Staff Recommends Approval for 170 Apartments! The City Community Development Department is recommending Approval of the behemoth Apartment complex. The Director, Mrs. Ebert comes to Johns Creek with a work history in High-Density Housing.
The Developer, NorSouth Development Company of Georgia, Dave Dixon is a board member of the Georgia Affordable Housing Coalition. Their goal is creating affordable housing through Government and private partnerships to Benefit all of Georgia.
Below are highlights from the Staff Report.
Policies for this area emphasize the development of a relatively high-intensity, mixed-use, walkable, and accessible boulevard corridor, with a stated goal of allowing for senior citizens to “age in place” in higher-density housing types. Senior housing is listed as appropriate use, and apartments are encouraged at up to six stories in height.
The proposed scale of the building would be in keeping with Character Area’s prescriptions of 4-6 stories within the Activity Node, and although the residential density would be above the desired 5-12 units/acre, active adult apartments are likely to generate fewer negative impacts on nearby properties than similarly scaled multi-family residential development. In addition, the City recently approved an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan that encourages this type of senior housing within Activity Nodes.
What are your thoughts on Staff Recommends Approval for 170 Apartments?
Source: City of Johns Creek
Glad that I do not live near there. Bilboards and high rises, what niceties.
We need parks not apartments. The city should buy this land and make it a park!
We have enough parks now that go unused (3% of population). How about we bill you for the maintenance. Why does everyone seem to forget that these expenses must be covered by taxes!
That is because our parks dept seems inept at doing a good job with what we have. Try to emulate what Alpharetta does and maybe we would have more usage.
@Anon I'd counter that. Yesterday at Shakerag park, it was so overcrowded, all the parking lots were filled including the river trail middle school and elementary school that cars were parking in the fire lanes and elsewhere illegally.
Police came and ticketed and had cars move and as it was a real danger. If emergency personnel had to respond, their access was blocked.
Density is going overboard on this project as have others similar to this one in JC. Impact will be greater than stated by Developer and City Staff as "senior" residents can still drive and generally have a greater number of visitors than traditional residential complexes. Signage distractions will continue to adversely impact on JC. How will the Developer mitigate increased traffic?
Too many apartment complexes. Traffic is already worse than awful in John's Creek. If the City doesn't see this, it's time to start looking to move somewhere else!
we need more parks etc.. this will create even more traffic in area already overwhelmed with traffic
Just the name Georgia Coalition...add what you want at the end of it makes this a bad idea
yes, we need more parks and not more apt buildings. I'm ready to move!! Johns Creek has done a horrible job on building expansion and zoning for our city. We have grown way too fast. It would have been better if we stayed unincorporated Duluth.
Todd Burkhalter accepting money from this land owner is wrong. I am tired of these politicians. He will not get my vote.
Todd Burkhalter accepted money? How is he even involved? Is that legal?
Bad move. More traffic, less green space. The mayor and city council are jealous of the growth and urbanization of Alpharetta, Suwanee, Sandy Springs and want to "keep up with the Joneses". If I had wanted to live in a congested, busy, crime urban area I would have bought in Buckhead. Suggest the mayor and city council move there if that is what they want.
I DITTO all the negative comments. Just what IS the 'vision' that is completed by this project. Let them build it in Alpharetta. When I moved out to this county it was MUCH better. I have yet to see ANY benefit to the existence of the city.
This project SCREAMS how much MONEY talks! The senior citizens BS is a play to get the project approved PERIOD. $100 says they will rent to anyone! We believed them when 'they' said we would be separated from Fulton Co. if the city was created. Now when this is mentioned via direct questioning, the response includes 'impossible'.
ENOUGH - vision - and the taxes the come with them.
This is because the Government is giving developers tax incentives to built apartments, especially fair housing. I guess the Mayor doesn't think it will affect him on his side of town. We have had nothing but lousy strip shopping centers and apartments going up. Can't they think of something much more palatable to the people here. Like Corporate jobs. I look at Dunwoody and how the area has stayed nice in many of the sections along the River. With the hospital, we could have had interested healthcare companies come to our area, but instead we have been sold out by the politicians. The area where the Mayor lives gets Chastain Park zoning. We get "for rent signs." He and his friends need to to go govern somewhere else.
We can't control the traffic as it is in JC. The mayor and the city council need to do what the people that voted them in want and quit just quit chasing dollars. We need to manage our road construction projects better as well. When I read that a member of our city gov't said that it would cost another 400,000.00 dollars to make the round a bout at Crossington and Sargent 10 feet bigger, I knew what the problem was. These guys have no idea how to bid out a job or search for a better deal on a contract. The contractors know that cities all overpay for projects so they are all happy to give inflated bids and see who wins. There are many other paving companies besides BLOUNT and CW MATTHEWS that can do the job faster and for a better price. Tom Black should know this but coming from Sandy Springs he is probably closed minded and buddies with the owners of these companies and more than happy to keep business with them. Do your job and do your homework and see how much time and money you can save us TOM.
Had this been a senior assisted living facility, they would have recommended against this project for the "burden" it would place on the Fire Dept. for one or two calls per week.
Because this will affect you every day with 1000's of vehicle trips, it will get the recommendation to go forward.
I suggest we move City Hall to that location and let them fight the traffic in and out of that intersection every day, instead.
Unfortunately, Johns Creek is another example of a good idea gone awry. Not sure if the mayor and his cronies have a consistent, clear vision for the future of JC.
What do you expect when you keep electing the same old carbon copies of the mayor.
I don't want to bad mouth the city, because I think they have been working hard on road improvements in the area to help traffic flow. I do however agree that building another high density housing project so close to Johns Creek Walk and the two other apartments nearby is a monumental mistake. Traffic is a nightmare most of the day on Medlock Bridge Rd (141). Many people who live in Suwanee and Cumming use it to commute thus adding to the traffic density.
Perhaps we have to ask ourselves why we have to keep growing instead of just maintaining and updating what is already here. The last thing we want to be is another Cobb or Gwinnett County.
KM,
Step back and remember what they have been saying on Findley Road.
They NEED the much higher densities to be successful and vibrant for THEIR goals.
These goals for the City have nothing to do what your goals may or may not be.
They have an idea of just how many folks that they need to cram into the space to make it viable. They are not going to tell you what that number is.
Bodker is head of the GMA. He meets with other leaders who are all trying to do the same thing.
You cannot push projects that require "much much higher densities than we have seen in Johns Creek" and at the same time say you want to preserve what makes Johns Creek Johns Creek.
Those objectives are mutually exclusive.
The more people that understand that, the better.
OH RIGHT! JUST WHAT WE NEED - MORE TRAFFIC! UGH! TIME TO MOVE OUT OF JC!