DORAVILLE, GA — Doraville is moving forward with a major redevelopment project that will transform part of its downtown into a new municipal and community hub.

Construction begins Monday on the “People’s Building,” a $35 million municipal services center that will house city offices, the library, and community gathering spaces both indoors and outdoors. The project is part of a broader redevelopment of the city’s downtown core that also includes new green space and street grid improvements.

City Manager Chris Eldridge says the new complex is designed to bring people together. “We will have a stage that hosts community events, and then the other part in the design, we are just really focused on it being a place where people want to come and hang out and spend the evening,” Eldridge said.

As part of the project, Park Avenue will close for construction, which is expected to last about 14 months. The building is scheduled to be complete by the winter of next year.

In the meantime, all city services previously located in the old municipal building have moved into a temporary facility, a former veterinary clinic off Peachtree Industrial Boulevard and Tilly Mill Road. The police department and courts will remain in that location even after the new building is finished.

Eldridge says the project, which will require tearing down five existing buildings, represents a major investment in the city’s future. “It’s a big project, it’ll be a big transformation, the community will definitely know something is going on here shortly,” he said.

WSB’s Mary Ryan Howarth contributed to this story