Just west of Midtown, downtown, and Georgia Tech, a project with nearly 200 apartments that meet affordability standards is nearing completion, with a goal of offering walkability to a growing list of job hubs and Westside amenities.

Two years after its official groundbreaking, the Legacy at Herndon Square multifamily building marks the second and largest phase of Herndon Square. 

The mixed-income, master-planned 12-acre development has been taking shape for several years on the former Herndon Homes public housing site, about a mile north of Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Northside Drive. 

According to development officials and Atlanta Housing, Legacy at Herndon Square is scheduled to start leasing sometime this spring. 

Project leaders have said Herndon Square’s second phase will see 201 one, two, and three-bedroom apartments total, plus 10,000 square feet of commercial space designated for resident programming. An enclosed parking deck is also included.

Legacy at Herndon Square's finished exteriors along Northside Drive, with the next project phase (178 mixed-income housing units, set for delivery in the second quarter of 2027) rising behind. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Courtyard and facade plans at 201-unit Legacy at Herndon Square.Legacy at Herndon Square/Pennrose

Just 30 apartments are expected to be market-rate. The other 170 will be considered Low Income Housing Tax Credit units, reserved for individuals and families earning 30 to 80 percent of the Area Median Income, project officials have said. Some units will require vouchers through Atlanta Housing’s HomeFlex program.

Onside amenities will include a wellness clinic, fitness center, and computer business and learning center. At the project’s core, a large interior courtyard with greenspace and a covered picnic area is intended to help residents socialize, officials have said. 

Affordable housing developer Pennrose has partnered with Hunt Companies, Oakwood Development, Atlanta Housing, and city agencies on the development. Invest Atlanta approved $41.5 million in tax-exempt bond financing to help develop the apartments in 2023.

How Legacy at Herndon Square has rounded into shape in English Avenue, as seen this week. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Overview of phase two along Northside Drive, with a future Herndon Square grocery component depicted to the left and future townhomes at back center. Thriven Design

The English Avenue project is also located next to the expanded Science Square district and a few blocks southwest of Georgia Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium. The Beltline’s Westside Connector Trail is about two blocks to the west.

Beyond the phase-two apartments, Herndon Square so far includes a 97-unit senior housing component that was quickly leased up. 

Construction is also moving forward on Herndon Square phase three, which calls for a building with 178 more apartments, ranging from one to three bedrooms. Of those, Pennrose officials say 151 will also rent for between 30 and 80 percent AMI, and that 71 units will be supported by vouchers from the HomeFlex program.

Herndon Square’s full scope calls for 379 units of multifamily residential, 32 townhomes, and a 30,000-square-foot retail space on a section fronting Northside Drive.

That commercial component is expected to bring a neighborhood grocery option with fresh food access to English Avenue. No timeline for that facet of development has been specified. 

Another broader goal for the project is to capitalize on recent and existing investments in the area—from Science Square and Echo Street West to the Signia by Hilton Hotel and Georgia World Congress Center—that collectively will account for more than 5,000 permanent jobs in coming years, per officials. 

In the gallery above, find more Herndon Square photos, renderings, and context. 

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