Atlanta’s LIFT initiative started in 2020 to take on homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first phase, LIFT 1.0, used $19 million of Atlanta’s federal CARES Act funds and $5.1 million in private contributions, eventually housing 807 people and families and giving subsidies to 771 households to prevent them from losing housing.
The second phase, LIFT 2.0, aims to house another 1,500 people or families by the end of 2024 using $26.6 million in city, state and federal funds. The program has already housed 19 people and families and put 145 people into shelters, hotels or diversion, according to Partners for HOME, which is administering the LIFT program.
Meanwhile, Partners for HOME, Invest Atlanta and the United Way Regional Commission are working on Atlanta’s $50 million HomeFirst initiative, an effort to build 550 affordable apartment units around the Atlanta Beltline, Grove Park, Old Fourth Ward, East Atlanta and other parts of the city. Half of the money for HomeFirst came from the city and half from private sources. The program has so far funded 563 units, according to Partners for HOME.
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