circa 1976
circa 2004
circa 2011
Merchant’s Walk Makes Changes By Carmen C. Abernathy For 35 years, Merchant’s Walk has been the heart of our bustling, expanding East Cobb community. The shopping center has become a county landmark, as well as a reference point for directions to area businesses and residents. Although Merchant’s Walk has experienced the typical peaks and valleys of most business/retail centers, its name and community identity have withstood economic trials and retail trends. Reminiscent of the original design with its main street and clock tower, the recent redevelopment of the center has helped to restore a sense of community that was such a vital part of that first marketplace.
ties to Factor’s Walk on the riverfront in Savannah, Georgia,” says Wammock. “My dad felt the red brick architecture had a similar look to that locale. The name is widely used through the United States now for shopping centers, but I think the East Cobb location was the first Merchant’s Walk.”
In the fall of 1976, the center opened with 170,000 square feet of retail and professional office space. Ogletree’s, an upscale grocery store, served as the anchor. Resembling the shopping area of a small town, Merchant’s Walk became the home for dentists, psychiatrists, dermatologists, restaurants, frame shop, jeweler, hair salon, and ballet school, among many others. Johnny Johnson, owner of Edward-Johns Jewelers, which is still a thriving East Cobb business, opened his doors in 1979 in Merchant’s Walk. He recalls that the original shopping plaza was the center of the community, with the lighting of the Christmas tree, politicians giving speeches, and the Walton Band hosting fundraisers. “It was a nice place to work and shop,” says Johnson. “Merchant’s Walk had a small town atmosphere where everyone was friendly. Many of us had young children, and we raised our kids there.”
The beginnings of Merchant’s Walk go back to the mid1970s. When East Cobb was still an “outpost” community to our North Fulton neighbors, Atlanta developer Lowell Wammock had the vision to develop a business/retail center at the corner of Johnson Ferry and Upper Roswell Roads. The property at that time was undeveloped rural land. Known for his style in the development of Dunwoody in DeKalb County, Wammock wanted to create a community center that was unique and indigenous to the area it served. The center’s red brick style was in the tradition of historic Southern archiJo n hn tecture from the 1800s. It was a place where East Cobb resiTo further promote the community feel, Wammock n y Johns o dents could work, shop, and eat without having to leave the enticed Cobb County to build its 14th library branch on the area. property. Originally offering the parcel for $45,000, Wammock reduced the price to $1.00, making it an easy decision for the Sam Wammock, son of the late Lowell Wammock, says county to construct a library there in 1979. A state-of-the-art he can remember his father searching for just the right name movie theater was then built on the property in 1986, once for the new-style community center – a name that ultimately again giving East Cobbers a reason to stay close to home. defined the area. “The name Merchant’s Walk actually has
Frameworks Gallery 1977 10 January 2012
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Ogletree’s grocery store 1977
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