A Roswell neighborhood, which includes two Habitat for Humanity homes, is facing possible displacement to make way for a new Fulton County school to be built a block away on Ga. 9.
Some residents along Charles Place say they can’t imagine living anywhere else and fear any compensation from the school district would fall short of providing for alternative housing in a city with an average home price of $250,000. They also wonder why the city isn’t stepping into protect them the same way Sandy Springs jumped into a similar fray last month.
“It’s frankly unbelievable to me that the school district can buy land, build a school and then get public input,” Charles Place resident Tarak Robbana said. “It ought to be the other way around.”
Sandy Springs city leaders and homeowners groups mounted a concerted cry in April to pressure the school district from relocating Heards Ferry Elementary to a new location on Riverside Drive. Those efforts paid off. The school district now says it is no longer considering Riverside Drive as an alternative site.
Rumors of the new school site in Roswell, located on the current site of a shopping center, have filtered through the tree-lined neighborhood for months. Robbana received word last week that his house would probably be safe from the bulldozers, but he’s still worried for neighbors and about the potential traffic an elementary school would bring, he said.
Robbana appeared before the City Council earlier this month seeking help to protect the neighborhood. So far, he said, he hasn’t received any substantive offers of support.
“I appreciate their concern,” Mayor Jere Wood said. “But the concern that was expressed to me was not about the school but about whether they were going to receive a fair price (for their property).”
Wood said he told them there are legal remedies to assure fair prices in cases where a government exercises eminent domain.
The mayor also said he supports the school project because schools are one of the city’s greatest amenities.
“They’re taking a sort of half-empty shopping center that is probably one of the oldest shopping centers in Roswell that is in need of refurbishing,” he said. “We have more shopping centers than we need, born out by the fact we have a lot of half-empty shopping centers.”
Wood said the city would be in contact with the school to ensure measures are taken to mitigate traffic congestion.
School district spokeswoman Susan Hale said land purchases are not publicly discussed before purchase to guard against land speculation. She said the district tries to communicate with affected landowners whenever a potential displacement is being considered.
But some Charles Place area residents are not satisfied.
Kim Petree has lived on the street for 15 years and, although she rents, she wants no part in relocating.
“What you have here are people who are scared,” she said. “How are you going to get buses in and out of here?”
Allen Wilson moved into his Habitat house at the top of a nearby hill nine years ago and would love to stay. He just built a deck off the porch and has plans to landscape his yard.
He said he’s also proud of his home that he helped build. He hasn’t missed a payment.
“I’m trying to stay in this place, but I’d listen to an offer from the school district as long as it was enough to stay in Roswell,” he said.
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