The Cobb Planning Commission on Tuesday voted to hold a mixed-use development anchored by the proposed East Cobb Church for a month, saying it lacks critical information to make a decision.
The advisory board on county rezoning cases voted 5-0 to push back the application, which has already been delayed several times, until May.
That means that the Cobb Board of Commissioners will not be hearing the case later this month.
(UPDATE: Cobb Commissioner Jerica Richardson will be holding an online informational meeting about the case Thursday at 6 p.m., and you can register at this link: https://staff315236.typeform.
Planning commissioner Tony Waybright, who represents the area at the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford intersection where the development would be built, said there are concerns about traffic, stormwater issues, residential density and a “sense of place”—a key component of a recently approved JOSH master plan—that need to be addressed.
North Point Ministries, Inc. wants to use 11 of the 33 assembled acres for the East Cobb Church, which began in 2019 and is currently meeting at Eastside Baptist Church.
The remainder of the property would be used for commercial space, a greenspace and park area on the site of a drained lake and 110 residential units, most of them townhomes.
Among the changes from the original site plan in October is relocating Waterfront Drive, which is located off Johnson Ferry Road and provides primary access to the adjacent MarLanta subdivision.
Some residents there spoke in opposition to the project for those reasons, and for the fee-simple townhome category that the applicant is seeking.
That’s among the initial changes to the original application by North Point Ministries, which operates East Cobb Church.
During an extended presentation session Tuesday, county staffers acknowledged that there isn’t a finished traffic study, nor can they address floodplain and wetlands issues because of incomplete information about density.
“We should have that information by now,” Planning Commission chairman Galt Porter said, who suggested that if the board doesn’t have more details by next month, it’s possible there could be a recommendation of denial.
North Point Ministries attorney Kevin Moore said rezoning isn’t required for the church, and that the nature of the community “is not a single-family area under any circumstances.” He pointed to nearby commercial development in the JOSH area, saying that “all of that is this neighborhood and brings it to bear on this property.”
He also said that the JOSH master plan is “not the law. It’s a guide.”
While there were a few residents who spoke in favor of the project, several others spoke against it, including Jill Flamm of the East Cobb Civic Association. That organization listed five objections to the application that she said were not addressed, including traffic, the church renderings not consistent with the master plan and residential density.
A resident on Waterfront Circle showed photos of water runoff issues, saying it’s been “a nightmare” since the lake was drained.
Referring to the applicant, she said that “they want it all, and leave us with nothing.”
Other residents took issue with differing staff analyses of the application, wondering how it could have gone from a strong denial in October to a general recommendation of approval.
They also questioned how residential density calculations have gone down when the latest site plan calls for only 15 fewer units from the original proposal.
zWaybright is scheduled to have a virtual town hall meeting Thursday with Cobb commissioner Jerica Richardson, with details to be announced.
Related stories
- Zoning update: Sprayberry Crossing, East Cobb Church changes
- Sprayberry Crossing request granted another continuance
- Cobb commissioners eliminate redevelopment zoning category
- Revised ‘JOSH’ conceptual plan unveiled at virtual town hall
- Cobb Planning Commission member from East Cobb dies
- Petitions created to support, oppose East Cobb Church zoning
- East Cobb Church zoning: ‘What we’re doing is ever-evolving’
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The BOC could and should end this nonsense by simply establishing a policy that would allow staff to only accept and process zoning applications that contain complete and accurate information. This keeps happening. It’s a waste of taxpayers’s money and shows a lack of respect for the public’s time. Remind them every time it does. Maybe someday they’ll put a stop to it.
Probably the two most questionable paragraphs are these:
North Point Ministries attorney Kevin Moore said rezoning isn’t required for the church, and that the nature of the community “is not a single-family area under any circumstances.” He pointed to nearby commercial development in the JOSH area, saying that “all of that is this neighborhood and brings it to bear on this property.”
He also said that the JOSH master plan is “not the law. It’s a guide.”
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This proposed development backs up to a subdivision, of which this plan cuts off one of the main entrances, which is also part of “this neighborhood”. The second paragraph makes me wonder how closely they’d stick to the plan if it’s approved or if they would change it at will and hope nobody calls them on it.
This “proposal” has had plenty of chances to get their ducks in a row – plenty of time to get all the information needed to make an educated approval – and they haven’t done that. In my opinion, this quest needs to stop now because if the developers are not acting in good faith even while trying to get approval, then what are they going to do if this is approved? It is not in the best interest of this community to find out.
Well said! Thanks for speaking up.