The Cumberland Community Improvement District, a collection of businesses in Cobb County’s commercial hub, approved providing $5 million in funding for the pedestrian-transit bridge over Interstate 285 on Thursday — funding that may help make completion of the project possible before the SunTrust Park opens in April 2017.
The CID board, which includes the Braves’ executive vice president of business operations Mike Plant, approved the funding by a 5-2 vote. Dissenters included the organizations treasurer Barry Teague, who said the district has already committed enough money toward the Braves’ development; and Connie Engel, a partner with office building owner Childress Kline Properties, who said she didn’t have enough information about the bridge to vote in favor.
Plant said the bridge will serve the entire business district all year, and shouldn’t be linked exclusively to the Braves stadium and mixed-use development.
Cobb County government announced in September that the bridge would not be ready for any part of the Braves inaugural 2017 season in the new stadium. It appears that has changed with Thursday's vote, although the CID money won't be provided to the county until 2018 and 2019 — in $2.5 million installments at the end of each of those years.
It is unclear how the county will proceed with the project, how much it will cost, or what the new timeline will be.
The bridge is considered an important piece of infrastructure that will allow pedestrians to walk safely around the area, whether they are walking to a game, a restaurant, a convention or the county’s performing arts center. The interstate divides the area, and the Cobb Parkway underpass is considered unsafe for pedestrians.
The CID has already committed a lot of money to SunTrust Park: it has raised property taxes on the businesses there to help Cobb pay the debt for its contribution toward stadium construction, and has committed $10 million in cash toward infrastructure projects at the stadium.
Board member Mason Zimmerman agreed that the public has been provided with very little information related to the bridge’s total budget, it’s design, capacity, or who would pay for cost overruns. But, he said, the bridge will further pedestrian safety throughout the business district and that’s part of the CID’s mission.
“I don’t think we need to know all of those things,” Zimmerman said. “It’s really up to the county to resolve all of those things.”
Go to myAJC.com later today for updates.
About the Author
