Atlanta City Council approves bid

A new home will soon be under construction in Atlanta thanks to the HOMES Program.

During the Tuesday, Feb. 17, Atlanta City Council meeting, the council approved a bid from JSG in the amount of $165,000 for the construction of the home.

The city’s match for the grant comes in the form of demolition, building permits and water.

Homes built through the program are funded through the federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME Program).

This allows low-to-moderate-income homeowners to demolish structurally unsafe or dilapidated homes and construct new, site-built homes on the same site.

The program is often offered at little to no cost to the homeowner, typically structured as a five-year grant or a 15-year/20-year deferred, forgivable loan.

For a homeowner to be eligible, the home must be owner-occupied and, in many cases, determined to be more than 51 percent structurally unsound, or otherwise infeasible to repair.

In other matters, the council: Approved an engagement letter from Wilf and Henderson P.C for the city’s audit.

Approved a change to the operating hours of city hall. In April 2025, the hours were changed to 10hour days, but will go back to Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. until 4:45 p.m. starting June 1.