In the late afternoon heat of July 31, Mayor Andre Dickens traded his suit jacket for sturdy shoes and joined developers, architects, nonprofit partners, and City staff for a hard hat tour of the future Waterworks housing site in West Midtown.
The site is home to a major piece of the Mayor’s Rapid Housing Initiative—a commitment to build 500 new units of deeply affordable housing by the end of 2025. Once complete, Waterworks will offer 100 studio units for individuals experiencing chronic homelessness, each paired with on-site wraparound services like mental health care and case management.
“Waterworks is about more than putting up buildings—it’s about providing stability, dignity, and opportunity to those who need it most,” said Mayor Dickens during the walkthrough. “We’re not just building units. We’re building a stronger, more compassionate Atlanta.”
The tour included a progress update from the development team and a guided walkthrough of the modular construction site. Partners from Atlantica Properties, Partners for HOME, Invest Atlanta, and students from Georgia Tech joined to see the vision taking shape—brick by brick and module by module.
The project uses modular construction to speed up timelines while maintaining quality, allowing the City to scale solutions more efficiently and bring housing online faster.
Key features of the development include:
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Target residents: Individuals earning less than 30% of the Area Median Income
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Integrated services: Four on-site service offices for mental health, case management, and resident support
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Transit access: A central location near public transportation, the BeltLine Spur, and Atlantic Station
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Innovation and impact: A model for public-private partnerships that address homelessness through long-term, supportive solutions
The walkthrough was part of the City’s ongoing effort to build not just housing—but a city where everyone can access safety, stability, and care.
“We’re moving urgently, but thoughtfully,” said the Mayor. “This is what it looks like to move Atlanta forward—with equity, innovation, and compassion at the core.”
