DeKalb officials unveil housing bond plan to finance day shelters, down-payment aid and preservation programs

DeKalb County officials on Thursday outlined a plan to use a housing investment bond to accelerate production and preservation of affordable homes and to fund unhoused-support services.

Dr. Alan Ferguson, who delivered the committee's housing update, said the county is designing a multi-program structure that would use the county's newly approved affordable housing fund to back bond proceeds. Ferguson described an initial draw-down issuance of roughly $25 million and a total target of about $155 million in net proceeds to be deployed across programs that include a housing catalyst gap-financing fund, down-payment assistance (HomeStart), transitional-housing and rapid-rehousing support, capacity-building grants and multifamily acquisition and preservation efforts.

"This funding will act as a spark to unlock much larger private and public capital," Ferguson said, adding that the county expects the program to mobilize more than $1 billion in total investment and to help produce or preserve more than 10,000 homes over time.

Why it matters: County leaders said the bond would create a sustained source of locally controlled financing for projects that private lenders or federal programs do not easily cover, while also supporting near-term shelter and rehousing services. Ferguson emphasized a staged issuance to avoid negative arbitrage and to match bond draws to a ready pipeline of projects.

What the plan would fund: Ferguson outlined seven initial program areas planned for launch in the first tranche: a housing catalyst gap fund, a down-payment assistance program, transitional-housing and homelessness interventions, a capacity-building seed fund for nonprofit developers, a property rehabilitation program for homeowners, a small-scale acquisition/preservation program for multifamily properties, and targeted investments to revive aging rental stock. County staff said partner agencies (the housing authority, the county's economic development authority and the regional land bank) would serve as program administrators or sub-administrators under intergovernmental agreements.

Process and timing: Ferguson said staff will hold one-on-one briefings with commissioners in the coming days, return to the committee of the whole on June 18, and seek board approval for the bond resolution and program agreements on July 7. If approved on schedule, staff aims to issue the initial bonds and begin program launches in late summer to early autumn.

Unhoused supports and near-term services: Ferguson also told the committee the county's first day-shelter services center is on track to open on June 15, with partners in place to provide showers, food and behavioral-health screening and warm‑hand referrals. He said a second day center in the northern part of the county is under negotiation and could open later this year.

Cautions and oversight: Commissioners pressed staff on safeguards to ensure the county spends bond proceeds quickly and effectively rather than holding large amounts of debt unused. Ferguson said the draw-down structure and staged issuances are intended to match available projects and to limit the risk of idle debt service.

Next steps: Staff will provide more detailed program guidelines to commissioners in individual briefings and a committee-of-the-whole presentation before returning to the full board for bond authorization.

Sources and provenance: This article is based on Dr. Alan Ferguson's presentation and Q&A at the DeKalb County PEX committee meeting (topic introduction: SEG 1523; topic finish: SEG 1945).