When the Cobb Community Development Agency scheduled a series of public open houses in the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford area for this spring, residents of the East Cobb community of Loch Highland knew they had a good opportunity to be heard about a long-standing issue they claim hasn’t been adequately addressed by the county.
On Monday, at the second of three “JOSH” sessions to gain input on a range of community development issues, several Loch Highland residents turned out to provide feedback, and make their case for dealing with stormwater problems.
Located between Mabry Road and Wesley Chapel Road, and near the top of the “JOSH” study area (see map inset below, and full-size map here), Loch Highland provides one of the more scenic community environments in East Cobb. Opened in the 1970s and featuring wood-framed homes to blend in with natural surroundings, Loch Highland was designed to feel like a resort while being convenient for commuting and everyday suburban life.
For years Loch Highland homeowners have taken it upon themselves, and at their own expense, to clean out the two scenic lakes that often get filled with silt and other sediments from rain and storms.
Even with a slender dam and spillway that connects both lakes under Loch Highland Pass, the main road in the neighborhood, the lakes often flood during heavy rains. There were lengthy negotiations during the 1980s between Cobb and Loch Highland residents over how to pay for damage to the dam caused during a period of heavy development.
“We probably have the largest catchment area in this part of the county,” said Dave Taylor, a long-time Loch Highland resident.
What he and some of his neighbors have been suggesting for years is what they emphasized at Monday’s meeting at Chestnut Ridge Christian Church: The establishment of a stormwater utility fee that would be earmarked for keeping the lakes clean.
“Half of our [homeowners association] dues go to the maintenance of the lakes,” Taylor said. He added that while the lake is healthy, upstream development threatens that health.
More than that, homeowners in Loch Highland, which number around 400, wonder how much more it will cost them, with no financial relief in sight.
Jim Wallace, who’s lived in Loch Highland for more than 40 years, estimates that neighbors have spent nearly $1 million on lake cleanup since the year 2000.
He’s upset that water that runs downstream from public roads and lands have become the sole burden of private property owners.
“If you see an unmowed median in a road, [county] commissioners will hear about it,” Wallace said. “But not when it’s a lake.” Even on private property, “it serves a public purpose.”
That public purpose in Loch Highland, with the dam and spillway bolstering one of the largest retention ponds in Cobb County, is to prevent further stormwater runoff from affecting other communities.
The Loch Highland community website has an information page about the stormwater issues, including an explanation of how a stormwater utility fee would work. That fee would be included in water bills and would cost around $3.50 a month for a home of around 2,800 square feet. The actual rate would be calculated on the amount of impervious surfaces for each home.
When asked if that’s just a complicated way of proposing a tax, Taylor denied that, pointing out that the collected fee revenue would go only to stormwater maintenance functions.
Cobb has 130 dams and more than 15,000 retention ponds, and more than 20 percent of its land is located in a flood plain.
While the JOSH meetings cover many topics, from land use and transportation to parks and other amenities, stormwater management was bound to be a subject of interest. The study area is bordered on the east by Willeo Creek and includes a number of other lakes and ponds.
Cobb Planning Commissioner Thea Powell, a former Cobb commissioner and East Cobb Civic Association leader who lives in nearby Chimney Lake, said another factor that has frustrated citizens about stormwater concerns is that “everything that affects us is outside the study area.”
She noted that the “JOSH” open houses are a rare occasion in which feedback on stormwater issues has been encouraged.
“The fact that the county is looking at this is good,” Powell said.
Jason Gaines, planning division director for the Cobb Community Development Agency, acknowledged that stormwater issues were one of the main areas of input his office is seeking in the JOSH process, which was established at the behest of District 2 Cobb commissioner Bob Ott.
Gaines said a more formal presentation summarizing the first two meetings will take place at the final meeting on May 8, also at the Chestnut Ridge Christian Church (2663 Johnson Ferry Road), from 7-9 p.m.
The master plan concept that is developed from the JOSH meetings will be incorporated into the Cobb 2040 Comprehensive Plan.
Citizens can offer feedback online, and view documents, maps and other information related to the study area, by visiting the JOSH website.
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