A federal lawsuit filed on Tuesday against the city of Atlanta and the Atlanta Police Foundation seeks to halt construction of the planned public safety training center, alleging violations of the Clean Water Act.
The South River Watershed Alliance alleges “stormwater discharges from the Atlanta Training Facility construction site were not in compliance with the general permit.” The lawsuit says members of the group worry about sediment from the training center site impacting Intrenchment Creek and wildlife.
The suit claims the construction site was cleared before required sediment storage bins were completed, resulting in stormwater from the site discharging into the creek. It asks that construction halt until “Intrenchment Creek has capacity to assimilate the sediment without interfering with the stream’s designated use” and for the court to determine the city and police foundation violated the Clean Water Act.
“We have not been served but we will review any potential lawsuit and vigorously defend our position,” a statement from the office of Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said. “The City remains committed to complying with the applicable environmental standards as we complete the PSTC.”
The Atlanta Police Foundation also released a statement:
“The issues raised in this suit have previously been litigated and decided in our favor. Our counsel sent this plaintiff a letter explaining in detail why all of the plaintiff’s issues lack merit. The plaintiff chose to ignore the letter and file suit anyway, and we expect that the complaint will be dismissed by the federal court or result in a comparable decision in our favor.”
The South River Watershed Alliance has filed prior legal action over the training facility. Last December, it and the South River Forest Coalition filed an emergency motion seeking to prevent Ryan Millsap and Blackhall Real Estate Phase II from “further destruction” of the property the movie studio founder obtained in a controversial property swap with DeKalb County.
That lawsuit argued the county lacked the authority to complete the swap with Millsap. The case is still open in DeKalb County Superior Court.
In February, a Fulton County judge denied an injunction that would have halted construction at the site. Superior Court Judge Thomas A Cox Jr. ruled against plaintiffs - DeKalb County resident Amy Taylor, DeKalb County Commissioner Ted Terry and the South River Watershed Alliance - who challenged the land development permits and had environmental concerns, calling “speculative” the argument that continued construction would result in high levels of sediment in Intrenchment Creek.
The judge noted that since the project was approved by both DeKalb County and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, sediment deposited within legal limits is allowed.
In April, the DeKalb County Zoning Boards of Appeals rejected a challenge from Terry and two DeKalb County residents alleging the city and county overlooked restrictions on sediment discharges and unanimously decided the county’s process to issue permits complied with all requirements.
Terry is appealing the challenge of the land disturbance permits issued for the training center in the Superior Court of DeKalb County.
The training center property, off Key Road in southwestern DeKalb County, is owned by Atlanta and leased to the Atlanta Police Foundation. Most pre-construction work has been completed ahead of more construction expected to start this month.
A soft opening of the facility is scheduled for the end of 2024.
Opponents are working to gather more than 70,000 signatures for a referendum petition to put the project on the ballot. As of last week, the group said it had gathered more than 30,000 signatures ahead of the Aug. 19 deadline.
