She worked on many well-known Atlanta projects. Buckhead is her next focus.
From Ponce City Market to South Downtown, Katharine Kelley’s fingerprints mark many of Atlanta’s most well-known projects.
But now, she’s turning her attention to her backyard in Buckhead by assuming one of the neighborhood’s top civic leadership positions.
The Buckhead Coalition and the Buckhead Community Improvement District announced Wednesday they selected Kelley as their next CEO. Both organizations focus on civic, transit and quality of life improvements in Buckhead, playing important roles in advocacy and neighborhood-government relations.
Kelley, a Buckhead native, will succeed longtime neighborhood leader Jim Durrett, who announced his forthcoming retirement over the summer. Kelley will assume both roles in January 2026, saying the opportunity blends her Buckhead roots, her decades of development experience and a passion for civic engagement.
“I feel like this opportunity really brings together so many of those themes in a way that will allow me to give back on an even greater scale to the entire Buckhead community,” she told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
To assume the positions, Kelley will step down as president of Green Street Properties, which is known for helming Atlanta’s Glenwood Park district.
The decision caps off Kelley’s more than 30 years of working in Atlanta’s development ecosystem. That time includes stints with Jamestown (known for developing Ponce City Market), Newport (which kick-started South Downtown’s revitalization) and Post Properties (a prolific apartment developer).
“Having worked closely with her over the years, I’ve seen firsthand her deep commitment to civic engagement and her impressive track record in urban development,” Jonathan Rodbell, chair of the Buckhead Coalition, said in a news release.
Kelley is also a past president of the Rotary Club of Atlanta and a previous member of the City of Atlanta Zoning Review Board.
Buckhead boasts one of Atlanta’s most robust skylines, office markets, retail offerings and residential communities. Projects focused on connecting the neighborhood’s elements, such as the Beltline and Path 400, have taken the spotlight in recent years.
Through stakeholder collaboration and development tools, the Buckhead Coalition and CID play a key role in infrastructure and projects focused on public quality of life improvements.
“Atlantans now have examples of what a great public realm looks and feels like,” Kelley said. “As they’ve had a taste of that, they want even more of it.”
Durrett served as the CID’s executive director for 17 years and the Buckhead Coalition’s chief executive for five years, following the retirement of coalition founder and former Atlanta Mayor Sam Massell, who died in 2022. Durrett said Kelley’s selection “signals a promising and exciting trajectory” for Buckhead.
The neighborhood has faced unique challenges in recent years, ranging from high-profile crime incidents after the COVID-19 pandemic, division over a Buckhead cityhood movement and broad office market struggles. Durrett said alterations to federal funding tools and other changes under the Trump administration also present challenges for pending infrastructure projects.
Kelley said many of Buckhead’s forthcoming obstacles mirror those found across Atlanta. She said refreshing infrastructure, staying focused on public safety, homelessness and affordable housing “are broad things that I think the entire city is focused on.”
“They’re no different in Buckhead,” she added.
About the Author
Zachary Hansen, a Georgia native, covers economic development and commercial real estate for the AJC. He's been with the newspaper since 2018 and enjoys diving into complex stories that affect people's lives.
