A new affordable housing initiative in southeast Atlanta will offer newly-built or renovated homes with affordable rents for working families.

Mayor Kasim Reed and the Department of Planning and Community Development announced the plans for the initiative during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday.

Called the Mechanicsville Cityside initiative, the development is spread over one square mile of land the Mechanicsville neighborhood. The families will rent the units for the first fifteen years of occupancy, and will then have the opportunity to purchase the home, according to a news release from the city.

The initiative is a scattered site development, which distributes affordable housing units in income-diverse neighborhoods, promoting greater economic inclusion. The Mechanicsville initiative is the first such development in Atlanta.

“Partnerships between the City, the State and the private sector are essential tools for creating quality, affordable housing options and opportunities in every neighborhood in Atlanta,” Reed said in the news release. “This new program will offer housing stability for more than 70 families, and help make the dream of homeownership a reality.”

The project consists of 66 new construction, single family homes being built on acquired vacant land and on land where formerly vacant single-family homes were demolished. Eight single family homes will be renovated for occupancy. Currently, seven homes are completed.

Funding for Mechanicsville Cityside is provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Low Income Housing Tax Credit and Neighborhood Stabilization Program. Others partners include Sugar Creek Capital,CAHEC and Bank of the Ozarks.