Grantees would pick up Atlanta’s environmental-review tab under proposed agreements

Agencies receiving federal Community Project Funding grants would reimburse Atlanta for environmental-review work—including city staff time, consultants and public notices—under a proposed agreement framework. The draft requires repayment of the city’s actual, reasonable expenses.⁠[1]

The city would independently review an environmental assessment prepared for the recipient by a qualified consultant. If Atlanta deemed that assessment inadequate, the draft says the city would prepare its own. It also calls for anticipated notice, staff and survey or investigation costs to go to the recipient for approval, followed by documentation of actual expenses.⁠[1]

Grant recipients would also have to complete environmental mitigation measures adopted by the city and incorporate those requirements into contracts, development agreements and other project documents. Their mitigation plans would identify the staff responsible for carrying out and monitoring the measures.⁠[1]

Community Project Funding is money Congress appropriates for specific projects, including infrastructure, housing and economic development. This ordinance is a framework for administering grants, not an announcement of a particular award: the attached model agreement leaves the agency name and funding source as placeholders.⁠[1]

Ordinance 26-O-1643 was listed for first reading on the Community Development/Human Services Committee’s Nov. 10 agenda. The agenda and premeeting packet reviewed for this report do not establish a committee outcome or final Council approval.⁠[1][2]