Sandy Springs has approved zoning for a mixed-use development in the North End district that will bring new housing to an old shopping center.
Stream Realty Partners plans to redevelop North River Shopping Center within four to five years. Designs include 81 townhomes and 242 apartment units in five stories above 52,000 square-feet of retail space.
Stream Realty purchased the shopping center eight years ago. Since then, it has never been more than 50% occupied, said Jessica Hill, the attorney representing the development firm.
The proposed retail and residential development marks the first mixed-use project in the neighborhood since Sandy Springs began to brainstorm on how to attract builders to the area in 2017. The city approved new North End zoning in 2021 to make redevelopment more attractive to builders.
During a Tuesday meeting, City Council approved rezoning from shopfront mixed-use to North End mixed-use for North River Shopping Center’s 13-acre site. The zoning district makes North River one of four shopping centers in the North End where developers can build apartments using wood instead of concrete and steel.
The rezoning requires 25% of the residential portion to be single-family unattached housing, which must be built before the apartment units are occupied.
In the weeks leading up to the City Council vote, residents said the project was an opportunity for Sandy Springs to push for affordable workforce housing.
However, Stream Realty does not plan to set aside 10% of its units for affordable housing under a zoning incentive that would allow it to build a 6th floor of apartment units.
The firm’s attorneys say the incentive is not required, and rent prices would be higher than projected if the builder was required to construct the apartments with concrete and steel.
“I hope that in the future developers start taking advantage of the height bonuses associated with incorporating workforce housing,” Councilwoman Melody Kelley said.
Stream Realty estimates the townhomes will be priced at a minimum of $400,000 and apartment units at $2 per square foot (or $1,800 for a 900 square-foot apartment).
Townhomes located across the street from the site, which officials say is owned by a private equity firm, are rented for $3,300 a month.
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