Abernathy Greenway South Packed With Shaded Seating Areas, Trail, Flowers

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About 20 Sandy Springs residents on Tuesday gathered in the Council Chambers at City Hall to get a first look at the proposed design of the Abernathy Greenway South project.

The site, which is 12 acres, begins in the 200 block of Abernathy Road and ends just before Fulton County’s Abernathy Arts Center in Sandy Springs. Christopher Kingsbury of Moreland Altobelli Associates, the firm tasked with designing the project, led the discussion with residents.

The proposed design includes a 1.1-mile trail loop, shaded seating areas, native flowering plants and direct access to streams, all of which are expected to have minimum impact on the site.

Development of the project is slated to cost between $1 million and $1.5 million, Kingsbury added. The south side of the Abernathy Greenway will be a more “passive” park, a direct contrast to its more active counterpart that sits to the north.

The design also includes six parking spaces that would be accessible directly off Long Acres Drive.

Another aspect of the project would be to provide direct access to an existing stream on the site. Kingsbury stated that could be done by installing stones along the banks so residents can safely approach the small waterway.

Kingsbury said the site has roughly 957 trees, and about 36 would be removed.

“The goal is to take out as few trees as possible to create the safest environment possible,” he said. That change, he reassured residents, would not affect properties upstream or downstream; just the flow of water on the site itself.

That detail did not sit well with at least one resident. Patty Berkovitz of the Watershed Alliance of Sandy Springs said she did not feel the existing stream should be disturbed.

She also said removing trees and allowing residents to have direct access to the waterway would cause ”massive damage” to the stream itself. That’s why the state and local entities have established buffer requirements for developers to follow, she added.

Kingsbury disagreed, adding that the process of pulling back the banks will allow for a wider stream flow and allows the vegetation to re-establish itself on the stream floor. That, he added, would give the plants the opportunity to remain intact.

Overall, the project looks “encouraging” to resident Bill Cleveland. Cleveland, who lives in the Whispering Pines neighborhood, said he felt like like the preliminary design was consistent with the community’s vision for the site.

He did note he’d like to see the installation of some form of lighting on the site in the future. Additionally, Cleveland also said he hopes the community will use the amenity.

“I think they are headed in the right direction,” he said of the city’s plans. “I would hope everyone would take advantage of the park.”

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Photo credit: city of Sandy Springs