UrbanizeAtlNewsBot

UrbanizeAtlNewsBot

First look: Old Fourth Ward affordable housing launches construction Josh Green Thu, 03/27/2025 - 08:13 A development set to transform nearly a full city block and inject affordable housing options into one of Atlanta’s hottest real estate submarkets is full speed ahead.

The project, City Lights North Block, broke ground with site work and demolition in recent weeks at 633 Parkway Drive. The site is between North Avenue and Ponce de Leon Avenue, roughly four blocks directly west of Ponce City Market.

A portion of the Old Fourth Ward project will also have frontage along Boulevard, near its intersection with Ponce de Leon Avenue.

A row of low-rise housing was demolished several years ago at the site, and a two-story brick structure where Parkway Drive meets North Avenue was also taken down this month.

A shuttered brick structure where Parkway Drive meets North Avenue this month, prior to demolition. Contributed

The same site along Parkway Drive today. Contributed

Directly across the street stands The Views at O4W, a cove of modern-style townhomes built prior to, and during, the COVID-19 pandemic.

North Block marks the fifth phase of City Lights, which is Massachusetts developer Wingate’s masterplanned redevelopment of Bedford Pines, a cluster of HUD Section 8 multifamily buildings along and near Boulevard.

Plans call for 187 apartments capped at rates deemed affordable, in a wide variety of sizes.

North Block is also set to include amenities such as an after-school program, a business center with computers, a community room, fitness center, a central laundry facility on each floor, and a private courtyard. Access to public transportation is also cited by project officials as a perk.

The 187-unit North Block project’s Boulevard frontage, near a Wendy’s. Geheber Lewis Associates, via Invest Atlanta

City Lights North Block’s location at 633 Parkway Drive.Google Maps

An Invest Atlanta rep tells Urbanize Atlanta the economic development agency contributed a $35-million tax exempt loan to the project that closed in January, paving the way for construction to begin. A revised construction period of 18 months means the building is expected to open sometime later next year.

The total cost of the project is $78.9 million, according to Invest Atlanta’s tabulations.

The building is being reserved for tenants earning 60 percent of the area median income or less. According to Invest Atlanta, the project is supported by a Housing Assistance Payment Contract with HUD, and residents will not pay more than 30 percent of their income.

Otherwise, listed rents for the building start at $1,400 monthly for studios with 536 square feet.

The bulk of apartments (84 total) will be two-bedroom units asking $2,150 for 975 square feet.

At the high end, a single four-bedroom apartment will be offered in the building at $2,900 monthly for 1,302 square feet.

Site plan for North Block, with Parkway Drive shown at left and Boulevard at right. Wingate/City of Atlanta

Once North Block finishes, just one more phase of Wingate’s City Lights public housing makeover will remain. That’s called City Lights South.

Another component of the masterplan, Boulevard North, is under construction now about a block away.

In the gallery above, find more context and images for the North Block project.

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