Augusta leaders launch study on pausing apartment construction amid debate over housing mix

Commissioner Stacy Pulliam, commissioner for District 2 and co-chair of the housing study committee, convened a meeting in the Beasley Room to discuss whether Augusta-Richmond County should pause new apartment construction and how to shape a longer-term housing strategy.

The discussion, sponsored by the committee created at the request of Commissioner Francine Scott, focused on competing goals: attracting commercial investment and “rooftops” to spur retail, while preserving opportunities for workforce and affordable housing and avoiding unintended harms to homeowners and property owners.

The meeting brought commissioners, the mayor pro tem, developers, builders, realtors, the Augusta Housing Authority, Augusta Habitat for Humanity and planning staff to the table. Speakers outlined both the reasons some commissioners favor a pause — to slow multifamily growth in certain areas and examine whether the county has too many rental units — and the reasons industry and housing advocates warned against a broad moratorium without firm data and mitigation measures.

"I'm not sure how we get to, like, say, we're gonna stop it without having some concrete or some discussion on why other than we got too many," Commissioner Francine Scott said after explaining why she convened the committee.

Why it matters

Supporters of a pause argue that limiting some apartment construction could signal to retailers and large employers that the county is attracting homeowners, which proponents say helps recruit big-box retail and other investment. Mayor Pro Tem Duane Gilfill described concerns with rapid apartment growth and its effects on infrastructure, schools, water and roads.

Opponents, including home builders and developers, warned that a moratorium could devalue land, chill private investment and worsen shortages for people who need rental housing. Tiffany Reitzman, executive director of the Home Builders Association of Augusta-Aiken Region, said government-imposed pauses make the private sector wary and that housing supply problems require data-driven changes to codes and development rules.

Key data and testimony

- Planning staff said the county has about 88 licensed apartment complexes and estimated between roughly 26,000 and 31,000 rental units labeled as apartments, depending on definitions. (Bridal Delaney, planning and development director)

- Director Delaney told the committee four multifamily projects were in architectural review and about six more were in site-plan review; she said the pipeline equals roughly 425 apartment units. She also said single-family construction last year was about 300 units.

- Douglas Freeman, deputy executive director of the Augusta Housing Authority, said there are more than 24,000 families on various waiting lists for assisted or affordable housing and cited recent application surges: the new apartment development Delaney referenced drew more than 1,000 applications for roughly 20 units in four days, and a Section 8 waiting-list opening drew about 12,300 applicants.

- Multiple speakers urged better planning on transportation and infrastructure. Veronica Keller of Augusta Habitat for Humanity said donated land outside transit routes would be less useful without transit improvements, and several builders said engineering and utility requirements (stormwater, pipe and road standards, right-of-way widths) raise costs that are ultimately passed to buyers.

Questions about definitions and next steps

Planning staff and several commissioners repeatedly returned to a technical problem: the county’s zoning code does not consistently define "apartment," "multifamily," "townhome" or owner-occupied versus rental units. Delaney urged the committee to decide specifically what the county would restrict (for example, building height, number of units, or rental status) before any pause or moratorium could be drafted so the law would accomplish the body’s intention.

"If you're saying you don't want multi-story apartments, that's something else," Delaney said, urging the commission to choose clear definitions and geographic scope for any action.

Several private-sector speakers suggested alternative approaches: change density rules to allow more single-family lots or different housing prototypes, reduce required right-of-way widths where engineers and fire officials permit it, and use planned unit developments (PUDs) and mixed-use master planning to encourage integrated neighborhoods with retail, single‑family and multifamily housing.

Procedural and staffing notes

Delaney said the county began a comprehensive zoning ordinance update in 2024; the rewrite is expected to continue into late summer and a draft is planned to come before the commission in November. She also offered to provide commissioners a spreadsheet of appointments and vacancies for boards and committees that touch permitting and construction oversight.

Commissioner Stacy Pulliam said the study meeting was the start of an ongoing, data-driven conversation. "This conversation is just a start," she said, and asked staff to collect the data points raised at the meeting for follow-up sessions.

What was not decided

No moratorium or ordinance change was adopted at the meeting. Commissioners and community stakeholders agreed on the need for better data, clearer legal definitions and coordinated planning before any formal pause or moratorium could be drafted or imposed.

Next steps

The committee will continue to collect data on housing inventory, unit types, occupancy and affordability; planning staff will continue the zoning ordinance rewrite; and commissioners asked staff to return with the requested datasets and a summary of options to define and, if desired, target any pause geographically or by building type.

Ending

Committee members said future meetings would be scheduled after staff compiles the requested data so the county can weigh changes to ordinances, infrastructure investments and incentive programs without unintentionally limiting housing access for low-income residents, service workers and military families.