Cobb Development Authority

KSU economist appointed to Cobb Development Authority after delay

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After a two-week delay, the Cobb Board of Commissioners voted 3-1 Tuesday to appoint an economist to the county’s development authority whose nomination had drawn opposition.J.C. Bradbury, Cobb Development Authority appointment

J.C. Bradbury of Kennesaw State University has been a critic of how Cobb financed SunTrust Park and has been skeptical of economic benefit claims since the Atlanta Braves stadium opened in 2017.

He had been selected by new commissioner Keli Gambrill of North Cobb on Sept. 10, but chairman Mike Boyce asked for the delay when he said he had learned two commissioners opposed the choice (previous ECN story here).

Boyce didn’t name the commissioners, but the only vote against Bradbury Tuesday was JoAnn Birrell of East Cobb. Bob Ott, also of East Cobb, was absent from the meeting and did not vote.

Previously, the other commissioner, Lisa Cupid of South Cobb, said she supported Bradbury, and reaffirmed that before the vote.

Birrell did not publicly explain why she voted against Bradbury, saying only that she expressed her concerns privately to Gambrill.

Boyce said after meeting with Bradbury and speaking again with him by phone that Bradbury is “qualified in every respect” and also that he is “now he is a public figure.”

Boyce referenced Tweets Bradbury had posted, and without citing a topic, said that “if you’re going to be on this board we have to be circumspect in our comments. Somebody may want to use it against him.

“[Bradbury] assured me he could make impartial decisions,” Boyce said.

The Development Authority consists of seven individuals appointed by county commissioners who consider economic development incentives, including tax abatements.

That an appointment was put to a vote is unusual, and so were public comments before the vote in support of Bradbury.

They included East Cobb resident Larry Savage, a former chairman candidate who unsuccessfully challenged the Development Authority’s tax abatements for a Kroger superstore that’s part of the MarketPlace Terrell Mill project.

Also speaking for Bradbury was Caroline Holko, who ran against Birrell last year, and Lance Lamberton of the Cobb Taxpayers Association.

He said Bradbury “speaks truth to power” and a board like the development authority needs to have members with an array of perspectives.

Boyce told Lamberton that “you stole my thunder.”

On Wednesday morning, Bradbury Tweeted that “I can confirm that I have been confirmed,” and apologized to his followers for a head shot of him that accompanied a media story he included in his message.

“Sorry to shove my giant melon in your face.”

 

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East Cobb resident Karen Hallacy re-appointed to Cobb Development Authority

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Karen Hallacy of East Cobb was reappointed to serve on the Cobb Development Authority this week.Karen Hallacy

She was reappointed by a 4-0 vote on Tuesday by the Cobb Board of Commissioners. Her new term will run through March 13, 2022.

The development authority is a seven-member board that oversees some economic development activities, including financial incentives for expanding or relocating businesses, and to market Cobb County to businesses and industries.

It considers tax abatements requested by companies seeking to redevelop or reoccupy properties on the county’s redevelopment list.

Among them is the MarketPlace Terrell Mill development that commissioners approved earlier this year. The developer, which is including a Kroger superstore as an anchor, has been seeking a tax break that was granted by the development authority.

Hallacy was opposed, concerned about setting a precedent for retailers getting abatements.

That tax break is being contested by East Cobb resident Larry Savage, whose successfully appealed in Cobb Superior Court. The developer and development authority have appealed that denial to the Georgia Supreme Court.

Hallacy has been active in many community activities in East Cobb, the county and the state and is the president-elect of the Georgia PTA.

She is the development authority appointee of District 2 commissioner Bob Ott.

 

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Cobb school board members briefed about new Kroger Terrell Mill tax abatement

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Powers Ferry-Terrell Mill development, MarketPlace Terrell Mill, Kroger Terrell Mill tax abatement

The day after the Cobb Development Authority approved issuing $35 million in bonds for a tax abatement for a portion of a new East Cobb commercial project, developers’ representatives explained the situation to the Cobb Board of Education.

The school board is typically briefed on tax breaks heard by the authority, due to their impact on school tax revenue.

The developers of the MarketPlace Terrell Mill, a mixed-use retail and residential development on the site of the present Brumby Elementary School, were seeking a break for the portion of the project that is to include a Kroger superstore.

Brian Fratesi, a vice president for Connolly Investments and Development, which is building the project, said during a school board work session Thursday that MarketPlace Terrell Mill is “a gateway to East Cobb.”

The abatement would cover only the Kroger portion of the $120 million project, which was approved in February in a zoning case by the Cobb Board of Commissioners. The 23.9 acres at the northwest corner of Terrell Mill Road and Powers Ferry Road includes aging commercial, shops, restaurants and office space.

Brumby is relocating to a new campus on Terrell Mill Road in August, and its sale prompted the MarketPlace project, seen as a linchpin of redevelopment in the Powers Ferry corridor.

Fratesi said the Cobb County School District currently gets around $34,000 in annual tax revenues from existing commercial activities on that site.

By the time the tax abatement period ends, 11 years after it begins, he estimated the school district would receive more than $500,000 a year in tax revenues from MarketPlace complex.

The Kroger store would be exempt from taxes its first year of operation, then would gradually pay an assessed tax value phased in over a 10-year period, in rising increments of 10 percent each year.

Fatesi said the Kroger is slated to be in the second phase of the project, with the first phase calling for the construction of restaurant and retail space, a self-storage unit and a nearly 400-unit luxury apartment complex.

When asked about the rental units’ impact on school enrollment, Fatesi said it would be minimal, since they’re expensive, one- and two-bedroom apartments being marketed primarily to Millennials and downsizers.

The MDJ reported that two members of the Development Authority voted against the bonds, including Karen Hallacy of East Cobb, concerned about a precedent being set by retailers for getting tax abatements.

But two East Cobb board members were ecstatic. Scott Sweeney, whose Post 6 includes the Powers Ferry area, said the MarketPlace proejct “will help our tax digest in the long run.”

He said that the per-student share coming from commercial tax revenue in Marietta City Schools is higher than Cobb’s, at around $1,400 a year, because of what that city derives from its commercial digest.

“I do like the project,” said board member David Banks of Post 5 in Northeast Cobb. “It’s good and I think the whole county will benefit.”

Fatesi said the first phase of MarketPlace could break ground by August or September, with completion expected 18-24 months after that. The Kroger would be completed in another 18 to 24 months, he said.

The board also heard outlines of another proposed tax abatement for a manufacturing company that is looking to expand its operations to near SunTrust Park and The Battery.

A research and development facility would bring more than 800 high-paying jobs in what’s being dubbed “Project Dashboard.” The company, which is seeking more than $260 million in development bonds for a tax abatement, is not being identified for the moment.

Jack DiNardo, a commercial real estate relocation expert who represents the company, told board members discussions on its potential Cobb move are in “progress,” and that a decision could come “sometime this summer.”

He said a requested tax abatement would be for $21 million.

 

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