATL posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “But being near multiple train stations and bus lines, plus good sidewalks, the Gulch is a place where affordability and transit could be well matched. If the residential component is nothing but luxury housing, that’s a missed opportunity.”
Centennial Yards’ first project was converting the former Southern Railway freight depot and office building into 162 apartments, which includes 25 affordable units.
The Mitchell will be joined by an adjacent 292-room hotel that is also under construction, and the developer broke ground over the summer on an 8-acre entertainment district. This next phase will offer 480,000 square feet of entertainment, retail and restaurant space, as well as a 14-story hotel and 5,000-seat arena. The new buildings will surround a large plaza, expected to be a gathering place during the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches in Atlanta.
Credit: Courtesy of Gensler
Credit: Courtesy of Gensler
Construction of the district is expected to finish by 2026 when Atlanta hosts several World Cup matches, although many of the buildings’ interiors and tenants are not expected to be open by then. Centennial Yards recently announced immersive entertainment concept Cosm will be the first tenant of the entertainment district.
The developer also filed a planning application with the city to build a 127-room hotel at 88 Elliott St., a site previously slated for a 60-unit apartment project. The project doesn’t have a construction timeline.
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