A large-scale, multifaceted Southwest Atlanta project that’s been described as “transformative” and a “milestone” for the area is beginning to rise up.
Vertical construction has kicked off in recent days at 840 Woodrow, a mixed-use Oakland City development that’s claiming about 7 total acres of formerly industrial land a block west of the Beltline’s Westside Trail, adjacent to the historic Murphy Crossing property.
Construction of 840 Woodrow elevator shafts started this month, with vertical slabs and framing now starting as well, as representatives of multifamily builders Woodfield Development tell Urbanize Atlanta.
The multi-phase 840 Woodrow calls for a $77-million mix of housing, commercial space, and new jobs, continuing a Beltline-influenced groundswell of investment in the immediate area.
As seen earlier this month, the scope of one section of the 7-acre 840 Woodrow site in Oakland City. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta
A revised rendering showing how the multifaceted project would front a proposed Beltline spur trail through the warehouse district.Vida Companies/ Woodfield Development; designs, Dynamik Design
Woodfield reps say the first facet to deliver—in roughly 10 months from now—will be 25 build-to-rent townhomes. The remaining components are scheduled to deliver over the year following that.
Overall, 840 Woodrow plans call for 326 new apartments and rental townhomes, with 20 percent of those (66 units total) designated as affordable/workforce housing—an amount that exceeds the City of Atlanta’s Inclusionary Zoning requirements, Woodfield have officials noted.
Rent limits will be based on 80 percent of the Area Median Income, and 5 percent of units will also be set aside for tenants using vouchers. Another aspect of the project will see subsidized commercial spaces for local entrepreneurs.
That commercial component will include the adaptive-reuse of an existing building on site into a headquarters and training facility for a local coffee roaster who’s committed to local hiring, along with repurposed shipping containers that will serve as storefronts in hopes of supporting area startups and local entrepreneurs.
Public-art programming and “significant sidewalk and streetscape upgrades” are also in the pipeline, officials have said.
Development plans have been percolating—in partnership with Atlanta-based multifamily developers Vida Companies—for more than three years. The formerly vacant site was most recently used for car and truck storage.
Infrastructure work underway in early September about a block from the Westside Trail. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta
Vida Companies/ Woodfield Development; designs, Dynamik Design
Plans call for a Beltline spur trail to run along the southern edge of the property, linking the Westside Trail to other major infill sites in the vicinity.
Woodfield is also partnering on 840 Woodrow with American South Capital Partners, a veteran of 25 projects across the Southeast region with the bulk of housing units considered affordable for families earning less than 80 percent AMI.
840 Woodrow is expected to produce more than 500 construction jobs and 40-plus permanent jobs. An estimated $1.5 million in brownfield remediation work was required to ready the site for redevelopment.
Woodfield’s intown Atlanta developments in recent years include the 505 Courtland tower, while the firm’s OTP endeavors have come in places such as Union City and Athens. The company describes itself as one of the country’s leading developers of Class A multifamily housing.
Facades of commercial spaces, apartments, and townhomes. Vida Companies/ Woodfield Development; designs, Dynamik Design
The Oakland City site as of February 2020. Google Maps
The Oakland City project joins an influx of active construction and proposals that could bring thousands of new homes and a surge of commercial activity to surrounding blocks.
Down the street in Capitol View, plans that call for a 25-acre, potentially billion-dollar new district with more than 4,000 housing units overall came to light earlier this year. An Empire Communities townhome component of that project is under development now.
Also nearby, the first phase of adaptive-reuse Oakland Exchange is now gearing up to break ground this year, following years of delays, according to Invest Atlanta.
Planning efforts also continue at the area’s best-known redevelopment site—one that overlooks the mainline Beltline loop trail—following high-profile disagreements between owners and developers. Earlier this year, Atlanta Beltline Inc. parted ways with selected developers Culdesac and Urban Oasis Development for the vacant, 20-acre Murphy Crossing property. Beltline leadership has taken the reins on planning and development and expects to break ground on the initial phase at Murphy Crossing sometime in 2026, officials have said.
Meanwhile, Culdesac is building two pocket neighborhoods of for-sale townhomes in the area with prices starting in the high $100,000s.
Head up to the gallery for more 840 Woodrow imagery and context.
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