Westside Future Fund (WFF) has launched its $55 million capital campaign Our Next Chapter to support the completion of its quality affordable housing targets by 2028.

As Atlanta’s Westside continues to attract attention from local and national developers, there is an urgent need to ensure quality affordable housing options. WFF is a place-based organization focused on compassionate and equitable neighborhood revitalization on the historic Westside. Its service footprint includes English Avenue, Vine City, Ashview Heights, Atlanta University Center, and Just Us. The median household income for residents within WFF’s service footprint is just under $35,000.

WFF now owns enough land to reach its overall mixed-income goals established in 2017: 1,500 high-quality, affordable units serving families at 60 percent AMI and less, 250 new single-family homes with down payment assistance for mortgage-ready buyers, and the establishment of the Anti-Displacement Tax Fund for legacy resident homeowners. Its land acquisition has followed the priorities identified by historic Westside residents, community leaders, and stakeholders in the 2016 Westside Land Use Framework Plan, which was unanimously passed by the Atlanta City Council.

 

The organization’s progress to date includes supporting 646 completed multifamily units, of which WFF owns 214. The organization has an additional 121 units under development and scheduled for completion by 2025. WFF has helped 35 families purchase homes and provided property tax assistance to 133 legacy residents.

With $55 million in philanthropic support, WFF will be able to build on this progress and leverage an additional $45 million in low-cost financing from its Impact Fund. An additional $10 million in public grants will help the organization finance:

• 285 multifamily units, of which 185 will serve families at 60% Area Median Income (AMI) and less.
• 225 single-family homes with accompanying income-qualified down-payment assistance, and
• Supporting the Anti-Displacement Tax Fund to help legacy resident homeowners stay in the community

“Our land acquisitions to date, reflect the priorities of the community,” said John Ahmann, WFF’s President & CEO. “In this next chapter of our work, we’re intentionally focused on moving faster to develop more quality affordable housing. This is necessary as market forces continue to drive up the cost of land and housing. It’s critical to build the affordability into these developments at the outset.”

Through its signature program Home on the Westside, WFF’s community retention guidelines prioritize legacy and future residents with live, work, and learn connections to the historic Westside. The program’s three service areas include single-family homeownership, rental housing, and property tax assistance for legacy residents. You can hear more from the residents WFF serves here.

Read more about WFF’s Our Next Chapter campaign in this recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution article, or listen to this interview on 90.1 WABE-FM’s Closer Look with Rose Scott.

To learn more about how you can support WFF’s Our Next Chapter campaign, email: John@westsidefuturefund.org.