The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners without comment deferred a rezoning public hearing that would allow for a subdivision containing 229 for-sale homes on a Tucker-area tract of land that currently serves as a nine-hole golf course.
Commissioner Ben Ku announced at the beginning of the Aug. 27 meeting that the item would be deferred for consideration until the Sept. 24 meeting.
The crowd contained several dozen people who were dressed in red that represent a group opposed to the subdivision.
“I know there are a lot of people in the room who are here for this case, and apologize to those people, but I will need to table this case until Sept. 24,” Ku said.
Rough Draft contacted Ku for clarification as to why the agenda item was tabled, but did not hear back from him before its publication deadline.
The rezoning proposal from R-200 (Residential) to TND (Traditional Neighborhood Development) for 46 acres of land would allow for the construction of 88 single-family homes, 40 duplexes and 109 townhomes.
Heritage Golf Links currently has an 18-hole course and an adjoining nine-hole course. The entire course straddles both DeKalb County and Gwinnett County.
The project, called Fairway Park, has been proposed by Parkland Communities, an Alpharetta-based company that has built communities in Lawrenceville, Fayette County, and Roswell.
Surrounding neighbors, who have formed a group called “Say No to Parkland,” say that they aren’t opposed to developing the land, but want to reduce the development’s density and increase the size of each home to 2,000 square feet or more.
During a public hearing July 8 before the Gwinnett Planning Commission, Parkland CEO Jim Jacobi described the changes the company has made as a result of informal conversations and six community meetings that have been held over the past year.
Jacobi said revisions include decreasing the number of homes, the addition of garages to all homes instead of carports, the creation of walking paths that will be open to the public, and the installation of a round-about at the entrance to the subdivision to help deter speeding.
“We’ve designed more than 50 different site plans based on feedback,” Jacobi said. “We are convinced this will be a very successful project.”
Glen Powell, representing the Burns family, who own the ground lease to the property, endorsed the rezoning plan at the July 8 public hearing.
Powell said the financial health of the 18-hole golf course is contingent on the sale of the parcel, as expenses related to the repair of a dam on the property are projected to be more than $2 million.
Speakers opposed to the project said at the July meeting that it is too dense and called for it to be rezoned to R-75, which would dictate that construction would be limited to single-family homes.
In addition, they called for a higher price point for the single family homes and increased square footage for some of the structures in the community that would mirror the value of homes in the surrounding areas.
“The proposal as we see it now will offer no enhancements to our neighborhood with this development,” Jeff Cleveland, one of the people speaking in opposition to the plan. “We want lower density.”
Another speaker, Shahid Qureshi, who said his house faces the proposed subdivision, said he was opposed to any development on the site, but asked that the new homes reflect the zoning designation of the adjoining neighborhoods.
“My request is that the board deny the application,” Qureshi said.
No action was taken at the July 8 meeting, but the project seemed to gain momentum when the rezoning and variances were approved by the planning board without discussion at the Aug. 6 planning meeting.
Plans to redevelop the area by Lennar Homes stalled in 2022 after similar opposition to the density of the proposed project.
