The battle over what gets built on that massive Stars Metals District site is heating up, and it's not going the way the Westside community expected. Where developers once planned a mixed-use warehouse complex (think Ponce City Market vibes), Atlanta Mission now wants to build a 900-bed homeless shelter, and neighbors are not having it.
A group called 'Westside for Economic Justice' has organized a community meeting for March 26, asking all City Council members to show up and hear their concerns. They're specifically calling on council to reject Atlanta Mission's special use permit request. You can understand why residents are frustrated - they were probably envisioning retail, restaurants, and maybe some loft apartments, not the city's largest homeless facility.
This whole situation highlights the ongoing tension in Atlanta between addressing the homelessness crisis and community development. Atlanta Mission argues their facility could help lift people up and ultimately benefit the surrounding neighborhoods, but residents worry about property values and safety. The fact that this is happening right along the new Beltline section makes it even more contentious, since everyone knows how much the trail drives development and gentrification.