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Douglasville council hears Matrix Design housing study recommending zoning and incentives to expand housing mix
Summary
Matrix Design Group presented a data-driven housing market study to the Douglasville City Council that found rapid population growth, an affordability gap between owners and renters, and recommended zoning, incentives and an implementation matrix; council agreed to place the study on Monday’s consent agenda.
Matrix Design Group presented the City of Douglasville’s updated housing market study during the July 16 legislative work session, and council members indicated comfort placing the report on the consent agenda for Monday’s voting meeting.
"This report will help...give us recommendations based on their analysis," said Dana Gray, who described the study’s methods and stakeholder engagement. He said the consultants used American Community Survey and market sources such as Redfin and Zillow and conducted community outreach, including a 93-response resident survey.
Consultants highlighted three headline findings: the city recently passed 40,000 residents; median owner household income rose, lifting owner incomes to about $110,000 while median renter household income remains under $60,000; and median rents are just under $2,000, which a household would need roughly $87,000 to afford without being cost-burdened. "The population recently crossed the 40,000 mark," researcher Christian Karen said, and the report flags displacement risk concentrated west and southeast of downtown.
Matrix recommended a multi-pronged approach to expand housing options: regulatory changes (zoning and development standards to allow missing-middle housing such as duplexes, triplexes and accessory dwelling units), targeted incentives (density bonuses, fee relief and fast-track permitting), use of public or underused land, and preapproved ADU designs to speed permitting. "We would also propose design standards that could ensure neighborhood compatibility," said Jen Todd Goins, Matrix’s director of planning.
Council members asked implementation questions about location, design safeguards and monitoring. Council Chair Nicole Miller and others noted that the MDR (medium density residential) proposal discussed later in the meeting would dovetail with the study, and staff said any rezoning would continue to require public review and council approval.
Relayna Hudson, chairing the Housing and Community Affairs Committee, moved to place the study on the consent agenda; no objections were recorded during the work session. The study includes an implementation matrix assigning responsibilities and short-, medium- and long-term timelines for recommended actions.
The council will formally consider adoption during the Monday meeting when the consent agenda is taken up.
