PUTTING YOUR INVESTMENT TO WORK


The Midtown Improvement District (MID) is a public improvement district created to offer enhanced safety, maintenance, and capital improvements in Midtown Atlanta. The MID enables commercial property owners to play a pivotal role in implementing the Blueprint, a master plan envisioned by the community and spearheaded by Midtown Alliance. With over four million dollars in annual revenues, the MID focuses on the following priorities:

  • Midtown Blue: Midtown's 24-hour public safety program works with the Atlanta Police Department to address street crimes, including drug traffic, prostitution, and vandalism.
  • Midtown Green: Midtown's environmental maintenance program provides litter control, graffiti removal, and light maintenance to keep Midtown streets clean, inviting and safe.
  • Streetscape Enhancements: Cityscape projects provide new sidewalks, improved lighting, trees, and buried utility lines, when possible, along Midtown’s major streets.
  • Transit Initiatives: Transit options such as ride-sharing programs and shuttle services are administered by Midtown Transportation Solutions (MTS). 
  • Traffic Improvements: These projects focus on traffic-calming measures, ingress and egress issues, and congestion relief.

Highlights of successes to date:

  • Between 2000 and 2006 the MID committed $27.6 million to Midtown Blue, Midtown Green, Midtown Transportation Solutions and Midtown Cityscapes programs.
  • Midtown streets are kept safe and clean with an MID commitment of $1.3 million to the Midtown Blue and Midtown Green annual budget. Midtown’s overall crime rate was down 31 percent from 2004 to 2005.
  • The MID has leveraged nearly $31 million in federal, state, and private funding for capital improvements within Midtown's two-square-mile urban core since its inception.
  • Midtown Cityscapes has completed initial phases of an overall $75 million streetscape program starting with projects on Piedmont ( Westminster -10 th), 10 th Street (Charles Allen to Juniper), Peachtree Street (3rd - 10th Streets) and West Peachtree Street ( North Avenue - 13th Street). In all, the program encompasses 25 miles along 10 major corridors.
  • Supported through a $2 million grant from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation and $2 million in MID funds, a project is in place to enhance six major intersections on Peachtree.
  • Through Midtown Transportation Solutions (MTS) 37,000 people in 100 companies are reached with programs to help ease traffic congestion and reduce air pollution.

Structure & Governance
The MID is governed by a board of directors representing the City of Atlanta and commercial property owners within the district. Board members are elected based on state guidelines. All voting board members represent major property owners with the exception of the board member appointed by the Chair of the City Finance Committee.

The MID is funded by Midtown property owners through a special assessment paid on commercial property. The Atlanta City Council unanimously approved the creation of the district, following endorsement by stakeholders representing 75% of the property value in the district and a majority of the property owners. The district officially went into business in 2000 for a 6-year term and was reauthorized in 2006 for another six years. The annual millage rate, currently set at 5 mils, is voted on by the MID board each year.