An early look at Cobb zoning files for July shows some major changes afoot at the Sandy Plains Village Shopping Center in Northeast Cobb.
Last March the retail center’s owner got rezoning for an indoor entertainment center in a 67,000-square-foot space where a Wal-Mart grocery once stood.
But the Ignite Adventure Park will not be constructed there after all, according to a preliminary filing with the Cobb Zoning office (it’s the first application).
The Cobb Planning Commission will hear those cases on July 7.
Site Centers Corp. is applying to rezone a 15.95-acre portion of the shopping center on Woodstock Road from neighborhood retail center (NRC) to planned community village (PVC) to allow for the residential units.
The plans call for 41 two-story “upscale, traditionally designed” townhomes, between 1,800 and 2,200 square feet, with access on Mabry Road, according to a site plan filed with the original application.
The only other details filed for now are included in a “statement of intent” from Site Centers indicating that “the retail marketplace has seen a decrease in in-store sales over the last few years and the amount of physical retail space continues to decline.”
Given business closures in the wake of COVID-19, some retailers “will certainly see a lessened chance of survival,” according to the Site Centers statement, which was signed by prominent Cobb zoning attorney Garvis Sams.
Sandy Plains Village is anchored by a Movie Tavern, and also includes a Dollar Tree discount store, several restaurants and a Firestone store.
Those won’t be affected by the residential plans, which Site Centers said will provide a “pedestrian friendly atmosphere” to be designed to connect to adjacent retail.
There aren’t any townhomes in the vicinity. Right behind the vacant retail space is the Chatsworth subdivision, which is zoned R-15, a single-family residential category.
The additional retail plans weren’t detailed.
Since the filings are preliminary, there isn’t yet a staff analysis or recommendation on whether the application should be approved, modified or denied.
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