Megachurch pastor T.D. Jakes obtained an approval from Atlanta officials to proceed with his plan for residences, retail, offices and a senior living facility at a former U.S. Army base.
The Fort Mac Local Redevelopment Authority signed off on a development plan submitted by T.D. Jakes Real Estate Ventures for about 95 acres at the former Fort McPherson site.
Jakes has not disclosed an estimated value for his project. Construction is set to begin in early 2024, according to the company.
Jakes, who leads Potter’s House Church in Dallas, would develop a portion of the former Army base, which closed in 2011 as part of the Base Realignment and Closure program. The church website said it has 30,000 members.
Much of the former base has already been redeveloped, including Tyler Perry Studios, a film and television production campus owned and operated by the actor and director Tyler Perry.
The Jakes project calls for apartment buildings, single-family residences, townhouses, a public charter school, retail and restaurants, two hotels and a senior living facility. Some of the residential units are expected to be designated as affordable housing. The development is designed to include new construction as well as the restoration of historic former Army buildings.
The development would have direct access to an existing mass transit rail station and a station on a planned bus rapid transit line. Jakes first released details for the project in 2021.
Fort McPherson, located in the city limits of Atlanta, has been redeveloped for multiple uses, including a U.S. Food & Drug Administration laboratory and a U.S. Veterans Affairs medical clinic.
Jakes in April partnered with Wells Fargo on the development of affordable housing, business creation and financial education in low and moderate-income neighborhoods in the U.S. Wells Fargo is working with Jakes on the Fort McPherson project.
For the Record
Marcus Dawson and Roxanne Gardner are leading the project for T.D. Jakes Real Estate Ventures. Perkins Eastman is the architect. Eberly & Associates is the civil engineering firm. Surface 678 is the landscape architect. Andrew Much at Arnall Golden Gregory and Jonathan Perry at Greenberg Traurig are legal counsel.