Second Vote on Doraville Annexation

After admitting irregularities in the November 4 vote, DeKalb County agreed to allow voters in three neighborhoods just outside Doraville a second vote again next month on whether to join the northern DeKalb County city.  The settlement agreement resolves a lawsuit filed by Eleanor Crane and is subject to approval of DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Linda Hunter.

If approved by Judge Hunter, the new annexation vote will occur on January 27.  In the previous vote, the annexation appeared to have succeeded at first, but then failed by 34 votes out of 1,138 cast.

Settlement Reached to Allow PATH Project to Resume in DeKalb County

A settlement was reached in the legal fight between the PATH Foundation, DeKalb County, and neighbors that will allow construction of a bicycle and pedestrian path near Decatur to resume.

The settlement between DeKalb and a group of neighbors calling themselves the Three Forks Heritage Alliance calls on the county to pay $45,000 in plaintiffs’ attorney’s fees and to spend $50,000 re-planting hardwood trees to screen the plaintiffs’ homes from the path and a related construction access.

The settlement also requires the county to take erosion-control steps from regrading to planting new ground cover.

And it prohibits Ed McBrayer and his PATH Foundation from working on the current phase of the project. A different contractor is finishing the elevated boardwalk and bridges that snake through wooded hills linking Medlock and Mason Mill parks.

Cartersville Begins Annexation Of Mining Operations

Carterville initiated a move to annex properties located within the doughnut holes into the city and over the past two months, property owners have come forward to complete the process.

Three of the applications were for properties that were zoned for mining in the county. The mining operation is located on about 133 acres of land north of East Main Street and South of Center Road.

Chuck Doggett, president of Forty-One Connector, said the mning company, New Riverside Ochre Company, was pleased to become apart of the city and hoped to continue its “low-key” mining within city limits.

Alpharetta Denies Self-Storage Facility Rezoning Over Adult-Entertainment Concerns

By a vote of 5-2, the Alpharetta City Council denied a request for a self-storage facility at the northeast corner of Old Milton Parkway and Northpoint Parkway on a piece of land zoned for office use.

Alpharetta Community Development Director said the issue brought up some ambiguity because the newer type of self-storage facilities resemble office buildings and may not belong in the light industrial category.

“We could find ourselves in a situation where adult entertainment could find its way to the area, right down the street from the [Alpharetta] high school,” said Councilman Doug DeRito.

Cartersville Approves 55+ Zoning Classification

CartersvilleMayor Matt Santini broke a tie vote of the City Council to approve a new Senior Residential Living (SRL) zoning classification.  The new zoning classification will allow for the construction of 1,000 square-foot homes, give City Council and staff flexibility regarding construction and variance issues, exempt developers from some of the usual stan-dards that apply to new developments and allow more density. Residents would be restricted to those ages 55 and older.

Avalon Lake,which is the site of a former 32-acre Christmas tree farm  located on Mission Road,was unanimously rezoned to SRL following approval of the new classification.

 

UPDATE:  The text of the SRL ordinance begins on page six.

Roswell Approves Additional 13 Feet for Hembree Park Cell Tower

Roswell City Council approves an additional 13 feet in height for the cell tower located in the Hembree Park allowing the tower to stand 193 feet tall.  The decision to allow additional height was to encourage co-location of another cell provider on the same tower and to avoid the proposed cell tower on city-owned land at the corner of Jones and Lake Charles roads.

No Crematory Deal In Snellville . . . Yet

There may be a end in sight for the continuing, continuing, continuing, and continuing crematory battle in Snellville.  No deal yet and there remains division on the City Council, but the parties are exploring resolution. 

The city attorney will have a recommendation within 60 days on whether to settle or “take our chances” in court.

Atlanta Lays Off Executive Director of Urban Design Commission

In the latest round of lay-offs, Atlanta let go its top preservation director and draws protests to the Atlanta City Council.  Karen Huebner, executive director of the city’s Urban Design Commission, was one of the 222 city employees laid off recently as the city sought to offset a $50 million budget shortfall.

For 20 years, Ms. Huebner has led the Urban Design Commission charged with the regulation of 54 officially landmarked buildings and 15 districts.

The most recent brouhaha concerns the Georgia Tech Foundation’s desire to razethe 1927 Renaissance-style Crum & Foster Building in Midtown.