First of its kind pocket neighborhood fits 8 homes on a half-acre 

Clarkston, GA. –– On Saturday, November 13, 2021 the Atlanta-based nonprofit MicroLife Institute will welcome visitors from across DeKalb to its newly completed Cottages on Vaughan development. The community will be available to tour from 10 AM to 11 AM.  The tour is FREE for DeKalb County residents and is $25 for others.    This tour is held monthly and the last tour in 2021 will be on December 11, 2021.  https://www.microlifeinstitute.org/events 

The new pocket neighborhood, situated on a half-acre lot a block away from downtown Clarkston, includes eight tiny homes, a common green space for gathering, and climate-conscious development features such as solar panels and edible, regenerative landscaping. 

“This project is a proof of concept for us.” Will Johnston, Founder and CEO of MicroLife Institute, said. “When people see these homes, they are shocked, they can’t believe the cottages are under 500 square feet, and that’s exactly the reaction we want. Every inch of this space was intentionally built to challenge our perception of space and make us reflect on how we can better utilize it.” 

The development was originally approved in May of 2019, on the heels of 14 months of work with Councilmember Jamie Carroll and then Mayor, now DeKalb Commissioner Ted Terry to write and pass the city’s first tiny-home ordinance. 

“I’m thrilled to see this project come to fruition,” DeKalb Super District 6 Commissioner Ted Terry said. “The goal of this project was to get innovative with our development ordinances to allow for a greater diversity of housing options. We recognize that the past 50 years of urban sprawl has segregated communities, contributed to climate change, and exacerbated housing inequality, and we can only start to address these challenges if we push the boundaries of what’s possible and start to rethink how we’re using space.” 

Following the project’s groundbreaking in late 2019, the cottages had already developed an interest list of more than 1,500 people from around the country. 

Kim Morrison, Director of Development and Policy has been with Microlife for over 5 years and was essential in the development. 

“Evolving policy to allow for more innovative development is the first step for projects like this to be possible” Morrison says. “ Our housing policies need to accommodate our smaller household sizes, not just larger single-family homes that are allowed and proliferating.”

Partners for the Cottages on Vaughan include Roots Down, Better Tomorrow Solar, Mitsubishi Trane HVAC, Covetool, Gama Sonic Solar, Wascon Sales and Service, Citizens Trust Bank, AARP GA

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About the MicroLife Institute

MicroLife Institute is dedicated to educating individuals, groups and cities about the positive impacts of micro living. By connecting thought leaders and professionals we encourage and enable developments of walkable, sustainable “micro-hood” communities