ATLANTA (June 25, 2009) – With words of praise from metro Atlanta officials and a snip of a ribbon, Ashford Landing, the eagerly anticipated 117-unit, mid-rise affordable apartment development for independent seniors, officially opened today. Ashford Landing is the second of a multi-phase redevelopment of a new mixed-use community, Brookleigh, on the site of the former Johnson Ferry East public housing project near Ashford Dunwoody and Johnson Ferry Road in north DeKalb County.

Among the officials who spoke to the attendees were Carleen Cumberbatch, chair of the Housing Authority of DeKalb County (HADC) Board of Commissioners, Sterling Bethea, executive director of HADC, Dave Dixon, development partner of Norsouth Companies and Kathie Gannon, DeKalb County Commissioner, Super District 6.

The apartments at Ashford Landing are one and two bedroom units for seniors 62 years and older. All units are priced to be affordable to lower-income seniors. The entire 56-acre site, owned by the Housing Authority of DeKalb County (HADC), is being recreated through a public/private partnership as a mixed-use, mixed income community, centered around a central park. Construction is being managed in six phases and at completion in 2012, the property will include apartments for independent seniors, a restaurant-anchored retail village, luxury mid-rise apartments and high-end single family homes and condominiums.

The overall site and the senior housing are being developed by the Norsouth Companies and the Collaborative Firm, both of Atlanta, as development partners of HADC. The retail village is being developed by Atlanta-based Madison Retail, LLC.

The DeKalb County Housing Authority provided approximately $1.2 million in financing for the building. Debt and Equity Financing were provided by SunTrust Community Development Corp. Tax Credits were provided through the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Mercy Services, an affiliate of Mercy Housing Southeast, Inc., is the property manager.

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