The Georgia Art Education Association has named Krista Lewis of Shallowford Falls Elementary School in East Cobb its elementary art educator of the year.
Lewis, who has taught art for 21 years “is a passionate visual arts educator who selflessly encourages and supports her students and colleagues,” said Laura LaQuaglia, the supervisory of learning design and visual arts for the Cobb County School District, in a district release.
“Her commitment in the classroom and community sets her apart from her peers.”
Lewis was named to the Cobb school district’s Teacher Leader Academy in 2019 and has been involved in GAEA leadership.
She was the organization’s Youth Art Month chairwoman, promoting “the importance of recognizing the arts in schools, created opportunities for schools to promote their art programs, and streamlined how teachers accessed YAM information,” the Cobb school district release said.
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The Paper Mill Road bridge over Sope Creek is at the edge of the East Cobb portion of the Chattahoochee River NRA.
The National Park Service said this week that a record 3.5 million visitors used the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, which includes several area trails and facilities in East Cobb.
Those figures were right behind the Cape Cod National Seashore in Massaschusetts and Yosemite National Park in California and in 21st place overall nationally.
The 3.5 million figure is nine percent higher than in 2021, according to park officials, who said that the Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park in Marietta reported 1.5 million visitors last year.
The Chattahoochee River NRA, which was created in 1978, stretches for 48 miles between Forsyth, Gwinnett, Fulton and Cobb counties.
In East Cobb, there are the Gold Branch and Johnson Ferry units above Johnson Ferry Road, and the Sope Creek Unit trails located off Paper Mill Road.
The NPS figures didn’t break down park visits by those units. But in a social media posting Friday the Chattahoochee NRA staf said that “this many visitors each year mean parts of the park are always very crowded.
“If you crave solitude in nature, #PlanLikeAParkRanger and explore some of the northern units of the park, like Bowmans Island or the Jones Bridge.”
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The 14 acres owned by Kenneth B. Clary at Post Oak Tritt and McPherson roads (inside the blue lines) is the subject of a delayed residential rezoning request. Cobb Tax Assessor’s Office
An early agenda for next Tuesday’s Cobb Planning Commission meeting shows that two cases in East Cobb that have been delayed several times in recent months are being continued again.
The summary agenda files indicated that an application by Kenneth B. Clary for a subdivision development on Post Oak Tritt Road has been continued to April.
The land is near McPherson Road (east of Tritt Elementary School) and is adjacent to the Clary Lakes neighborhood, and the case was first scheduled for a hearing in September.
The property is zoned R-30 and is designated as low-density residential in the Cobb future land use map; Clary is the landowner of what’s called a conservation tract with an appraised value of more than $2 million, according to Cobb property tax records.
There’s a small home on the property near the lake that was built in 1950.
More importantly, the land also contains the Power-Jackson Cabin, a one-room log home from the mid-1800s that’s a local and state historical landmark.
There’s nothing in the zoning filings that refers to the cabin.
In his letters seeking continuances over the fall and winter, attorney Parks Huff, who represents Clary, has made unspecified references to “some remaining issues which are scheduled to be addressed and resolved.”
The Cobb Historic Preservation Commission noted last fall that the cabin could be subject to demolition if the land is rezoned.
The five-member body appointed by Cobb commissioners has been working with Cobb Landmarks, a non-profit preservation group, and Cobb Parks “to see if preservation solutions could be discussed,” according to the minutes of a Sept. 12, 2022 preservation commission meeting.
If the cabin is torn down, the developer could be subject to a mitigation fee similar to one levied following the demolition of a Mabry Farm homestead on Wesley Chapel Road in 2018 to make room for a new subdivision.
The $7,500 paid by the developer was dedicated for historic preservation efforts in Cobb County.
Originally the Clary application sought an R-15 zoning category to build 20 homes with a single entrance from Post Oak Tritt.
That request has since been changed to R-20, which would reduce the number of homes to around 15, but a new site plan hasn’t been submitted.
Clary Lakes is zoned R-15 and according to an early site plan, part of the lake is in a federal 100-year flood zone. There also are state and county water buffers totalling 75 feet, as well as impervious setback considerations.
It’s been nearly a decade since a portion of some other Clary land across the road on Post Oak Tritt was developed by Brooks Chadwick into Hadley Walk, which has six homes on nearly 10 acres.
Those homes are currently valued at more than $1 million.
A proposal to expand the current Starbucks at Paper Mill Village into a two-story, 5,000-square foot standalone building also is being continued to April at the request of the applicant, S&B Investments.
Zoning attorney Garvis Sams said in a letter to the Cobb Zoning Staff on Tuesday that his group has met with nearby citizens groups and the shopping center over what he called “very minor tweaks” over architecture and various stipulations.
But he said his client wants more time to finalize them and to get “one hundred percent consensus.”
The Cobb Planning Commission hearing begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building (100 Cherokee St., downtown Marietta), you can view the full agenda and individual case files by clicking here.
You also can watch on the county’s website and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.
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The proposal goes before the Marietta City Council next Wednesday for final action.
The mixed-use development proposed by WC Acquisitions LLC includes 7,000 square feet of amenities for the apartment building, 6,000 square feet of retail space and a 485-space parking deck that’s six and a half stories high.
The density would be high, at more than 60 units an acre, and one of the highest in the Marietta city limits.
But it’s in keeping with density at the nearby MarketPlace Terrell Mill in unincorporated Cobb and other multi-family complexes in the Powers Ferry corridor.
The application got the support of the Powers Ferry Corridor Alliance.
The Kroger at Terrell Mill and Delk roads was built in 1982, and is the southernmost tract of land in the City of Marietta in that area.
Later this year, Kroger is moving Marketplace Terrell Mill that’s in unincorporated Cobb, and WC Acquisitions Attorney Garvis Sams said the 4.8-acre site doesn’t have a retail future.
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The following food scores for the week of Feb. 27 have been compiled by the Cobb & Douglas Department of Public Health. Click the link under each listing for inspection details:
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From L-R: Dana Stassen, Bells Ferry ES; Gary Loveless, Hightower Trail MS; Kristy Flowers, Wheeler HS.
The Cobb Schools Foundation on Wednesday held a luncheon honoring volunteers of the year for 2023 at each of its schools.
They were treated to lunch at Jim Miller Park as they have “demonstrated superior leadership and served as a role model in collaboration and consistency towards high impact school programs or projects,” according to the foundation, a non-profit that provides financial, academic and other support to students of the Cobb County School District.
Here are the volunteers of the year at elementary schools in East Cobb:
Amy Pernicaro, Addison
Dana Stassen, Bells Ferry
Erin Ellingwood, Blackwell
Mike Marotta, Brumby
Michelle Lewis, Davis
Brooke Jarrett, East Side
Jessica Stalcup, Eastvalley
Carol Tefft, Garrison Mill
Laura Kubica, Keheley
Nikkia Velazquez, Kincaid
Kelly Wilkins, Mt. Bethel
Sara Wright, Mountain View
Meredith Wilkes, Murdock
Lauren Rose, Nicholson
Charles McCord, Powers Ferry
Amy Kraft, Rocky Mount
Donna Lipscomb, Sedalia Park
Kim Lindsay, Shallowford Falls
Lauren Lynch, Sope Creek
Ashley Rager, Timber Ridge
Maria Janos, Tritt
Middle schools:
Lisa Duke, Daniell
Erin Inan, Dickerson
Elizabeth Snow-Murphy, Dodgen
Barbara Boutaker, East Cobb
Gary Loveless, Hightower Trail
Dena Loadwick, Mabry
Gladys Francois, McCleskey
Veena Raj, Simpson
High schools:
Ray Fajay, Kell
Christine Kim, Lassiter
Beth Florence, Pope
Kristine Hampson, Sprayberry
Shannon Eiser, Walton
Kristy Flowers, Wheeler
For more on this year’s group of volunteers of the year, click here.
The three Democrats on the Cobb Board of Commissioners Tuesday voted to spend more than $500,000 to hire three separate consulting firms to help the Cobb Department of Transportation prepare for a transportation sales tax referendum in 2024.
The contracts will be for developing project lists and providing planning and engineering services, as well as conducting community outreach.
Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid has proposed a one-percent, 30-year sales tax for transit, but the board’s two Republican members are opposed to anything longer than five years.
What’s been called the Cobb Mobility SPLOST, or M-SPLOST, would fund mass transit services as well as traditional transportation options, including resurfacing.
The county set aside $400,000 for consulting services for the M-SLPOST referendum, but on Tuesday spending that was approved totaled $529,839:
WSP USA, Inc., $207,205
Kimley-Horn & Assciates, $192,795
CDM-Smith, Inc., $129,839
Republican commissioners JoAnn Birrell and Keli Gambrill voted against the contracts, objecting to the long-term nature of the proposed 30-year sales tax.
State law gives local governments that option, and they also could levy a five-year, one-percent tax for surface projects, which Birrell has supported.
While commending Cobb DOT director Drew Raessler and his department for their efforts, Birrell said that “all along I have said I cannot support a 30-year tax. . . . Getting anybody to get on the same page up here is a difficult task.”
The county held town halls and other public events in 2021 for a sales tax referendum targeted for 2022, but put that on hold when mayors of Cobb’s cities objected to a 30-year tax.
Gambrill asked Raessler why more outreach was necessary, and he said that it would be more targeted, especially to those in cities and community improvement districts to hear “what type of projects they would like to see.”
Cupid said that “I think we have a significant opportunity to invest in our future, at least just to ask the citizens the questions, to flesh out with the mayors what the options are.
“This isn’t a done deal yet. But hopefully we’ll get the data to support where we could potentially go, with additional help fleshing out what the [project] lists are.”
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A Marietta Police photo of the truck at that contained a device that was investigated by bomb technicians. The driver has been charged with making a false report of a crime.
Marietta Police on Monday provided some more information about a bomb threat Saturday that forced the evacuation of an East Cobb shopping center for several hours.
What they haven’t established yet is a reason why the owner of a pickup truck drove from his hometown in Alabama to a retail parking lot in Marietta and made the threat.
Robert Andrew Devlin, 37, of Lincoln, Ala., remains in the Cobb County Adult Detention Center on a $60,000 bond for what police said were making false reports of a pipe bomb in a truck he drove to the parking lot at East Gate Shopping Center (1808 Lower Roswell Road).
An arrest warrant for Devlin said he’s charged with a felony count of making a false report of a crime and two misdemeanor counts of making a false alarm and having a hoax device.
The warrant states that Devlin drove from his hometown to the shopping center and shortly after 8 a.m. called 911, which dispatched officers to the scene.
Marietta Police said that based on information Devlin provided to them, “officers determined the threat to be credible and immediately began evacuating the area” around the shopping center.
Other law enforcement was called, including Cobb Police and its bomb squad. Devlin was interviewed by Marietta Police and was charged as that was going on.
“Around noon, a device resembling a pipe bomb was removed from the truck and secured by the CCPD bomb technicians. The rest of the vehicle was methodically searched via robot” and the area was reopened to the public around 3 p.m., police said Monday.
The FBI and ATF were also called to the scene, and it was determined that while the device “did contain some explosive elements, it lacked other components necessary for it to be considered a fully assembled explosive device.”
Marietta Police said they’re continuing to investigate and anyone with information is asked to call Det. Robert Bollinger at 770-794-5345.
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The new Pure Barre Studio at Parkaire Landing Shopping Center (4880 Lower Roswell Road, Suite 790) is holding several grand opening events this week, after a few months of a soft opening.
The main events are this weekend—from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday—and include free classes, membership specials, raffle prizes and giveaways, vendors and more.
The raffle prizes come from IceboxCryotherapy, Athelta, McCray’s Tavern, Blo Blow Dry Bar and others, and there will be local juice places in the studio and B12 shots on Saturday from wHydrate, a hydration therapy spa.
Updates are being posted on the studio’s Facebook page, and owner Jenna Scearce says that if you want to take part in a free class, you’ll need to reserve a spot by phone/text (770-283-0278) or e-mail (eastcobb@purebarre.com).
Those class times are 8:30 a.m., 9:45 a.m., 11 am. and 12:15 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and are Foundations or Classic classes “so good for newbies,” general manager Chad Stone said.
Barre is a fitness concept that incorporates ballet, yoga and Pilates into a full-body, muscle endurance workout (intro info here).
Pure Barre, which has more than 600 locations in North America. Jenna Scearce and her husband Chad operate Pure Barre locations in Roswell, Alpharetta and Milton and will be opening another in Suwanee in the fall.
The event is from 4-6 p.m. Tuesday at Tijuana Joe’s Cantina (690 Johnson Ferry Road) and is open to ECBA members, their guests and visitors.
The cost is $5 for members and $10 for guests and visitors and includes one drink ticket and appetizers. You’re asked to register in advance to get an accurate headcount.
The ECBA also has a monthly luncheon for women this week. The group is called the Professional Women of East Cobb, and they also meet at Tijuana Joe’s for lunch the first Friday of each month, from 11:30-1 p.m.
ECBA also holds a weekly open networking event every Friday from 7:30-8:30 a.m. at the IHOP (3130 Johnson Ferry Road). There’s no registration required; you pay for whatever you may eat or drink.
New Businesses
The following businesses in East Cobb were granted licenses by the Cobb Community Development Agency in recent weeks:
AM A Joy Designs, 4556 Steinhauer Road (merchandise and service broker)
Berry Good Realty Group, 2686 Jamerson Road (real estate and property management)
Blinds & Designs Ltd., 2993 Sandy Plains Road, Suite 110 (drapery and blind installation)
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The East Gate Shopping Center entrance at Hamby Drive. East Cobb News photo.
UPDATED, SUNDAY, FEB. 26, 12:41 P.M.:
The area that had been evacuated was reopened later Saturday without incident.
Marietta Police have charged Robert Andrew Devlin, 37, of Lincoln, Ala., on a felony count of a false public alarm and misdemeanor counts of false report of a crime and reporting a device that turned out to be a hoax.
According to Cobb Sheriff’s Office records, Devlin was arrested at 11 a.m. Saturday and later booked into the Cobb County Adult Detention Center, where he is being held on a $60,000 bond.
ORIGINAL REPORT:
Police have blocked off access around a shopping center in East Cobb Saturday after receiving a tip about a vehicle parked there that may have contained an explosive device.
Marietta Police said Saturday afternoon that several law enforcement agencies are on the scene at the East Gate Shopping Center.
Police are blocking off the area around the shopping center, located at the Marietta Parkway and Lower Roswell Road.
There is no access for motorists on Lower Roswell between the Marietta Parkway and Scott Drive and on Hamby Drive between Lower Roswell and Hazelwood Drive.
A Marietta Police photo of the truck that contained a device secured by Cobb Police bomb technicians. The driver was taken into custody.
Marietta Police said in a social media message that a 911 call at 8:13 a.m. Saturday said a pickup truck parked near the shopping center “may have some sort of a bomb or explosive device in the back.”
According to police, officers called to the scene made contact with the truck owner and “determined the threat to be serious.”
That individual, who was not identified, was taken into custody, police said, and the area was evacuated as the Cobb Police bomb squad was called to the scene.
Police said a device was removed from the truck but “it is not yet known if that device is real.”
They said they believe the area is safe but were keeping the evacuation in place as they continued to search the truck.
Cobb Police, Cobb Sheriff’s Office, Marietta Fire, Cobb Fire, the FBI and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms and Tobacco also were on the scene.
This story will be updated.
A Cobb Sheriff’s vehicle blocking motorists on Lower Roswell Road at Scott Drive. East Cobb News photo.Vehicles attempting to cross the Marietta Parkway on Lower Roswell Road westbound were forced to detour. East Cobb News photo.
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East Cobb resident Larry Savage has refiled a lawsuit against Cobb County’s home rule legal challenge over redistricting maps for the Cobb Board of Commissioners.
His co-plaintiff in the action filed Thursday in Cobb Superior Court is Cobb Republican Commissioner Keli Gambrill.
Their suit (you can read it here) was filed against the county and the Cobb Board of Registration and Elections. The latter was the sole defendant in the initial suit filed by Savage but was withdrawn after an initial hearing before Judge Ann Harris in January.
The refiled suit seeks a writ of mandamus to order Cobb to recognize redistricting maps approved last year by the Georgia General Assembly.
Cobb commission maps passed by the Georgia legislature would include most of East Cobb in District 3 (gold).
Those maps drew current District 2 commissioner Jerica Richardson out of her East Cobb home in the middle of her term.
Instead, she and the board’s other two Democrats passed a resolution last October to recognize a redistricting map drawn by the former Cobb legislative delegation chairman that would keep Richardson in her seat.
That action included the filing of an amended map with the Georgia Secretary of State’s office, even after Gambrill and fellow GOP Commissioner JoAnn Birrell were re-elected in November according to the legislature-approved maps.
The new lawsuit continues to claim that the county is violating the Georgia Constitution, which permits only the legislature to conduct reapportionment.
The suit said that Gambrill, who represents District 1 in north and west Cobb, is a plaintiff as an individual citizen, not in her role as a commissioner.
The resolution passed by the commission Democrats, the lawsuit alleges, “was an overt misuse and abuse of the home rule authority” and described their amended map as “illegal, unconstitutional and not binding.”
The legislative map drew most of East Cobb into District 3, which Birrell has represented since 2010. Savage, a former candidate for Cobb Commission Chairman in 2012, 2016 and 2020, was drawn into the new District 3 for the 2022 election.
But the Cobb map, which the county said took effect on Jan. 1, puts him back in District 2, which includes some of East Cobb and the Cumberland-Vinings area.
“Mr. Savage has a legally protected interest in enduring his vote fairly and legally translates into representation on the BOC and that his district and the county at large is represented fairly and constitutionally,” said the lawsuit, filed by Atlanta attorney Ray S. Smith III.
Maps approved by the Cobb commission’s Democrats would keep Jerica Richardson of East Cobb in the District 2 (in pink) that she currently represents.
The lawsuit said that the Cobb Board of Commissioners “created a conflict for the BOE [Board of Elections] in carrying out its duties” to conduct and certify elections.
Gambrill and Birrell were ordered from the board’s dais at the commission’s first meeting of the year when they attempted to abstain from voting as a protest against the county maps.
Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said that was a violation of board policy. Since then, the two Republican commissioners have voted, but have begun each meeting reading formal statements of objection.
The Cobb commission Democrats have claimed in their resolution that they’re justified in invoking home rule over redistricting due to the “unprecedented” redistricting maps passed by the legislature.
Richardson, whose term expires in 2024, has contended that while the county’s action may be unprecedented, so is the legislature’s action in drawing a sitting incumbent official out of her seat.
An East Cobb resident, Debbie Fisher, has filed an ethics complaint against Richardson, saying the commissioner is engaged in a conflict of interest due to a political action committee she formed to fight the legislative maps.
State Sen. Ed Setzler, a Republican from West Cobb, has filed a bill that would specifically prohibit counties from using home rule powers over redistricting. Two co-sponsors of the bill, SB 236 (you can read it here), are his GOP colleagues Kay Kirkpatrick and John Albers, who represent parts of East Cobb.
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An aerial view of softball fields at Shaw Park, which opened in 1970. Photo: Cobb County government.
Cobb commissioner JoAnn Birrell will hold a community input meeting in March to generate public feedback for proposals to redevelop Shaw Park.
The town hall has been scheduled for Thursday, March 16, from 6-8 p.m. at Piedmont Church (570 Piedmont Road) and will include Cobb PARKS staff.
A total of $4 million in the current 2022 Cobb SPLOST (Special-Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax) has been budgeted for the project, but the specific redevelopment plans were left open-ended.
Shaw Park (990 Shaw Park Drive) opened in 1970 and features softball and baseball fields, batting cages, tennis and pickleball courts, playgrounds and the Northeast Cobb Community Center.
According to the 2022 SPLOST notebook, repurposing is necessary “to better meet the recreational needs and desires of the surrounding community.”
“Park design and amenities are now outdated, and the park no longer meets the recreational needs of the community.”
The 2022 SPLOST also calls for $3 million to be collected to develop Ebenezer Downs, a new passive park in the Northeast Cobb area, located on Ebenezer Road. Cobb commissioners approved a master plan in 2019.
For more information about the Shaw Park town hall e-mail jordan.wood@cobbcounty.org.
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On Saturday the Janice Overbeck Real Estate Team’s non-profit arm will hold its annual Texas Hold’em fundraiser to benefit the Emory ALS Center.
The public is invited to take part in the event (at the agency’s office (2249 Roswell Road) starting at 6 p.m.
There are prize packages for the top three winners. Food and drinks will be served, and there will be a raffle and silent auction.
Former Altanta Falcons player Terance Mathis returns as the celebrity guest host, and he’s bringing some of his football colleagues with him: Jerome Bettis, Jessie Tuggle, Bob Whitfield and Chuck Smith.
All of the proceeds will be distributed by JO Gives, the Overbeck non-profit, which has raised more than $250,000 for ALS research.
The suggested donation is $100 a person, but any donation amount will be accepted, and registration can be completed by clicking here.
Sponsors of the event include Perrie & Associates, Clear to Close Team at PRMG, AMLI Residential, Mansfield Cares, Trotter Roofing and Gutters, Arrow Exterminators, Amerispec Inspection Services, Integral Choice, HWA Home Warranty, and Eye Consultants of Atlanta—The Piedmont Group.
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Cobb Police have arrested a man they say walked into a home in East Cobb looking for a girl who rides a bus he drives for the Cobb County School District.
According to an arrest warrant, Gogineni Rayudu entered a condominium unit on Ashborough Circle, located off Delk Road near I-75, at 1:30 p.m. on Monday.
The warrant said the man claimed to be the girl’s bus driver, and that he closed the door behind him and asked to see her.
According to the warrant, the man fled the residence “upon being asked questions about why he was there.”
The girl’s mother told police that Rayudu has come to the residence three times in the last month and questioned neighbors about where her daughter lives, according to the warrant.
WSB-TV reported Wednesday that Rayudu recently began driving a bus route for Powers Ferry Elementary School, where the girl is a student.
The Cobb school district is on winter break this week.
“The date of the incident occurred when school was not in session and there was no reasonable explanation given by said accused to be there,” the warrant states.
According to a Cobb Sheriff’s Office booking report, Rayudu was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon, charged with a felony count of burglary and misdemeanor count of loiter prowl.
Rayudu, 55, whose home address is listed in the booking report at Woodberry Lane in East Cobb, was being held in the Cobb County Adult Detention Center on a bond of $22,220.
UPDATED:
Rayudu was released on bond Thursday afternoon, according to Cobb Sheriff’s Office records.
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A 20-year-old Woodstock man died late Wednesday night after a motorcycle he was riding on Canton Road crashed with a car, Cobb Police said.
Public Information Officer Joseph Wilson identified the victim as Daniel Kansky and said the driver of the car, Angela Jackson, 48, of Marietta, was not injured.
Wilson said the crash took place shortly before 11 p.m. Wednesday night. Jackson was driving a white 2011 Volkswagen Tiguan northbound on Canton Road, and made a left turn onto Chase Corner.
As she made the turn, Wilson said, the Volkswagen “entered the path of the Honda,” a reference to a black 2008 Honda CBR60 driven by Kansky, who was traveling south on Canton Road.
Wilson said the investigation is continuing and anyone with information is asked to call Cobb Police at 770-499-3987.
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Local quilter Jan Cunningham, who has won numerous awards for her work, will have some of her pieces exhibited next month in a joint presentation of the East Cobb Quilters’ Guild and the Cobb Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department.
“Life’s Not All Black & White,” a collection of more than 30 of Cunningham’s quilts, will be shown at the Mable House Arts Center from March 2-30.
Her use of color and applique are demonstrated throughout the exhibit, according to a Quilters’ Club release, which states that “Jan is skilled at putting her own mark on traditional quilting patterns and techniques, a practice she encourages in her students, too.”
The Mable House Gallery (5239 Floyd Road SW, Mableton) is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday, and there will be a reception with Cunningham on Saturday, March 4, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Admission to the exhibit and reception are free.
The East Cobb Quilter’s Club, which was formed in 1982, has more than 300 members whose aim is to promote the art of quilting.
The group organizes the Georgia Celebrates Quilt exhibit every two years and contributes quilts, placemats and pillowcases to non-profits.
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The following food scores for the week of Feb. 20 have been compiled by the Cobb & Douglas Department of Public Health. Click the link under each listing for inspection details:
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A rendering of a self-storage facility with a townhouse-designed exterior proposed for the Terrell Mill-Delk intersection.
Even after late support surfaced for a self-storage proposal—including from one of their former colleagues—Cobb commissioners on Tuesday rejected a request to build such a facility at the intersection of Terrell Mill and Delk roads.
By a 4-1 vote, commissioners denied a request by ADP Terrell Mill to rezone 2.55 acres of residentially zoned land at 1140 and 1150 Terrell Mill Road for a 120,000-square-foot self-storage facility and a small community meeting room.
The case was initially heard in December, but commissioners voted to hold it to February, even after the Cobb zoning staff and Cobb Planning Commission recommended denial.
The land, once owned by the late Ruby Inez Fridell, is currently zoned R-80, the lowest residential density in the Cobb code, and has two older long-abandoned homes.
A new townhome development is adjacent on Terrell Mill, and nearby residential zoning ranges from R-20 to RA-6. But the Cobb future land map has designated those tracts as very-low density residential.
The vote to deny came after District 2 commissioner Jerica Richardson initially made a motion to approve the proposal, but couldn’t get support from her colleagues.
Her predecessor, former commissioner Bob Ott, spoke in favor of the self-storage facility. He lives nearby at Terrell Mill Estates, only a hundred feet from the Fridell property, and said that self-storage would create less traffic than townhomes suggested by opponents.
The facility would be built by Shamrock Building Systems, a prominent self-storage builder in the Atlanta area, and would include exteriors that look like townhomes.
Ott said during his time in office, the land in question was proposed for much more intense development, including a gas station and townhomes, that would have had a more detrimental impact on the community.
“We know what has been considered for this intersection,” he said, noting that there have been more than 20 accidents there since early 2020.
Former Commissioner Bob Ott speaking on behalf of a self-storage zoning proposal.
“Folks who live a mile or more from this property—they’re not impacted like we are.”
Ott said he thinks the stigma of self-storage is what’s driving the opposition. Much of that came from residents in the Amberley Park neighborhood, located further down Terrell Mill next to East Cobb Middle School.
Resident Kevin Nicholas, who ran to succeed the now-retired Ott in 2020, repeated his concerns that the land should remain residential, since it’s a residential area.
“There’s a vast majority of people who don’t want another self-storage in the community,” Nicholas said.
Among them are one of his neighbors, Steve Rowe, a real estate developer, who said self-storage “won’t enhance the value of the surrounding community.” He said that “transitional townhomes would be the obvious choice.”
ADP Terrell Mill attorney Kevin Moore said there’s strong community support from the Terrell Mill Estates, Millridge and Cobblestone subdivisions that are closer than Amberley Park.
Richardson said the case was “a tough one,” and as she tried to make a motion, she admitted to the audience hers was “a real-time decision.”
After making a motion to approve with a new stipulation letter, however, three of her colleagues, including District 3’s JoAnn Birrell, said they wouldn’t vote for it.
Birrell’s district was reapportioned to include the Terrell Mill property but because of the county’s home rule challenge over redistricting, Richardson led the discussion of the case.
“It should remain residential,” Birrell said. “It’s hard to look at R-80 going commercial.”
Chairwoman Lisa Cupid acknowledged that the architectural design of the building is “beautiful,” but that “self-storage is a difficult use. It’s impossible to see the compatibility of this.”
The only vote in favor of the rezoning and companion land-use permit required for self-storage facilities was Keli Gambrill of North Cobb.
Commissioners later vote 5-0 to remove a single-use stipulation for a Walgreens pharmacy on Johnson Ferry Road at Waterfront Drive.
The 1.28 acres at 3033 Johnson Ferry Road was zoned for a pharmacy-only in 2000. But Kenneth Weinstein, an attorney Mid-Atlantic Commercial Properties, LLC, said the Walgreens will soon be closing and his client wants to have some flexibility in redeveloping the land.
The East Cobb Civic Association and the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford (JOSH) advisory group appointed by Richardson submitted lists of nearly 30 prohibited uses, including drive-through and a grocery store.
After a nearly hour-long discussion, Richardson also struggled to make a motion, and wanted to ask for a 60-day continuance.
Weinstein said his client would likely walk away with another delay.
She eventually proposed to approve the pharmacy-only stipulation and add the civic groups’ list of prohibited uses.
Richardson’s motion said removing the pharmacy-only use was contingent on a new proposal to come back before commssioners.
Commissioners also voted on the consent agenda Tuesday to approve rezoning for Lidl to build a grocery store at the intersection of Canton Road and Piedmont Road.
Birrell thanked Lidl, the Canton Road Neighbors civic group and others in the community to make changes following several continuances.
It’s Lidl’s third attempt to locate a store in the Northeast Cobb area, after being denied rezoning at Gordy Parkway and Shallowford Road and abandoning plans for the Sprayberry Crossing redevelopment.
“I’m really forward to this opening soon,” Birrell said.
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Following up our recent story on Mark Aston, an East Cobb resident who auditioned for the Atlanta Braves’ public address job:
He wasn’t among the final three candidates whom the Braves announced at the end of last week, but tells East Cobb News “it was a fun experience. It was more than I expected.”
The Walton High School public address announcer was one of 12 who had a formal tryout to be the in-game voice at Truist Park, and said the last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind.
Everywhere he went—restaurants, shopping, etc.—people in the community were excited for him and wishing him well.
He was at Costco on Sunday, and a woman there told him she had seen a segment involving him on a local television newscast.
“I saw you on Channel 2. You’re famous now, aren’t you?”
For as familiar a figure as Aston is in the Walton sports community, he said he’s still taken aback by the attention.
“It was unreal to go through something for such a highly publicized position,” Aston said. “I appreciate the opportunity. The Braves now know my voice.”
While he waited to hear whether he’d be advancing, Aston looked at his packed schedule—voice-over work for Auburn University athletics and other clients as well as volunteering PA work for Walton sports teams and his regular job in medical sales.
He noticed that if he got the Braves job, with 81 home games to call, he’d have a conflict with just one Raiders football game.
“I thought the audition went fine,” he said. “But you don’t know what they’re looking for.”
For the time being, there’s plenty on the Walton sports docket to tend to. On Tuesday, he’ll be behind the mic as the Walton girls basketball team plays at home in the first round of the state tournament.
And the Walton lacrosse season starts soon, and his son Andrew is a member of the boys varsity team.
Even though he says he’s one of many parent volunteers who helps with Walton sports, Aston doesn’t take his Braves experience for granted.
He was thinking of other parents who’ve expressed their appreciation for what he does, and are especially grateful for such seemingly simple things as pronouncing their child’s name correctly.
“The people out there cheering for you—that makes you feel good,” he said.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
