Nationwide, the number of unhoused individuals declined steadily between 2010 and 2017, then began to rise again, reaching record levels in recent years amid soaring rents and declining pandemic assistance. The issue has been particularly acute for Atlanta, whose unsheltered population has increased by 63 percent since 2022.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and the City Council are moving the needle in the right direction with a plan to issue a $50 million “homeless opportunity bond” and supplement that funding with $10 million from the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund. The city believes it will be able to use the money to leverage philanthropic dollars and funding from the private sector to double its impact to more than $120 million. By devoting the largest amount of funding to address homelessness in the city’s history, says Dickens, “we are not just building housing, we are building hope.”
Matt Bedsole, director of the Housing Innovation Lab in the mayor’s office, told me that the new bonds are structured similarly to housing opportunity bonds the city issues through an affiliated agency of the city’s economic development arm, Invest Atlanta, and the Atlanta Housing Authority. Invest Atlanta issued a $26 million homeless opportunity bond in 2017, so the city has experience in this type of financing.
On the project list for the new bond, the city hopes to inspire the production of up to 700 new units of high-quality, deeply affordable housing, including 200 permanent supportive housing units in newly built or renovated apartment buildings and, by the end of next year, 500 “quick-delivery” temporary housing units utilizing modular construction technologies and city-owned land. These units will be paired with on-site wraparound services through the mayor’s Rapid Housing Initiative. The city has already achieved some return on its previous investment with The Melody, a project to provide temporary housing consisting of 40 units built from recycled shipping containers. The studio-style homes are ADA-compliant and feature a private bathroom, a microwave, a desk, and free Wi-Fi and laundry service.
Earlier this year, Bloomberg Cities reported on how a number of cities around the world are beginning to move beyond “traditional approaches” by employing strategies around “greater community cooperation and bold leadership.” The report cites work going on in London; Topeka, Kan.; and Alexandria, Va. Atlanta’s approach reflects that trend, but it is unique in its scope and its breadth. It uses bond and trust fund revenues to avoid over-reliance on the city’s general fund. It benefits from strategic partnerships the city has established with philanthropic and business organizations. And, most importantly, it uses an integrated, interdepartmental approach to shine light upon obscure but important problems like discriminatory and restrictive zoning policies and housing code violations by slumlords who prey on vulnerable communities.
At the onset of his administration, Mayor Dickens moved the housing division from under the planning department to his office for better coordination, higher visibility and greater accountability. Then he appointed a senior adviser to focus on housing policy and production. The senior adviser leads a team of multiskilled professionals who concentrate on incentivizing for-profit and nonprofit developers, including faith-based institutions, to build out a diverse portfolio of housing and related programs.
Meanwhile, the city is cracking down on blight and housing-code violations by absentee landlords, some of whom own properties that have been sitting for years in a state of disrepair. Dickens’ chief policy officer on housing, Courtney English, told me there could be as many as 3,000 properties in that condition citywide. City Councilmember Byron Amos, who holds the council seat I once occupied, sponsored legislation approved last month to impose a “blight tax” of 25 times the city’s standard millage rate on large property owners who don’t maintain their properties, saying to them at a press conference, “You are next. We are putting you on notice.”
Going a step further, the City Council this month approved a resolution urging the mayor to use the city’s power of eminent domain to launch a “blight condemnation program” to force landlords to clean up properties or face penalties that could include loss of their properties. Bedsole told me that the city intends to use the full authority under state condemnation law to prevent predatory landlords from taking advantage of underserved neighborhoods. Any housing seized through such condemnation might be made available to the public via the Atlanta Land Trust.
Homelessness is a moral issue rooted in poor public policy — the failure of public officials to address foundational problems related not only to housing but also to public and mental health and joblessness. The $50 million Homeless Opportunity Bond and the $10 million from the housing trust fund are steps in the right direction. The city’s integrated and multifaceted approaches and the way the mayor is stepping up to lead the way are admirable as well.
Of the many business partners working with the city on addressing homelessness, I believe Rich McKay, the CEO of the Atlanta Falcons, whose stadium is in downtown Atlanta, said it best: “Addressing a city’s unhoused population is not a job for the fainthearted. We need to be dedicated, compassionate and patient. We treat people with dignity.”
Governing’s opinion columns reflect the views of their authors and not necessarily those of Governing’s editors or management.
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