A clearer vision has emerged for a project that’s claiming the better part of a full Decatur block and marking the latest mixed-use build within steps of MARTA’s east-west rail line.

North Carolina-based developer Northwood Ravin is building 370 apartments plus retail and plaza space in a mid-rise, transit-oriented development called Halo East Decatur (formerly East Decatur Station) that’s beginning vertical construction with infrastructure work right now. 

Demolition of a low-rise row of commercial buildings on East College Avenue—spanning between New Street to the west and Sam Street at the site’s eastern boundary—began late last summer to clear the way for Halo East Decatur. Over the years, those razed buildings had housed pet adoption agency iWag, Jazzercise Decatur, Project Slide workout studio, a clothing store, BlueTarp Brewing, and La Calavera Bakery, along with offices and other businesses.

Construction today on Halo East Decatur includes infrastructure installation along East College Avenue. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Overview of the multifaceted project, looking east toward Avondale Estates. Northwood Ravin; designs, Dwell Design Studio

Renderings and other plans for the Halo project show a grocery and retail component at ground level (part of 15,000 square feet of commercial space), coworking space, an interior public plaza leading to a new 1-acre Freeman Street greenspace, and a 468-space parking deck shielded almost entirely from view.

The Halo venture will rise on 7.5 acres near the Avondale MARTA station—joining roughly 1,000 new apartments that have materialized nearby since 2018, with more in the pipeline—as Decatur seeks to refashion its light-industrial eastern fringe into a more walkable district with transit access.

Three Taverns Craft Brewery is located on the block next door, just to the west.

Current state of the project's western boundary at New Street, formerly an open field.Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

A fresh look at plans for the project's 1-acre park facet. Northwood Ravin; designs, Dwell Design Studio

Development officials have previously said the project will take between two years and 30 months to complete, which would put delivery later in 2025 or early 2026.

Approved plans, as drawn up by Dwell Design Studio, also call for more than 40 apartments to be reserved as affordable housing for tenants earning 80 percent of the area’s median income or less.

How public walkways and retail will meet East College Avenue. Northwood Ravin; designs, Dwell Design Studio

Northwood Ravin’s initial plans had called for more than 400 rentals. The changes were meant allow for slightly larger units and more room to add public greenspace, plus enough retail space to attract a neighborhood grocer, according to documents Northwood Ravin submitted to the city.

Find recent photos, more context, and fresh project renders in the gallery above.  

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