The City of Refuge is set to break ground on The 345 on Wednesday, March 2, 2022, a spokesperson for the non-profit Monday told What Now Atlanta.
The organization’s second affordable housing project on Atlanta’s Westside will soon become a 31-unit community to serve Black men from the 30314 zip code.
Originally built in 1959, the former Danzig Motel has been abandoned for over 21 years and will be renovated into a three-floor housing community for military veterans, citizens returning from incarceration, and men aged 18 to 24.
“For decades, Atlanta’s Westside has been forgotten and left in the dark. It’s time for the deserving residents to have something they are proud of — a community they can be excited to call home,” Bruce Deel, founder and CEO of City of Refuge, said in a prepared statement. “As the area becomes more attractive to developers, it is imperative that we provide current and future residents with opportunities to thrive.”
Over the last few years, City of Refuge has expanded its footprint outside the campus gates, making investments on the Westside to help community members become self-sufficient and end the generational cycle of systemic poverty by increasing the number of affordable housing and rental units in the neighborhood.
In August 2020, City of Refuge celebrated the opening of The 1300, a 47-unit affordable housing community located directly across the street from its campus on Joseph E. Boone Blvd NW. The 1300 is now 100 percent occupied, the spokesperson said.
