From Techwood Homes to Homeownership

For many of the families living in Techwood Homes in the 90s, homeownership was unattainable but with the arrival of the Olympics, Danita and her mother along with several other families were given an incredible deal.

Techwood Homes was an early public housing project in Atlanta. It was built on land cleared by demolishing the Flats, an integrated shantytown near downtown. The Flats was home to 1,611 low-income families, 28% of which were Black.

The Public Works Administration replaced the shantytown with 604 units for white families only in August 1936. Techwood Homes also implemented income qualifiers out of the range of many former residents.

The project included a 300-student dormitory for Georgia Tech, McDaniel Dormitory, commonly referred to as Techwood Dorm.

The neighborhood, run by the Atlanta Housing Authority, began to integrate in the 1960s after the Civil Rights Act.

Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s crime in the Techwood Homes neighborhood began to increase and was considered an eyesore by the city.

When Atlanta was selected to host the Olympics, the city wanted to revitalize the neighborhoods it was least proud of. There were a handful of neighborhoods that were directly impacted by the Olympics: Summerhill, Vine City, Ashby, Techwood, Clark Howell, and Mechanicsville.

Techwood Homes was demolished and is now Centennial Place Apartments.

Former residents were relocated to other areas, and given Section 8 vouchers to assist with rent. Roughly 78 of the original residents were able to move into Centennial Place, which had far fewer subsidized units than Techwood Homes.

At the same time, Atlanta Habitat received funding to take on a large project, 21 homes in just two weeks. Danita received one of those 21 homes.

“There was so much going on with the Olympics,” Danita recalled. “I think it was 21 houses in 14 days that were built. I enjoyed that to the highest and I enjoyed the celebration when they dedicate the house to you, it’s just so nice.”

The families that qualified and were selected built their homes together, creating a small community in the Peoplestown neighborhood. They even moved into their homes ahead of schedule.

Danita and her mother continued the traditions they had in Techwood, hosting family events and cooking for the community.

When friends fell on hard times, Danita was able to let them stay in her spare room and keep them off the street.

Her mother has since passed away, but Danita has committed to keeping the house as full of life as when her mother was there.

“We had a good time in there doing things. I love my mama’s house. I’m going to keep fixing it up and I’m going to keep it,” Danita said firmly. “I love my house. I will run up and down my driveway right now yelling ‘I love my house!’”