Developers look to move forward with King Memorial TOD project

At long last, the empty parking lot by the King Memorial MARTA station on Decatur Street may see new life.

Place Properties and Russell New Urban Development, a division of H.J. Russell & Company, proposed a new plan to take ownership of the property and turn it into a mixed-used community.

In documents submitted to Invest Atlanta, the $65 million development would include 305 units in a multifamily community. Those units would range from a 520-square-foot studio to a 1,125-square-foot, two-bedroom, two-bath apartment.

Market rents would start at $1,440 for a studio and top out at $2,210 for a two-bedroom unit. The plans call for 98 units to be available as affordable housing to renters earning 80 percent of area median income, or AMI.

In addition, the development will feature 11,581 square feet of retail space along with 344 parking spaces for both residential and commercial use. The proposed project timeline calls for a 2021 occupancy.

Invest Atlanta

Currently, Invest Atlanta, the economic development arm for the City of Atlanta, included the property, which is owned by MARTA, in a list of transit-oriented developments Invest Atlanta hopes to support through its $15 million TOD fund.

The initial plans called for a $64.5 million, 385-unit modular multifamily community with 93 units earmarked for households earning 80 percent of the AMI. At that time, the project included a $6-million Eastside Tax Allocation District grant to Place Properties.

Invest Atlanta is expected to vote on the proposal on Thursday.