When Mayor Andre Dickens assumed office in 2022, Atlanta’s housing crisis was reaching a critical point. Rapid population growth continued to outpace housing production. A growing number of residents were facing a housing market that was increasingly out of reach. Mayor Dickens campaigned on creating 20,000 affordable housing units over eight years, but his team projected that even under optimistic assumptions, only 15,000 would be delivered.

Like many cities, the housing ecosystem in Atlanta in 2022 was highly fragmented. Permitting, operating subsidies, entitlements, gap funding, resident emergency resources, and land ownership were all managed across numerous public agencies. More than a dozen public entities controlled land holdings. This fragmentation resulted in lengthy delays, conflicting requirements, a general lack of coordination, and increased development costs.

Atlantans were becoming the victims of this broken housing ecosystem, and the Dickens Administration concluded that meeting its housing goal required a coordinated crisis response. The Housing Strike Force emerged as the city’s organizing solution.