You’d be hardpressed to find the heart of Lilburn, especially City Hall.
Soon, that will change in this Gwinnett County hamlet, whose logo is “Small town. Big Difference.”
Town leaders plan to build a joint City Hall-library complex that sits atop a hill at the northeast corner of Main and Church streets. It would be highly visible from Lawrenceville Highway, arguably the primary town artery.
Construction starts in May on the estimated $10 million complex, a 24,000-square-foot municipal center with a 20,000-square-foot library that will replace the town’s current branch on Hillcrest Road. The current municipal complex on Main Street in Old Town would continue to house the police and courts.
With the new complex, City Hall will be visible for all motorists to see. And that’s what the Lilburn City Council and other concerned folk wanted: a major presence on a major road that offers potential economic benefits. Moreover, the new complex will open up Main Street properties for private capital investment.
“We want people to know this is where Lilburn is,” said Doug Stacks, director of planning and economic development. “Main Street is the heart of the city, but Lawrenceville Highway is the lifeblood, along with all the other major arteries.
“We wanted to create a destination, a catalyst for change. This will set the standard for the area.”
To entice change, other projects complement the town center redevelopment. One example: A Main Street realignment will create a more traditional intersection at Lawrenceville Highway. Two roundabouts will aid traffic flow on Main to Old Town. City officials expect development to follow; 25 acres will have road frontage when the $3.5 million realignment concludes in April.
Already, developers have shown interest. The City Council has approved a $50 million mixed-used development for the southwest corner of Main and Lawrenceville Highway, across from the future City Hall. Nacoochee Corp. has plans for retail space, offices, condominiums and up to 325 one and two-bedroom apartments on the site. The firm is under contract to purchase 7.7 acres from the Downtown Development Authority.
It’s a project first-term Mayor Johnny Crist calls a “game-changer” for the community founded in 1890 and home to nearly 12,000.
“We have one kind of house — a house on one acre or a half-acre,” Crist told me. “We need housing for millennials. We need living quarters for retirees. Our pony needs to learn new tricks, so to speak, and this project will really change that. Lilburn has not had that kind of inventory to offer, and I am thrilled we finally get to have these kinds of amenities.”
John Souter, a businessman who serves on the Lilburn Community Improvement District board, hopes the revitalization projects “stir growth” in his home of 25 years. He owns a local trucking company and the Barn Brew House off Beaver Ruin Road. In November, he purchased Spiced Right BBQ on Lawrenceville Highway, made renovations and renamed the eatery the Barn Smokehouse.
Souter would like to see Lilburn rival other suburban communities that have crafted their own identities with revitalization projects. Think Duluth, Decatur or Smyrna.
“Future development is our angle,” he said, “and I believe (these projects) will be a catalyst for that growth.”
