Brookhaven withdraws economic incentives offer for Bramblewood Drive redevelopment
City stands firm on the affordability of affordable housing
Brookhaven, GA, July 31, 2018 – After several months of negotiations, the City of Brookhaven has announced that it has not reached an agreement on economic incentives for a mixed-use redevelopment project on Bramblewood Drive.
The developer, Ardent Companies, submitted a multiuse project including apartments and townhomes to redevelop Bramblewood Drive off Buford Highway. The plan called for 10 percent, or 30 units, be affordable. The developer requested a 30-year tax abatement on all property taxes (Schools, County, and City) totaling approximately $30 million
Brookhaven Mayor John Ernst sent letters to property owners, explaining that the sticking point was the true affordability of “affordable” housing.
“We could not come to an agreement as to the area median income (AMI) that would be the threshold for ‘affordable’. Ardent Companies wanted to use an Atlanta region AMI of $68,000 and the City wanted to use the average AMI for the census tracks around Bramblewood Drive at ~$50,000,” the letter stated. “An AMI of $68,000 would essentially be out of reach for many living on Buford Highway, our City employees, or teachers serving local schools.”
In July 2017, the City of Brookhaven’s Affordable Housing Task Force delivered recommendations to the Brookhaven City Council. The recommendations included exploring creative innovations and cross-sector solutions to protect existing affordable housing and incorporating affordable housing into the 2017 Brookhaven zoning rewrite. The latest draft of the zoning rewrite will include many of the task force recommendations and will be available for public inspection in mid-August.
“Housing affordability is a complex and context-sensitive regional issue. Therefore, it behooves each city and county to assess what makes the best decision for its community, based upon its economic situation and community goals,” said Doug Hooker, Executive Director for the Atlanta Regional Commission. “It appears that Brookhaven has taken this approach.”
“While we applaud the developer’s effort to include an affordable housing component, but the corresponding incentive request to abate 100 percent of property taxes for 30 years was not realistic” said City Manager Christian. “The Buford Highway corridor is home to many redevelopment opportunities from end to end. This particular plan did not work out, but it was an educational and cathartic exercise for us as a City.”
“We look forward to working with other development partners in Buford Highway corridor,” said Sigman.
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