Downtown's historic Atlanta First United Methodist Church plans $110M affordable housing development

February 17,2021

One of the city's oldest churches will partner with a national developer to build hundreds of affordable apartments next to its historic downtown Atlanta campus.

Atlanta First United Methodist Church recently announced it selected Chicago-based Evergreen Real Estate Group as its joint venture partner to redevelop the property, which has stood at 360 Peachtree St. since 1903.

Plans call for demolishing a portion of the property and building a 20-story and a 16-story tower on either side of the church, an Atlanta landmark designed by renowned architect Willis F. Denny in the Gothic Revival style. The church, whose granite facade is surrounded by downtown's glossy office and residential towers, is listed on the U.S. National Registry of Historic Places. Atlanta First United Methodist and Evergreen Real Estate want to add about 300 apartments, most of them affordable. A 5-story school building called The Podium would also rise near the new towers. The church's annex, once the Wesley Chapel, may be restored and renovated so it can house a community assistance program.

About 80% of $110 million project may need to be financed with public and private funding. It could take months to line up the financing, and work may not begin until 2022.

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