Mayor and Council Meeting
Video Transcript
Duration: 100 minutes
Speakers: 21
Is out on vacation.
And council member, Alan Sells.
I'll now turn the meeting over to our chief administrative officer and city administrator, mister Randy Knighton, to explain how the meeting is run. Mister Knighton?
Thank you, Mayor Wilson, and good evening, everyone. In accordance with section chapter 3.7
of the city code, the city council shall hold regular public meetings.
Purpose of city council meetings is for the public to participate
and speak on agenda items, which constitute formal decisions by the elected body. These items are listed on the published agenda, which can be accessed via the city website prior
to the meeting. And this is a public meeting, so my items do require formal public hearing hearing.
An important component of city council meetings is to hear directly from residents on items listed on the agenda.
Residents are at the top of the organizational chart. Therefore, public comments and questions are essential
for mayor and council to consider as they contemplate
each
decision.
I do wanna clarify,
one item.
The city has,
always,
asked individuals who wish to speak at meetings
to complete a comment card, and the format of the comment
card essentially remains the same. It requests the speaker's name, address, phone number,
and specific agenda item. In this case, we request a specific agenda item,
be listed,
as you plan to address it.
And the the primary only change going forward is we're asking
that you submit the comment card, prior to the meeting,
that it be filled out and handed to our city clerk,
before the clerk calls that relevant agenda item.
However, I do want to to mention one item, to ensure clarity.
If you decide to speak after the presentation
or,
as comments are provided to mayor and council,
every Roswell resident will still have an opportunity to speak
respective agenda item.
You will still need to fill out a comment card,
to ensure an accurate record of the meeting, but you will be recognized and have an opportunity to speak on each agenda item. So if you filled out a comment card
already, we thank you very much. And and those folk those, residents who filled out the comment card, you'll be called as that agenda item
is called.
But if you do decide to speak and would desire to speak, once the agenda item is discussed or presentation made, you'll still have an opportunity
to speak on that agenda item and you will be recognized
accordingly.
We ask that everyone do observe the principles of mutual respect and display the appropriate demeanor during the course of the meeting this evening, which should be and is
reflective of this great community. With respect to the proceedings, we ask that attention is given to the speaker.
If it is necessary to have an independent conversation, we do ask that you exit the council chambers out to the vestibule area. In addition, we ask that you silence any electronic devices
at this time. The mayor is the presiding officer over the meeting and will ensure an orderly exchange of comments, questions,
and discussion leading to decisions by the elected body. I would also like to clarify one additional item,
we which we have, implemented,
a new process,
for those who plan to share a presentation, a video,
or a document during the public comment period.
To ensure smooth technical operation and IT security, we're asking
that any files be submitted to the city clerk by twelve noon on the day of the meeting, twelve noon on Monday.
That is to ensure
that there's an opportunity to review, the item to,
determine
and to,
make sure that, there is,
nothing there that could be inappropriate as we
broadcast the item. But more importantly, it's to give residents an opportunity to ensure that the item they wish to wish to display,
will be heard and will be seen and we'll be able to address any technical issues
in advance.
We encourage everyone in attendance and the viewing audience to visit the city website for information on news events and meetings. We also encourage you to persist participate in the various activities
offered here in the city of Roswell,
and we ask in request that you go to roswell365.com
for a calendar of events. There are a number of events,
in the city of Roswell which promote community,
physical activity, and leisure
as we all make Roswell the number one family community
in America. Mayor Wilson. Thank you, mister Knighton. As always,
at this time, I have the great privilege,
to ask, a gentleman who's coming to us under a great deal of stress and great tragedy in his community, in his church,
and still be with us tonight is,
quite an effort. So I'd like to ask pastor Steve Brown
from the North River Baptist Church to the front for our invocation of moment of silence. Pastor Brown?
Would you join with me just for a moment of silence, and then I'll lead us in our prayer.
Almighty God, even the same Christ our lord,
we're grateful for a moment of silence in a world that seems so busy,
in a world that seems so tragic at times. A moment of silence reminds us to refocus
upon the things that are most important to us.
We pray father that you would be with us tonight in this meeting.
We are grateful and appreciative of our community. We are so thankful for the families that live in our neighborhoods.
And as they share moments together, sometimes sharing tragic moments as well as
moments of great joy.
We pray that each community would remain safe.
Pray tonight for those that are our first responders
and and ask that you would continue to protect them
in the critical work that they do.
We pause for a moment to thank you for our leadership. We pray for them.
We ask that you would give them wisdom in their decision making,
and that the decisions that they make would be led by,
common sense, that it would be led by what's right for our communities and would benefit the majority of our folks.
We pray, father, that you would continue to give us strength and encouragement to face critical days in our lives.
As we look at a world that seemingly is falling apart, we still find pockets of peace,
pockets of joy, and pockets of love. We pray, father, that we would enact some very simple principles that
that you've given to us simply to love our neighbor as ourselves.
And we pray father that as we do that, that we would find ourselves prospering.
Christ our lord we pray. Amen.
Amen. Thank you, pastor Steve Brown of North River Baptist Church.
May God's great blessing be upon you and your family and your church this week. Thank you for being with us this evening.
At this time, I'd like to ask United States Marine Corps private first class Keith Smith
to come forward and lead us in the pledge of allegiance. Keith.
I pledge allegiance
to the flag of The United States Of America
and to the Republic for which it stands,
one nation under God,
indivisible
with liberty and justice for all.
Thank you, Private Smith. I'm gonna ask you to stay right there
for the first item under the mayor's report, which is a reading of a proclamation for the esteemed
veteran of Roswell award.
Proclamation,
office of the mayor, private first class
private first class, Keith Smith,
esteemed veteran of Roswell.
Whereas the city of Roswell recognizes the courage,
sacrifice,
and dedication of the men and women who have served in the armed forces United States.
And whereas Keith Smith
answered the call to service country
by enlisting in the United States Marine Corps in 1990,
completing basic training
at the storied Marine Corps recruit depot,
Paris Island.
Whereas during Keith's service,
he served honorably
as a mortarman
and achieved the rank of private first class
before completing his military service in late nineteen ninety one.
And whereas following his military service,
Keith Smith
continued his commitment to public safety and service
by completing fire service training
and beginning a distinguished career in fire protection
and emergency response.
And whereas Keith Smith now serves as a captain
in the Roswell fire department
where he leads with professionalism,
courage,
and a deep sense of duty to his fellow citizens.
And whereas in addition to his professional service,
Keith Smith continues to volunteer
with the Salvation Army's disaster relief efforts
and serves on the Georgia incident management team,
offering critical assistance
and leadership
in times of crisis.
And whereas Keith Smith
embodies the spirit of community service and patriotism,
demonstrating that the call to serve
does not end with military discharge,
but lives on in continued acts
of selflessness
and leadership.
Now, therefore, I, Curtin Wilson, mayor of the city of Roswell, Georgia,
do hereby name Keith Smith,
an esteemed veteran of Roswell,
and call upon all our citizens to recognize his outstanding service to our country and to our community,
and that there's no hard calling than serving United States Armed Forces. Congratulations, Keith.
I'm
just honored to be here. Thank you very much. Not near as distinguished as a lot of the veterans that have been here. I was blessed that, the war ended while I was in boot camp.
I spent some sunny days at Camp Lejeune, Jacksonville, North Carolina.
And,
then, the Lord had other plans for me and sent me into the fire service
thirty three years ago. Well, December will be thirty three years, and I absolutely love it.
Wanna do anything else in this world. Sorry for everybody that has other job, but this is the best one. Thank you all very much. I appreciate it.
I feel like you remember the it's an average of 22 veterans a day that take their lives,
and that's why I wear this every day.
Father's a veteran, my grandfather's a veteran, and my son are all
very proud of. Thank you. Thank you
very
much. Come on, guys. Get in the mail.
Thank you, Keith. Thank you, fire gentlemen, for being with us tonight.
Alright. Next on the mayor's report is upcoming events in the city of Roswell.
I'm gonna ask our pro tem, Lee Hills
to bring us up to speed on a few of them. Lee? Thank you, mayor.
Wanna remind everybody to check out roswell365.com
for all of the upcoming future events going on. And also, if you'd like to go on there and create your own free account, you can advertise your own event. If you have something in your neighborhood or your community, a nonprofit where you serve, place of worship, you can put something on there that you'd like to have advertised to the public, and it will expire automatically at the event date,
after your event, of course. But, that's free for you to use, and we welcome you, anybody to use that to get the word out for our residents and anybody checking out what's going on in Roswell.
We also have quite a few things coming up in Roswell that you don't wanna miss. First, this Thursday,
which is July 17 from five to nine, our very popular alive in Roswell is rolling around. It'll be a hot one, I'm sure, but,
everybody seems to find a way to, cool off when they're visiting with friends and visiting Canton Street area. Festival is held concurrently on historic Canton Street and the Roswell Antique and Interiors lot. Alive in Roswell features a DJ at the heart of Roswell Park and large stage at the Roswell Antiques and Interior lot. This month, we will present Mixtape, the ultimate eighties and nineties band. So put on your sneakers and your shorts and head on over to Alive in Roswell this Thursday.
Also, taking the Roswell Riverside Soundstage on Saturday, July 26 at 07:30PM
is the Grammy nominated singer songwriter,
Amethyst
Kaya.
Her journey is bold and her music unforgettable. The concert series offers a laid back environment surrounded by beautiful scenery,
playgrounds, and trails along the Chattahoochee River. Bring your chairs, picnic blankets, and friends to this unique Roswell tradition. I do wanna point out this is the last one for this season.
We, have gone really streamlined in the city of Roswell, and recreation parks will be doing a massive renovation,
transforming that entire park. At the same time that we've partnered with our transportation department, putting in a fabulous new multi use trail, so that will all
go down, if you will. It'll be closed for a period of time at the same time rather than being one finishing in the other beginning. So this will be the last Riverside Sounds event until 2027.
So the next the the rest of this season and then all of next year, but we've still got music on the hill here. We've got some other things coming up. So you won't be at a loss for things to do, but I do wanna make that,
very clear that this is the last one. So head on over there for that, and then we will reengage
on the other side on the new improved Riverside Park.
And then every Saturday at 8AM,
we've lots of council members have been seen and spotted at the Roswell Farmers and Artesian Market,
right here at City Hall. It's the best in North Fulton offering fresh produce, handmade goods, and local charms. So that's Saturday from 8AM to noon. We have all kinds of fun activities for young people, so you can do a little shopping, have a little, treat and a cup of coffee and buy some all natural products, which are fantastic. I think everybody up here has bought something there. So anyway, finally, roswell365.com.
Be sure and visit that to see what else is going on, and hopefully, we'll see you around Las Vegas real soon. Mayor Wilson. Thank you, council member and pro tem Lee Hills.
That ends the mayor's report for tonight.
Next on the council meeting is the consent agenda.
Sorry. Sarah. Yes, ma'am.
Just wanted to make sure. Did we discuss the fire engine pushing ceremony?
It's been it's it's got a little change to it, so it's probably not on there right then. Just kidding. Okay. So should we delay that then? Yes, ma'am. Alright. I just wanted to make sure that we did not miss that, especially since we just honored a member of the fire department.
Thank you. Thanks for bringing it up. Sorry. I think we just had a, like, a last minute Change my Yes, ma'am.
Make sure it wasn't No. Thank you, Sarah. I'm glad you brought it up.
Alright. Ends of mayor's report. Next to consent agenda,
city clerk Nancy Long. Are there any Roswell residents who would like to speak on the consent agenda?
Yes, mayor. We have two speakers
for consent agenda. The first is Courtney Rozier
with item she'll be speaking on item number two.
As miss Rozier approaches
the the podium,
just one matter of information.
Just before we entered, the room this evening,
we learned that the clock, which is normally positioned on the wall, is not operational.
Of course, every Roswell resident is provided five minutes. And, yes, the clock is working at the podium, so the speaker will be able to clearly see,
the countdown from five minutes.
And,
and so we we thank you very much for indulging us, and,
we appreciate everybody's,
consideration this evening,
for the, mishap with the clock. So thank you, miss Rosier.
My name is Courtney Rozier. My address is on the card that's I completed.
I have a few questions in regard to consent agenda number two.
Was the insurance reimburse reimbursement for all properties?
If not, which properties do the insurance reimbursement apply?
What is the condition of the church?
Is it a target of vandals,
which may require it to be demolished?
Was an estimate for the church requested? Should we need to budget for the demolition
of the church in the 2026
or 2027
budget? Thank you.
Thank you, Courtney.
All those questions are on record and we will follow-up on those. Jeff,
you got them up? You got them? You got it?
Nice.
Appreciate that, sir. Yes. The presentation was at the committee meeting on June 24 as discussed.
A portion of the reimbursement from the insurance was to go towards
the the storm damage that took place
at one of the homes and structures at the rear of Lita Thompson.
It was the big house that was back there.
The approximate
insurance reimbursement
off the top of my head, and I can look it up, I'll have that for you, is a 192,000
reimbursement.
We offset that cost for the additional structures through the park maintenance fund. We were able to fund those specific structures demolition through that fund specifically.
And then at this point in time, we have not received any estimates for the demolition of the sanctuary building at the Bowen and 92 properties, sir. Only the ranch style single story home. That's gonna be part of a plan that you're bringing to
mayor and council, I think, in the next
month, Jeff. Yep. And you'll have those numbers on the demolition as well as the full plan that you present to the city and to the mayor and council. Right right about that? Yes, sir. There was one other question Courtney had. I wanna make sure we answer it.
Vandals. Vandals.
Yes. So the the primary,
the primary recommendation to demolish the single story
ranch home at the Bowen in '92 is extensive
vandalism and continued public safety issues that we're managing through. So the demolition comes, at a, I feel, an appropriate time.
Thank you, sir. Thank you. Yes, ma'am. You want a follow-up question?
No, ma'am. Not to my knowledge.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you all.
Nancy.
Received another comment card on item number two, Ashley
Glass.
Ashley Glass. My address is on the card.
I'm here today as a concerned citizen and community member who believes in fairness,
but lots of accountability.
Over a year and a half ago, the city of Roswell
purchased a property
at 92 in Bowen,
and since then,
this publicly owned building
has sat vacant
and deteriorating.
The structure
has open doors,
broken glass,
signs of vandalism,
discarded alcohol bottles,
and even drug paraphernalia.
Roswell enforces
Georgia state minimum standard codes,
which govern
commercial
building safety.
These require properly
functioning doors
with locking capability
and fire egress designs.
During inspections,
any compliance
demands immediate
correction.
This tells me that none of y'all have been there to see what the property looks like.
If a private property owner
allowed
this same
level of neglect,
your code enforcement department
would be issuing citations,
demanding immediate action,
and possibly even pursuing legal remedies,
under public safety laws.
So I respectfully ask,
why is it acceptable,
for the city
to violate,
the very laws,
it enforces
on its citizens?
If we as residents are expected to maintain
our
properties,
then so should the city of Roswell.
And I want to be clear,
I believe the city should be fined for this neglect,
but not using our taxpayer dollars.
If individual citizens are personally responsible
for maintaining their properties,
then you, the decision makers,
the people
we voted for,
should be held accountable
for these
inactions.
Roswell
should
lead by example.
Clean up the property
now,
at least put
gates up,
there is nothing anyone can drive in there. It's totally unacceptable.
Whatever the city would demand
of a resident,
you should demand of yourselves.
Nancy, there are there any other comments on the consent agenda?
Yes, mayor. We have one other speaker, Janet Russell, on item number three.
Janet Russell, all the information's on the card, nothing's changed.
It's very interesting. Then item number three is about
the transportation agreement with the other cities of North Fulton for some kind
of agreement to look at the projects into the future, as I understand it.
Well, coincidentally, I was reading the Alfa I mean, the Herald today,
and the lead is the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area seeks a new fate.
As you know, the historic gateway project has been on the on the agenda for about fifteen years. The traffic study is over twenty years old.
And it includes clear cutting the trees on both sides of Highway 9 and cutting 70 feet into the national park.
And
this article, and you might wanna read it, it's called local journalism,
talks about the problem they're having with redo what they're going to do with the national park once you cut into it, how they have to redo it.
The city of Roswell is mentioned because the historic gateway project, of course, we've been told for fifteen years was,
RDOT told us it was GDOT driven and GDOT told us it was RDOT driven. Well, nobody's driving it
or everybody's driving it.
I wanna know if when you meet with all these other North Fulton people
that you make sure you address the issues that they talk about here.
It's very important
that project,
if you don't live near it, you have no idea the damage it's going to do to the physical well-being and the health of the individuals who live within a 100 feet of that road.
Those trees keep the air clean, they muffle the sound,
they make it a place to live. Most of you live in a gated subdivision,
nowhere near traffic.
I live off of Highway 9.
I think the car counts like 25,000
cars a day. So I wanna make sure that you, when you meet with the North Fulton other municipalities,
make sure that you include
the National Park Service
because they're very concerned about it and how they're gonna make trails and how they're gonna put a pedestrian bridge in.
You know, God so loved the world he did not send a committee to save it.
And we got more committees and they're doing nothing. And FYI, I think I read and I may have been wrong,
in your
the agenda item describing this, that this is projected you will have the comprehensive plan in twelve to fifteen years.
Hello? Everybody in this room will be dead.
Well, most of us.
So what's already been going on for twenty years,
it'll be forty years by the time they get it done, and I think you need to look at the big picture.
If you need to see my ideas that I was trying to push through to transportation for years and years and years, which involve not one
ounce of asphalt to be poured,
Not one ounce and no damage to the trees, no damage to the existing businesses, and no one will listen
because I guess I'm just a silly little female and what could I possibly understand about the corridor I've lived in for fifty three years. So I expect you to do that. Thank you. Please, read the article.
Yes, ma'am. Thank you.
Nancy,
any other speakers on the any other Roswell residents to speak on the consent agenda? There are no other speakers on the consent agenda. Are there any other Roswell residents who would like to speak on the consent agenda tonight?
Yes, ma'am.
Let me close out the consent agenda and I'll be glad to call you up. Just one minute, if that's okay. Just one
yes, ma'am. I'll call you up in just a minute. I apologize. I promise you.
Anybody else want to address any of the items on the consent agenda?
If not, I'll bring it to council.
Council,
any thoughts or on the consent agenda?
Thanks very much. I'll ask for a motion
to approve the consent agenda.
Motion made by council member Johnson. I ask for a motion to second it, seconded by council member Sells.
All those in favor of approving the consent agenda, please do so by raising your hands.
Let the record show that the vote's five zeros are unanimous. Thank you very much, and the consent agenda passes. Thank you so much.
Next is the regular agenda.
City clerk Nancy Long, would you please read the first item? Oh, let me hold on, Nancy. One second. Ma'am, would you like to come up and address? Joe is talking. Oh, Joe's gotcha. Okay.
Yes, ma'am. Sorry. Nancy, would you read the,
please read the first item on the regular agenda?
Yes. This is approval of the transmittal for the 2025
community work program and capital improvement element
update. This will be presented by Michelle Alexander,
director of community development.
Thanks, Nancy.
Welcome, Michelle.
Can you, mister mayor and council?
Great.
This agenda item is a request to
get approval
to transmit
the annual financial report
for your impact fee program
along with the documents of, the capital improvement documents and the community work plan that's required. You've done this,
every year. It's required for anyone who has a
on buttons.
After two tests. Excuse me.
So the impact fee program is a one time,
allows a fee that we charge for one time payment and it's related to growth related infrastructure. It's established by a
and the Georgia development act governs the details of how we can run that program and the Department of Community Affairs, DCA, they are the oversight arm. So when we submit
our reviews and our annual reports, it goes to DCA for review.
And there's the language about, from the code. And the three documents that we are asking to submit to DCA are the act the annual financial report.
So that goes over the impact fees that were collected
and how you have to spend any of the, collections on projects.
And then the capital improvement element, that is just a list of projects. So think of it as your capital improvements, the list of infrastructure projects.
Same list from, the last several years. We just update it if anything needs to come off or needs to be added to it. Similarly,
the community work program, that is another list. That is a list of activities that you all committed to,
through your comprehensive plan. It's a component of your comprehensive plan, and
any changes on that are also reported to
DCA.
So as stated, it's
if you want to collect impact fees and use them for your growth,
costs of adding infrastructure,
you have to have this capital improvement list.
Ours is dedicate dedicated to three categories,
for recreation and parks programs,
transportation,
and public safety, and that's both police and fire. So those are the three categories. You could have other categories.
You're having a separate study to look at your overall program, but this is just your annual report on your existing
project project lists.
And also,
just to clarify,
when I was saying it's based on that, current comp comprehensive plan that was effective dated for the 2040
planning period.
As you know, we've just started kicking off for our new
comprehensive our growth plan for 2045.
So the
capital improvements
list
as well as the community work program list, those are gonna be changing in the future. We have to submit this report though based on what we had in this past year.
And just explaining what the work plan includes, it's a five year program
in your comprehensive plan. It's your policy.
And just to show what we're anticipating,
if you approve us to transmit these documents,
then it goes DCA and ARC for review,
and then you,
we bring it back to you for actual approval and adoption. And we have a deadline of that by the state. It's established for October 31.
But, then coming on the heels of that reporting item, we're gonna be looking at the overall growth plan together.
So that's this is the request,
to submit the document.
It does not constitute any budget commitment. So there is a list, with projects and estimates of cost, but this is not committing you to those costs. This is giving you a a range of,
magnitude of scale of what the project needs needs to need to be accommodated.
You actually decide how it gets spend when you go through your budget process. So this is separate.
So just the reporting items, this is a summary.
I also wanna clarify. Usually, we do a twelve month report.
Because we have changed for fiscal year, we're going to
report
since the last report, and then we're adding another six months because we wanna catch up so that next year we're gonna be reporting December,
excuse me, January to December.
So this reporting period is two parts because of the time frame. But the balance as of December 2024 from our financials
was 5,800,000.
And then this is the part one where this is for the time period of the fiscal year when we had the twenty three, twenty four fiscal years.
For that time period, the fees collected was $5.38
$4.46.
And then the expenditures, you can see here, it's divided on the,
it's divided into the three project types. Transportation is on top
and then public safety and then recreation
is on the is the third gold column
third row.
And you see in the middle column where it says spent on the right hand side, it says spent. So you can see it in this fiscal time this this time period of reporting, we spent $859,009.49.
So this is the way the report is structured and organized
for the time period of expenditures by your program type.
And this we get from finance. So, clearly, this isn't something, my staff would put together. We get all of this finance
department keeps track of all these,
expenditures and collections.
Now this is I say it's it's part two because this is to catch us up, through
December 2024 in reporting to DCA.
So this is another six months. So the fees collected don't look like very much, but recall it was just a six month period. So that was around 200,000
that was collected. And then it shows how much
allocated by category. So this is the,
where you saw see the same fund balance that I reported on the initial slide of the 5,800,000.0.
And then expenditures in this time frame, again, just that,
six month period.
Again, it's organized by transportation, public safety, recreation,
and the projects that were,
specified,
they're listed there so you can see exactly which projects got funding from the impact fees you collected.
Now I'm
shifting gears. We have all of the details in the in your packet. I just wanted to summarize some of the financials. So we have slides available if you if there's still questions. I know we went over it in committee.
But then shifting gears to the other part of the submittal
is the capital improvements,
if there were any changes. So there were a couple changes. Transportation removed some of the projects that they were seeing, we're told as for having priorities.
And then the fire department also,
removed one project that and this was based on that awesome study about the location,
and the facilities. So they were they moved one project off of their list.
What's been added,
all related to vehicles.
So both fire and police added,
several different,
vehicle types to be eligible to use your impact fees.
And, again, there's a whole list, and I've got the report there. If you wanna go into more of the details, and then that's all in the packet, the entire list.
Similarly, the projects related to the community work program,
just a few items are being added, and they have to do with just activities that different departments are working on. So in the past, we didn't really consider the the facility service services master plan. So EPW wanted to make sure that was on the list, and we keep track of that. And then similarly, transportation wanted to make sure that we were keeping in mind the North Fulton
comprehensive transportation that that's that's gonna be a big project,
in your overall work program for the city.
And that's the presentation, and we would recommend approval to transmit to the state for review.
Michelle, thank you so much.
City clerk Nancy Long, are there any Roswell residents who would like to speak on this item?
Yes, ma'am. We have one speaker, Courtney Rozier.
My name is Courtney Rozier.
My address is on the card.
I had a couple of questions.
In the project list,
could you please confirm that the project
start date and project completed dates
are in the month year format?
My other question
is,
are all traffic projects that are set,
listed in the project list
separately available,
with information on the website?
I counted about 10 projects,
which I think are about in a five mile radius
from where I live.
And,
five of which start this month, and I haven't seen any signs,
that were related to the project for general public meetings.
And there's probably another three that,
appear to have started a year ago that I'm not familiar with.
And then also, there was, I think a slide where there was some information added.
Could
is it possible to go back and look at a slide? Sure.
It's probably the project list? Yeah.
Project list
where it had the red lines.
Michelle,
can you provide any answers to to Courtney's questions?
Yeah. Sure. Let me bring up what the
program looks like. So
you were asking if it shows the project time frame.
This this only shows the potential
start date and it does have the completion date.
If you wanna see the the status,
the transportation has a great
map, an interactive map, where where you can see all the transportation projects and you can click on it and it can give you more details.
Not sure how,
I'm assuming it's kept
up pretty regularly, the transportation project map.
So in terms of what projects are coming up next so I don't have I don't have a correlation
there. This is one list, and then you have another list, which is your master transportation plan. So not everything that's going on is gonna be on this list,
but these are the estimated project dates. Now the project start date could just be design.
So a project start date doesn't necessarily mean that it's being constructed. Is that correct? Correct.
So that might be the discrepancy between seeing something that's supposed to start today,
and you don't see anything about it. That's because design can take a long time and getting right away and acquisition and all that. So I hope that satisfies the question. Thanks, Michelle. Greg. Yes, sir. Go ahead. No. That's just and Greg, good. Please.
Yeah. I was gonna say I can get with the resident and confirm which project she's talking about and make sure she's good with those. Okay.
I think these are anticipated
start dates and or completion dates related to this particular table in these projects. Is that right?
Yeah. Like Michelle said, it could be could be engineering design and then obviously the,
you know, the completion dates would be construction complete. And and the balance of funding that's needed to complete the project. Correct. Okay.
Go
ahead. David,
if you go to roswellgov.infoardot,
that will take you to the map
that,
Michelle is referring to.
Thank you,
sir. All right. Nancy, do we have
any other Roswell residents like to speak on this item? Mayor, that was all the speakers I have. Are there any other Roswell residents who would like to speak on the item?
Thanks very much. Bring it to council. Council, any thoughts, comments, or questions?
Thank you very much. Is there a motion to approve this item?
Motion by Motion to approve. Motion by Pro Tem Lee Hills. Is there a second?
Seconded by council member Sarah Beeson.
All those in approval of this item, please do show by raising your hands.
Let the record show that the vote is five o and unanimous.
Thank you very much. The motion passes. The item passes.
City clerk Nancy Long, would you please read the second item on the regular agenda?
Yes. This item is approval of a text and map amendment to the unified development code for the Hill Street overlay. This is the first reading. It will be presented by Michelle Alexander, director
obviously, I'm not Michelle.
You gotta do it before or after. I can't remember.
Before. Alright. Before you read the item, chief legal officer and city attorney Davidson
has to read the ordinance. Sorry, David. Alright. Thank you, mayor. This is an ordinance to amend the Unified Development Code by modifying article eight overlay districts. Now, therefore, the mayor and council of the city of Roswell, Georgia,
pursuant to their authority, do hereby amend article eight overlay districts.
Article eight overlay district shall be amended to create section 8.4
HSOD
or the Hill Street overlay district, text of which is incorporated here and by reference and have approved this as the first reading.
Thanks, David. Alright,
Jeff and Michelle, floor is yours. Thank you so much. And I just wanted to provide a couple of, background items related to our economic development strategy before I pass it off to Michelle.
Obviously,
her team has been working tremendously hard over the course of the last few months,
dialing in the overlay.
This is your first reading, but I wanted to make sure that we put it into context of the overall strategy,
in the city of Roswell. And as we've talked about in economic development,
it's about building momentum. How are we building momentum in our community,
for economic development projects where they're positioned appropriately?
Again, we've talked a number of times about the challenges around Gray Field development, about redevelopment in the community of Roswell,
and we've looked at it year over year. These are three different maps from our comprehensive plans. You have the 2030,
the 2035, and the 2040 comp plan, the 2040 comp plan being the one that we're working under right now. And as you can see, the commercial corridors have continued to be a priority down the center of our community,
really along Holcomb Bridge Road, 92
Highway 9. And,
you'll see a more detailed map in the next slide,
but really wanted to highlight also the blue areas. So the light blue, dark blue in the in the different maps that you see is really about our residential community.
Roswell continues to focus and prioritize our residential neighborhoods,
not only celebrating them, but protecting them through our planning process.
That also brings a challenge in the economic development strategy as it limits the area that we're working from a commercial perspective.
And we've talked about our strategy over time. I just wanna put the framework together to remind everybody where we have come over the course of the last year.
And we've been focusing on the downtown strategy, the midtown strategy, uptown, and then also the East Side. We have a number of projects
in the origination
phase, and we'll talk at the end of the month in our economic development update that we're doing on a quarterly basis in more detail around our economic development strategy and the progress that we've made and the financial commitments that we've made. But in this project, we're focused in on the downtown node,
focused in just right across the street on Hill Street. And Michelle will go over some of the technical aspects of, what this project brings into the community. But as you strip out our residential
community,
these are the focus areas of economic development that are left. And this is one of the key projects that we have in building momentum
for the future here in the city of
Roswell.
As we talked about before in our land exchange agreement, one of the first steps that we had, this goes back to May.
We're looking right across the street. So for orientation perspective, you can see city hall in the bottom corner or the bottom portion of this map. This is looking at the Atlantic companies and the Hill Street project. On the left hand side of the image, you see our police department,
the yard of the police department on the right hand side. You see the old Hicks Automotive, right on the corner of Hill Street and Highway 9 is the old sign shop.
But this is the area of Hill Street that we're talking about today.
A lot of tired facilities. We've also facilitated the movement of our public safety department.
They are currently and in the process of moving out to the Summit Building on the corner of Holcomb Bridge and 400,
a key movement that we've had in our plan, since we approved the public safety bonds, and that is ongoing.
That's important because it starts to create and pave the way for redevelopment opportunity right here in the heart of our downtown space. And so, you know, it's not just, the Hill Street project is just not a stand alone movement,
of a small six acre parcel. This is about stringing
concepts and strategy together of how are we moving our 911 over to sharpsutors?
How are we moving our police department over to the center of our city along with our fire department in a new public safety center? How are we accommodating the growth of our fire department when we transition to a full time staff? All of these components over the last three and four years have been part of the puzzle pieces that we've had to move forward that gets us to the point of
nearing, I will say, nearing the negotiations
with our Hill Street partners because we still have some work to do in a development agreement and some others that our legal team and Daryl behind me, our economic development team, are working on.
You'll see and Michelle will talk a little bit more about the concept and how that works into the overlay. But I just wanted to run through and remind everybody the slides and some of the concept images of what we're working to create. We saw these back in May. These are the concept images. They have evolved a little bit, but not much, as we've gone through the design
process. And there will be a point in time later where the final version of these plans will come before the mayor and council for approval,
and as you'll hear in the h, in the overlay, a review opportunity for HPC as well.
This is a couple of the buildings, and we'll kinda work ourselves from the corner of Highway 9 to Hill Street. This is called Building A, right there on the corner intended currently as we've been working through this one as an office building.
This is Building B as we start to move through, and you also see Building E from Hill
Street. These are a couple of different buildings that you have right along Hill Street. You see on street parking.
You see just in the bottom right hand photo,
of this image is the peak, if you will, or the corner of the police department building. That
is intended to be an adaptive reuse of a portion of the police department building as part of this project. A couple of additional buildings as part of,
the interior of Hill Street that offers opportunities for potentially potentially retail,
and also restaurant and breaking these buildings up into
some smaller retail mixed use development
concepts. This is the adaptive reuse of the police department.
This is both the Hill Street side and the interior side of the property
as well as,
just wanted to cover the strategic advantage of the Hill Street project.
As a reminder, this is reducing the density from the 2,019
project of 74 multifamily units per acre down to 24 multi or multifamily units per acre. We're looking for a catalytic catalytic
mixed use, development consistent with our economic development strategy,
creating long term revenue streams with participation for the city of Roswell in the project,
commercial repurposing of the public safety building, and then also supporting the parking as an economic development tool for the city of Roswell.
And with that, we had just a couple of updates, from our May 2025 presentation.
We are working through a number of documents. We're right about the middle,
of the second bullet point in the city responsibilities
of selection of a townhome builder, the parking deck builder,
approval of the DDA bond, and some intergovernmental agreements,
and working towards the closing date of 10/15/2025
that includes all of our documentation
and the development agreements that you see in the top bullet point. So a lot of work still ahead of us.
We are a motivated team, a strong team, and I wanna thank our economic development team,
our legal team, who's sitting up there with us as well as our community development team, all part of the strategy as we move forward,
as it relates to Hill Street. And with that, I'm gonna turn it over to Michelle, and she's gonna run through the technical side of our overlay.
Thank you.
I just wanted to start with an orientation
so we zoom in and everyone is clear what streets we're talking about and the boundaries.
The proposed
boundary of this district so this is an overlay district we're working to establish,
and the boundary includes,
runs you see on the left hand side Atlanta Street, as Jeff was saying, Hill Street is facing
City Hall.
Ellis Street is an interior street.
Oak Street is on the bottom part, and then all the way over to Forest. So just to zoom in that the boundaries
are this in this this area and what streets are included with
it. I wanna really emphasize and focus. You're gonna hear me say it over and over so it's,
clear
that this overlay
is has two
components.
The main component and the one that is the bulk of all of the regulations
and all of the listing of the design,
all are your regulating plan for the blue area.
So I'll go die I'll do dive in deeper as we go through and explain it. I just wanted to
emphasize that the overlay the orange side of this has very little change. They do not have the regulations that are listed as as, related to the dimensions,
the, uses that the regulating plan allow, and all of that. So it's very limited.
And most,
and, again, it's written in two parts. So as you're looking at it, the bulk of the document in front of you is primarily focusing on your regulate how we're gonna regulate the site that and and entitle it for your project
for the city's project.
Just a little background, how did we get here? You know, in 2019, 2020,
the city worked on a concept and had some public charrettes
to look at the strategic corner of Hill Street and Atlanta to say, well, what would make sense here? How can we catalyze this area? What would look what would make sense? And similar, it's the same boundary that you see it proposed as our overlay. And similarly, on the right hand side, you'll see,
in that
concept was,
having residential
as you move towards the east.
But then COVID happened. So that was 2019, 2020, and COVID happened. And then since then,
this mayor and council, you've recruited and negotiated
an investor to develop a project that that will actually make that catalyst happen and be at the mixed use development that you desire.
You even as you finalized those negotiations through your LOI and then all of your different agreements that Jeff mentioned for the real estate controls,
you now needed to have the zoning mechanism. So the zoning
the existing zoning wouldn't give
wouldn't allow or enable the project totally that you want and need and have decided to pursue.
So we had to make some changes to your zoning. We needed a zoning mechanism.
It was decided last fall. We talked through and I'll go through some of the examples, but we talked through to create an overlay district,
and we'll go through the details of it. But it's really specific.
The the key is that it's specific to the site,
and it's specific with its detailed controls.
We did have a public hearing, with the planning commission.
They have recommended approval with,
they recommended we added a use table instead of having a list
of uses.
They recommended a couple of use changes.
They recommended that
that they get a chance to an opportunity to provide feedback
once the document had all the details that we have today of, all the design
standards and the specific uses and the square footages and all of that. They
recommended that, and they also asked us to, make sure we had a resolution with the adjacent property owners.
And by that, and I'll walk through that a little bit. What was what that's the area where I was saying in the orange.
The adjacent property owners who are in that overall
overlay eligible,
that orange area, that's that's what it's referring to the property owners that came and spoke, vehemently at the planning commission,
and the city, both the mayor's office,
staff, legal. We've had many, many meetings, and with attorneys,
with the neighbors so that, we could come to a satisfactory result on on what this overlay should include.
But I wanted to also walk through a little bit. I did hear some questioning about the overlay as our zoning mechanism.
This was decided, like I said, last fall, we went through this with the economic development team. We went through it with our partners, and we went through it,
with legal, most importantly, of course.
And the tool the starting base for what we were looking at, you always are looking at uses and scale.
And so your underlying zoning in this area is DX for most of the property that, we we're controlling with this new project. A little, a little bit of IX, which is the industrial flex units, industrial flex.
So we know we had to make some changes even though, DX, the
downtown mixed use has the right scale and it has almost all the right uses,
almost,
it it it still needed to be modified. So we needed to make some change. Now you could have gone through a rezoning process.
The rezoning would have you'd still get the same concept plans like we have in the regulating plan in the code that we're presenting to you today.
The difference is the mechanism is on rezoning. First of all, you know when you do a rezoning, you need to make a list of conditions.
So you have a zoning and then a rezoning has a list of conditions and then it has a list of all your concurrent variances
and then it has the site plan that they're just like this there's similar plan in this, proposal.
So this was those are all documents that exist outside of the UDC
itself. They are in a rezoning file,
and they're not in the same order that, our the rest of our districts are where you identify what are we condition what are we what are we controlling for. So an orderly fashion is better to have it in the over in a in a zoning district, and we recommended overlay,
because it will limit to the location. So if we had just and by that, I mean, if we had just recommended,
hey. Let's just do a new zoning district
that
a stand alone district instead of an overlay, just make it its own district,
then that stands as an option for other locations that can always request it.
You can make some controls to it, but you don't we didn't want to raise any concerns
or worries
that we wanted to make it explicit. This was the discussion at the time when we considered,
explicit that it is just this location. The other good news about it is it gets on the zoning map. Now this will be drawn on the map and it shows that this has its own set of rules associated with it. It's not,
a zoning file that was approved in in a file.
We
also,
I also wanted to make clear. I just heard some confusion about whether or not this amends the map. This the language in there does amend the zoning map so that it's clearly located on your zoning map and it,
it's it's established and it's specific.
And
the other aspect about overlays, you can really they're very flexible. You can use them for as little or as much as you need,
to specify,
and so the overlay seemed to be a most flexible tool. So that was the decision when we first brought it to the economic development committee,
and we've been working on it. There is an overlay since that time. Since the public hearing, it was also an overlay district.
Hope that clarifies any questions about that piece.
Since then, you all have refined your development program. You you established your controls and all of those real estate documents that Jeff was explaining.
And we did have many discussions with the adjacent property
owners. David might wanna speak on that part of it, but the the final conclusion, they weren't very comfortable with the restrictions
that would have to come along with any of the benefits
of the
the regulating plan.
So it's very limited what what lines up on there. But what is a regulating plan? So this over district overlay district is a zoning. Think of it as any other zoning district. It sits on top
of your DX and any underlying district.
On top of it, the plan itself is both a the the conceptual graphics, which is a site plan. It's specific. It says it's a site specific layout with a boundary in your overlay.
So what and it shows where the buildings are going to be located. That is a graphic
that the text
binds
the project to. So a staff, if I open up that document as submittal, if it doesn't have the same layout that is in The U D would be in the unified development code in this district, they don't get to move forward.
On top of that, you have several mechanisms
wherein
the Stoverlay District and these regulations,
they refer to things that only mayor and council can decide.
So it's also it's tying,
any next steps to zoning excuse me, to council approval including design
and parking and,
signage.
So it's a a regulating plan is just that. It tells you how we're regulating every little bit that goes on all of this property within the six acre area.
Your current entitlements,
just to show the we talked a little bit of the DX in the purple area. So, again, on the left hand side is along Atlanta Street on the purple.
The number four represents the zoning map
allowance for height, and our zoning map shows a height of four is allowed on there.
The, arrow showing where your existing,
entitlement of the 96 units all concentrated
on that parcel,
We show you where you are in relation to the police
and and then all of the green on the greenish blue, that is all the industrial flex
area.
So again, we've got two pieces.
The bulk of this focuses on rigid,
strict,
clear controls
over the six acre site, which has a regulating plan
and language and graphics to explain that. The overlay eligible sites
was area that we had anticipated
or we were asked to work with the neighbors to see if those properties
could be eligible for the same
type
of regulations
as the regulating plan, and it didn't turn out that way.
So what it does now, it just allows
uses the only use it changes is it allows by right townhomes
on that area of property on that right hand side where it was
IX. So the where the IX property is, that's where you're entitled now. This code would if you adopt it, it would allow you to have
townhome development.
They would also have to follow all the existing rules,
all the existing townhome standards, 24 they wouldn't have the same dimensions that you're regulating plan, your project has. They'd have,
to follow the existing.
So the regulating plan translates in this way. So you have all of this this assemblage of property just like any rezoning might have several parcels, and you assemble
into one boundary.
That boundary is established by this overlay.
And then it is associated with the drawing that you see on the right hand side. I just wanted to show the shape of the overall boundary,
how they relate, and it all and the doc the buildings are labeled. So it says multifamily building, commercial building,
building a and b and c, townhomes,
the parking deck. So the layout
has to be followed by whoever submits.
This layout has to if this changes,
it's not gonna get approved. It has to come back to you all. It has to come back to council because this is all in your what other controls?
All of these other controls. You already have a lot of terms of ownership, the terms of use, your dwelling unit limits, the square footage of use types and uses. You have that all in a controlling document
as your development agreement.
So we weren't gonna you don't wanna contradict or create contradictions in your zoning.
We wanted to establish the requirements,
but then you also have this controlling,
component to it. The townhomes,
the specific townhomes, that's again, that is the city is gonna be selecting that builder through your development agreement. So that's not through this zoning
overlay.
That you're gonna determine as you you select the builder directly. So it's different when you're owner.
And then you have the zone regulations
as well as the all the standard,
development regulations.
This just sums up, I think, what I've been walking through that we're amending the zoning map. It's very it is specific to
the drawing that you all approved. It's specific to the concept you approved,
through your development agreements.
It,
brings back the design to you for a proof final approval. So you would see all the final
materials and all of the final design layout and things might change a inch or a foot here in a
in the engineering and it comes back to you first.
It comes back to you. We also have a provision in there that it goes to HPC for review
and comment.
So it's the regular and plan is just that it it regulates
the
via both text and the graphics. So this is a required
set of rules that the applicant has to follow,
the the the submittal has to follow, including this has your
landscape, your sidewalk,
all of your dimensions, all of that is specified.
That's what this overlay does.
So it entitles
the site to the exact project that you,
have agreed to to enter in with the developer. I was asked to compare some of these standards,
to our underlying district, and I just have a couple of examples up here. So for the landscape
open space example, if it were a DX project and the townhomes,
they would have to have 40%,
landscape open space. If they were a mixed use building or a multifamily building, they would have had to have 30%
landscape open space.
And that's all since 2023.
So before that, it was only it was 10%. It was it was a lot lower. Our your project, the overlay
before you has 10%. So I wanted to show how it compares to what you had up to up to a few years ago, as a requirement.
So it wouldn't be out of character of what some of the built environment already is since that's only a two a rule for two years old.
Amenity area, it's not required for townhomes currently.
General officer or whatever commercial building,
5% amenity area is required for,
IX or a mixed use multifamily, 10% is required. And then on this project,
it's 15%.
So some places we have a little less and other places you have a little more. It's the balance of the project that achieves your the the vision that you adopted you approved as your concept. So there's the concept that you've approved and here's just an example of where these translate these,
excuse me,
where these standards these numbers translate into a spatial relationship.
So you get a lot more, for example, in this case, amenity space.
Well, regarding the height. So comparing the standards for the height,
the current UDC
for a general building in the DX, that's the underlying for much of the property, the DX,
is 55 feet or four and a half stories. So your project has the highest on the mixed use building also at 55 feet.
So you're you're at 55 feet same as the existing
zoning,
permission,
but it's five stories. So it's how you stack the
cut up the building.
But I just wanted to clarify that the the
the
height of what's currently allowed compared to what is being proposed in your
in your overlay.
I also wanted to specify,
that the zoning map, that area as I had mentioned before, it actually allows currently, it's entitled to have four stories at that corner.
So that's entitled.
What they have proposed is that the two story, but that is something they would they are still entitled to. That's we're not taking away any entitlement rights from that corner.
And maybe David can explain that better if I'm not being clear.
And then finally, another I just have another set of standards that well, like I mentioned, signage and parking, all of that is already that's all in your hands directly.
Mayor and council
will vet it. You'll get input and technical,
review, but it's your decision on the final approval.
Sidewalks, how they compare,
on Atlanta Street, we require 10 foot multiuse trail. In your project, this overlays retains that 10 foot multi use trail.
Hill Street requires 10,
foot sidewalks and five foot grass strip.
We now to think of Hill Street, we have some constraints where we have angled parking
and we have the police. So existing building is some constraint. Where we can have 10, we have 10, but it does vary through that side of it. That's all specified. Each segment is set specified in this regulating plan.
Uses.
Well, did you want me well, I was gonna ask if you wanted me to pause, but,
before jumping into the uses, the,
as we talked about, the DX has this underlying list of uses that are are pretty
appropriate mostly appropriate.
We identified through this process 29 additional prop, uses that we wanted to make sure were prohibited
and then a five or six,
uses that we needed to add,
for your specific project.
So, like, well, we we added hotel. I know that's not necessarily currently there, but the hotel is an allowed use in this zoning overlay.
The outdoor recreation of having a a commercial park like a membership
type operation.
We, added the townhomes
that as a permitted use
for the areas,
to the adjacent properties. And then the multifamily, we had,
added that as the use as well because that was not currently allowed.
But it's only per the regulating plan, and it's only per the,
number of units
specified
in the overlay.
So here's an example we were asked to show the comparison. I mentioned to you we have a list. We have a list in the overlay of all the prohibited and then a list of some of the
recommended.
So so comparing them, here's just an example. So DX, it's a conditional use for townhome. This draft overlay allows it outright.
Multifamily,
mixed use is a conditional use.
You need to,
you need to
grant it outright so that you're not creating any uncertainty or additional,
approvals on top of what your overlay is already doing because it's the same process.
Right? A conditional use process would be another two public hearings to achieve the same thing that this hearing
can do with the,
regulating plan
because it limits it and to and ties it to a specific area.
Just a couple other
items there. Some of the conditional use are limited on some of the potential microbrewery, winery, distillery, that kind of thing that you want in an entertainment center.
So so focusing back again on what I was you know, the part two
the part two of this overlay. So part one is the main bulk of it. It's it's 95%
of what's in your document.
The eligible sites are really eligible.
They are,
now permitted to have townhomes as a permitted use,
but they have to have a two acre assemblage.
So they can't just have oddly positioned
townhomes,
small sets of them. It has to be a plan. It has to be a plan development,
and and they have to follow all the rules including the rear entry and all of the other rules that are required for for townhomes
in DX.
But there's no other
change that happens to those properties. Everything you see,
in the part one
is the regulating plan for your project, for the six acre project.
So we recommend,
a motion for approval of a text and map amendment
to the unified development code for the for Hill Street overlay,
first reading
and to request the planning commission review and provide comment on the text amendment map to council by Friday,
July 18,
prior to the second reading for consideration by the mayor and council.
Michelle, thank you so much. Thank you for your time, your presentation, and all the hard work by you and your team that you put into this. Thank you so much.
At this time, Nancy,
city clerk Nancy Long, are there any Roswell residents who would like to speak on this item? Yes. We have two speakers. The first is Ron Rudner.
Mister Ron Rudner. Welcome.
Yeah. I'm Ron Redner,
along with,
Troy Redner,
Stan Clark,
Pat West, and her daughter, Stacy.
Tim Spence was supposed to be here. We are the property owners of about six acres
on currently what is,
called IX,
Light Industrial Flex.
So
we and we are the, folks that are mostly impacted on on the street right right across the street.
After careful consideration and and many
talks back and forth,
we are all in agreement as property owners for this,
Hill Street project to, overlay to go through. So thank you very much for listening to us.
Thank you, boo. Ron, thank you, sir. Thank you for
your commitment and duty or
your your your ownership of businesses and property in our city, and thank you for
speaking and spending time with us on this matter. Thank you, gentlemen. Thank you, ladies.
Nancy?
Yes. The last speaker I have is Courtney Rozier.
My name is Courtney Rozier. My address is on the card.
I just had a question just looking at the agenda. A couple of items,
came to mind.
I noted that the,
historic preservation commission,
made review and comments.
Comments that were made by the Historical Preservation Commission that were of any concern with the overlay.
Also, I noted that in the summary
of the planning commission's,
recommendation
that it indicated they had requested,
that the mayor and council return the completed text amendment with remaining sections
for a work session or special called meeting.
And, I wondered it did indicate if that had happened, so I wondered if there had been any concerns that were voiced,
and if there if anyone could speak to that. And if that or perhaps if that did happen and it just wasn't noted in the summary. Yes, ma'am. Thank you. Jeff, do you wanna address both of those?
So with regards to the Historic Preservation Commission,
we did meet with a couple of the individual members this this last week.
The as Michelle has mentioned in the overlay, as the
project progresses,
there will be an opportunity for the design of the project to go to the HPC for formal review and comments. So that hasn't happened yet. It will be happening in the future,
once,
the official overlay is adopted and approved, and that will give us the direction to move forward with that standard.
With relation to the planning commission, as you see in the recommended motion, this does give the planning commission an additional opportunity,
to comment on the overlay. What they saw back in November,
the the overlay has evolved since then with a number of negotiations with adjacent property owners as well as the project itself. And so the recommendation this evening is, to do just that, is to provide it back to the planning commission for an opportunity to review comments and then provide those comments to this council,
prior to your second reading.
And do you wanna just, can you specifically tell
share how that's gonna happen?
Yeah. So, tonight, assuming that the the recommended motion passes here, we've already been working with the planning commission,
to schedule a special called meeting.
That will be their intent. They will not be agendizing this tomorrow,
but it will be a special called meeting and working with their chair. That will go up onto our website as soon as we have that meeting scheduled, then we can get that group together.
The city team will be there and available. We'll take comments and discussions,
with the planning commission, and then we'll roll all of that information up, to this body,
provide recommended changes between the first and second reading, and then have that detail available for anybody that's watching between the first and second reading so the community can track what has changed or evolved, between the two readings.
Jeff, thank you. Goodbye.
Nancy,
any other residents who'd like to speak?
I have no other speakers. Are there any yes, ma'am. Would you do me a favor? You got a card, give it that to Joseph and rock and roll.
Yeah. Nancy, would you do me a favor calling the speaker out?
Yes. The speaker is Kat Plant.
Hello. Hi, Kat. Hi.
I just have a question about the slide
that had the layout of where all the buildings are, and,
you said that this was the form that it needs to be like, this is what's going to happen.
And if it is not
if there's a change from that, then it has to go back through.
Yeah.
So
if
so we're still early. We haven't gotten all the documents and everything and everything signed and all that. So if we already have
this, and I know that the police station is being utilized,
so that part is obviously, like, there.
What happens when the
if the
developer
comes back and they're like, okay. Our plans are not gonna work financially
this way.
Like
or it's not gonna work for them
to to follow this form.
Like, I just don't want us to get the city to get stuck holding the bag on, like, a project. Like, we've had enough, like, parking
or hotels, parking garages, whatever, not be able to happen because of there's rock underground or there's whatever. Like, so many things can happen.
I think it's good to have, like, some foresight and control over what's gonna happen so it just doesn't turn into,
you know, a cluster. But
is,
you know,
is there flexibility?
Because there's always changes whenever you're making any kind of project.
I don't know. That's just my concern.
Yeah. Thank you so much for the concern. And I would say that we too at the city share the same concern. And part of our
economic development strategy, and I'll just kinda pull a little bit higher level view,
is changing the way that we evaluate
and vet developers within our community,
so that the city takes action and spends
staff time, staff resources, and frankly, our taxpayer resources,
working with developers who have been vetted in a way that realistically
can deliver on the projects that they have envisioned.
And that's some of the lessons that we've learned over time
is,
to be cautiously optimistic early on in the origination project process.
Spend a little bit of time and a little bit of money to vet developers that are bringing projects forward,
related to, especially,
asks of the city.
You know, our our current code allows for, you know, projects to be able to move forward under the current entitlements of property, and we support developers doing that within the rules that we provide. But in this case,
a developer is asking the city and by extension, this mayor and council and by extension, our our taxpayers to participate. They're looking for
support in this project by leveraging
our land and our property to move this project forward, and that causes us to have more due diligence
to vet these developers.
And that's why, in some cases, we've been talking about this project here at this dais for the last twelve months in different phases of the project. And so
while right now, can I say here that we are a 100%
confident, not until the ink is signed and the paper is is wet, so to speak, do we say and celebrate the opportunity, and we actually start moving dirt on that site? However,
we have been working with this developer. We have a high level of confidence in their ability, both financially and professionally, to deliver on the project.
But the overlay does create protections
to for us as a city to get the site plan that you see on the screen.
And it binds the overlay
to this project. And so if for whatever reason the project wasn't feasible or something had to change dramatically,
we as a team would go back to the drawing board, not just here at the overlay, but also on the development agreements to ensure that the city taxpayers are still getting the deal that we signed up for.
And I'm gonna stop there. I don't know, Michelle, if you have any other commentary or perhaps David or others on council would wanna speak to that further.
David, go ahead, sir.
I think one of the,
biggest concerns in this city is that the multifamily gets built and then the other stuff does not get built.
We are protected in this one because there will be no CO to the multifamily until the commercial,
biz buildings are are constructed. So,
you will not have another
instance of what happened up Highway 9 in the past.
Allen?
Thank you, mayor. Just a couple of quick comments and and,
one question, something I wanna keep driving, at the end of this. But
I've spent my last twenty years in mergers and acquisitions,
and qualifying
capital is a big part of the front end of a process. And you can never know
till they get to the closing table, because money always gets a vote,
They can always leave at the last moment. But as far as the process of qualifying this capital,
meeting with the investors,
this this team has done all of the things that I would do
personally
to make sure this deal gets to the closing table. So I'm very, very proud of that, very,
for you. You guys have worked very hard on that. Peter Storkoff as well as part of that as well.
And also,
I'd just like to speak,
you to speak a moment about, you know, what we're doing here.
It is a it is an incredibly complicated deal
on its face. Even this even this this wasn't a city, this is a complex deal. There are a lot of moving parts,
that have to fall
exactly into place, not like sort of into place. And this team has spent,
you know, what, two years on this deal,
long before I came on council. Three and a half, technically. Yeah. Exactly. So so so it is,
stay stay on that one with the blue because we're we wanna make sure we talk we're talking specifically about that which is in blue. This is the project where we have,
the the staff has worked so hard to put this deal together,
and this overlay
is an element of that
surety cat that you're talking about
that the project
gets done as we as as as envisioned.
Obviously, you know,
a meteor could hit, you know, close by and the project goes away for whatever reason. But as far as, like, as much as in as as in our hand to assure ourselves that this thing is done correctly,
I really believe that staff has done a great job at that. So
just speak speaking specifically about my favorite topic, which is we're turning it an area that that that that that blue area generates how much an income for us today? Got it. So you've got a big chunk of it, which is civic. So that's where the police department is. So,
that is an opportunity for investment in our community that costs us money.
And then the remainder of the property right now as it sits, because it's mostly vacant, is roughly about $28,000
in annual revenue. And and when all of this good and glorious is completed,
we're expecting or modeling the revenue. By the way, that's another big change.
Modeling the revenue for the city is now a part of the process
so that we can
the mayor and council and and the staff can make informed decisions
Right. About the things that we commit to
based on the the
the benefit to our residents, both in lifestyle as well as protecting the FISC of the of the city, thinking specifically about the trade offs. So what what does the model say that the the revenues will be when all of this is is done? Thank you for that. And and kind of think of the revenue model,
broken down in really about four different pieces.
The first is just kind of your traditional
tax model. So that as,
the the property is built out, the areas that are owned by the private developer,
they have components that they will be paying into property tax. Obviously, the city gets a share of that. And then there's gonna be the use tax on top of that. So restaurants, retail, and otherwise, we will get a portion of that. That model looks conservatively right now as we start to ramp up is about 300,000, $400,000
a year, as we think about the model of ramping up in property tax and use tax.
On top of that, we start to think about the land exchange agreement itself.
So there's rent that is paid, to the city as part of the land exchange. The ground lease? The ground lease. Yes. Yes, sir.
And that's about $275,000
annually, coming into the city,
as it continues to drive, and then it'll go up over time,
as part of that. The other components that we start to look at is the parking component.
So the city, instead of,
looking at more of a traditional model, which would be tax abatements or others, we're looking at, parking as the incentive model to get into the game and help support the developer.
The parking model demonstrates that as this project builds out, it'll continue to pay for the debt service. And then once the debt service is paid off, it'll be revenue positive,
for the city, and we can use that for future development projects.
And then you also have the townhome sale. So there's a component of just sale sell of the property.
As we go to subdivide parking deck,
there will be 16 townhome pads. We can't disclose the total bid price of those at this point in time because we're still in the bid process.
But that is revenue to the city early on in the project.
And so we don't have to wait on that revenue. That'll be deposited into the city as part of that agreement in the future.
And the last component is the participation.
So
if the project is sold in the future and the developer through the development agreement,
once that is finalized, there'll be some clauses in there that give them the option to essentially be able to sell the project moving forward.
Think about it in year ten or twenty or thirty.
And then there's participation
for the city as part of that. But keep in mind, the city didn't have to invest in the value of whatever is built on that property. The developer brought that to the table with the exception of the parking deck. And so the developer is creating value for the city to be able to participate in.
The way you can translate that is is instead of,
just selling our property outright,
to a developer for them to redevelop the property, we're playing a little bit longer game in this instance, and we're participating, meaning we're waiting as this investment matures, and then the taxpayers in the city will benefit from that investment. And so as we bring forward, development agreement, the modeling
will be finalized as part of that, but that gives you just a high range, estimates of kinda where we sit right now and how we've been evaluating this project, over time. Thank you. Thank you, Jeff. But just Jeff, just for the record, double check. The ground lease, I think, is worth 670
to $700,000
a year at the beginning without any escalations,
and it's a ninety nine year lease. That is correct. So the I think the orig the origin number, double check me, $6.70 or $700,000. We can pull that, and as we come back to the second reading, we'll take a look at that and make sure I got the number right. Annually to to the city. Yeah.
Thank you, Jeff. Thank you, Alan.
Any other Roswell residents that would like to yes. Yes, ma'am. Nancy.
Two more speakers. The first is Mark Donolo.
Welcome, Mark.
Good evening, mayor and council. Mark Donillo. I reside at 76 King Street here in Roswell.
First of all, I'll say I think this is a great project. It's very exciting to see this happening.
I think Jeff and and Michelle have done a lot of work to put this together.
My concern is,
as a member of the HPC, we did review this. My concern is that we have a lot of focus here on historic preservation in the city of Roswell.
Just a few blocks from us, we hold up what is one of the most important assets we have, which is Canton Street.
This may not be a historic area or historic district,
but from what I've seen on the concept drawings,
this could be in New Jersey. It could be in Southern California. It could be anywhere USA.
And so my question would be,
if,
HPC only has the ability to review and comment on what's being built there,
what is our vision for what we would like to see in terms of historic preservation here? We're not preserving anything. What we're do doing is preserving the character of our area.
So my concern is that,
from what I've seen on the concept drawings at least,
if it's just subject to HPC review and approval or review and comment,
we could end up with anywhere USA here. So I'm just a little bit concerned about the approval process.
Thanks. Thank you, Mark.
Nancy?
Yes. The next speaker is Michael Strauss.
Hey, Michael.
Mayor, council, thanks for taking I have a, just to add on what Mark just said
about keeping the integrity and then tying that into,
the whole vetting and the mergers at the money side.
So where are we in terms of really vetting a developer at this part at this point? Is there an a, b, and c? Is there a player who looks like he's getting it? And then how much is that developer gonna have say in
kind of that historic that look, what's gonna be driving better for them and what's better for us as Roswell? We don't wanna be I can't speak for everybody else. I don't wanna be Alpharetta. I wanna be
Canton Street plus. So I guess two parts.
Who is
the leaders right now potentially on the development side, and what's their input on what type of finished product we get? Thank
you. Thank you, sir, very much.
David, did you wanna add any comments
or question?
So currently,
the,
DDA
has been in contact with developers.
The city is involved in that also because we work together with the DDA very closely.
The DDA will actually be the owner of the property,
and, they will make the decision on the developer,
moving forward. We're talking about Hill Street. On the Hill Street. Yes.
As far as the parking deck,
that has gone out to bid and there has been
going through procurement
and then
the townhouse
developer is also going through procurement process. But the overall master developer for the project has been part of the They're
the owner. It will be the owner. They own They will own part of the,
the district also. Yes.
And that's the closing with that. All this is to put together the formal closing. I think the Katz question, all that is to put together the formal closing, which is set for October. October of this year.
Yes. So the developer has been chosen because we've been working with obviously, it's
not a potluck process.
Right.
It's been fully vetted. The money has been vetted. Investors have
been vetted. Their
cap stacks been vetted. Their
project history has been vetted and they've been part of the process
of putting this all together.
Mark, in reference to the historic
preservation commission, absolutely. That's why it's going in front of the HBC.
And the other thing is the city has, I think, a responsibility
to its history and to its residents
to be very clear about what its historic district is and what is the purpose of the historic district.
I'm sure you know, Mark, as a member of the HPC that the reason historic districts are created in the state of Georgia from the charter of the state is really for economic development.
And one of the things I think the city has to be very clear about is creating what what is its historic district
and very clear lines about what's going to be ED and what's going to be preservation and what does that look like. And I will tell you that that for me, I don't have clarity about that when I look at that from a historic perspective. I just see a historic district.
But I think there's a lot of confusion often about ED and preservation
and everybody thinks it's historic, it's automatically preservation. But the state guidelines and the state is really intending
for historic areas to be economically redeveloped.
I think the council shares the same view. I think like most residents, as they recognize this is city with great history, history needs to be protected,
and its history needs to be,
continued to be,
shown in a way that demonstrates the character of the city. How you do that? I think there's some different discussions.
But I think part of that clarity is we're going to ask for the HPC's help on that as we continue to buy into the code
and incorporate that into our long term strategy for
the historic pieces, because I think that's very confusing in the city, honestly.
And often that can there's a confusion,
piece between preservation
and economic redevelopment. So I'm really glad appreciate you bringing that up, Mark. Thank you.
Nancy, are there any other residents who would like to speak? There are no other speakers at this time. Are any other residents who would like to speak on this matter?
Thank you all so much for coming, sharing your thoughts and comments and questions.
Bring it back to the council. Council, any thoughts, comments, or questions on the matter?
Thank you very much. There's been a recommended
recommended
motion for the Hill Street overlay,
in conjunction with what's on the regular agenda on item number two. Do I have a motion to approve item number two along with the recommended motion for Hill Street
overlay made by Michelle earlier.
No. No. Just just a motion. Just a motion. Alright. I so move. Actually, do me a favor. Yep. Read that full motion since we did a complicated one. The approval of number two along with the recommended motion. Yes, sir.
So the recommended motion Thank you, David. The recommended motion for Hill Street, mayor, for the Hill Street overlay,
a motion for approval of a text and map amendment to the Unified
Development Code for the Hill Street overlay. This is the first reading. And to request the planning commission to review and provide comment on the text and map amendment to council by Friday, 07/18/2025
prior to the second reading for consideration by the mayor and council.
Thank you, council member Sells. Is there a second to council member
seconded by council member Johnson? I'll understand the motion as made by council member Sells.
All in favor, please do so by raising your hands. Let the record show that the vote is five to zero. It's unanimous, and the motion of the first reading passes
as read by council member sales. Thank you very much.
Alright.
Last on the agenda is the city attorney's report. Chief legal officer and city attorney David Davidson, would you please read the first item? Thank you, mayor. The first item I have is approval of a resolution,
for the city of Roswell
authorizing participation in an amicus brief in the Chang versus City of Milton appeal pending before the Georgia Supreme Court.
As you know,
I guess, couple years ago,
a young gentleman ran off the road in the city of Milton. He had a planter that was not in the roadway, but it was off the side and it was in their right of way.
The jury found
for the his parents who sued the city of Milton,
for $35,000,000.
That was then appealed. The Court of Appeals upheld that decision,
basically stating that,
the city is responsible for things outside of the roadway that are in their right of way.
Now the state law requires that the city allow telephone poles,
utility boxes,
other things that are dangerous to the driving public already.
They require us to allow those in our right of way.
What we're asking for is a resolution from this mayor and council authorizing us to basically submit a brief on behalf of the city. There are several other cities also. Just basically informing this,
it's called a friend of the court brief.
Just telling the court that, hey, there are other issues to consider with this and, that we would ask that,
you consider changing
the decision from the City of Milton case.
This would be very, very important for the city.
We would have to probably get rid of any,
neighborhood signs that are currently in the right of way. I don't know what we would do with telephone poles and util other utilities that are in the right of way because the state requires us to allow those,
but it would put us in a bind a very deep bind,
if this is upheld.
We recommend,
approval from counsel.
Thank you, David, very much.
Nancy, are there, city clerk Nancy Long, are there any Roswell residents who'd like to speak on this item? Yes, mayor. We have one speaker, Courtney Rozier.
Thanks, Courtney.
Yes, ma'am. Thank you so much. Any other Roswell residents who would like to speak on the item? Item? Sorry.
Thank you very much. I'll bring it back to council.
Any comments, thoughts, or questions?
Thank you very much. Being that there are none, is there a motion to approve this item? Motion made by council member Johnson. Is there a second? Second. Seconded by Pro Tem and council member Lee Hills.
All in favor of approving this motion, please do so by raising your hands.
Let the record show the vote is five e zero and unanimous, and the motion passes. Thank you very much.
Let's see.
Alright.
David,
you've got one last item.
I do not have a recommendation to go into closure. Thank you very much. There's not a motion for closure.
Being that there are no other other items
did we take care Joe, did we take care of the lady earlier? Okay. Very good. Thank you very much. Being that there are no other items, this mayor and council meeting of Monday, 07/14/2025
is adjourned. Thank you so much for being with us. Have a good evening.
Yeah. That's excellent. Make sure you