Macauley+Schmit named new developer for Doraville’s former GM site to create a livable, mixed-use, transit-oriented development.

Mayor Donna Pittman of Doraville

After sitting idle for six years, it appears that the former General Motors site in Doraville has found a new owner. At her annual State of the City address Monday night, Doraville Mayor Donna Pittman announced that the development firm Macauley+Schmit, along with its partner, The Integral Group, has made a commitment to redevelop the 162-acre tract running along I-285.

“We are very excited to be working with a group of developers that support our Livable Communities Initiative (LCI) vision and we look forward to an August closing,” noted Pittman. In the meantime, there is still much work to be done fine-tuning the details of the agreement. “From the creation of a tax allocation district to coordination with county and state entities, our long-range goal is to create a livable, mixed-use, transit-oriented development that will be beneficial to Doraville residents and businesses,” Pittman said.

According to the Macauley+Schmit website, their single objective is to create a sense of balance and harmony in community development in all of their projects – new or revitalized. This is accomplished by taking a holistic view of the social environment, a commitment to intuitive design, a reverence for nature and a focus on the many components that comprise the economics of community. This approach is most successful, they note, when balanced by a combination of marketplace dynamics and public-private partnerships.

The GM assembly plant’s closure in 2008 due to the recession ended a 61-year relationship with Doraville and overnight the city lost 10 percent of its revenue base and 36 percent of its overall employment base.

Other accomplishments for this past year, chronicled in the mayor’s presentation, included the hiring of a new city manager; the addition of more than 300 small businesses over the past two years; the recent creation of a Downtown Development Authority; increased focus on the LCI and design-oriented architectural standards and a major overhaul of city operations and technical capabilities.
 
The mayor’s keynote address was preceded by presentation of colors by the Dunwoody High School Color Guard and choral selections by the DeKalb School of the Arts song ensemble, Highleit.