Story by: Olivia Williams
Businesses and apartment complexes within a half-mile of the Atlanta Beltline will have to dig in their purses this Fall to pay additional property taxes. Atlanta City Council has passed a new "Special Services District" property tax, in order to increase funding for the Beltline so that it can be completed by 2030.
The initial funding mechanism for the Beltline was the Atlanta BeltLine Tax Allocation District, or TAD, which was created in 2005. On their website, the Beltline blames lawsuits with APS, tax abatements, and The Great Recession for their current funding shortage.
"New sources of revenue are critical to fill the more than $1 billion funding gap and keep our promises to deliver the BeltLine vision," their website states.
While most local business owners have called the tax process rushed and not well thought-out, city council contends the new tax will eventually benefit all small businesses on the Beltline. Despite small business owners taking a huge hit during this pandemic, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and city council were mostly in favor of the new tax.
“The Atlanta Beltline has offered tremendous benefits for businesses and property owners along its completed trails,” Mayor Bottoms said in a statement after the vote. "[The tax] will help give communities throughout the city the opportunity to enjoy the benefits associated with the closing of the loop.”
The SSD tax will begin this fall and will hit any business or apartment complex within a half-mile of either side of the trail, regardless of whether their Beltline region is complete or not. Approximately 3,555 properties will be affected; 2,945 commercial properties and 610 apartment buildings. Condo and homeowners were excluded from the tax.
Over the next decade, the Beltline expects to collect upwards of $100 million through the new SSD tax. According to Beltline officials, this tax could also free up an additional $45 million for affordable housing, create 20,000 additional jobs and allocate $12 million toward support for small businesses.
The Atlanta Apartment Association has been critical of the new tax, arguing that apartment complexes are simply going to pass this new tax off to their tenants by raising rent. Members of the West End and Little Five Points community improvement districts have also criticized the new tax, arguing that neither neighborhood sees enough foot traffic from the Beltline to justify this tax increase in the middle of a pandemic.