Sandy Springs Leaders Approve Ashton Woods Project

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After two and a half hours of discussions and debate, the Sandy Springs City Council voted to approve a large mixed-use development that will accommodate the relocation of Mercedes Benz USA headquarters to the city.

Council members on Tuesday voted 5-1, with Graham McDonald opposing, a request from Ashton Woods to rezone 75.752 acres at 6615 and 6565 Glenridge Drive from R-2 (residential) to MIX to construct a mixed-use development featuring office and commercial space, single family residences and multi-family residential units.

The audience, which totaled well over 100 people, included many residents in opposition and many stakeholders from the Sandy Springs business and civic communities who expressed their desires to see the project approved.

Assistant City Manager Jim Tolbert provided the audience and Council a brief overview of the project, which he called “a very complex case.”

City leaders approved the project with a maximum of 355 apartment units -- down from the proposed 399 -- and 17 of the 20 variance requests sought by the applicant.

A new condition of the project was also approved: Ashton Woods would donate 12 to 14 acres of land to the city that would be used for park space and possible trails. 

Along with the aforementioned apartment units, Ashton Woods’ proposal calls for a total of 456,600 square feet of office space that will be developed in two phases for Mercedes Benz USA’s corporate headquarters; 38,000-square-feet of commercial space; 13 single family detached homes and 279 attached townhome units; and 333 condominium units.

Another condition of approval: no building permit for the second phase will be issued until 2022 or when the reconstruction of the new S.R. 400/Interstate 285 interchange is complete.

The overall development includes two tracts: one north of Abernathy Road and the other south of Abernathy Road.

The northern tract will consist mostly of residential units, including townhomes, condominiums and single family detached home sites, with some neighborhood commercial space.

The southern tract includes the Mercedes Benz’s corporate offices, apartments, townhomes and neighborhood commercial space.

The property is owned by CGM Management, LLC; Glenridge Land Holdings, LLLP; Caroline Glenn Mayson, as trustee of the Glenridge Foundation; and SunTrust Bank, N.A. as trustee of the Caroline Glenn Mayson Trust. It sits west of S.R. 400 along Abernathy Road.

• RELATED: Ashton Woods Project Gets Planning Commission’s Stamp Of Approval

Attorney Carl Westmoreland, attorney for Ashton Woods, said the company has listened to the concerns of residents who’ve called for more greenspace, which is why they’ve made the concession to donate the park space to the city.

Mayson reiterated to the Council and to the audience that she’s entertained over a dozen proposals to purchase her property, all of which would have included more dense projects. It has always been her family’s dream to make part of their 75 acres enjoyable to the entire Sandy Springs community, and Mayson said this project put forth by Ashton Woods does just that.

While she’s had a few vocal people who’ve “been denying my right to sell my property,” Mayson said she’s received support from many of her neighbors who are in favor of the plan.

Council members also heard from several community leaders who expressed their support of the development, including Sandy Springs Conservancy Chair Steve Levetan and Executive Director Linda Bain; former Leadershp Sandy Springs Executive Director Carolyn Axt; Cheri Morris of Art Sandy Springs; and Chris Burnett, chair of the Sandy Springs/Perimeter Chamber of Commerce.

Levetan expressed gratitude for the Glenn family’s commitment to Sandy Springs over the years, adding Glenridge Hall has been the site of many fundraisers, meetings and events in the city.

“We are forever grateful to the Mayson Glenn family for sharing this property with us and the community over the years,” he said, adding he believes Ashton Woods’ intent to provide public access is backed up with its commitment to provide park space to the city.

Morris said the project brings modern, 21st century housing to the city, something Sandy Springs is lacking.

“These young workers are making their homes in the cities that surround Sandy Springs and not in our city,” she added, referencing the much-talked about millennial generation.

One resident -- Matt LaMarsh -- expressed dismay at the process. LaMarsh, a member of the Mount Vernon Woods Homeowners Association, said he felt like the community has been “silenced” by the process to approve the project, the biggest rezoning initiative to come before the city in its nearly 10-year history.

Another resident, Frank Morrow, added he was in favor of Mercedes coming into the city. However, he does not think the city should throw out its Comprehensive Land Use Plan just to accommodate the company’s relocation into the city.

While the Council did admit the project wasn’t perfect, they were mostly on board with the plan. Council member Gabriel Sterling, who made the motion to approve the project, added he felt the plan is the “least intensive use” out of all the plans proposed to Mayson and the city.

Some of those projects he characterized as “mini-Avalons.”

“At the end of the day, this is a good project,” he said. “It is the best use of this land.”

Council member Tibby DeJulio reminded the audience that Mayson was not only selling her property, but “the house she grew up in.”

“She should have the right to sell her property,” he added.

McDonald, who did not say much during the discussions, said he was thrilled to hear Mercedes would implement staggered work hours to soften the blow on traffic. However, he did say he had reservations about the number of apartments, and would have been more amendable to approve the plan at 199 units -- the number recommended by the Sandy Springs Planning Commission.

During his time as mayor, Rusty Paul said he’s spent 80 percent of his time focused on two things: the City Center project and trying to come up with ways to solve the city’s traffic problem. The situation has gotten so bad that Paul said he’s met with city employers and other stakeholders to see what can be done about the ever-growing issue.

To his dismay, Paul said these folks have done everything in their power to ease congestion, all of which has not been working. What has been working? Paul said some companies have told the city their employees are taking advantage of housing near their jobs, which gives them the chance to walk or bike to work.

This is exactly what the Ashton Woods project does, and it’s why Paul said he supports their plan.

The city’s second mayor told the audience, who sat quietly throughout the deliberations, that he was “appalled” at other proposals brought to the Mayson family for consideration.

“The density that many of them proposed would totally change the character of the community,” he said, adding, “I can assure you that this is the best plan compared to all the others I saw.”

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