M Focus on: Building & Construction
The Grove at Towne Center brings downtown home for Snellville By BETH ANNE BRINK-COX | The Municipal
The phrase “small Southern town” rolls easily from the tongue, and that leads to mental pictures of downtown streets with little mom-andpop stores that have served many generations. But that’s often more Hollywood — or at least Mayberry — than the actual reality. Snellville, Ga., is mixing it all up with an $85 million, 18-acre project: creating a downtown. Butch Sanders, Snellville city manager, said that’s right, because “Snellville has never really had a downtown. This project has been in the works/thought processes of the mayor and the city council for 20 years. Originally, Snellville was simply a crossroads of Highway 78 and Highway 124. There was a church, a post office, a general store that was finished in 1883, but that was about it.” Beginning in 2003, there have been many locals and experts involved in brainstorming and researching as the design evolved. “With focus groups, I’d say we had somewhere between 400 and 500 people. Later, we had two town hall meetings that were attended by 200, 300 people, and it was all positive,” said Sanders. “We had a vision, of course, not exactly how it would look, but that’s why we wanted a lot of input, and we got it.” So what exactly is involved in this massive project? “Our final design incorporated everything we wanted,” Sanders explained, 28 THE MUNICIPAL | MAY 2022
This sign proudly marries Snellville’s past with its present and future. (Photo provided by Snellville, Ga.)
adding, “There will be a large parking deck, wrapped with 200 multifamily apartments. Gwinnett County is working with us to build the two-story Elizabeth Williams Public Library, with books on the ground floor and business education space on the second floor. College classes, you know.” There is also a lot of interest in coworking space, which is a fast-growing trend that is here to stay; the details for that are still being worked out, and this is expected to be a boon for startups and young entrepreneurs. Sanders said, “Very important in this finished design was a municipal market, with space beside the library. The Hall at the
Grove will be chef driven — and it’s nonfood chain — with nine different restaurants and menus. Think of a food court, but more upscale. It will be a beautiful and relaxing atmosphere with table seating and your order brought to you, rather than ordering at a counter and then searching for a table. This is a wonderful way for chefs who are just starting out, less risky than brick-andmortar locations and more economical because of it. There’s much less overhead. It’s a unique concept for a tenant. Eventually, they’ll outgrow this location and move on up, with others taking over.”
