Mega Project in Suburban Atlanta Gets Final Public Financing Piece: Value Capture

"The final piece of public financing is finally in place to redevelop the former General Motors plant in Doraville, a project that will start with 500 new jobs," reports Mark Niesse.

That is, the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners voted to implement a tax allocation district "that will leverage anticipated future tax revenue to pay for infrastructure, including a covered street connecting the site to MARTA."

"The county school system didn’t sign on to the tax allocation district, but money that would have otherwise gone toward public education is nevertheless being diverted to the development through a complex financing arrangement that includes tax breaks approved by the Doraville Development Authority in August," adds Niesse.

The redevelopment project, called Assembly, first crossed Planetizen's path in September 2014, when it was being touted as the region's largest transit oriented development.  

This is not the first political battle to square schools against developers over revenue generated by value capture mechanisms such as this tax allocation district. Chicago has encountered similar drama over its expanded use of tax increment financing in recent years.