Mixed-Use Development on the Agenda for Spalding Drive and Peachtree Parkway

The Summit at Peachtree Parkway is part of proposed rezoning for live, work, play campus.

The request to rezone 15.69 acres of land currently zoned light industrial to mixed-use development in the city’s central business district is on the agenda for this month’s Peachtree Corners Planning Commission meeting.

The applicant Brand Properties, a metro Atlanta real estate investment company, is seeking to build a campus at 5550 Peachtree Parkway and 5458 Spalding Drive consisting of an existing six-story office building and five new multifamily buildings, one of which will contain ground-floor retail space. These new buildings range in height from three to five stories and will have a total of 251 units. The applicant is also proposing an extension to the public trail system.

The property is currently The Summit at Peachtree Parkway, a large office building and associated parking with a retention pond fronting Peachtree Parkway just south of Spalding Drive. The site is heavily wooded and the office building and pond are partially obscured from view along the street.

The Spalding Drive properties are a vacant parcel adjacent to the Bank of America and a developed parcel containing the Rio Imports Auto Center auto repair business.

The properties which are part of this application form the southeast corner of Peachtree Parkway and Spalding Drive, with the exception of the Bank of America property which is not part of this application.

The Summit has approximately 179,000 square feet of office space with access to 11-plus miles of hiking trails. On-site amenities include basketball and volleyball courts, direct access to the Tech Park Trail, a fitness center complete with locker and shower facilities, and a conference facility. There are 100 surface parking spaces and 520 covered parking spaces.

Fitting into the neighborhood

The Peachtree Parkway property is across the street from Christ the King Lutheran Church, Wells Fargo Bank and a Shell gas station, while the Spalding Drive properties are across the street from the Peachtree Parkway Plaza shopping center anchored by Goodwill. A small arm of the office property extends south to Scientific Drive near its intersection with Technology Parkway.

This corridor is the route of the proposed trail connection to Technology Park. The site plan submitted by the applicant indicates three points of entry into the development: the existing right-in/right-out driveway along Peachtree Parkway, the existing full access driveway along Scientific Drive and a new full-access driveway along Spalding Drive opposite the main Spalding Drive entrance to Peachtree Parkway Plaza.

Most properties surrounding the subject property are zoned light industry with the exception of the Bank of America property which is zoned neighborhood business. Across Spalding Drive, the shopping center is zoned general business as are the Wells Fargo and Christ the King properties across Peachtree Parkway.

The proposed residential development would be located on 9.47 acres or 60% of the site area. The remaining 40% of the site would be comprised of non-residential (office) use.

The site plan shows 251 total housing units (one and two-bedroom units only) on the 15.69-acre site. This equates to a density of 16 units per acre which is well below the maximum of 32 permitted in the proposed zoning regulation.

The Peachtree Parkway properties were not the subject of past rezoning cases. However, the vacant Spalding property was the subject of a county rezoning request in 2006. This request to rezone to allow for a restaurant was denied.

The Community Development Department analysis concluded that since the property lies in the Central Business District Character Area, it is desirable for mixed-use development and higher density than may be appropriate elsewhere in the city. Additionally, the Tech Park area encourages redevelopment to take the form of mixed-use projects, including housing and commercial space, which can benefit employees and employers.

The rendering submitted with the rezoning request shows modern designs with flat rooflines and rectilinear massing which appear to blend with the contemporary aesthetic of Technology Park and the existing office building, according to the staff report.

The site plan also includes numerous amenities that would benefit residents, office workers and hotel guests. These include a dog park, garden, sports courts, pavilion, walking paths, swimming pool, fire pit, food truck court and connectivity to the city’s trail system.

Staff recommendations

After a review of the proposal and other relevant information, city staff recommended that the application be approved with conditions. Here are a some:

• The maximum number of units is dependent on-site conditions, compliance with zoning conditions, and fully engineered plans that meet regulations and consist solely of one- and two-bedroom units.
• The property shall retain the existing office building in its existing configuration, square footage and use.
• Retail and restaurant use shall be located on the ground floor of Buildings No. 1 and No. 2 along the entire building frontage facing Peachtree Parkway.
• The proposed full-access driveway at Spalding Drive shall be evaluated by city traffic engineering staff to determine if signalization, construction of a roundabout, reduction to right-in/right-out, deceleration lanes or other traffic reconfiguration measures are warranted. Any such required changes shall be funded by the developer.
• The developer shall construct the trail connection from the center of the site to Scientific Drive. Such trail connection shall be in the form of a five-foot wide sidewalk constructed to have as little impact as possible on existing, mature, road front landscaping.
• The development shall incorporate and preserve the 44-inch white oak tree located on the southwest corner of the property.
• The development shall include no more than the three access points as shown on the submitted site plan.
• The developer shall provide sidewalk connectivity between all buildings and dedicated trails within the site and provide pedestrian sidewalk connections from the development to the Bank of America site and onto the public sidewalk network along Spalding Drive and Peachtree Parkway. In addition, a driveway connection shall be provided to the adjacent hotel site.
• Amenities will include a pool, pavilion, bocci ball courts, dog run, fire pit and food truck court.
• The master plan campus shall be equipped with vehicle license plate recognition camera technology at all access points.
• The development shall incorporate public art in the form of a large wall mural on the side of the multifamily/retail building visible from Peachtree Parkway or in the form of a sculpture located in the amenity plaza fronting Peachtree Parkway.
• Multifamily parking shall be designed to be ‘electrical vehicle ready’ by providing wiring and outlets in convenient garage locations to accommodate residential electric vehicle charging.

The Peachtree Corners Planning Commission is set to meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 19 at City Hall. To view a live stream of the meeting, click here.