In the southwest Atlanta neighborhood of Sylvan Hills, the frames of 24 new homes are going up. Hammers are swinging. Walls are being raised. And for the first time in 38 years, Atlanta is once again the site of the Carter Work Project.
More than 1,000 volunteers are working alongside future homeowners this week at Langston Park in Atlanta’s Sylvan Hills neighborhood to raise the walls of 10 new single-family homes and finish the interiors of 14 townhomes, as part of Habitat for Humanity’s 40th Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project, running May 3 through 8, 2026.
The intensive weeklong building sessions named after former President Jimmy Carter and his late wife Rosalynn have constructed roughly 5,000 homes in 14 countries since 1984. This year’s return to the city where Carter built much of his post-presidential legacy carries particular weight — arriving in the same year that Habitat for Humanity marks its 50th anniversary.
Why Atlanta, Why Now
Rosalyn Merrick, president and CEO of Atlanta Habitat for Humanity, said the 40th build coinciding with the organization’s 50th anniversary made Atlanta a natural choice. “We thought it was a beautiful way to commemorate this 50-year legacy of impact, but also to celebrate the Carters’ legacy here in their home state,” she told Axios.
Atlanta’s selection also coincides with the FIFA World Cup coming to Atlanta in June 2026, making the timing particularly meaningful for the city.
It is the first time the Carter Work Project has been held in Atlanta since 1988, when the Carters helped build 21 homes in another part of the city. In the decades since, the project has traveled the world — building in countries across Asia, Latin America, and Africa — while Atlanta’s own affordable housing crisis has steadily deepened.
A New Community Built on Former Industrial Land
The Sylvan Hills build is not simply a week of volunteer construction. It is the launch of something larger.
The project kicks off construction at Langston Park, Atlanta Habitat’s newest master-planned community in historic Sylvan Hills in southwest Atlanta. When complete, Langston Park will introduce modern, sustainable townhome-style living for the first time in Atlanta Habitat’s history. The community is located near MARTA, the Atlanta Beltline, and green spaces.
Habitat for Humanity purchased the 8-acre site in 2015. The land previously housed a saw-blade manufacturer and required rezoning for residential use — a lengthy process the organization worked through before breaking ground. Once all 68 units are complete, Langston Park will stand as one of the most significant affordable homeownership developments in recent Atlanta history.
The Faces Behind the Frames
Among those who will receive a home this week is Ozzy Herrera, 27, who works two jobs at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport. Walking through the frame of his soon-to-be new home before the build week began, Herrera could already envision the future — a brown leather sofa to match the floors, terra-cotta-colored walls, a bar cart near the kitchen. He never imagined he would own a home at his age.
His story is not unusual in Atlanta’s current market. Jonathan Reckford, CEO of Habitat for Humanity International, said the gap between what a family can afford and what it costs to create a unit of housing is “the widest it has been in modern history.” That gap is what Langston Park is designed to close — one unit at a time, one family at a time.
A Legacy of Service, Honored in Action
Reckford said of the milestone: “Habitat for Humanity has spent 50 years working toward a world where everyone has a safe, decent place to call home, and this is a vision we know we cannot achieve alone. As we mark the 40th Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project, we not only honor the Carters’ extraordinary legacy of service, but also celebrate what becomes possible when people from all walks of life come together with a shared purpose.”
Since the Carters and Habitat formed their partnership, more than 109,000 volunteers have built or improved more than 4,472 homes across 14 countries. The 2026 project is supported by 100 sponsors, including Diamond partner The Home Depot Foundation.
A Shift in How Habitat Operates
The Sylvan Hills project also signals a broader evolution in how Habitat for Humanity functions. The nonprofit is increasingly moving into real estate development — serving as a developer on more of its own projects — because many smaller developers still have not recovered from COVID-19-era losses or have closed entirely. The approach gives Habitat more control over land acquisition, design, and long-term affordability protections — a model the organization expects to expand in cities nationwide.
Former President Jimmy Carter, who passed away in December 2024, spent decades making the Carter Work Project one of the most recognizable symbols of hands-on civic service in American life. He appeared at build sites well into his 90s, often working alongside volunteers and future homeowners with the same quiet focus his aides once described as the defining quality of his post-presidential years.
The volunteers now hammering nails into the frames of Langston Park are carrying that spirit forward — not as a tribute to the past, but as a direct investment in Atlanta’s future. By the end of the week, 24 families will have a home. And in southwest Atlanta, a neighborhood is being built from the ground up.
