Atlanta Southside leaders aim for sustainable growth as investments, population swell

Leaders in Atlanta's Southside are thinking of the city's northern suburbs as new residents and developers move in to their region.

"There's definitely lessons to be learned," said Jeffery Turner, chair of the Clayton County Commission and a member of the Atlanta Regional Commission's Housing Task Force.

"We want to make sure that when development comes into the Southside, we do it in a way that is sustainable, but also that addresses the needs of each community," Turner added.

The northern portion of metro Atlanta has seen unbridled growth for decades. Population in its counties is growing at some of the fastest rates in the United States. Forsyth County's population ballooned 43% between 2010 and 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Urban-inspired live-work-play developments have risen north of Atlanta in recent years, but most of that growth was the embodiment of suburban sprawl.

With the amount of developable land in the northern suburbs dwindling, developers increasingly look to the Southside for big projects.

Southside is not yet experiencing the kind of growth that has happened up north, but its population is on the upswing. Fayette, Coweta, Clayton, Henry and Newton all increased their population between 11% and 18% during the previous decade. Rockdale, at 9.8% was the only Southside county with growth below 10%.

Developers have taken notice. Investment in industrial, mixed-use and residential construction across Southside is surging. The largest new project in the region is Trilith (formerly Pinewood Atlanta Studios) in Fayetteville, 22 miles down Interstate-75 from Atlanta. The Trilith property spans hundreds of acres and already includes movie studios, apartments, single-family homes, shops and restaurants. It represents an investment of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Michael Hightower, founder of The Collaborative Firm, which focuses on urban planning, design and development in Southside, said there is more demand for projects such as Trilith. He credited MARTA for helping to bring transit-oriented developments to communities near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and said MARTA's planned expansion in Clayton County would spur similar development there.

Demand for walkable mixed-use developments also exists in parts of the region that are not connected by transit. Some of these areas have long existed as residential bedroom communities, but corporate expansions and and a thriving film industry are bringing new people who want more to do in their neighborhoods.

View the full article by Donnell Suggs – Sports and Entertainment Reporter, Atlanta Business Chronicle, here.