It seems the City of Decatur is becoming increasingly worried it's losing what made it so hip and cool and interesting. No, not Eddie's Attic or Victory Sandwich Bar. In the words of the city, "Decatur has become an even more attractive option for the highly educated and affluent residents of Metro Atlanta." Which is to say that a bunch of yuppy bastards have overtaken the city. It's like a zombie apocalypse, only the invaders have really high standards and are murmuring "artisanal pickles!" instead of "brains!" Now city planners are taking a shot at mitigating the impact of Decatur's ballooning home prices with a new test development. This should be interesting.
Last year, Creative Loafing reported on a study that showed the city's minority population has been steadily overwhelmed over the course of the last two decades. Plus, at the same time the city's demographics were dramatically shifting, the median income of black residents plummeted by 50 percent. The city has taken a lot of reactionary steps, including overhauling the planning code.
Now, the Decatur Downtown Development Authority is proposing a plan to purchase property at 230 Commerce Drive that would be used for a "Cottage Court" pilot project. According to a city meeting agenda referenced by Decaturish, "Cottage Court is a development of smaller single family homes that share common green space in order to provide a more affordable housing option for young professionals, empty nesters and service-sector employees in a targeted income range."
According to the city's budget narrative, the hope is that the pilot will encourage construction of similar, more affordable developments by smaller developers to expand housing options and maintain the city's diversity.
Sound interesting? City Commissioners will meet at 6 p.m. tonight to discuss the project.
· Affordable housing, Google Fiber on City Commission agenda
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