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Value of metro Atlanta tax breaks revealed

Avalon is one of metro Atlanta’s defining landmarks and marquee companies, which received about $2.7 million in tax breaks last year, the highest amount in metro Atlanta.
By
Sept 16, 2017

Until now, no one knew the real cost of tax incentives awarded by metro Atlanta governments to companies that pledged to expand in the area.

That’s changing as a result of new government transparency rules that enabled The Atlanta Journal-Constitution to crunch the numbers and discover which companies benefited the most last year.

The figures show that the region's biggest businesses and mixed-use developments also received some of the largest tax breaks.

Avalon, an upscale mixed-use development in Alpharetta, topped the list, receiving nearly $2.6 million in tax breaks last year.

Nearly two dozen Fortune 500 companies are also among those receiving public support, including Walmart, Home Depot, FedEx, Coca-Cola, SunTrust and others.

In all, tax incentives amounted to a 30 percent discount on average for more than 180 properties in the region's four core counties last year. Companies received $30.7 million in property tax discounts and still owed $72.6 million in Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties, according to the AJC's analysis.

Full story: Read more about which companies received the highest tax breaks on myAJC.com.

Avalon, a mixed-use development in Alpharetta, received nearly $2.6 million in property tax breaks last year. Customers visit Avalon’s theater, restaurants and stores on Thursday, August 17, 2017. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

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Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

About the Author

Mark Niesse is an enterprise reporter and covers elections and Georgia government for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and is considered an expert on elections and voting. Before joining the AJC, he worked for The Associated Press in Atlanta, Honolulu and Montgomery, Alabama. He also reported for The Daily Report and The Santiago Times in Chile.

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