Chattooga County Expands Urban Redevelopment Boundaries to Unlock Federal Funding for New Apartment Development Near Trion

Chattooga County has officially expanded the boundaries of its Urban Redevelopment Area, redrawing the lines to ensure a new apartment development near Trion can access the full scope of available federal funding.

Sole Commissioner Andy Allen confirmed the move, explaining it plainly: “The attached maps show the property lines where they are building the new apartments near Trion. The original lines didn’t include the entire track of land, so we redrew them. This has nothing to do with zoning — it’s to allow the developer to receive all available federal funding.”

The amendment, designated Resolution 2026-19, was adopted and signed by Commissioner Allen on May 8, 2026, and took effect immediately. It adds additional parcels located in the northern section of the original Urban Redevelopment Plan Area boundary and incorporates a revised boundary map as an official part of the county’s redevelopment framework. The legal authority for the action falls under Georgia’s Urban Redevelopment Law, O.C.G.A. § 36-61-1.

The project at the center of the boundary adjustment is Chattooga Ridge II, a proposed affordable housing development being brought forward by Affordable Equity Partners, Inc., an Atlanta-based firm. The specific parcel involved carries the identification number 000560000005500C. The developer is seeking funding through the Georgia Department of Community Affairs’ Office of Affordable Housing — the same state agency that received a formal financial commitment letter from Commissioner Allen back in April.

In that letter, Allen highlighted Chattooga County’s track record of pursuing outside funding to drive local improvements, citing the $3,040,732 the county secured through the American Rescue Plan Act in 2021 — part of a larger $10 million broadband expansion project with Windstream. The county framed that investment as a model for the kind of outside-funded, community-improving work the Urban Redevelopment Plan is designed to support.

For residents near Trion, the practical takeaway is straightforward: new affordable housing is in the pipeline, and the county is actively working to ensure the project can access every available federal dollar.