A church property along the path of the Historic Gateway Project in Roswell is the site of a proposed mixed-use project.
Polara Capital is seeking to rezone the Atlanta Street Baptist Church property at 340 South Atlanta Street and three sites on Jones Drive for residential mixed-use and conditional use.
Atlanta Street Baptist Church owns the property and moved to Woodstock because of plans by the Georgia Department of Transportation to take a portion of its land for the Historic Gateway Project, Jeff Nunnally, a member of the church congregation, told Planning Commission members last Tuesday.
The $50 million Gateway project widens Atlanta Street to four lanes. One of three roundabouts in the Gateway project, which widens Atlanta Street would be located at the Atlanta Street and Jones Drive intersection.
Polara, a commercial real estate lender located on Atlanta Street, plans to build five single-family homes as well as commercial space on nearly three acres of land in the small neighborhood pocket along Jones Drive.
Roswell City Council is scheduled to discuss rezoning of the church property during a regular meeting on August 8.
Polara co-owner Will Colley, appearing before the Planning Commission Tuesday, said the homes would likely be priced at a minimum of $1.3 million and he expects to draw interest from restaurants for the commercial space. In redeveloping the church site, the company plans adaptive reuse of the church building.
The Planning Commission voted to recommend the project for approval with several conditions including requiring the developer to submit a preliminary plat document showing the designs and features of the property before a land use permit can be issued.
During public comment, residents living on Jones Drive and surrounding streets supported the project but cited concerns about parking and noise levels.
Nunnally and James Caldwell, the church pastor, encouraged Planning Commission members to vote in approval of the project saying they can’t afford to maintain the property.
“The easement (by GDOT) comes up under the northeast corner of our building,” Nunnally said. “There’s actually a stake underneath the shrubbery of our building.”
About the Author
