City Council voted 5-0 on Oct. 19 to ask Fulton County to put its share of North Point Mall tax growth toward an NHL arena. County commissioners vote next.
The Alpharetta City Council has approved a deal that would let Fulton County’s share of future property tax growth around North Point Mall help pay for an NHL arena on the mall site. The agreement now goes to the Fulton County Board of Commissioners.
Updated Oct. 22: the council approved the agreement 5-0 at its Oct. 19 meeting, the draft minutes in the Oct. 26 council packet show. That meeting was later canceled and the minutes go to the Nov. 9 meeting. Mayor Pro Tem Dan Merkel moved it and council member John Hipes seconded it. There were no public comments at the meeting. The county has not yet posted a date for its vote.
The item was on the agenda for the council’s Oct. 19 meeting. City staff recommended approval.
The arena is the whole point of the deal. The primary purpose of the tax district is “to secure a National Hockey League franchise located in the City” by Aug. 24, 2031, the staff report says. “Without a franchise, there is no Project and no County increment can be used.”
How the money would work
The city created the North Point tax allocation district, known as TAD #3, on Nov. 17, 2025. Under Georgia’s Redevelopment Powers Law, the property value in the district was frozen as a base on Dec. 31, 2025. Taxes on that base keep flowing to the city, the county and the schools as now. Only the growth above it, the “increment,” goes to redevelopment costs.
A TAD does not raise the tax rate, the staff report and the city’s own explainer on the district both say. What it changes is where the new money goes. The county’s share of that growth can only be included with the county’s consent, and that is what the agreement asks for.
The district by the numbers, from the staff report:
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Area | 646.3 acres, 150 tax parcels |
| Tax-exempt within it | 13 parcels, about 110 acres |
| Tax base frozen Dec. 31, 2025 | $261,219,600 |
| Share of the city’s 2025 tax digest | about 2.77% |
| Mall project area | about 95 acres |
The 95-acre mall project area covers the mall and its outparcels along North Point Parkway, North Point Place, North Point Drive, North Point Circle and Rock Mill Road. The agreement says the city plans to concentrate the money there, to turn the mall into “a professional sports anchored, mixed-use entertainment district.”
The conditions Fulton County would attach
The draft agreement, dated Oct. 12, sets limits on the county’s share:
- The arena must stay. Dropping the “NHL Hockey Arena” from the plan is a “material change” that sends the deal back to county commissioners for a new vote.
- A deadline to start building. The county’s consent ends automatically if construction has not started by Dec. 31, 2030. Starting means permits to demolish at least half of the mall with 5% of that cost spent, or 150,000 square feet demolished and arena work begun.
- Operating taxes only. The county share comes from its maintenance and operations millage on real property. County bond millage and personal property taxes are left out.
- Time limits. TAD financing is capped at 25 years. Running the agreement past 30 years needs county approval.
- Ten free years. For 10 years the city may finance phases of the approved plan without another county vote. Any other project needs a separate amendment the commissioners approve.
- Oversight. The city reports to the county’s chief financial officer every year, and the county may audit the TAD fund at its own expense.
The county’s share would start with the Fiscal Year 2028 county tax bills, issued in 2027, the agreement says. The county takes on no financial obligation beyond letting its taxes count.
The agreement also refers to a school district increment “if participating.” The staff report does not say whether the Fulton County Schools board has agreed to put its share in.
How the arena plan got here
Jamestown LP, the developer, presented its North Point Sports & Entertainment District at two community meetings on June 10 and July 8, the city said. The City Council approved the rezoning on Aug. 25, 2026, the staff report says, on condition that an NHL franchise is located in the city by Aug. 24, 2031.
The developer’s project site is northpointfuture.com.
What it means for you
- Your tax rate does not change because of the district, the city says.
- The money that does move is the future growth in county operating taxes from the district, which would go to the redevelopment instead of the county’s general fund.
- Nothing happens without a team. If no NHL franchise comes, no county money can be used, and the county’s consent lapses if work has not started by the end of 2030.
- The next vote is the county’s. The Fulton County Board of Commissioners must approve the agreement before the county’s share can count. We will add the date when it is posted.
For how the city, county and school tax rates add up on your bill, see our property taxes guide. Rezoning cases in the area are on our building permits and zoning page, and the area itself is covered in our North Point neighborhood guide.
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