A rezoning vote for a 32-acre tract of land that could be home to a large apartment and retail development on Hog Mountain Road near Flowery Branch High School has been delayed by Flowery Branch City Council.
Partners with Woodfield Development in Peachtree Corners had asked Council to approve a request to rezone the property from Agricultural to High Density Residential and Highway Business. The developer wants to build a 334-unit apartment complex on a 29.7-acre portion of the property with the remainder of the property set aside for 20,000 square feet of commercial development fronting Hog Mountain Road.
While the city's planning department recommended approval of the request with conditions, five residents showed up at Thursday night's public hearing to express concerns about traffic along Hog Mountain Road. Four of the residents indicated they were not opposed to the project, but they were worried about the additional traffic impact the development would bring.
Steve Gammell, a 22-year resident of the area, told council members he supports the apartment project, but he already has trouble driving in the area where it would be built.
"One of my biggest disappointments in living in this area has been the Hog Mountain intersection with Credit and Cash Road," Gammell said. "If you'll look at what's happened over the last 15 years - the addition of the Falcon camp, the high school, the grade school, the shopping center - not much has been done for improving the traffic situation."
Martha Kennedy, who lives on Cash Road, told council members she didn't want the complex built at all. Part of her concern was traffic, but she had other worries.
"You can say what you want to, but apartment renters in general - not all of them - but in general, you don't get the same type of people that you get when you get people who own their homes, who have skin in the game," Kennedy said, noting that renters often don't maintain their properties. She also said crime might be an issue.
Woodfield Development's Patrick Kassin told the residents who spoke that he was also concerned about traffic, and that's why he and his partners commissioned a traffic study for the area. A portion of that study shows traffic on the Hog Mountain corridor should get some relief when the new Exit 14 off I-985 opens later this year.
"Our interests are very much aligned with the greater community's interests as related to traffic," Kassin said. "We will be unsuccessful if folks who live on Hog Mountain do not have a good experience getting in and out of their community. We would not be pursuing this project had we not understood these traffic studies...our traffic study actually goes well beyond the typical scope of what you would do for a project like this."
Ultimately, the traffic study is what put a temporary hold on the vote for the rezoning. Councilman Ed Asbridge said he wanted more time to study the 17-page document and made a motion to table the request. Other council members agreed, and the request was tabled until the Sept. 5, 2019 meeting.
Follow this link to see complete information on the application from Woodfield Development.
