Will Mayor Dickens’ proposed tax district extension fund Beltline rail?
Mayor Andre Dickens announced an ambitious plan last week that would generate an estimated $5 billion in revenue for the city by extending Atlanta’s tax allocation districts, most of which are set to expire in 2030.
According to the mayor’s office, nearly $2 billion of those dollars would go to expanding the city’s transit network. That includes Dickens’ plans to install rail along the southside Beltline — a plan that goes against years of promises to start the project on the eastside trail.
The first-term mayor argues that starting rail construction on the south side of the 22-mile loop will help bolster underserved areas.
“I’ve always been a supporter of rail on the Atlanta Beltline — but where you start?” Dickens said last week while unveiling the tax district plan. “If we’re going to provide a benefit such as rail, we’re going to start in … the areas that have been disinvested and an area (where) people are more transit-dependent.”
Dickens declined to say how much of the funding generated by the extension would go toward Beltline rail.
Beltline rail supporters — who have been vocal about their frustration over the change of plans — responded that funds from the proposed tax allocation district extension should go to rail along the entire trail loop.
“We demand a city where Beltline Rail serves every quadrant — east, south, west and north — because connectivity that stops at I-20 is not connectivity at all,” officials with the advocacy group Beltline Rail Now said. “Build it all. Connect Atlanta. No more excuses.”
But the lofty proposal needs the support of the City Council, Atlanta Public Schools and Fulton County to move forward.
Legislation approving the tax allocation district extension was introduced at the City Council meeting Monday, indicating that the mayor is pushing to solidify council support ahead of the November election and swearing-in of new members.
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Atlanta is just under a month away from the November city elections, where voters will decide on representation for the next four years.
Since Dickens did not draw a high-profile competitor, the race for the Atlanta City Council president’s gavel is arguably the most competitive and consequential race on the ballot.
Rohit Malhotra, the progressive political newcomer, is challenging two-term council member Marci Collier Overstreet, who is backed by the mayor. We reported last week that she’s also garnering the support of her council colleagues.
But Malhotra has earned the endorsement of two former City Council presidents: Cathy Woolard, who served from 2002 to 2004, and Felicia Moore, who served from 2018 to 2022.
“Atlanta is in desperate need of a voice,” Moore said of her endorsement. “He has a proven track record of community involvement and engagement.”
“Most importantly, Rohit is independent and not afraid to stand up and speak out on behalf of all people,” she said.
Moore’s support for Malhotra comes after the former council president has been outwardly critical of Dickens during the administration’s battle with the city’s former inspector general.
She spoke out against Dickens’ appointment of an interim inspector general after the former resigned. The position is supposed to act as the city’s top government watchdog, independent from the mayor’s office.
It’s unclear with current council President Doug Shipman will endorse a candidate in the City Council president race.
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Courtney English, one of the mayor’s top advisers throughout his time in office, has been named permanent chief of staff after serving in the role of interim chief since July.
English is a former Atlanta Board of Education chair and affordable housing expert who entered the Dickens administration in 2022 as the chief policy officer and senior adviser to the mayor.
Last week, English took the stage alongside Dickens when the mayor announced the plans to extend the city’s tax allocation districts to help raise funds to invest in underserved neighborhoods.
It’s one of several initiatives spearheaded by English for the Dickens administration. He’s also helped played a key role in Atlanta’s affordable housing initiatives, as well as the Atlanta’s first city-owned grocery store, which opened in August.
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Got tips, tricks or just want to say hello? Email me at riley.bunch@ajc.com.
About the Author
Riley Bunch is a reporter on the local government team at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution covering Atlanta City Hall. She covers the mayor and Atlanta City Council while also keeping an eye on the city’s diverse neighborhoods.
