Images: Village of less-expensive housing bound for Decatur

A village-style infill project designed to turn vacant lots into more accessible, single-family ITP housing near downtown Decatur and a major commercial corridor is months away from breaking ground, according to development leaders. 

The mixed-income community, dubbed “Cottages at Midway,” calls for 18 standalone, for-sale houses built around shared courtyards and a greenspace. 

Located at 2883 and 2893 Midway Road in unincorporated Decatur, the pocket neighborhood will replace two underused lots totaling 2.1 acres on a residential street next to Spirit and Truth Sanctuary church. The site is tucked away off Columbia Drive, near the Belvedere Plaza shopping center on Memorial Drive, outside the City of Decatur. 

The cottages project is being led by MicroLife Institute, Housing Development Corporation of DeKalb, and Alair Homes. MicroLife Institute previously developed another single-family project with similar goals—Cottages on Vaughn in Clarkston, considered Georgia’s first tiny home village—that quickly sold out four years ago. 

While they won’t be mansions, the Cottages on Midway houses won’t be tiny, either. 

All 18 homes will feature two bedrooms in a variety of floorplans, ranging from 800 to 1,200 square feet. Prices are expected to range between $375,000 and $475,000. 

The project’s broader goal is to fill “a critical gap between large-scale single-family homes and multifamily buildings, aligning with DeKalb’s new Cottage Court ordinance and promoting diverse housing choices” in a replicable model, per a MicroLife Institute overview provided to Urbanize Atlanta. 

According to Will Johnston, MicroLife Institute executive director, the 18 solar-ready cottage homes will be offered on three different affordability tiers: Six will go for market-rate; six will be reserved for households earning 120 percent of the area median income, an effort to make them more attainable for first responders, teachers, essential service providers, and other local workforce members; and the remaining six will be capped at 80 percent AMI, which developers hope will open the door to first-time buyers whose incomes qualify. 

Communal, HOA-managed amenities call for raised garden beds for residents and either a play space or dog park, with pedestrian walkways throughout.

To help move the project forward, the Decide DeKalb Development Authority board last week approved a $2.25-million Urban Renewal Fund award for Cottages at Midway, via the Avondale Mall/Columbia Drive (Avondale) Tax Allocation District. 

The project is expected to cost $6.8 million overall, per Decide DeKalb. 

The funding was sourced from a subordinate acquisition and construction loan ($752,000), a grant ($528,000), and a forgivable loan ($975,000) meant to support missing-middle homebuyers. 

The loan for building more attainable homes will be forgiven at the end of a 10-year affordability term—so long as the houses remain owner-occupied, per Decide DeKalb. That approach is meant to ensure families have access to quality homeownership opportunities in desirable locations.  

According to MicroLife Institute, the rezoning and entitlement process for Cottages at Midway is complete. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2026, with completion by spring the following year. Decide DeKalb officials say homes should start coming up for sale next September. 

The 12 cottage homes with AMI restrictions will be considered missing-middle housing, per Decide DeKalb. 

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