Project Completion Date: Fall 2025

The Transformation Center / 1343 Boone will focus on a handful of areas that connect people with opportunities to thrive, including:

• In a neighborhood where only 7.3% of the population is self-employed, the Entrepreneurship Hub will combat opportunity injustice by matching aspiring entrepreneurs in the community with key resources to begin the process of starting their own businesses. It will include a classroom, offices and a lab for idea-sharing and presentations, with an objective of training 100 potential entrepreneurs per year to create jobs and increase economic prosperity on Atlanta’s Westside. 

• To support the Health & Wellness of the community, the Transformation Center will feature a market or grocery store, in addition to a medical and mental health clinic on the center’s first floor to address ongoing health disparities in what can be considered a food desert.  

• Life Skills & Community Engagement opportunities will come in the form of financial literacy, parenting, nutrition and home buying classes, as well as a dedicated space for a wide range of community engagement activities. The financial literacy program will empower participants to understand paychecks, create personal budgets, pay off debts and save, and understand the importance of credit. 

• Building off financial literacy, an on-site credit union will function as a hub for Financial Services, providing increased financial security for households. It will help people establish and build a solid credit history, provide opportunities to insure loans and grow savings at no cost and offer significant flexibility for loan repayments. It will also provide micro-financing options for start-ups that graduate from the Entrepreneurship Hub. 

• In an effort to safeguard legacy residents from displacement, the Transformation Center will also feature Housing in the form of a 25-unit, new construction multifamily community adjacent to the main building. The residential building will include a mix of two and three bedroom units, in addition to one four-bedroom unit. Thirteen units will be at or below 30% AMI. 

Key Donor List:

- Chestnut Family Foundation 

- Chick-fil-A

- Invest Atlanta

- Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta

- Centene Charitable & Peach State Health Plan

- Genuine Parts Company & NAPA Auto Parts

- James M. Cox Foundation 

- Truist Foundation & Truist Trusteed Foundations

- Georgia Power Foundation 

- A Friend of City of Refuge

- Anonymous Donor

- City of Refuge Board of Directors

- Capital Campaign Committee

- City of Refuge Staff

- Numerous other generous individuals and foundations

Learn more about what else is coming through this Capital Campaign by visiting: cityofrefugeatl.org/campaign