As the eighth-largest and one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the U.S., Atlanta has emerged as one of the nation’s most thriving cities. The city has earned national recognition for its expanding job market and economy, rapidly growing technology sector, which are all achievements that recently contributed to Atlanta being named the “smartest city” in the country.
Beneath this momentum, though, lies a growth model that is beginning to break down. The same forces fueling Atlanta’s rise are also exposing the structural issues that threaten the stability of that success. As the city continues to attract new residents and investment, longstanding issues in infrastructure, affordability, and equity have become increasingly difficult to ignore. Atlanta must adapt its approach to growth and reinvent it to solidify our city’s narrative for the future. Among the key priorities for many residents and potential residents looking to move into Atlanta is the expensive housing market that prices out many looking to set their roots down. While more attention may be placed on Atlanta’s housing shortage, the other part of the picture is the unaffordability of new, high-density projects. The reality is that median rent and home prices have rapidly outpaced wage growth, straining families and residents to spend constantly more of their income on housing, almost one-third of it, in fact. The picture is clear: Atlanta is not running out of housing, as a whole – it is running out of housing that is affordable.
This situation means that the city has lost tens of thousands of affordable units, squeezing out lower-income residents as communities that contribute to the vibrancy of Atlanta’s cultural and social life are gentrified. Now, these housing factors are pushing people to choose smaller, cheaper cities instead, people who are leaving pricey northern cities but also those giving up on southern metros like Atlanta. For the first time in 30 years, Atlanta has seen more out-migration in 2024 than in, showing cracks in its status as a longtime growth magnet. Workers and families are increasingly choosing more affordable, smaller cities, weakening Atlanta’s future labor pool and economic competitiveness.
As many Atlantans would agree, traffic in the city is the one constant day in and day out. Atlantans lose 87 hours each year to traffic, placing the city at ninth for delays in commuting. Atlanta’s rapid urbanization over the past several decades has remarkably been characterized by extensive low-density growth and sprawling suburban development, leading to near-endless traffic spreading towards the suburbs. In fact, more than 80% of travel in the metro area occurs by personal vehicle, which inhibits a significant range of people from getting to where they need to go. Underpinning Atlanta’s poor land use is the role of restrictive single-family zoning that stands as a structural barrier to healthy high-density development. A characteristic lack of missing middle housing – think duplexes and townhomes – persists because of the complex process to create multi-family zoning.
Down the street from Midtown, the contentious passing of the proposed redevelopment of Amsterdam Walk is key to unlocking the city from sprawling urbanization, as solutions to bring density are possible with community-conscious planning. Mixed-use projects like these ought to be promoted, as they enable citizens to engage with spaces where one can live, work and play without needing to travel long distances – like the majority of Atlantans. Additionally, the proximity of this project to the BeltLine unlocks access to opportunities for exercise and well-being in our bustling cityscape, a healthy and safe way to spend time.
Despite Atlanta’s economic growth, it is imperative to note that a significant portion of downtown office space remains underutilized, with nearly 25% of spaces vacant. This situation is largely driven by remote and hybrid work trends that have reduced demand for traditional office space. Here, we are presented with a fresh solution and opportunity: to transform downtown space into housing units with renovations, not entire reconstructions. Unused square footage right in the urban core reflects untapped potential for revitalization, and some developers have already begun to explore office-to-residential conversions. Bringing new life into empty towers and more residents into walkable and transit connected areas is one of the greatest paths forward to support local businesses and strengthen Atlanta’s economic ecosystem if pursued thoughtfully.
Luckily, plans envisioning and outlining Atlanta’s sustainable future exist and are being drawn up at present. The flagship plan embraced by city leaders is Atlanta’s Comprehensive Development Plan, updated in July 2025. Known as Plan A, this represents a significant shift in how our city approaches growth by rethinking land use, coordinating transportation planning and aligning housing policy, among others, to guide actions towards multiorganizational economic and infrastructure goals. At the same time, efforts to rewrite Atlanta’s 40-year-old zoning ordinance alongside reforms to public housing strategy signals a recognition that outdated rules can no longer support a growing, diverse city. If implemented thoroughly and deliberately, these reforms will shape a more connected, affordable and resilient Atlanta, one that can purposefully manage future growth and ensure its success.
Looking to this summer, as Atlanta prepares to host eight matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, putting smart and sustainable development at the forefront will be the key to attracting business and economic benefits in the future. Hosting such a major global event requires coordinated and sustainable upgrades across transportation, public space and safety systems; this means effectively-deployed investments planned to our streetscapes, transit modernization, and downtown improvements like with the Centennial Yards undertaking to boost Atlanta’s downtown.
Atlanta’s new growth model should stand on key principles that are both realistic and ambitious. First, efforts must be made to make housing genuinely affordable for residents, meaning legalizing more density, incentivizing mixed-income housing and even converting office space to residential use. Second, this density must be connected to usable public transit, meaning building around where MARTA already exists, as well as improving the frequency and reliability of the system. This will reduce car dependency, not just alleviating traffic. Finally, changes will build a new narrative so that our city “too busy to hate” can become one that is smart enough to change, where opportunities for all residents are plentiful and possible.
Atlanta has reinvented itself before: from the post industrial capital of the New South, to an international city with the 1996 Olympics, and now a contemporary tech hub on the leading edge of innovation. Looking forward, the reinvention of our city must be inclusive, intentional and sustainable; without an adapted growth model, Atlanta is on track to price itself out of its own future. Time will tell if we follow these principles wisely and with fidelity.
