Developers continue to show an interest in bringing new mixed-use projects with upscale homes and new businesses to Sugar Hill.
Officials in the Gwinnett city gave the go-ahead during a Monday meeting for two mixed-use developments that will add new townhomes and commercial space near downtown.
City Council unanimously rezoned about 10.5 acres at the corner of Nelson Brogdon Boulevard and Bailey Avenue. RangeWater Real Estate, an Atlanta-based developer and real estate company, plans to place 126 rentable townhomes and 4,500 square feet of retail on the property within the next couple of years.
An attorney representing the developer told councilmembers Monday that the four-story townhomes tentatively will be priced around $2,400 per month. Each four-bedroom unit will be about 2,000 square feet, while units with three bedrooms will be about 1,600 square feet.
RangeWater also promises hundreds of on-site parking spaces and greenspace on the property, consisting of a pocket park and community lawn. It’s still unclear what kind of business will be housed in the retail portion of the property, but city officials stressed that it should be “something different” than what’s already in Sugar Hill.
The city has approved hundreds of townhouses and apartment units over the last few years — to the delight of some residents and dismay of others — a trend occurring in several suburban cities and counties in metro Atlanta.
“How many townhouses and apartments are enough?” said Tom Lobonc, a Sugar Hill resident, during a public hearing. “Thousands more? Should we start tearing down single-family homes so we can build more of these things?”
Officials hold that the city needs to diversify the type of housing options available. Planning Director Kaipo Awana told councilmembers Monday that 89% of the city’s housing stock is detached single-family homes, while 84% of all homes are owner-occupied.
Separately, city officials agreed to allow Lilburn-based Kittle Homes to construct 25 four-story, owner-occupied townhomes and 2,500 square feet of commercial space on about 2.7 acres between Hillcrest Drive, West Broad Street and Nelson Brogdon Boulevard.
The developer hopes to attract a microbrewery to open in the commercial space with a fire pit, public art displays and area with outdoor games. It’s unclear when the homes will be completed, but the developer hopes to begin building by the middle of next year, said Billy Fulson, an employee at Kittle Homes.
Fulson told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he’s currently unsure of the selling price for the homes. The townhouses will be 2,100 square feet with four bedrooms, rooftop terraces, two-car garages and elevators.
The addition of more townhomes will allow Sugar Hill to become an “age-in-place community,” Councilmember Taylor Anderson said. He said he’d like to welcome his children back into the city once they’re older, but they may not be in a financial position to purchase a single-family home.
“I feel like this council has been very true to its land use plan,” Anderson said. “... I’m confident with the 89% single-family detached housing stock in the city that we are not significantly changing the character of our city.”
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