Memorial Drive is an iconic boulevard in DeKalb County, once known as the main drag between downtown Atlanta and Stone Mountain. While today, it’s one of the most internationally diverse areas in the country, it’s also suffered an economic decline since its heyday in the 1960s. As the interstate system siphoned people away, investment along Memorial Drive waned.

To address this, the district’s county commissioner wanted to consider a Community Improvement District (CID) as part of a broader plan to redevelop a 4-mile stretch of the corridor.

Through a strategic approach, we advised a multi-year effort to form a CID and combat systemic disinvestment. The approach segmented the corridor into subareas, including one comprising 20 commercial real estate owners representing $40 million in assessed property value.

An intensive trust-building effort was incorporated throughout the process, allowing the local government to rebuild relationships with commercial property owners, which had suffered over the years.

The district commissioner and stakeholders were armed with the necessary relationships and strategies to move forward with an aggressive CID formation campaign.