Atlanta City Council Member Andre Dickens Talks about Atlanta’s Affordability Housing Problem at ARC’s State of the Region Breakfast

November 2, 2018
ATLANTA— Atlanta City Council member Andre Dickens tackled one of Atlanta’s key issues­—the lack of What's Next ATL Andre Dickens affordable housing—at Friday’s state of the region breakfast hosted by the Atlanta Regional Commission.

“My hometown of Atlanta has a housing affordability problem. Gentrification, disparity, and displacement are happening all too often,” he told the audience. “Metro Atlanta has the highest income inequality and income immobility in the nation. There is a whole litany of policy and programmatic solutions that can begin to move us in the right direction. But first, we need to assess the scope of the problem.”

Atlanta’s struggle with affordable housing has gained national attention recently. In September, The Wall Street Journal covered the City’s push for more affordable housing in the face of booming development and gentrification.

Dickens has been vocal about the need for more affordable housing since joining the Atlanta City Council in January 2014. Earlier this year, he championed inclusionary zoning legislation adopted by the Council in hopes of incentivizing developers to build more affordable units near the Atlanta BeltLine and in Westside neighborhoods.

“Housing isn’t just about the building we build or the profit that is made. Housing is about people,” he said. “We are called to represent everyone in our community. This problem doesn’t just impact people in poverty, it impacts everyone in the region. Metro Atlanta’s competitive edge as an affordable region for attracting future jobs and economic growth is at risk and I am not going to stand by and let this issue get any further away from us.”

Resource: Atlanta City Council Press Release