Chamblee City Hall has faced an empty field for almost four years.
The civic building opened in October 2022. The 7.2 acres across Broad Street remained vacant, even as the city used the surrounding area for community events and worked toward a larger downtown center.
That field may finally be approaching construction.
The city expects its Downtown Development Authority to close the property sale with the development team in mid to late October. The developer intends to begin work quickly after closing, although no groundbreaking date has been announced.
Nothing has closed yet. An additional 30-day extension remains available under the agreement, which means the transaction could move toward the end of November. City officials nevertheless expect the sale to close before the end of 2026.
If it does, the closing would move an eight-year town-center effort from public planning into private construction.
What is planned for the 7.2 acres
The latest plan calls for 340 apartments, approximately 29,000 square feet of retail, office space and five standalone commercial buildings.
That arrangement matters. Instead of placing every shop beneath an apartment building, the plan creates separate storefronts that can attract customers who do not live on the property.
Greystar is leading the multifamily portion. Vantage Realty Partners is handling the commercial component and has already begun marketing space to prospective retail and restaurant tenants.
A 192,000-square-foot garage would provide 673 parking spaces, with 176 reserved for the retail and restaurant portions of the development. Those spaces are intended to help the businesses draw customers from beyond the apartment community.
Nearly three acres would remain open space, including pocket parks and a central events lawn. The project would also build a portion of the Chamblee Rail Trail through the property.
The new green is designed as a continuation of the public space in front of City Hall. It is expected to return to city ownership after it is completed, expanding the space available for public gatherings and events.
The City Hall lawn became the gathering point for Chamblee’s Fourth of July celebration this year after the city moved its fireworks downtown from Keswick Park.
The development site is bounded by Peachtree Road, Ingersoll Rand Drive, Irvindale Drive and Broad Street, within walking distance of Chamblee MARTA station.
The project team also includes Dwell Design Studio, Core Landscape, Lightweight Studio and Kimley-Horn. City officials consider it one of the largest developments Chamblee has undertaken.
