A national daycare business that had planned to open a new location in Roswell could back out because of city-imposed requirements to manage traffic at the location.
Attorney Edwin Tate’s client wants to open a new Kiddie Academy location on Crabapple Road near the Crossville Road intersection with Ga. 92. Some City Council members and residents spoke during a virtual meeting Monday to say they were concerned about possible traffic and safety problems that could arise with the new business.
Roswell City Council approved the location with the requirement that the daycare center hire an off-duty police officer to direct and monitor traffic on Crabapple Road. Tate estimates the cost of an off-duty officer would be about $60,000 per year. Kiddie Academy agreed to be responsible for resolving any traffic back-ups that occur during peak rush hours but Tate objected to his client bearing the cost of a traffic officer before a problem arises.
Councilmembers agreed the requirement could later be lifted if the business can provide evidence to the transportation department that traffic on Crabapple Road is not affected by the new business location.
Kiddie Academy is a franchised daycare business with 250 centers nationally. Tate’s client for the Roswell location, KA Roswell Crabapple LLC, proposed building a 10,000-square-foot building on about 1.5 acres of land. It would serve 167 children from infant to four years old.
Tate said the daycare business has a staggered system for parents dropping off their children. Parents sign-in electronically according to a time-slot, preventing traffic back-ups, he said.
About 12,000 vehicles travel the road per day, said Transportation Director Muhammad Rauf, and about 476 trips per day would be made to the daycare center, he said.
Council members wanted a deceleration lane for motorists approaching Crossville Road to turn right into the daycare center driveway, but that would be a cost to the city and the it’s not recommended by Roswell Department of Transportation.
Roswell suggested a small median be placed at the driveway of the the daycare to limit vehicles to right turns in and out of the establishment. That was not an option the daycare business accepted.
“There is not another right-in, right-out requirement on this street,” the attorney said to council members. "There is not another improvement on this street that has required a police officer at what is otherwise a routine intersection.”
Tate told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that no decision has been made on whether Kiddie Academy will complete the purchase of a single-family residential property needed for the daycare center.
About the Author
