After years of pleading, prodding and practically begging, residents in the vicinity of the downtrodden Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center finally got their wish in 2021.
But the redevelopment plans of Atlantic Realty, an Atlanta luxury apartment builder that first filed its rezoning request in the summer of 2020, will look very different from what was originally intended.
Even after the Cobb Board of Commissioners approved the rezoning in June—with some vocal opposition from other residents—there was yet another twist in what the mixed-use project will look like.
As commissioners were signing off on a project with 132 senior apartments and 102 townhomes and a small amount of retail space, the developer was trying to work out a traffic arrangement with a liquor store owner whose business is located at what would be the new development’s main entrance on Sandy Plains Road.
That project also was to have included a 34,000-square-foot grocery store to be occupied by Lidl. But Atlantic Realty’s discussions with the Sprayberry Bottle Shop fell through, and Lidl is no longer involved in the development.
Other retail space and restaurants are tentatively being planned instead.
Before passage, Atlantic Realty dropped plans for a general apartment building that drew most of the opposition, with those against fearing a single-family area would change the nature of their neighborhoods.
A once-vibrant shopping center that has evolved into a longstanding community eyesore is expected to be demolished in early 2022.
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The latest Sprayberry Crossing site plan expands green space around the Mayes family cemetery and includes a “town green.” For a larger view click here.
With just a few days before their first public hearings, two major rezoning cases in East Cobb are getting some last-minute changes.
Kevin Moore, the attorney for the proposed redevelopment of the Sprayberry Crossing and the proposed East Cobb Church mixed-use development, filed stipulation letters in both cases on Wednesday.
He also filed a new site plan for Sprayberry Crossing, the latest of several renditions for a mixed-use plan to replace a long-blighted shopping center.
After several months of delays, they’re slated to be heard Tuesday by the Cobb Planning Commission.
We’re still reading through everything, but will summarize what’s new.
The Sprayberry Crossing plans have undergone many revisions, the latest being filed late Wednesday afternoon, shortly before Cobb commissioner JoAnn Birrell held a public information session.
You can read through the new changes by clicking here; there’s a new Cobb DOT traffic analysis here; and the full agenda packet is here.
Atlantic Realty hasn’t changed the details for the residential component—125 apartments, 125 senior apartments and 44 townhomes—nor a proposed grocery store space.
The developer is asking for a waiver from a requirement of the Redevelopment Overlay District zoning category for at least 10 percent of the residential units be dedicated for “workforce housing.”
In addition, Atlantic Realty is proposing a property owners association for the overall development.
More green space has been added back into the new site plan, with a “town green” proposed near the Mayes family cemetery. That green space will be open to the entire community, not just those living in the development.
In addition, the developer listed a number of businesses in the retail portion that would not be allowed, from video arcades to adult retail to several kinds of automotive services.
The townhome units proposed near what would be the East Cobb Church have been reduced from 125 to 110. For a larger view click here.
North Point Ministries Inc. has altered its mixed-use proposal anchored by East Cobb Church to include more low-rise office space at the southwest corner of Johnson Ferry Road and Shallowford Road.
A new stipulation letter (you can read it here), also filed Wednesday, would reduce the number of proposed townhomes from 125 to 110. The applicant is also seeking a new zoning category, Fee Simple Townhomes, instead of a multifamily residential category.
Among the stipulations are to designate that no more than 10 of the townhomes could be rentals at any given time.
North Point Ministries’ plan is to sell that 18.11 acres (out of more than 33 overall) to Ashwood Development, an upscale builder with projects in the city of Atlanta and Florida.
Residents near the blighted Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center have differences about what should replace it.
During Wednesday’s public information session about Sprayberry Crossing, Birrell said she and county staff had not had time to look through the changes.
They answered questions from the public submitted in advance.
Birrell stressed to viewers of the virtual meeting to e-mail their commissioner and members of the Cobb Planning Commission.
“It is in my district and I will take the lead in the discussions,” she said. “But there are five votes. So you need to e-mail all of us.”
She said of the e-mails she’s received thus far about Sprayberry Crossing, there are 83 e-mails against the project, and 21 in favor.
The opposition is mostly over traffic concerns and having any apartments at all.
It’s been three years since area residents held a town hall meeting at Sprayberry High School to jump-start a process that has led to a rezoning case of any kind.
“I know we’re all tired of looking at Sprayberry Crossing,” Birrell said of the retail center that’s been run-down for more than 20 years. “There’s nobody who wants to see this redeveloped than me.”
But she said it’s important to hear fully from the community to determine the best options.
The Cobb Planning Commission meets Tuesday at 9 a.m. in the 2nd floor board room of the Cobb Government Building at 100 Cherokee St., in downtown Marietta. You can read through the full agenda by clicking here.
There will be limited in-person attendance due to COVID-19 restrictions. The meeting can be seen on the Cobb County government’s Facebook and YouTube channels and Channel 23 on Comcast.
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A zoning category that’s being requested for the proposed Sprayberry Crossing redevelopment in East Cobb was dropped from the Cobb County Code by commissioners on Tuesday.
In making code amendment changes, commissioners eliminated the ROD-1 category (Redevelopment Overlay District), although it won’t affect the status of the Sprayberry Crossing application.
That remains pending, and is scheduled to be heard in March after several continuances. The change to drop ROD-1 is effective immediately, so new new applications will be taken.
Commissioner JoAnn Birrell of District 3, which includes the Sprayberry Crossing area, said “I feel like [the zoning category] is not needed” and that anyone seeking to redevelop properties on the county’s designated redevelopment list could apply for other zoning categories.
Atlantic Residential, an Atlanta-based apartment developer, has proposed converting the run-down shopping center at Sandy Plains Road and East Piedmont Road into a mixed-use development with apartments, townhomes, senior living, a grocery store, other retail and community space.
That application was first filed last fall, and has been revised several times, including a new site plan in January that eliminates green space (see below).
The latest site plan calls for 125 apartments, 125 senior living apartments, 44 townhomes, 36,000 square feet of retail and 8,000 square feet of office space. Most of the retail space would be for a grocery store.
The apartment numbers have been reduced from nearly 200 and the story height has come down from five to three.
This is the first zoning case brought under ROD-1, which was created in 2005 and is designed to spur redevelopment of blighted properties.
Sprayberry Crossing has long been included on a redevelopment list approved by commissioners.
ROD-1 projects are “site plan specific,” meaning that there aren’t minimum lot sizes, setbacks and buffers that are required in most rezoning cases.
At least 10 percent of the housing units in an ROD-1 project must be set aside for residents making no more than 80 percent of an area’s average median income.
Sprayberry Crossing still has a few businesses open, but is largely empty, and nearby residents have been organizing for years for its redevelopment.
But other residents have been opposed to Atlantic Residential’s plans, some for traffic reasons but many because of the apartments.
Some have also asserted that the ROD-1 provisions don’t allow for apartments at all.
The commissioners’ vote to scrap ROD-1 was 5-0. Birrell asked that the code change be made effective immediately instead of March 1, as had been in the code.
“There could be something filed between then and now,” she said.
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Some major news on the Sprayberry Crossing redevelopment front:
Atlantic Residential, which had proposed a site plan for its mixed-use plans last fall, then stepped back after opposition surfaced, has announced it’s on agreement to acquire the 15 acres of land at East Piedmont Road and Sandy Plains Road where the blighted shopping center has stood for many years.
Joe Glancy, a leader of group of citizens organized on Facebook announced late Monday that the redevelopment proposal is back on again, and stated that he and Shane Spink, another group leader, “are not involved with the administration of it.”
The new Atlantic Residential plans are located at a new website, sprayberrycrossing.com, which includes fresh renderings, a video presentation and a revised site plan.
Here’s what’s being proposed now:
Atlantic Residential would add 30,000 square feet of space for a “national grocer” and slice the amount of other retail space down from around 10,000 square feet in the original site plan to 8,200 square feet;
12,000 square feet of co-working space;
177 apartment rental units (down from 195);
120 senior living residential units;
56 townhomes (down from 62);
a town green and secondary courtyard;
a walking and biking trail connecting East Piedmont Road to Post Oak Tritt Road.
The buildings would be anywhere from two to four stories with a modern classic design.
The new site plan also incorporates an existing cemetery, which had been the cause of much of the opposition. Some family members of those buried there have been adamantly against moving any remains to an area near the close-by Sandy Plains Baptist Church Cemetery.
We’ll be following up this story with more details, but Atlantic Residential for now is saying it wants to have a community presentation with public feedback.
That’s probably going to be virtual for now given the Coronavirus crisis.
These plans also willl require a zoning process that would appear to be some months away.
The tentative timeline for the redevelopment calls for demolition and site work in the first quarter of 2021 and construction ending in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Glancy said in Monday’s message to the Sprayberry Crossing Action group that in his dealings with the developers, “they have been forthright, honest and open in their dealings with me. They have given me no reason to suspect that will not continue.”
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After years of being an eyesore, the Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center in 2019 became the target of a redevelopment proposal that energized citizens frustrated by inaction regarding the rundown retail center.
In June, those leading the Sprayberry Crossing Action Facebook group said they had been meeting with Atlantic Residential, an Atlanta-based multi-family developer interested in building a mixed-use complex.
It would have some retail but would be largely residential, with apartments and senior-living units taking up most of the property at the southeast corner of East Piedmont Road and Sandy Plains Road.
In August, some of those community representatives met with Atlantic Residential to get more details, and shared them with the public. They also were hopeful of holding a town hall meeting to go over the plans.
But that’s when some opposition began to arise, mostly due to the apartments and the density of the proposal.
By September, the Atlantic Residential revised its plans, calling for nearly 400 residential units (nearly half of them apartments, along with senior living and townhomes), 30,000 square feet of commercial space and other amenities.
Some of those critical of the apartment units started their own Facebook group and contend that kind of development isn’t suitable in an area with single-family homes.
Other opposition arose from those with family members buried in a cemetery at Sprayberry Crossing that was slated to be relocated in the Atlantic Residential proposal.
The developer said in late September the plan would be undergoing “substantial changes” that have not been detailed since then.
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Atlantic Residential, developer of The Reserve at The Ballpark near SunTrust seen above, is proposing a 3- or 4-story apartment building, senior living, townhomes and retail on the site of Sprayberry Crossing.
Last Friday Sprayberry Crossing Action group leaders met with Richard Aaronson of Atlantic Realty, which is proposing a mixed-use development at Piedmont Road and Sandy Plains Road to replace the blighted, mostly abandoned shopping center there.
On Tuesday Shane Spink, one of those community leaders, reported on the meeting, and said he was impressed with the developer’s willingness to listen and make changes and adjustments to the plan.”
He said Atlantic Realty “took a few of the suggestions to go back to the drawing board.”
While the news about Atlantic Realty’s proposal has generated a positive reaction—for the most part—on the Sprayberry Crossing Action Facebook page, the most sensitive part of the project remains over some of the details of the residential plans.
Spink admitted his “top concern” was whether the townhomes would be for sale or rentals, since Atlantic has built some of the latter, but said he was “very pleased to hear that the townhomes will be ‘for sale’ ownership homes.”
About the overall development, here’s what Spink said they were shown:
“Please let me emphasize that what we looked at was a true mixed-use property and not a giant apartment complex like others have tried to describe this as. Here is the preliminary breakdown of what we saw:
For Sale Townhomes
Luxury Apartments w/Pool
Senior Living
Senior Living Amenities Center/Pool
Ground Floor Retail/Restaurant Space
Office/Workshare Space
Large Front Lawn Green-space
“In my opinion it doesn’t get more ‘Mixed-Use’ than that.”
Spink said none of the apartments will have three bedrooms and there will be more with one bedroom than two. That’s similar to what’s being built in the Powers Ferry Road corridor, mostly to prevent school overcrowding.
More exact details, Spink adds, are coming next week, and a community meeting will follow in the fall. Spink told East Cobb News there isn’t a set date for that meeting, but it could happen in October.
Understanding the concerns some have over the apartments, Spink urged residents to keep in mind that “this an opportunity to transform our area for the better. In a few years we will come up on the 50th anniversary of Sprayberry Crossing being built and that’s a long time for any shopping center but especially for one that has been so neglected for so long.”
Back in the 1970s, land was more abundant in Cobb and “sprawling retail centers were all the rage. Fast forward to today, retail is dying, land is scarce, populations are growing and new ideas for use have transformed areas all over the country. This is one of those new ideas.”
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Atlantic Residential, developer of the Reserve at The Ballpark near SunTrust seen above, is tentatively proposing a 3- or 4-story apartment development, senior living, townhomes and retail on the site of Sprayberry Crossing.
He’ll be one of five citizens who’ve met over the summer with Atlantic Residential, which has done some very upscale projects around metro Atlanta and other markets:
“The purpose of the meeting will be for the developer to show a plan for the property that they hope will be a starting point for conversations with the community. They will look for feedback on the plan and they will work with us on figuring out the best way to have a discussion with the community. . . .
“There are strong opinions on both sides with regard to the residential aspect (mostly directed at proposed apartments, but some also directed at senior living with a very small amount towards townhouses.) . . .
“I’m hesitant to post this, as some will undoubtedly see it as my advocating for the developer (and subsequently for apartments.) I am not pro-developer and I am not pro-apartments. I’m pro-reasonable development that will remove this two decades old blight and have a positive impact on the community.
“That said, I think it’s important the community understand that the prospect of holding out for a strictly retail development with shopping and restaurants is a difficult one. . . .
“Strictly retail developments face a changing and challenging market, and that doesn’t look to improve any time soon. . . .”
Read the whole post here as well as the comments, which clearly are guiding community response.
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Atlantic Residential, developer of the Reserve at The Ballpark near SunTrust seen above, is tentatively proposing a 3- or 4-story apartment development on the site of Sprayberry Crossing.
A few more details of the potential Sprayberry Crossing redevelopment we’ve been posting about are coming via Joe Glancy, who informed his Facebook group on Friday that a draft plan shown him by Atlantic Residential, the interested developer, includes the following:
3 to 4 story apartments, senior living AND townhouses (not sure how many stories on the townhouses);
Separate pools and amenities for the apartments and senior living
‘Co-working’ ground floor office space
Ground floor retail space
“Town Green” common green space
It did not include the cemetery
Parking and landscaping
He pointed out some have noticed “activity at the property —evidence that the property was being surveyed.”
That’s Atlantic Residential’s land survey, and Glancy says the developer is gauging public reaction before putting forth a more formal plan. He adds this:
“They seem very sincere in wanting to work with the community—both with communication and feedback—in order to adjust the development plan in response to what the community has to say. They said this will be an open process and if there ends up being an impasse, they can simply choose to not develop and look elsewhere.”
There are plenty of comments on that post link that you can read here, and that include a variety of opinions. Many are glad a long-blighted property may finally be rebuilt, while others are worried about increased traffic and potential drop in property values with apartments possibly coming in.
Based in Atlanta, Atlantic Residential is a high-end apartment developer that’s built complexes at SunTrust Park, Grant Park, Johns Creek, Buckhead, Dunwoody, Decatur, Druid Hills and in the Milwaukee and Chicago areas.
The Reserve at The Ballpark, in the photo above, was completed in 2015 near SunTrust Park for around $70 million and features 321 units plus luxury amenities.
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A citizens group that has organized a public meeting next week about the fate of Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center (previous East Cobb Newspost here) is sending word about the elected officials who are expected to be in attendance.
They include Cobb commission chairman Mike Boyce, District 3 commissioner JoAnn Birrell, and State Rep. Don Parsons. The Sprayberry Crossing Action Facebook group also has invited State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick.
Boyce and Parsons will be among those speaking and will take questions after their remarks.
The meeting will take place at 6 p.m. next Wednesday, March 21, in the theater of Sprayberry High School (2525 Sandy Plains Road).
The citizens group organized the meeting to prompt action on the run-down shopping center on Sandy Plains Road near Piedmont Road. While there are a few tenants, most of Sprayberry Crossing has been long-vacant and is in deteriorating condition.
Last month, the Cobb Community Development Department sent a notice to Brennan Goddard, a commercial real estate agency representing the shopping center property owner, to propose an improvement plan under the county’s new “blight tax” provision (previous East Cobb Newspost here).
Among the issues cited in the county’s letter, in addition to the decay of the buildings, are numerous police calls to the shopping center, and signs of possible gang activity at a former bowling alley.
Shane Spink, one of the leaders of the Sprayberry Crossing Action group, told East Cobb News that the property owners have been invited to “attend every meeting we have had on this site but they have always chosen not to attend.”
Spink said “this one is no different and they will have seats saved with their names on it but I wouldn’t bet on them coming.”
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A citizens group that’s been trying to address the decaying Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center is organizing a public meeting next month to bring more attention to the issue.
Joe Glancy of the Sprayberry Crossing Action Facebook group said Friday the meeting is scheduled for March 21 at 6 p.m. at the theater of Sprayberry High School (2525 Sandy Plains Road).
He said plans are to invite county and state officials, but didn’t have any other details.
Located on 13 acres on Sandy Plains Road at East Piedmont Road, Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center was built 40 years ago, in 1978, with more than 140,000 square feet of space and with contemporary cedar trim design. The anchor stores were supermarkets—first an Ogletree’s and then a Bruno’s—and a bowling alley also operated there.
Today, it houses only a few businesses and organizations in run-down buildings that have been in that state since the 1990s. The parking lot is bumpy and riddled with potholes, and nearby residents have long complained about it being a community eyesore.
One of those residents is Glancy, who oversees the group’s Facebook page that has nearly 3,800 members.
Last month, he conducted a survey of group members to decide how to move forward. Glancy said most of the respondents preferred a public meeting. He wrote on the group’s page:
“This year, it is time to hold people accountable and make our voices heard. Don’t let your county representatives tell you how much they care about this issue – it’s time they showed you.
“As for the ownership, it’s probably time the community organized a communications initiative to make sure the owners are made aware of the level of our frustration.”
There’s a long, drawn-out back story to the Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center, complicated by the location of a private cemetery and other issues as detailed last summer by the Cobb County Courier.
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