While not opposed to an Austell annexation request, Cobb officials are recommending that Austell city officials deny the annexation.
The reason is the 0.69 acre at 5060 Austell Powder Springs Road is in the county’s Clarkdale Mill Village Historic District.
If the city annexes the property, then all of the county’s historic preservation protections would be removed from the property.
The owners no longer would be eligible for county property tax breaks offered to properties on the county register.
That also means the property would be “open to changes and alterations that would remove the historic character of the residence,” according to Cobb Planner III/Historic Preservation Planner Mandy Elliott.
This annexation could cause “a wider adverse effect” to the entire district “as it would diminish the historic characteristics of the neighborhood,” Elliott added.
In his March 5 letter to Austell Mayor Joe Jerkins, Cobb Intergovernmental Coordinator Jay Northrup said it is “our hope that you would deny the request to annex the subject property.”
However, Northrup noted the historical factors “are not recognized by the House Bill 489 Intergovernmental Agreement.”
The Cobb County Board of Commissioners agreed 5-0 on March 12 to recommend their “nonobjection” to the city.
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