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Heading into the home stretch on Auburn's new Municipal Complex. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. 

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn’s Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here’s the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

Auburn’s Downtown Development Authority (DDA) is a dedicated group of volunteers who play a key role in holding and managing public properties. In Georgia, DDA’s are a mechanism created in 1981 by the state’s General Assembly, to help revitalize and redevelop central business districts. The goal of a DDA is to help bring about a healthy, vibrant downtown for the city it serves.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn’s Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here’s the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn’s Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here’s the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn’s Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here’s the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

While Auburn's new Municipal Complex will be in a downtown neighborhood, one primary goal is to maintain some of its rural character with landscaping, an apiary and a Bluebird trail. It is through this lens that water management is planned for the site.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn’s Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here’s the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn’s Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here’s the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

The news is filled with headlines about challenging construction conditions locally and nationwide. Skilled labor shortages, an active storm season, rising material costs and extended lead times all require a strategic approach to complete projects.

In December of 2017, Schmit + Associates signed on with the city to lead the pre-development, finance and construction related to Auburn's vision for an expanded downtown and new Municipal Complex. 

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work continues on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work has begun on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work has begun on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and infrastructure for the area. Here's the latest from BM&K Construction & Engineering. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

On-site work has begun on Downtown Auburn's Municipal Complex and Infrastructure for the area. Here's a glimpse from BK&M Construction & Engineering's first report. Regular updates will be provided as the project progresses.

Thanks to HGTV and the myriad of home improvement channels available now, we have more collective understanding about what it takes to rehabilitate a house. We can see behind the scenes, what’s involved in getting a restaurant up and running. Skillful editing reveals some of the challenges, but not the weeks or months that are actually required. 

Auburn was honored in January as a 2021 Visionary City, by The Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) and Georgia Trend. The honor is in recognition of Auburn's "…thoughtfully planning a new downtown development that will include a new city hall, 150 homes and up to 20,000 square feet of commercial space." Just three cities were awarded in the medium category (population 5,000-24,999). 

How do you know how a place will feel once it’s built?

In the balancing act that is creative placemaking, designing a feel, a style, has to be closely followed with zoning that allows it to happen in the intended way.

The future of Downtown Auburn will include numerous improvements with new homes and modern amenities. At the same time, there will be projects that honor our history, such as the design of the new City Municipal Complex (City Hall). 

The new home to city business offices, Court Services, Mayor & Council chambers, and the Police Department will look like the Perry-Rainey Institute’s administrative building did over 100 years ago.

Even as the pandemic pauses so many activities across the nation, Downtown Auburn’s revitalization continues to move forward. It’s in a busy, but not-so-visible phase of development. Engineering, architectural, environmental and legal work has progressed, and now financing is secured.

Mayor Blechinger, the Auburn City Council and the Downtown Development Authority voted August 11, 2020 and the Superior Court of Barrow County signed the validation order August 31st. 

Downtown Auburn’s revitalization requires consistent effort on many fronts to bring all the parts together in a balanced and sustainable way. There have been, and continue to be, refinements to the plans to fulfill the vision. Businesses and residents are showing interest in coming to the area. The design of the new City Hall has been determined. More images are coming into focus. 

The City of Auburn invites you to participate

• Virtual Public Meetings
• Write on the Big Sign
• Take the Survey

The City of Auburn has been awarded a planning grant from the Atlanta Regional Commission’s Livable Centers Initiative (LCI). Over the next six months, an updated plan will be prepared for downtown Auburn and immediately surrounding areas. TSW, an Atlanta-based planning consulting firm, has been hired to manage the process, which is being called, “Define Our Auburn, An LCI Study.”

Vibrant and Rural are terms not generally used together. Healthy downtowns are vibrant, active, busy. Yet, it’s important to honor Auburn’s rural roots – that organic character and charm. The design will influence the experience for residents and visitors. So, how to design a feel that’s both vibrant and rural? Town Urbanist, Lew Oliver does just that.

The Downtown Auburn plan will be constructed with a combination of funding sources and planning processes. The Livable Centers Initiative (LCI) is a key component of the funding and planning strategy.

From the street, it may seem like there isn’t much happening on the Downtown project. But the team is working every day on things that aren’t so visible. On March 4, 2019 the Mayor and City Council met for an extended work session to hear updates from the team and make some key decisions.

What's the right square footage for City Hall? How will the water and sewer lines get there? Which finance tools fit best in the market today? Working through the long list of such detail is the Downtown Auburn GA team. 

The vision for Downtown Auburn includes a new City Hall complex, places for businesses to take root and grow, and new homes for residents to breathe life into the area and help support it all. So how do these things happen? Here’s an overview of what’s been done and what’s coming...

View timeline

Auburn’s vision for the downtown district began to take shape - visually - in a 3-day charrette, August 22-24, 2018. Gathering at TSW Planners, Architects and Landscape Architects headquarters in Atlanta, their professionals worked with engineers, city officials, partners, and citizens to talk through options. Sketches were then created to help illustrate the plan.

Downtown Auburn's visual image started to emerge during a 3-day charrette in August, 2018. Building on the Market Study, research was presented to help give direction to the plan. After two full days in Atlanta with discussion, drafting and adjustments, the event culminated in a big reveal presentation in Auburn.

Click on the Read More button below to view the Downtown Charrette Photo Gallery.

Auburn is a step closer to making its new downtown a reality with the presentation of the Downtown Auburn Real Estate Market Overview & Analysis on August 9, 2018. The report shared local and regional data related to population, housing, employment and other market trends and potential marketplace options for economic development. It will also be a helpful tool in targeting potential investors and businesses.

Among the key findings from the study:

• Downtown Auburn can expect to absorb an average 25-30 new for-sale units per year
• Majority of new homes should be priced between $200,000 and $350,000

What makes a great place to live? Similarly to how our opinions of what is beautiful might differ from person to person, what we look for varies. But there are consistent themes.

How do we make sure Downtown Auburn is a great place?

• Research
• Planning
• Dialog
• Partnerships

So, you heard a new and improved downtown is coming to Auburn. Why? We’ll be talking about lots of reasons in the coming months, but primarily it’s about three things:

• Growth – preparing for the future
• Quality of Life – making sure we have the amenities that make the best place to live
• Preservation – consciously working to keep the character that makes us love our community