Redevelopment
Decide DeKalb is committed to revitalizing the community by eliminating blight and underutilized spaces in the county. Our proactive approach to redevelopment works alongside developers, investors, and business owners to bring about improvements in the targeted area. These updates could include better and safer street access for pedestrians and bicyclists, visual enhancement of the exterior to property as viewed from the public right-of-way, as well as safety, security, and quality-of-life enhancements for DeKalb County residents.
Tax Allocation Districts
A Tax Allocation District (TAD) is established to accelerate investment by financing certain redevelopment activities in underdeveloped or blighted areas using public dollars. Redevelopment costs are financed through increased property taxes from the new developments. Typically, upon creation, TADs have vacant commercial and residential properties, blighted conditions or need significant environmental remediation.
Kensington Tax Allocation District (TAD) Applications Now Open
Decide DeKalb Authority is pleased to announce that applications are now open for the Kensington Tax Allocation District (TAD). Qualified developers, property owners, and business owners seeking to learn more should review the program guidelines before applying.
To access, view, download, complete and print fillable forms you will need to use Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0 (or later).
Adobe Acrobat Reader is available for free and can be downloaded by visiting this website.
DeKalb County has 3 TADs
Brownfields & Revolving Loan Fund Program
A brownfield is a real property whose expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. Examples include former industrial sites, gas stations, dry cleaning establishments, and manufacturing plants. Brownfields impact our environment, health and economics but also impede our social growth as an inter-woven community.
It would not be possible for Decide DeKalb to conduct its brownfield work without the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Through the Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund Grant, Decide DeKalb is able to assess industrial contamination throughout the county to enhance human health, the environment, and the economic vitality of this area.
Brownfield redevelopment offers significant advantages to the communities within the project area and DeKalb County. Redeveloping brownfields improves air and water quality while revitalizing neighborhoods, leveraging new investments, creating employment opportunities, restoring a sense of community, and generating revenue from areas that were once considered blighted.
Now, developers have a new tool to find brownfield sites and potentially qualify for funding to clean them up so the land can go from “blight” to bright.
The new brownfield GIS tool is a collaboration with the county’s economic development authority, Decide DeKalb, and DeKalb County and offers a one-stop shop for developers, investors and citizens who want to know about properties across DeKalb that can be redeveloped or whether a particular site is polluted. This tool is designed to highlight all properties (active and inactive) in DeKalb County with potential for redevelopment.
Success Story
East Decatur Greenway
Starting from what was once an abandoned gas station on a vacant strip of land in central DeKalb County, this nonprofit came to Decide DeKalb with a vision of creating something special. In 2016, the organization applied for grant funding to remediate the property at 890 S. Columbia Drive in Decatur. Following a year of dedicated work to removing old, underground storage tanks, contaminated soil, and a buried car, the site is now an example of the Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund at work. To learn more about EDG please visit their site here.
