Four months ago, the McPherson Implementing Local Redevelopment Authority (MILRA) announced a historic agreement to allow Tyler Perry Studios to expand production on 330 acres of Fort McPherson. As we recover from the worst recession in over 80 years, Atlanta is only a few weeks away from approving an agreement that will spur long-term job creation, business expansion and community investment for our city and region.
Today, we have a proposal by a well-capitalized entertainment company with a proven track record of success that will not only attract robust investment to the south side Atlanta region, but expand the city’s footprint in television and film and strengthen its position as the cultural and economic center of the Southeast. Further, the motion picture and TV industry employs 30,000 residents in Georgia and generates $5.1 billion annually, with $3.1 billion generated in Atlanta.
We are also preserving an Atlanta-based business. Mr. Perry had acquired several hundred acres in Douglas County at a cost of several million dollars, but chose to move forward with investing in Fort McPherson because he understood the importance of remaining in Atlanta. Finally, the proposal put forth by Tyler Perry Studios allows MILRA to remain financially sound.
Tyler Perry has been a committed partner to the metropolitan Atlanta region — as evidenced by his investment in his current production facility in southwest Atlanta in 2008. Tyler Perry Studios employs more than 400 metro residents. Through his various entertainment ventures, Perry has invested $200 million in Georgia, and he is committed to the economic revitalization of Fort McPherson.
Importantly, after the $30 million acquisition, MILRA will continue to own 144 acres — a site larger than Atlantic Station — debt-free. The authority will then deliver on its mission to better connect to surrounding communities, generate jobs, promote economic development and support the homeless.
Charged by the Georgia Legislature to restore jobs lost when the base closed, the authority has for years searched for an investor with the commitment and capacity to deploy millions of dollars in this community to catalyze the turnaround. We have received hundreds of inquiries and worked on dozens of possible deals. But before now, we had not received an offer from an established business with a verifiable track record, one large enough to allow the authority to buy the property from the Army.
Tyler Perry has expressed his commitment to not only invest in the community but to help ensure that his spending catalyzes further investment. He has described having many productions underway simultaneously in the new film studio. Each production will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on supplies, from hardware and lumber to apparel to lodging. Unlike previous prospective buyers, Mr. Perry is committed to investing over $100 million in the property.
This is an opportunity to leverage the strengths of our city and the generous tax incentives provided by the state of Georgia. We have a chance to expand Atlanta’s footprint in the film and television industry, a key economic generator for the entire Southeast, and attract robust investment to the neighborhoods surrounding Fort McPherson.
The planned film studio creates opportunities for additional jobs in construction, retail, hospitality, maintenance, landscaping, medicine and more. Many members of the community possess the skills and training to compete for these jobs. The city and state are also working on job training initiatives for the numerous production jobs in the film and television industry, where demand for skilled workers is high across the state. Jobs and activities on the former Army base are also expected to increase demand for housing around the base, encouraging investors to rehabilitate community housing, knowing that buyers await.
Is this opportunity different from what anyone might have envisioned for Fort McPherson? Undoubtedly. When the fort’s closing was announced nearly a decade ago, would anyone have been audacious enough to imagine a media mogul building a film and TV studio here?
There will be cynics and voices of opposition that claim to speak on behalf of our south side neighborhoods, but the reality is that the overwhelming majority of community members understand the opportunity that lies before them. For the first time in 30 years, we have a historic opportunity to make real on the promise of a first-class development in a community that deserves and needs it. Let’s not lose sight of that.
Brian Hooker is executive director of McPherson Implementing Local Redevelopment Authority.
