By: Dave Deiters
Chair of the Avondale Estates Downtown Development Authority

I didn’t really know what a blog is, so when I was asked to write one about our rapidly evolving Central Business District in Avondale Estates, I asked ChatGPT. My “know-it-all” AI friend told me that a blog is:

“An online journal or informational website that is regularly updated with posts (blog posts). It typically features content displayed in reverse chronological order, with the newest posts appearing first. Blogs can be personal, like a digital diary, or professional, focusing on specific topics like technology, fashion or travel. Would you like me to help you write one, Dave?”

So, I guess this is my first entry into a diary chronicling my thoughts and experiences with downtown AE. I chose NOT to let ChatGPT write it, so let’s start with some introduction and context.

The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) is a Georgia statutory body that operates independently from the city government, with the mission of promoting the redevelopment and revitalization of the central business district. It has seven members called “directors,” and the state statute stipulates that four directors shall have a direct economic interest in the downtown (i.e., a business owner) and the other three shall be residents. The DDA is guided by the Downtown Master Plan (DMP), which was originally developed in open community sessions and adopted in 2014, and provides our roadmap for action.

While independent from the city, we choose to operate in close coordination with the Board of Mayor and Commissioners (BOMC) and city staff. In fact, we provide significant funding to the city in exchange for several members of the city staff sharing responsibilities between the city and the DDA.

Which brings me to an important question I am often asked: “Where does the DDA get its funding?” In short, our funding was primarily sourced from our successful monetization of the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) building five years ago. That said, there seem to be questions floating around about the sales price of this asset in 2020. This is the original communication I sent in late 2019 that explains the valuation of the building and the negotiated sales price, and this letter, sent in July of 2020, lays out how and why we amended the original deal and closed. I think these two very quick reads pretty well explain everything.

But Dave, you say, there are still “some curious souls” among us who believe that the sales price was too low, given that the current value on the DeKalb tax rolls is roughly three times that amount–what say you to that? 

Well, to those “curious souls” I would offer the following facts:

• The value on the tax rolls is a meaningless number, as the current owners are exempt from property tax for another 11 years (explained in the above-linked document).
• We have no control over how DeKalb sets assessed values. But it is surprising, as it is a fairly common practice for the county to set the value of a recently sold commercial property as the sales price.
• Interestingly, the current tax value of that property listed by DeKalb County is $22M. A scan of CoStar, an independent commercial property valuation firm, shows that no properties of similar size and grade in Metro Atlanta have sold anywhere close to that amount in the last three years. The DJJ building’s valuation is grossly out of alignment with the sales prices of all other similar properties in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The average sales value of buildings of similar size and class sold between 2023 and 2025—three to five years later—was $7.4 million, which is actually lower than where we settled in 2020. 

Why? I can only guess. But I do know that the current owner is a holder of a portfolio of properties and, since they are paying no tax, is likely enjoying the benefits of their asset portfolio of such a high valuation… but who knows. I suspect that, given it is tax-free for another 11 years, that property's valuation is not a priority to anyone other than our local “curious souls.”

Enough financial history! Fast forward to present day, and we are enjoying some of the fruits of that planning in the DMP and the funding provided by the DJJ. The Town Green, as well as the many fantastic businesses that have located here—which so many of us frequent and enjoy—were all described in this DMP. We are also living some of the “headaches” of progress, like the road construction. This progress seems so slow, but when one considers where our downtown was six short years ago versus where we are now, it has been stunning.

Thanks for reading, and see you in Blog 2, when we’ll look at the importance and the benefits of investing in our downtown.