Atlanta's long-running effort to rewrite its zoning code ran into another round of tough questions this month, and where it lands will shape what contractors can build on lots across the city for years to come.
At an Oct. 15 work session, Sara C. Bronin, a law professor and founder of the National Zoning Atlas who was hired by the city to analyze the proposal, walked officials through her critique of the draft, Rough Draft Atlanta's Logan C. Ritchie reported.
What's on the table
ATL Zoning 2.0 is the legal document meant to carry out Plan A, the city's Comprehensive Development Plan, which sets long-term goals for housing, walkability and preservation. If adopted, it would replace a code written in 1982, when the city was going through "white flight," a large-scale departure of white residents to the suburbs.
The draft runs 981 pages. In a June analysis, Bronin said that's too long and too complex, and that the draft does too little to expand housing options. The zoning committee voted in September to hold the proposed code while revisions are made.
Comparing Atlanta with similar-sized cities such as Raleigh, Charlotte and Austin, Bronin wrote that "the current code falls short." But she said the draft fails to advance the city's economic mobility goals, creates a confusing permitting system and doesn't ensure diverse housing will actually get built. With 240 distinct neighborhoods in the city, she found, the code is hard for the average property owner, and for the city's own administration, to understand.
Bronin's fixes
Bronin recommends a shorter code with fewer districts, more types of housing and a better-connected, walkable city. Among her suggestions:
- Allow accessory dwelling units, or ADUs.
- Allow multifamily housing on and around the Beltline and MARTA stations.
- Eliminate parking mandates to encourage transit use.
- Protect and preserve historic buildings 75 years old and older.
She said she hadn't yet reviewed zoning for gas stations, car washes, drive-thrus, food deserts and stormwater management. The draft will keep being updated as Bronin and her team get feedback from city offices.
A split council
Not everyone is sold on more density. Council member Byron Amos said he doubts District 3 residents want multi-unit apartment buildings "built on single family lots right next door to my grandmother or someone who has overcome redlining, overcome segregation, overcome everything in the world to buy their little plot of dirt in a single-family neighborhood." His district includes Adams Park and Collier Heights, where Black residents were redlined out 60 years ago.
"All politics are local," Amos said. "I would be really surprised if my constituents ask for density in my district in such a way." Protecting quality of life for longtime residents was a major concern for several council members.
Others pushed the other direction. Jason Dozier, who represents District 4 neighborhoods including West End and Mechanicsville, said Atlanta needed to address the housing shortage decades ago and is now "playing catch up to be the city that we know we could be." He said Zoning 2.0 "is putting Atlanta back on the path that we should have been years ago."
Council member Kelsea Bond noted that state law blocks Atlanta from enacting rent freezes or rent control, but zoning isn't preempted. "I think it's really important that we use every tool in our toolbox to promote density and affordability while we still can," she said.
The city says thousands of residents have already weighed in, from community ambassadors to Neighborhood Planning Units. "You can be comfortable that what's expressed in Plan A is what our city wants for its future," City Planning Commissioner Jahnee Prince said.
What comes next
Rough Draft didn't report a date for a final vote. The code remains on hold while revisions continue, and Bronin's team is still taking feedback from city departments.
Why it matters for Contractors
A zoning code decides what you can build, how big and how many units can go on a lot. If Atlanta follows Bronin's advice, contractors could see ADU work open up citywide, more multifamily near the Beltline and MARTA, and fewer projects weighed down by parking requirements. A shorter code with fewer districts could also make permitting easier to navigate. But the council is clearly divided, so it's worth following the revisions and speaking up while the draft is still being shaped.