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Douglasville housing study points to need for ‘missing middle’; city adopts MDR zoning standards
Summary
A Matrix Group–led housing study shows rapid population growth and community demand for smaller, diverse housing types. Douglasville has adopted a new medium-density residential (MDR) zoning text amendment with design standards (4,000 sq ft lots; homes 800–1,200 sq ft) to support cottages, ADUs and workforce housing.
Community Development Director Dana Gray told the Douglasville Impact podcast that the city’s recently completed housing study — prepared with the Matrix Group — identified gaps in housing types and recommended policies to add more “missing middle” options such as cottages, accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and compact single-level homes for empty nesters.
"So in so many ways, we can't see everything that is happening in the city... We partnered with the Matrix Group, and they did a data heavily data driven analysis of the city of things like demographics, the housing, stock that we have here," Gray said. He summarized the study’s growth numbers: "I do believe we had we started at 19,000. To date, we're at 40,000," and noted the study projects the city could reach about 70,000 residents by 2045 if current trends continue.
Gray said the study’s community engagement showed demand for housing variety—smaller lots, cottage-style single-family homes, ADUs and units suited to seniors and first-time buyers—rather than only larger single-family houses. To respond, the city manager initiated a zoning text amendment creating a medium-density residential (MDR) classification intended to capture the missing middle while maintaining quality design. Gray described the MDR standards on the podcast: "we have a smaller lot minimum of 4,000 square foot... a smaller house, square foot's min which starts at 800 square foot, maximum 1,200." He added that design requirements (porches, decorative columns, wrapped crawlspaces, material/color guidance) are meant to preserve downtown character and ensure quality construction.
Gray said developers are beginning to express interest in building smaller homes aligned with the MDR standard and that while some projects could appear within about a year to 18 months, broader physical change will take five to ten years. The hosts directed listeners to the full housing report and the council presentation for detailed data and charts.
