JANUARY 2020
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Community | 15
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of the zoning rewrite is expected to be completed in early 2020.
LG B TQ NO NDIS C R I M I NATI O N O R DINA NC E
The City Council in June unanimously approved an ordinance that bans public businesses from discriminating against LGBTQ people, making Dunwoody one of several metro Atlanta cities to do so in 2019. SPECIAL
An illustration of the planned High Street central park area.
R ELIG IO U S SYM B O L S BA NNED FR O M C IT Y HA L L
Religious symbols including holiday trees and menorahs were banned from the City Hall lobby and other public areas of city buildings. The vote came after a resident requested to put up a Nativity scene at City Hall after seeing the lobby decorated in 2018 with a tree and menorah over the holidays.
H I GH S TREET GETS $ 19M TA X B R EAK
The long-dormant and massive High Street mixed-use development in Perimeter Center got a $19 million tax abatement for its first phase from the city’s Development Authority. The developers say the tax break would help them get the financing they need to potentially break ground in the spring. The entire $2 billion High Street project that has been stalled for more than a decade would be built on 42 acres of property at the northwest intersection of Perimeter Center Parkway and Hammond Drive, near the Sandy Springs border and the Dunwoody MARTA station. The mini-city would span 10 city blocks and include 8 million square feet of residential, retail, restaurant, hotel and office space.
N O TO N EW EMS Z ON E
A state subcommittee charged with reviewing DeKalb County emergency management system after the city continued to raise concerns about slow ambulance response times said there was no need to create a separate EMS zone. The city wanted a new zone in north DeKalb because of ongoing slow response times by the county’s provider, American Medical Response. The county stationed more ambulances in the city to try to provide better coverage and came up with a new contract that now includes different response times based on the severity of the 911 call. AMR was awarded the new fiveyear contract in December.
AD D ITIO NAL P R O TEC TI O NS A P P R O V ED FO R CYC L I S T S , P EDES TR I A NS
An ordinance that adds protections for cyclists and pedestrians beyond what state law requires was passed by the City Council in November. Dunwoody is believed to be the first city in Georgia to pass a “vulnerable road user” ordinance that mirrors much of state law, such as ticketing a motorist for not stopping for pedestrians in a crosswalk. The city’s ordinance, however, includes enhanced penalties for violators. They could be sentenced to up to six months in jail, made to pay up to a $1,000 fine and have their driver’s license suspended. The penalties could be waived if the motorist takes a courtmandated driver safety class.
PR O PER TY TAX R EV ENUES FL ATT EN, R A IS E B UDG ET C O NC ER NS
The City Council approved a “tight” $39.5 million budget for 2020, as concerns about slowing revenue growth due in part to homeowner tax breaks were raised by some city officials. More than 30% of the general fund’s revenue comes from real property taxes. The general fund pays for day-to-day operations of the city, such as paving, parks and police. In 2019, the city’s tax digest was a record $4 billion, but exemptions were also at an all-time high of $882 million. That means 21% of Dunwoody’s total value of property was exempted, decreasing overall revenue by approximately $2.4 million a year. A resident with a house valued at $450,000 pays $286 a year in city taxes.
Perimeter Marketplace project gets $2.3M tax break BY DYANA BAGBY dyanabagby@reporternewspapers.net
The Dunwoody Development Authority has approved an estimated $2.3 million tax break for developer Branch Properties’ mixed-use project in the heart of bustling Perimeter Center. The DDA approved the tax abatement at its Dec. 11 meeting for Perimeter Marketplace, an approximate $38 million development fronting Ashford-Dunwoody Road between Meadow Lane and Ashwood Parkway. A detention pond popular with Canada geese, a P.F. Chang’s restaurant and two vacant restaurant spaces are currently on the 10-acre property. The tax abatement ensures the project approved by the City Council in June moves forward, said Economic Development Director Michael Starling. “Branch was very clear they were not going to move forward without the abatement,” he said. The DDA also approved a resolution to begin negotiations to issue $45 million in tax-exempt revenue bonds to fund construction. Members were initially hesitant to approve the tax break on the relatively small project, as the authority previously had approved only a handful of previous tax abatements for office towers. For example, the DDA has approved $48 million in tax breaks for the massive State Farm complex being built on Hammond Drive. Perimeter Marketplace includes a groDUN
cery store, restaurant and retail space, a RaceTrac gas station and future plans for a hotel. The project requires filling the pond to build a surface parking lot. The DDA has never in its 10-year history approved tax breaks for a mixed-use project, members noted at a November meeting. They also discussed concerns they were hearing from the public about how tax abatements may impact the DeKalb County School District. DeKalb Schools is currently struggling to find money and ways to alleviate overcrowding and maintain aging school buildings. When the DDA approves a tax abatement, that means less taxes to the city, and less taxes to the school district and to the county. Branch estimates the project when finished will add $77 million a year in sales taxes, and that is “10 times more than what the sales of the three restaurants when they were all open,” Starling said of the existing property. “That helps the city and the school system,” he said. “There’s no doubt the impact on schools in all our deals is a huge concern, but we also … make sure they are not negatively impacted. “The school system is not going to lose money,” he said. The Center for Economic Research and Development at Georgia Tech conducted a fiscal impact analysis on the project. The report says the project is expected to create 370 jobs with average annual wages of nearly $36,000. The study
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An illustration of the Perimeter Markeplace mixed-use project on Ashford-Dunwoody Road between Meadow Lane and Ashwood Parkway. Branch Properties, developer for the project, was approved for a $2.3 million tax abatement on the project over 10 years.
also says the project would create 68 new households in DeKalb County, including 12 in the city. Branch would spend nearly $5 million in public infrastructure as part of Perimeter Marketplace, including a road connection from Meadow Lane to Ashwood Parkway and construction of a portion of the long talked about Ashford-Dunwoody “commuter trail.” The commuter trail for cyclists and pedestrians is intended to connect Dunwoody MARTA riders to their jobs in busy Perimeter Center. It was approved as part a Perimeter Community Improvement District’s trail system master plan in 2014. The first phase of the commuter trail includes separated pedestrian and bicycle facilities in front of Perimeter Mall
with construction expected to begin in 2020. Starling said Branch’s investment in sidewalks on Ashford-Dunwoody Road as part of the commuter trail system impressed DDA members and played into their decision to approve the tax abatement. Otherwise, the trail would be an out-of-pocket expense to the city to build in the near future, he said. Adding a grocery store to the area as well as more restaurants also benefits the city and property owners, Starling said. “Overall, although this project is not as dense as it could be, it continues the trend of infill development … and fulfilling the need for a more urban, walkable district,” Starling said.