A 2-mill tax increase for businesses and apartment complexes along the Atlanta BeltLine corridor has been proposed to help fund the completion of the entire 22-mile loop.

Legislation to create a Special Service District (SSD) within the Atlanta BeltLine Planning Area was introduced at the Atlanta City Council meeting on Jan. 19.

The Beltline’s existing Northside Trail along Atlanta Memorial Park in Buckhead. (File)

Without additional funding, BeltLine officials contend, the trail corridor would not be completed before a tax allocation district (TAD) expires in 2030. The TAD — which freezes property valuations for tax purposes and allows increased tax revenue to pay off redevelopment costs — will generate at least $1 billion less than originally projected, they say. The estimated cost to design and construct the remaining trail corridor is $350 million.

An SSD is a geographic district created through legislation that levies additional property taxes to provide local government services. In the case of the BeltLine, commercial and multi-family property owners within the Atlanta BeltLine Planning Area — which includes the half-mile on either side of the corridor — would see an estimated 2-mill increase, or two-tenths of a penny per dollar in the assessed value of each property. Funds go towards trail acquisition, design, and construction.

Residents living in single-family homes would not be subject to the increase.

For more about this story, see coverage in Atlanta Intown.

Collin Kelley has been the editor of Atlanta Intown for two decades and has been a journalist and freelance writer for 35 years. He’s also an award-winning poet and novelist.