Workers and participants stand in front of a new construction during the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity solar barn raising event at Micah’s Creek in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. Solar panels were placed onto new constructions that will go to Lydia’s Place, an organization that will use 15 of the homes at Micah’s Creek to provide housing for students in Athens who have experienced foster care or homelessness. Habitat will continue allocating the rest of the homes as they’re built to “families earning below 80% of area median income,” according to their website. (Photo/Evan Frilingos; @frilingos.photos)
Diane Brantley, executive director of Lydia’s Place, speaks during the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity solar barn raising event at Micah’s Creek in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. Solar panels were placed onto new constructions that will go to Lydia’s Place, an organization that will use 15 of the homes at Micah’s Creek to provide housing for students in Athens who have experienced foster care or homelessness. Habitat will continue allocating the rest of the homes as they’re built to “families earning below 80% of area median income,” according to their website. (Photo/Evan Frilingos; @frilingos.photos)
Mayor Kelly Girtz speaks during the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity solar barn raising event at Micah’s Creek in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. Solar panels were placed onto new constructions that will go to Lydia’s Place, an organization that will use 15 of the homes at Micah’s Creek to provide housing for students in Athens who have experienced foster care or homelessness. Habitat will continue allocating the rest of the homes as they’re built to “families earning below 80% of area median income,” according to their website. (Photo/Evan Frilingos; @frilingos.photos)
Workers and participants stand in front of a new construction during the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity solar barn raising event at Micah’s Creek in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. Solar panels were placed onto new constructions that will go to Lydia’s Place, an organization that will use 15 of the homes at Micah’s Creek to provide housing for students in Athens who have experienced foster care or homelessness. Habitat will continue allocating the rest of the homes as they’re built to “families earning below 80% of area median income,” according to their website. (Photo/Evan Frilingos; @frilingos.photos)
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Athens Area Habitat for Humanity hosted a solar barn raising Saturday morning at Micah’s Creek to celebrate construction progress on the new affordable, solar-powered housing neighborhood near downtown Athens. The 11-acre neighborhood will include 42 single-family homes, 11 tiny homes and 15 two-bedroom homes.
“I think this is such a good opportunity for Athens and for the U.S. in general,” attendee Eden Levitt-Horne, a second-year political science major at the University of Georgia, said. “We get so much solar energy. Utility costs are so high. I just think it’s good for everyone.”
Attendees were welcomed with refreshments from Rashe’s Cuisine, music by local electronic musician Libbaloops and educational displays on solar energy in homes and energy costs in Athens. Attendees were also able to tour one of the houses. Each house is being built with high-efficiency insulating concrete and will come with rooftop solar panels and battery storage systems.
Lydia’s Place is a local nonprofit serving young adults ages 17-24 who have aged out of foster care and experience housing insecurity. The organization, a longtime partner of Habitat for Humanity, will lease the first 15 two-bedroom homes in Micah’s Creek.
Diane Brantley, executive director of Lydia’s Place, said students living in these bungalows will get to live in a brand new home with low costs and low rent for however long they are with the program.
Diane Brantley, executive director of Lydia’s Place, speaks during the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity solar barn raising event at Micah’s Creek in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. Solar panels were placed onto new constructions that will go to Lydia’s Place, an organization that will use 15 of the homes at Micah’s Creek to provide housing for students in Athens who have experienced foster care or homelessness. Habitat will continue allocating the rest of the homes as they’re built to “families earning below 80% of area median income,” according to their website. (Photo/Evan Frilingos; @frilingos.photos)
“Every dime that they can save is super helpful to them,” Brantley said.
Brantley also emphasized the accessibility of the neighborhood, which is important for students without cars who rely on public transportation.
“This is going to be a community for them,” Brantley said. “It is going to be a safe place for them to live, to walk, to thrive, to get to work, to get to school, to do all the things that they need to do to be able to thrive in this community.”
Levitt-Horne said it is important to invest in solar given rising utility and power costs. In 2025, 57% of Athens households reported difficulty paying utility bills, according to a study from Athens Wellbeing Project.
Mayor Kelly Girtz and Georgia State Rep. Spencer Frye also spoke at the event, thanking community advocates for their work and outlining their vision for housing affordability in the future. The Mayor-elect Dexter Fisher was also in attendance. Following the speeches, residents and attendees lined up to help bring solar panels to the first solarized house in the neighborhood.
Mayor Kelly Girtz speaks during the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity solar barn raising event at Micah’s Creek in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. Solar panels were placed onto new constructions that will go to Lydia’s Place, an organization that will use 15 of the homes at Micah’s Creek to provide housing for students in Athens who have experienced foster care or homelessness. Habitat will continue allocating the rest of the homes as they’re built to “families earning below 80% of area median income,” according to their website. (Photo/Evan Frilingos; @frilingos.photos)
Frye, who also serves as executive director of Athens Area Habitat for Humanity, said that he hopes to show that attainable housing can be built for everyone, not just for those experiencing housing insecurity or poverty. He said that one of his main objectives is to lower the age of the first time home buyer from the 40s to the mid-20s.
“We’ve got to get that age down because the youth need to have vision and a hope for the American dream,” Frye said.
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