Blandtown proposal near Beltline scores tax break, moves forward

Nearly 250 more residences are bound for Northwest Atlanta’s booming Blandtown neighborhood, with a tax break from Fulton County’s economic development authority included. 

The Develop Fulton Board of Directors on Tuesday approved a tax incentive for a 247-unit multifamily development called Alta West Midtown, a 1593 Huber St. NW proposal the agency described as “catalytic” for the area. 

The $75-million project by an LLC called WP South Acquisitions would redevelop a former tire recycling facility that reflects the neighborhood’s industrial past. Included in the proposal are greenspace, amenities for residents, and what Develop Fulton officials called “critical infrastructure improvements that will benefit both future residents and the surrounding community” in an announcement. 

Also included would be 38 units of affordable housing reserved for households earning 80 percent of the Area Median Income or less. 

Active metro Atlanta developer Wood Partners is behind the Alta West Midtown proposal and told the board the project wouldn’t be feasible—given the affordability component and current brownfield site conditions—without the tax break from Develop Fulton valued at $3.9 million, as the AJC reports. Apartments in Blandtown would range from studios to three-bedroom options. 

The site is adjacent to active railroad lines, just east of Topgolf Atlanta, Ellsworth Industrial Boulevard, and businesses such as Scope Fine Art and the former location of Steady Hand Beer Co. Another new segment of the Atlanta Beltline’s 22-mile loop is under construction roughly two blocks south.

According to Develop Fulton, the Alta project will include roughly $750,000 in stormwater infrastructure upgrades designed to address longstanding drainage issues in the area, while generating more than $10 million in tax revenue during its incentive period. The development forecast also calls for 200 construction jobs, followed by 20 new full-time positions and 25 part-time jobs to be generated. 

The former tire recycling facility, as is, produces about $31,000 annually in tax revenue, per Develop Fulton. 

“By supporting attainable housing, investing in infrastructure, and transforming underutilized properties into vibrant communities, we’re helping create places where residents, businesses, and neighborhoods can thrive together,” said Develop Fulton chairman Kwanza Hall in the announcement. 

A much larger, mixed-use proposal with 850 units and up to 20,000 square feet of retail from Atlanta-based companies Columbia Ventures and Radco seemed to be set for the Huber Street site and additional acreage as of early this year. But that appears to be on ice as originally intended, at least for now. The project had called for two phases, each with more than 400 apartments.

Wood Partners is the Atlanta-based development firm behind Disco Kroger site replacement The Beverly by Alta and numerous other builds across the metro, including a mixed-use venture in Coweta County’s Interstate 85 corridor that broke ground last month. 

The Beltline in October cut the ribbon on its scenic, .7-mile Northwest Trail segment in Blandtown, which has again proven an accelerant for developer interest. 

Just south of the Alta proposal, a mixed-use expansion of the Lumberyard Office Lofts is aiming to break ground early next year. Elsewhere in the neighborhood, the 250-apartment Novel Blandtown project and multifaceted Empire Longreen continue to round into shape along Huff Road. 

Next door to the Alta site, yet another proposal that could include a grandfathered-in data center would be spread across roughly 17 acres along Ellsworth Industrial Boulevard, across the street from Topgolf. 

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