Restoration Services in Avondale Estates, Dekalb County
Estate Solutions serves Avondale Estates with restoration and remodeling - licensed GA GC #RBQA006428, IICRC certified. Call (404) 913-3030.
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Avondale Estates: repairs inside a 1920s planned Tudor town
George Francis Willis founded Avondale Estates in 1924, after a trip with his wife Lottie to Stratford-upon-Avon in England, and with the help of city planners he built what the city calls the first documented example of a planned city in the Southeast. Willis set out to recreate the Tudor-Revival architecture of Shakespeare's birthplace, and the city was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in December 1986 for the character of its architecture and landscape. One house is older than the town itself: the Freeman "Homeplace" at 37 Avondale Road was built in 1913. For an owner, that history means a storm or water repair can need a design approval, a building permit and a tree permit, each from a different part of city government.
How the historic district shapes an exterior repair
The Historic Preservation Commission approves first
Inside the Local Historic District, exterior changes must be approved by the Historic Preservation Commission before any work begins. The city lists additions, demolition, door replacements, new construction, renovations and window replacements. The approval is a Certificate of Appropriateness, and the city's permit page says properties in the historic district may need one before a building permit is issued.
Four tier designations
The city's preservation page sorts properties into four tier designations: Adaptation, Conservation, Construction and Preservation. Find a property's tier before planning how much original siding, trim or window sash a storm repair will replace, because the design review is built around it.
Minor works skip the commission
Fences, accessory buildings of 100 square feet or less, and additions or alterations to accessory buildings of that size are minor works that do not need approval from the commission; the Code Enforcement Officer approves them instead. A small shed crushed by a limb is handled very differently from a damaged front porch.
Five members, meeting at City Hall
The commission was created by a July 1986 ordinance and has five members serving three-year terms. It meets on the first Monday of every month at City Hall, 21 North Avondale Plaza, and each meeting has a published application deadline, so a larger exterior rebuild should be planned around that calendar.
Zoning review rides on the building permit
For homes in the R-12 and R-24 residential districts, the city asks owners to submit plans with the building permit application, and doing so triggers a zoning review. A rebuild that changes a footprint, a porch or lot coverage is checked against zoning at the same time as the permit, which is one more reason to describe the full scope of a repair up front. Commercial and multi-family projects apply separately for zoning approval, and each zoning application costs $100.
Storm and hail records near Avondale Estates
May 2017: an EF0 tornado that started here
NOAA's Storm Events Database records an EF0 tornado on May 4, 2017, with winds estimated at 70 mph along a path about 80 yards wide. It began near Forest Glen Circle in central DeKalb and crossed I-285, North Decatur Road, Dial Road and Greenridge Circle, in a record that begins at Avondale Estates.
Trees down on Midway Road, Glenwood and Columbia
On July 6, 2000 the DeKalb County 911 center reported lots of trees down on Midway Road, Glenwood Avenue and Columbia Drive in Avondale Estates. An earlier storm on August 25, 1999 dropped dime-size hail and blew tree limbs onto the road.
Hail at Memorial Drive and I-285
Hail reports filed under Avondale Estates include penny-size hail with a few quarter-size stones on Memorial Drive at Interstate 285 on April 21, 2003, quarter-size hail on May 1, 2003, and penny-size hail on July 5, 2011. On older slate, clay tile or wood details, dated photos taken soon after a storm make hail damage easier to document.
Avondale Estates permits, trees and stormwater
A $300 permit threshold
The city requires a building permit when repair and maintenance costs reach $300 or more, whenever the work includes roofing or structural work, for stump grinding and driveway replacement, and for work in the Local Historic District. Fences, driveways, plumbing and HVAC systems all require permits. Permits are filed through the city's Community Core portal. Separate trade permits are required when any drainage, sewer, gas, mechanical (HVAC), electrical or plumbing system is installed, altered, repaired, removed or replaced, regardless of value, and work that blocks or affects sidewalks, streets or other rights-of-way also needs a permit.
Land disturbance and the first 1.2 inches
A project that disturbs more than 1,000 square feet of land or adds more than 1,000 square feet of impervious surface needs a Land Disturbance Permit. The city also asks that the first 1.2 inches of stormwater be contained on the lot, so regrading or a new patio after a drainage problem is planned with that in mind.
The 2022 tree ordinance
The Board of Mayor and Commissioners passed a tree ordinance on January 12, 2022 that covers single-family, commercial and multi-family properties. Arborguard provides permit review and inspections for the city. Before cutting up a fallen or split tree, photograph it and ask the permit coordinator whether a tree permit applies; the city lists 404-294-5400 for permitting questions. The tree page also links the city code sections on removal on private property (Sec. 17-46) and removal of stumps (Sec. 17-47), a Tree Removal Form and a Protected Tree Impact and Removal Permit.
Sewer and water mains are DeKalb's
The city's stormwater page says the potable water and sanitary sewer systems under nearly every street in Avondale Estates are owned and operated by the DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management. A main break or a public sewer backup is reported to the county. Street drainage and stormwater problems go to the city through its Street and Stormwater Concerns form, which opens a service request.
Code enforcement covers unsecured buildings
The city's code enforcement page lists overgrown properties, unsecured buildings, stormwater violations, zoning and sign rules, and failure to obtain necessary permits among the issues its codes address. After a fire or a tree strike, boarding openings and keeping the permit current protects both the house and the owner's standing with the city. A report to the city's Code Compliance division should include the full address and a detailed description.
Yard waste after a storm
Sanitation and recycling now go to a contractor, but the city continues to provide yard waste service, and its Public Works page notes that yard waste does not have to be bagged or put in containers for pickup. The Yard Waste page has the details and schedules for storm limbs at the curb.
Houses from every decade since the 1930s
The 2020–2024 American Community Survey puts about 25.7% of the city's 1,931 housing units in the 1950s, 18.4% in the 1980s and 12.7% in 1939 or earlier, with a median year built of 1966. About 58.4% are detached houses, 11% are attached single-family homes, and 13.8% are in buildings of 50 or more units. In a 1920s or 1950s house, list which plaster, wiring and drain lines have been updated when reporting a loss.
Higher home values, mostly owner-occupied
About 81.6% of the city's 1,651 occupied homes are owner-occupied, the median home has 6.6 rooms, and the median value of owner-occupied homes is about $553,900. Gas heats about 73.8% of occupied homes. Photograph original millwork, built-ins and floors before anything is removed, so the claim describes what was there.
Where to go next for an Avondale Estates repair
Water and storm
- Water damage restoration — How extraction, drying and rebuilding work.
- Water damage restoration Decatur — City page for nearby Decatur.
- Storm damage repair — Roof, siding and window repairs after wind or hail.
- Storm damage restoration DeKalb County — County-wide storm restoration.
Fire, and around Avondale Estates
- Fire damage restoration — Securing the house, smoke cleanup and reconstruction.
- DeKalb County service area — All the DeKalb city pages.
- Decatur — Area guide for the county seat.
- Clarkston — Area guide for Clarkston.
- Pine Lake — DeKalb's smallest city, to the east.
Historic Avondale Estates home damaged by a storm, a leak or fire? Call (404) 913-3030 or use the contact page to describe what happened.
Sources for the local facts on this page
- City of Avondale Estates: History (George Francis Willis, 1924, planned city)
- City of Avondale Estates: Historic Preservation
- City of Avondale Estates: Historic Preservation Commission
- City of Avondale Estates: Building Permits
- City of Avondale Estates: Zoning Approval (R-12 and R-24 zoning review with the building permit)
- City of Avondale Estates: Tree Ordinance (2022 ordinance, Arborguard permit review)
- City of Avondale Estates: Stormwater (street and stormwater concerns, DeKalb Watershed Management)
- City of Avondale Estates: Code Enforcement
- City of Avondale Estates: Public Works and Sanitation (yard waste service)
- City of Avondale Estates: Boards and Commissions (PDF)
- Census Reporter: Avondale Estates, GA housing units, tenure, year built, rooms and value, ACS 2024 5-year
- Census Reporter: Avondale Estates units in structure (B25024), ACS 2024 5-year
- Census Reporter: Avondale Estates heating fuel (B25040), ACS 2024 5-year
- DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management (water and sewer service, system size)
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events, event 701370: May 4, 2017 EF0 tornado, central DeKalb County
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events, event 5155052: July 6, 2000 trees down on Midway Road, Glenwood Avenue and Columbia Drive
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events, event 5714831: Aug. 25, 1999 dime-size hail and tree limbs
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events, event 5348810: April 21, 2003 hail on Memorial Drive at I-285
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events, event 5361929: May 1, 2003 quarter-size hail
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events, event 332246: July 5, 2011 penny-size hail
Restoration Services in Avondale Estates, Dekalb County
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Avondale Estates questions
Do I need approval to replace storm-damaged windows in the Avondale Estates historic district?
Yes. In the Local Historic District, window and door replacements are exterior changes that must be approved by the Historic Preservation Commission before work begins. A building permit may also be required.
Does a roof repair need a permit in Avondale Estates?
The city lists roofing work among the projects that require a building permit, along with any repairs costing $300 or more. Apply through the city's Community Core portal.
Has a tornado touched down near Avondale Estates?
Yes. NOAA's Storm Events Database records an EF0 tornado on May 4, 2017 that began near Forest Glen Circle in central DeKalb, with winds estimated at 70 mph, in a record that begins at Avondale Estates.