Oconee Connector Access Key Part Of Shopping Center Proposal

A shopping center needs entrances, and Sembler Corporation, a shopping center developer out of St. Petersburg, Fla., has proposed that its planned $50 million commercial center at the corner of Mars Hill Road and the Oconee Connector have six.

The main entrance that is proposed is off the Oconee Connector, about half way between SR 316 and the Connector’s intersection with Mars Hill Road and Daniells Bridge Road.

Property owner Deferred Tax LLC, which is seeking approval from the county for its plans, has said it will seek permission from the state to install a traffic light that will allow traffic from all directions to enter and leave the shopping center.

Sembler and Deferred Tax LLC, whose contact is Maxie Price of Lawrenceville, propose that the shopping center have five additional entrances off Mars Hill Road in the short distance between the Mars Hill Road/Oconee Connecter intersection and DaAndra Drive.

The final entrance, considered to be a secondary main entrance, would be opposite DaAndra Drive, which connects to Rocky Branch Road and runs through the Bond Crossing subdivision.

For these plans to work, Deferred Tax and Sembler need the approval of the Oconee County Board of Commissioners and the Georgia Department of Transportation, which retains control over the segment of the Oconee Connector and Mars Hill Road from the Connector to Butler’s Crossing.

GDOT turned down the request for access–a "cut"--to the Deferred Tax property off the Oconee Connector once before, when it approved final plans for construction of the widened roadway.

Jamie Boswell, who is listing the property through the company that bears his name, met back in 2014 with Oconee County officials along with Price to try to get those plans changed before construction began.

Boswell also is this area’s (Congressional District 10's) representative on the state Transportation Board, which oversees GDOT.

Opposition has emerged to the shopping center proposal, led by a group of residents of Bond Crossing, and the first public hearing on the request will be at 7 p.m. on Monday at the Oconee County Planning Commission, which is a citizen advisory body that makes recommendations to the Board of Commissioners.

For more on this story, including links on how to attend the meeting on Monday via Zoom, please go to Oconee County Observations.