Affordable housing development for seniors set for Avondale Estates

Commission OKs 66-unit complex on 1.6-acre property.

A developer has a metro Atlanta city’s endorsement to build 66 apartments for low-income seniors.

The Avondale Estates Commission voted last week to allow TBG Residential to build the affordable housing development on a 1.6-acre property. The commissioners granted the developer a variance to build smaller units than the city’s zoning code allows.

Kevin Buckner, president of TBG Residential, said that larger apartment sizes would make the project financially infeasible. Instead of 1,300 square-foot units, the largest apartments will be 985 square feet.

“We are asking for the variance for smaller units (because) 1,300 square feet makes the apartment complex too expensive to build and for us to be able to bring affordable housing to Avon- dale,” he said during a May 25 public meeting.

The development will be called Overlook at Avon- dale and will consist of 27 one-bedroom units and 39 two-bedroom units. The Vinings-based developer filed the initial paperwork to pursue the project in Febru- ary, and it’ll combine three parcels along Franklin and Olive streets, which are off the city’s main artery, East College Avenue.

The property is currently an auto repair shop that’s primarily filled with impounded cars. In application materi- als, the developer said the property is “a longstanding eye-sore of the community,” adding that the prop- erty will be cleared of the junked cars during the development process.

Located half a mile from the city’s MARTA station, the apartments will be reserved for people 65 and older who meet certain income requirements. Each tenant must make between 40% and 80% of the area median income (AMI). For a household of one person, they would have to make between $27,000 and $54,000 to qualify under U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates.

The project will be partially financed by using low income housing tax credits, the developer said.

CITY OF AVONDALE ESTATES The project will have 27 one-bedroom and 39 two-bedroom units. Commissioners approved a variance for smaller units, the largest being 985 square feet.