At its December meeting, the board of Invest Atlanta, led by Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, voted to approve a grant of up to $2,000,000 from the Eastside TAD Ascension Fund to support the construction of a mixed-use development in the heart of the Historic Sweet Auburn District. It will consist of 42 units of housing as well as 27,000 square feet of retail. Twenty-three of the units will be available at affordable rentals rates as workforce housing, and the planned redevelopment will repurpose two historic buildings and an unutilized parking lot.

The Front Porch at Auburn Avenue is a project developed by three mission-driven minority organizations sharing the same vision. The Historic District Development Corporation (HDDC), Partnership for Southern Equity, along with The Guild, all share the same goal of increasing economic mobility in Atlanta. The redevelopment project is called The Front Porch to evoke sentiments of welcoming and gathering—invoking the history and legacy of Sweet Auburn as a center of black entrepreneurship and the importance of community in Southern traditions.

The Front Porch aims to further reinvigorate the street and neighborhood. The two-story signature front porch promises to serve as a gathering space with a variety of uses geared toward welcoming all, such as a farmer’s market, children’s activity center, and sub-grade parking for residents. Additionally, the development will imbue the neighborhood economy with critical elements of environmentally and economically sustainable infrastructure, urban agriculture, and commerce.