COBB COUNTY, GA — Despite objections from the Cobb County Zoning Board, Cobb County Commissioners approve rezoning a property near Atlanta Road and Interstate 285 to make way for a major mixed-use development.
The 3-2 vote means the project at the 3.4-acre property on Plant Atkinson Road in Smyrna can move ahead.
According to Cobb County Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, the project is important for the area’s future.
“If we wait for progress to see transformation, we will not see transformation,” Cupid said.
The effort has been years in the making; the proposal calls for a large mixed-use development with retail and office space along with more than 200 housing units.
Opponents argued that the property’s proximity to several industrial sites presents serious health and safety concerns.
“Residential in a heavy industrial area is not a good fit,” Commissioner JoAnn Birrell said. “It’s totally against the land use plan.”
Earlier this month, the county’s zoning board voted against rezoning the property to allow the development to move forward.
“I don’t think I’ve heard a more egregious case of an incompatible use being brought forward,” zoning board member Fred Beloin said at the time.
Supporters, like Commissioner Erick Allen, who represents the area, believe the project will improve the area because it will prevent developers from building additional industrial sites on the property.
“I do not want more industrial or heavy industrial in that area,” Allen declared.