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Invest Atlanta briefs Fulton commissioners on 24 TAD-funded projects and Atlantic Station closing
Summary
Invest Atlanta told the Board of Commissioners it awarded nearly $27 million in TAD financing in 2024 for 24 projects that are expected to leverage roughly $343 million in private investment and produce about 1,300 housing units, including 160 affordable units.
Invest Atlanta staff on Jan. 8 briefed the Fulton County Board of Commissioners on the agency’s fourth‑quarter Tax Allocation District (TAD) program activity and upcoming milestones, including an anticipated closure of the Atlantic Station TAD.
Jennifer Fine, vice president for planning and strategic initiatives at Invest Atlanta, told commissioners that in 2024 Invest Atlanta approved 24 distinct projects across six of the city’s nine TADs. The agency awarded nearly $27 million in TAD financing in the year; Invest Atlanta estimates the public financing leveraged about $343 million in private and other investment.
"TAD is one of the very few public financing tools impacting the retention of jobs and small businesses and helping them grow by providing access to otherwise inaccessible financing," Fine said. She highlighted projects that remediate brownfield sites, create affordable housing units and activate neighborhood commercial corridors.
Examples Fine cited include: a culinary kitchen incubator and small hotel in Castleberry Hill that received $940,000 in West Side TAD assistance; renovation of a historic corner property in English Avenue awarded $750,000 to preserve neighborhood retail and create four below‑market apartments; and an Atlanta Community Food Center in Adamsville, a project funded partially with a $250,000 Hollowell/MLK grant to improve local food access.
On affordability protections, Fine said Invest Atlanta uses land‑use restriction agreements to record affordability covenants that "run with the property" and typically require a 20‑year term for units supported by TAD financing.
Dr. Eloisa Clementich, Invest Atlanta president and CEO, told commissioners she expects to submit legislation to close Atlantic Station’s TAD by the end of the month after the outstanding TAD debts are satisfied; that action would proceed through the city council process.
Commissioners asked about measurement and oversight: Commissioner Bridget Thorne asked what prevents a property owner who receives a grant from immediately selling the asset and eliminating the affordability restriction. Fine said the agency requires a land‑use restriction agreement and compliance monitoring; a community lender providing construction financing will typically include clawback provisions and the affordability requirements are recorded against the property.
Why it matters: The projects cited include redevelopment of blighted properties, creation of neighborhood retail and community services and production of housing units at a range of area median incomes — initiatives the county said squarely affect public health, food access and community economic development across Fulton County.
No formal board vote was required for the update; commissioners asked for additional data and said they would review the Atlantic Station closing when city council action occurs.
