Fort McPherson - Base Realignment and Closure

Base Realignment and Closure

As a result of the 2005 BRAC commission recommendation, Fort McPherson was officially closed down September 15, 2011, with Fort Gillem being reduced to a military enclave.

The following units were relocated from Fort McPherson: the Headquarters of the U.S. Army Forces Command and the Headquarters of the U.S. Army Reserve Command, was moved to Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The Headquarters, U.S. Army Central, was moved to Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. The Installation Management Command, Southeast Region and the U.S. Army Network Enterprise Technology Command, Southeastern Region was moved to Fort Eustis, Virginia. The Army Contracting Agency, Southern Region Office, was moved to Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

The McPherson Planning Local Redevelopment Authority (MPLRA) is the community-based entity authorized by the secretary of defense to develop the vision and plan for what will become of Fort McPherson after the installation closes. The MPLRA is a multijurisdictional body representing the surrounding communities impacted by the installation closure. The comprehensive reuse plan that the MPLRA executive board approved on Sept. 11, 2007 includes the following elements:

• • An employment district approximately 115 acres (0.47 km2) in size that is envisioned as a knowledge-based biomedical research park. This research park would be anchored by state investment and contain Georgia University system components. It is ultimately planned to include approximately 2,400,000 square feet (220,000 m2) of office and lab space and more than 1,900 units of high-density residential space. The research park will be developed by a task force that includes the University System Board of Regents, local governmental entities and private partners.
  • A mixed-use, high-density retail area about 35 acres (140,000 m2) in size. This high-density area is seen as a “Main Street” development with a mid-rise residential area, a hotel, public plazas and street-level retail, restaurants, offices, and grocery stores.
  • A historic district covering approximately 40 acres (160,000 m2). Most of the buildings in this area are already on the National Register of Historic Places. This district centers on the existing parade ground and is expected to be developed for mixed use, but with a historical cultural theme. Within the historic district, Staff Row would be preserved and used for single-family residential or other complementary uses.
  • Other areas will be home for up to 4,600 units of residential housing. Overall residential use will be a balanced mix of market rate, high-end housing, affordable housing, and housing for the formerly homeless or families at risk of homelessness.
  • Approximately 150 acres (0.61 km2) would be set aside for green space. This would connect to the historic area to create a public-oriented Linear Park centerpiece that wraps around the entire property from the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) station on the north to the MARTA station on the south. Together with the residential districts, this green space will replace the area currently dominated by the golf course. The linear park will also include a space of approximately 30 acres (120,000 m2) to be used for special events and festivals.

The following Fort Gillem units are scheduled to relocate: Headquarters, First Army, to Rock Island Arsenal, Ill.; 2nd Recruiting Brigade to Redstone Arsenal, Ala.; the 52nd Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group to Fort Campbell, Ky.; the 81st Regional Readiness Command Equipment Concentration Site to Fort Benning, Ga.; and the U.S. Army Central Headquarters support office to Shaw Air Force Base, S.C. The Army and Air Force Exchange Service Atlanta Distribution Center will cease operations and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will move off the installation.

Fort Gillem will maintain a contiguous enclave for the Georgia Army National Guard, the remainder of the 81st RRC units, the Criminal Investigation Division Forensics Laboratory and the Navy’s Reserve Intelligence Area 14, which will relocate from Naval Air Station Atlanta. Other units have requested discretionary moves into the enclave, including the Atlanta Fraud Residence Agency, the Southeastern Fraud Field Office, the South East Regional Storage Management Office and the Civil Support Readiness Group-East.

The Forest Park/Fort Gillem Local Redevelopment Authority (LRA) primary development objectives are to stimulate economic growth, create a high-value redevelopment plan; improve education, quality of life, and the perception of the area and ensure one community. Using these objectives, the redevelopment plan outlines land uses and parcels to take advantage of the opportunity to create significant, high-paying jobs. The redevelopment plan adopted by the Forest Park/Fort Gillem LRA is primarily light industrial and logistical, with a smattering of commercial, residential, and retail space.