Cobb shoots down Walmart drone kiosk for East Cobb store

April 21, 2026 by Wendy Parker

Cobb shoots down Walmart drone service for East Cobb store — *“This is a defining choice for East Cobb,” said Breckenridge resident Jackie Ellis (at microphone).*

The Cobb Board of Commissioners turned down two requests by Walmart to build drone kiosks for delivery services on Tuesday.

They would have been the first such kiosks in Cobb County for the national retailer, which has several others in metro area.

More than 50 people turned out for a zoning hearing to oppose a kiosk at the East Cobb Walmart on Johnson Ferry Road, and many of them live adjacent to the store.

They said the issue isn’t over whether Walmart should operate drones, but rather is a land-use issue.

In requesting a site-plan amendment to a 2005 zoning approval for the Johnson Ferry Road store, Walmart proposed taking out 28 parking spaces for a fenced-in kiosk to accommodate 18 drones.

The drones would travel at 60 mph at a height of 150 feet until reaching the delivery point, then would drop to around 20 feet to a driveway or yard.

By a 5-0 vote, however, commissioners concurred that while the issue of drones for commercial use is evolving, the specific locations are not ideal for that purpose.

“We do look at each case individually, said Cobb Commissioner JoAnn Birrell, whose District 3 includes East Cobb, and who held up papers indicating nearly 100 e-mails and other messages opposing the kiosk.

“This location isn’t conducive to this service.”

District 4 Commissioner Monique Sheffield echoed those remarks in moving to reject a Walmart drone kiosk on Barrett Parkway later in the meeting.

Residents said that locating the kiosks in heavily residential neighborhoods would set a bad precedent.

Jackie Ellis, who lives in the Breckenridge subdivision right behind the East Cobb Walmart, said a drone kiosk there could dramatically alter the residential fabric of the community.

“This is a defining choice for East Cobb.” said Ellis, who was surrounded by several other nearby residents, warning that approving a kiosk would turn the community into an “unregulated test bug” for a commercial service that is in its early stages.

*WING’s presentation stressed the consumer convenience of its drone delivery service to Cobb commissioners.*

Walmart has been working with the drone delivery service WING. Its proposal stated that Walmart deliveries would be provided only during daytime hours.

During a presentation at Tuesday’s hearing a WING representative said the noise levels coming from a drone would be between a regular car and a delivery vehicle.

The delivery parcels—between 5 and 10 pounds—also would be delivered only to single-family homes.

But Ellis and other opponents, including the East Cobb Civic Association, said granting Walmart permission to add drones would open the floodgates for other retailers to do the same.

She said it could pave the way for “a drone highway 150 feet over our heads. The technology is impressive, but it is not infallible.”

The Cobb Zoning Division recommended denial of both drone kiosk applications as land-use matters.

Cobb Commission Chairwoman called the kiosk cases “a novel matter for us to consider as a board.”

She said she wanted to be open to the idea of having drone delivery services but pointed to the neighborhood concerns.

More than a dozen East Cobb communities, or around 400 households, received notices about the Walmart plans because they live within 1,000 feet of the proposed kiosk.

(The notified neighborhoods include Shallowford Pointe, Alpine Lakes, Byrons Pond, Havencroft, Clary Lakes, Mountain Creek, Garden Gate on Lassiter, Waterfront, Yorktown, Chimney Lakes, Westfield, Marlanta, Childers Walk, Coventry Green and residents of homes on Freeman Road and Childers Road.)

Cupid said that she asked WING and Walmart to meet with the community, but there hadn’t been any dialogue.

“A denial today for this doesn’t mean a denial” for another location, she added, saying that this county “continues to evolve” when it comes to business and technological innovation.

But Cupid also admitted that “we haven’t even discussed what a highway in the sky looks like.”

*Commissioners JoAnn Birrell and Monique Sheffield made motions to reject Walmart site-plan requests for drone kiosks.*

RaceTrac rezoning request held by Cobb Planning Commission

April 7, 2026April 7, 2026 by Wendy Parker

The revived rezoning request by RaceTrac for a gas station and convenience store on Bells Ferry Road at Barrett Parkway has been delayed by the Cobb Planning Commission.

After a lengthy discussion the commission voted 5-0 Tuesday to hold the application for 30 days for environmental, traffic and other reasons.

RaceTrac is bringing back plans for a facility at the corner of Bells Ferry Road and Barrett Parkway that it withdrew late last year, before the Cobb Board of Commissioners could vote.

The planning board had recommended prohibiting gas station use, as well as alcohol, vaping and tobacco sales, car washes, automotive uses or any type of drive-through business.

On Tuesday, the board heard from citizens near the two-acre tract that was formerly the site of the McAfee House, a home dating to the 1840s and that has been relocated to Cherokee County.

They repeated concerns about traffic, especially due to the property’s location across from Bells Ferry Elementary School, and adjacent to a day care center, as well as worries over gas emissions from the fuel pumps.

The new site plan by RaceTrac, a Cobb-based company (you can read it here) is relatively unchanged from last year, with a 16-pump fuel station and convenience store that would be open 24/7.

The primary opposition came from the Bells Ferry Civic Association, which repeated environmental concerns about the release of gas vapors into the vicinity on an around-the-clock basis. More than 30 people turned out in opposition at Tuesday’s hearing.

The applicant’s attorney, Kevin Moore, said RaceTrac’s pumps and fuel tanks would be equipped with equipment to capture gas vapors from the pumps.

But Planning Commission member Fred Beloin pressed the issue, asking Moore and Cobb Zoning Division head John Peterson if there’s anything the county can do to require applicants to provide information about what Beloin called “a known environmental threat.”

Moore said there’s no county ordinance to that effect, and Peterson replied that county commissioners have latitude in incorporating such information.

“We’re acting without data, without information . . . to suggest it’s safe,” a frustrated Beloin said.

Other opponents expressed concerns about traffic related not just to school operations but the area in general.

Cobb Board of Education member David Chastain, whose granddaughter attends Bells Ferry Elementary was among them, noting a high number of similar businesses nearby to the proposed RaceTrac.

“How many more 24-hour convenience stores do we need in this particular area?” asked Chastain, who said he was speaking on behalf of the community and not the Cobb County School District.

“Denying this request is not going to harm a good corporate citizen.”

He suggested the property, owned by by Medford Family LP, could be used for medical and professional offices instead.

Moore has countered that a RaceTrac will have no adverse traffic impacts in a commercialized area that’s adjacent to a major retail center with a Publix and a Barnes and Noble and close to the Town Center area.

The Cobb Zoning Division has recommended approval of the application, concluding that a traffic study completed for the initial request “will be considered satisfied” for the renewed application.

The staff analysis recommends that RaceTrac make access on Barrett Parkway right-in, right-out only.

But Sara Micheletto, a newly appointed Planning Commission member who did not hear the RaceTrac case last fall, questioned Moore’s claim in the wake of reconstruction at Bells Ferry Elementary that has relocated some students to Chalker Elementary.

When full capacity returns in the fall of 2027, school-related traffic in the area will return.

The Planning Commission’s vote is contingent on additional staff research into possible traffic and environmental impacts.

New Johnson Ferry-Shallowford subdivision getting underway

April 2, 2026April 2, 2026 by Wendy Parker

Site work is getting started for the residential component of the redevelopment of the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford intersection that was the point of contention during a lengthy rezoning process five years ago.

Toll Brothers, a national residential builder, announced this week that it’s commencing construction of a gated luxury subdivision to be called Shallowford Pointe, with advance sales to begin later this year.

The subdivision will have 75 single-family detached units and other amenities on land facing Johnson Ferry Road, at Waterfront Drive.

That’s a residential road leading to the Waterfront and MarLanta subdivisions and that was reconfigured to meet a traffic signal on Johnson Ferry with access to the Shallowford Falls Shopping Center.

Shallowford Pointe will feature homes ranging from 2,319 to 3,659 square feet and from 3-5 bedrooms 2.5-3.5 bathrooms with prices starting at $1 million.

“Shallowford Pointe provides an exceptional opportunity to live in a luxury home in one of East Cobb’s most desirable locations,” Eric White, Division President of Toll Brothers in Georgia, said in a company release.

“With dynamic amenities, proximity to premier shopping and entertainment, and access to top-rated schools, this community is perfect for home shoppers seeking the best of East Cobb living.”

Toll Brothers also has been building high-end townhomes as part of the new East Cobb Walk mixed-use development at the site of the former Sprayberry Crossing Shopping Center.

*An interior rendering at Shallowford Pointe, with prices starting at $1 million.*

Shallowford Pointe is part of another mixed-use project that includes the ongoing construction of the East Cobb Church at the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford intersection.

North Point Ministries, which operates East Cobb Church, got rezoning in 2021 for the 33-acre assemblage of land at the southwest intersection, whose previous owners, Fred and Lynn Hanna, wanted to sell only to one buyer.

Opposition grew to residential plans calling for 95 units, with nearby residents concerned about density, traffic and stormwater runoff issues. Others objected to frequent site plan updates that were submitted without being presented to the community.

Some citizens who spoke out wondered whether the rezoning would have been considered at all had it not been made by a religious organization.

One of the stipulations included in final passage called for a reduction of housing units after a dredged-up lake was declared to be in a flood plain area.

That declaration, plus the Waterfront Drive relocation, reduced the size of the developable land to 13.89 acres.

North Point Ministries sold that acreage to Johnson Ferry Road, LLC in December 2021, just after the rezoning, for $4.25 million, according to Cobb property tax records.

The land was then sold in June 2025 for $16.669 million to Arroyo Capital, a prominent acquisition and development capital firm, which also paid $4.431 million for three more acres along Waterfront Drive that includes a stream and will have natural landscape buffering.

The Shallowford Pointe site plan (see below) calls for primary right-in, right-out access via Johnson Ferry. The amenities include a pool, cabana, grill station and a covered open-air lounge with a fireplace. Residents also can customize interior features in their homes.

East Cobb Church, which began meeting at Eastside Church on Lower Roswell Road and currently holds services at Fellowship Christian School in Roswell, is expected to open its new location in 2027.

North Point Ministries owns two separate tracts on Johnson Ferry on either side of Waterfront Drive that its initial plans called for small retail space.

Georgia DOT also is planning a $2.7 million traffic improvement project at the intersection to reduce congestion and accidents. The components include signal modifications, the addition of a westbound lane on Shallowford at Johnson Ferry and the removal of an eastbound through lane.

Work was initially scheduled to begin in 2026, but an updated timeline hasn’t been announced.

East Cobb Walmart files plans for drone delivery station

April 21, 2026April 1, 2026 by Wendy Parker

Representatives of Walmart will ask Cobb commissioners later this month to carve out a portion of its parking lot at its Johnson Ferry Road store to build a drone delivery station.

Filings with the Cobb Zoning Office indicate that Walmart would fence in the kiosk (indicated in the pink area on the map below), “no land disturbance is proposed and all proposed items will be anchor bolted to the pavement.”

Because Walmart would be amending the site plan, commissioners need to sign off on the proposal, which is scheduled to be heard April 21 during the monthly zoning hearing.

It’s an “other business” item (you can read the filing here), and zoning staff hasn’t yet offered an analysis.

The applicant is Rachel Sutherland, a project manager with Atwell, a national real estate and land development firm that is partnering with Walmart and a third-party drone service to develop the proposed East Cobb drone station site.

The Walmart deliveries would be for light parcels, typically under five pounds, and would cover a radius of a few miles.

Walmart is one of the first retailers to offer drone delivery services, and Atlanta is among the test markets (Amazon, Walmart’s main competitor, also is experimenting with drone delivery in certain area, but not Atlanta).

The East Cobb station would be the first such Walmart drone facility in Cobb County; the closest Walmart drone station currently is in Woodstock.

Walmart is working with the drone delivery service WING, which promises deliveries in less than 30 minutes.

The drones would travel at 60 mph at a height of 150 feet until reaching the delivery point, then would drop to around 20 feet to a driveway or yard.

Walmart has indicated it would provide deliveries only during daytime hours.

Residents in the vicinity have been receiving notifications from Walmart, and some have vowed to fight the drone kiosk.

One of them, Stefanie Stoltz, has written to commissioners asking them to turn down the request, saying that unlike other areas where Walmart operates drones, “this is a very residential area” and that what Walmart is asking for is “a misuse of zoning.”

She lives on Freeman Road, right behind the Walmart store, and is worried about noise, mechanical failures and other issues.

“This isn’t just a small operational change—it would fundamentally change the nature of what happens right next to my property,” Stoltz wrote.

“Living next to what is effectively a drone launch site—with constant noise, overhead activity, and safety concerns—makes my home less desirable to future buyers. This is a direct financial impact on me as a homeowner, through no choice of my own.”

What isn’t included in the Walmart filings is how drone activity might change if the delivery station plans are approved.

Drones are regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration, and Walmart has received permission to deliver via drone into the evening hours in some other markets.

It’s unclear if local governments could implement rules that could be overridden by the FAA.

More than anything, Stoltz, said, “I am also concerned about what this opens the door to. If this is approved, what prevents other companies or additional drone operators from using the same airspace or nearby properties? This could quickly multiply the number of drones overhead, turning an already concerning situation into a constant, unavoidable presence.”

RaceTrac refiles Bells Ferry/Barrett Parkway rezoning plans

March 27, 2026 by Wendy Parker

Shortly after withdrawing a request for a 24/7 gas station on an historic site on Bells Ferry Road in November, the attorney for the property owner refiled rezoning plans with Cobb County.

A request to convert the former site of the McAfee House on Bells Ferry at Barrett Parkway is on the agenda of the Cobb Planning Commission on April 7.

RaceTrac Inc. wants to change the two-acre tract from residential to NRC zoning (neighborhood retail commercial), the same category it sought last year.

But the Planning Commission, responding to substantial community opposition, scuttled that request by excluding fuel sales as a permitted use for the property. The recommendation for approval also prohibited alcohol, vaping and tobacco sales, car washes, automotive uses or any type of drive-through business.

Nearby residents complained about traffic, RaceTrac’s proximity to a child-care center and a glut of gas stations already in the area.

In moving for the restrictions, Planning Board member Fred Beloin said that RaceTrac’s proposal “would take a bad road and make it far, far worse.”

RaceTrac withdrew the request before the Cobb Board of Commissioners could hear it in November.

But on Jan. 21, RaceTrac attorney Kevin Moore filed a new request (you can read it here) with a new site plan that hasn’t changed much from the initial application.

The property is located in Commission District 2, represented by Smyrna Democrat Erick Allen. Since the original case, he has appointed a new Planning Commission member, Sara Michieletto, a former member of the Cobb Board of Zoning Appeals.

In the refiled request, the RaceTrac facility would have 16 gas pumps and a convenience store.

The Cobb Zoning Office has recommended approval of the application, concluding that a traffic study completed for the initial request “will be considered satisfied” for the renewed application. The staff analysis recommends that RaceTrac make access on Barrett Parkway right-in, right-out only.

The land, owned by Medford Family LP, was where the McAfee House once stood. It was built in the 1840s and was used by a Union general during the Civil War. The home was relocated to Cherokee County in 2025 by Cobb Landmarks, an historic preservation non-profit.

In 2023, a car wash was proposed for the land and the Cobb Planning Commission recommended approval. But the request was withdrawn by the applicant due to what it said were other business obligations.

Hembree Road subdivision request gets initial hearing

February 4, 2026February 2, 2026 by Wendy Parker

UPDATED:

The Planning Commission recommended the request for approval on its consent agenda.

ORIGINAL POST:

A residential developer who wants to convert 13 largely undeveloped acres near Pope High School for a subdivision is seeking a rezoning request to increase the number of homes to be built. Hembree Road subdivision request to get initial hearing

Red Ridge Properties LLC, of Athens, will go before the Cobb Planning Commission Tuesday seeking rezoning from R-30 to R-20 to build 20 homes, or 1.95 units an acre. The current zoning category allows for 14 homes.

The land at 2760 and 2830 Hembree Road contains a single home, built in 1976, and it surrounded by newer subdivisions. According to an agenda item (you can read it here), Red Ridge Properties is planning to build homes with an average of 2,500 square feet and a traditional or craftsman architecture.

The property is being sold by the Estate of James Lamar Rucker.

The Cobb Zoning Division is recommending approval of the request, which is on the consent agenda, meaning there’s no known opposition to the application. Red Ridge is represented by noted Cobb zoning attorney Kevin Moore.

In its analysis, the staff noted that the adjacent Liberty Ridge subdivision also has a similar density of 1.9 units an acre, and that it conforms with the low-density residential category called for in the Cobb Future Land Use Map.

The subdivision would be zoned in the Cobb County School District to Pope High School, Hightower Trail Middle School and Murdock Elementary School, all of which are under capacity, according to the agenda item.

The agenda item also states that Cobb DOT is recommending a deceleration lane be built as part of the subdivision’s access point because Hembree Road is an minor collector road.

The Cobb Planning Commission meeting begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the second floor board room of the county office building at 100 Cherokee Street, Marietta. You can view the full agenda by clicking here.

You also can watch the hearing on the county’s website and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.

The Planning Commission’s recommendations will be considered by the Cobb Board of Commissioners on Feb. 17.

Cobb approves Mt. Bethel Christian Academy expansion plans

December 16, 2025 by Wendy Parker

The Cobb Board of Commissioners has approved a site plan change for Mt. Bethel Christian Academy to add an access point at its campus on Post Oak Tritt Road.

Commissioners also approved in a 5-0 vote to raise the enrollment cap to 850 students over the next five years as the private school makes plans to move all of its operations there in the next few years.

The school wants to purchase 9.7 acres of land at the northwest corner of Post Oak Tritt and Holly Springs Road, and add a right-in, right-out access point on Holly Springs, to add to nearly 34 acres it owns there.

Currently there are two access points on Post Oak Tritt, near an already-bottlenecked intersection. Local residents opposed to the request said existing traffic issues would grow worse.

Mt. Bethel Christian has an overall enrollment of around 700 students at all grade levels, but is anticipating long-term growth as it consolidates is operations from its original location on Lower Roswell Road.

When commissioners approved a master plan for the school last year, it capped enrollment at 625 students. At Tuesday’s zoning hearing, the school was seeking a cap of 1,100 (you can read the final zoning analysis here).

Mt. Bethel Christian has operated a high school campus there since 2014, with an enrollment of around 200 students, and will be adding middle school grades next year with another estimated 200 students.

The school was started by the former Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church in 1998 but became a separate entity in 2021, right before before the church’s departure from the United Methodist Church. Since then, the academy has leased space from the church for Grades K-8 on its grounds on Lower Roswell Road.

In 2023, Mt. Bethel Church decided to terminate the school’s lease by 2028, prompting the academy to find new facilities. The K-5 enrollment currently is around 300 students.

Neil Dougherty, who lives in the Mabry Manor neighborhood off Holly Springs, said Tuesday traffic is already bad enough with the current school enrollment, and that Cobb DOT has rated the intersection service level as an “F.”

He asked that school expansion be delayed until the improvements are made, and that the school provide bus transportation to alleviate traffic.

“The real issue here is scale, timing and responsibility,” he said, “specifically, whether it makes sense to expand further, before the existing and well-documented traffic problems are fixed.

“There is no funded or approved fix in place. In other words, this intersection is already broken, and there is no clear plan to fix it.

Cobb DOT has held open houses to collect public feedback on the intersection improvements, but hasn’t decided what that might look like. It concluded that a double roundabout, similar to what’s at the entrance of Pope High School, wouldn’t work there.

Robin Washington, a resident of the Hampton Park neighborhood, located off Post Oak Tritt, asked for a delay until February. She said “this is not about opposing the education of young people, this is about ensuring that the school’s long-term success is supported by infrastructure that can safety and sustainably handle the traffic it will generate.”

In her motion to approve the Mt. Bethel Christian request, Commissioner JoAnn Birrell asked that Cobb DOT conduct another signalized traffic study after the first of the year, when classes resume following the holidays.

She also wants the right-out lane on Holly Springs to extend to Post Oak Tritt.

Kevin Moore, Mt. Bethel Christian’s attorney, said the school currently has bus service for the Lower Roswell Road campus, and will continue to do so on Post Oak Tritt, with designated pickup and dropoff spots in the East Cobb area.

Dr. Jim Cianca, Mt. Bethel Christian’s head of school, said the academy needs to know its enrollment cap now so it can begin planning for the lower school relocation “that would allow us to make our 2028 deadline.”

He said next year’s projected enrollment across all grade levels is 750 students, and that the 850 figure is what’s expected in its immediate five-year plan.

Mt. Bethel Christian agreed to a several stipulations, including a right-of-way donation for the Post Oak Tritt-Holly Springs intersection improvements.

The school doesn’t have any plans to develop on the additional property now, but if it wanted to do in the future, it would have to come back to the county.

Church withdraws variance request in East Cobb neighborhbood

December 6, 2025December 5, 2025 by Wendy Parker

Grace Resurrection Methodist Church has withdrawn a request for two variances for its plans to build a new campus in an East Cobb neighborhood.

According to an agenda for Wednesday’s Cobb Board of Zoning Appeals meeting, the request was withdrawn without prejudice, meaning it can be brought back at any time.

The agenda item and related documents didn’t include filings to indicate a reason for the withdrawal; East Cobb News has left a message with Grace Resurrection seeking more information.

The church had been seeking variances to build a 15,000-square-foot building and a 286-space parking lot on Oak Lane, near the intersections of Casteel Road and Bill Murdock Road.

They hired prominent zoning attorney Kevin Moore to represent them before the BZA, a five-member appointed body that hears requests for zoning variances and appeals for waivers to county zoning ordinances.

The church didn’t need to get rezoning for the 6.49-acre Oak Lane property, since it’s zoned for residential use, as are worship facilities.

Oak Lane is a minor or local road, and the Cobb County Code requires churches located in residential areas to have direct access to a major or collector road.

The church also was requesting a variance to reduce a required 50-foot setback to eight feet for an accessory structure, a 6,200-square-foot playground (case filing here).

But community opposition built as the plans were revealed, and church leaders have said the Oak Lane property is one of several options they’re considering.

Grace Resurrection, which formed in 2022 out of what is now Mt. Bethel Church in 2023, currently operates in a former Lutheran church building on Indian Hills Parkway at Roswell Road.

But church leaders said they’ve outgrown the space that’s leased from the adjacent Congregation Etz Chaim synagogue.

Residents said traffic in the Oak Lane area is already a problem with narrow, curvy roads, and they’re concerned about noise, light and environmental issues.

An online petition said that 22 proposed LED light poles for the potential church property “will cause excessive light pollution affecting the tranquility of our area. Coupled with the anticipated noise from regular playground activities and numerous events, the peace and quiet we currently enjoy will likely be shattered.”

Editor’s Note: Rev. James Williams, the Grace Resurrection senior pastor, responded on social media after this story was published that “Yes, Oak Lane Community, there is a Santa Claus! Seriously, we appreciate all of the good and kind feedback. Keep us in your prayers.”

Mt. Bethel Christian Academy expansion gets Cobb hearing

December 2, 2025December 2, 2025 by Wendy Parker

A proposal to expand Mt. Bethel Christian Academy to include all grade levels and greatly increase enrollment on its Post Oak Tritt Road campus got its first hearing Tuesday.

The Cobb Planning Commission voted 4-0 to recommend approval of the proposal, which will be considered by Cobb commissioners later this month.

Mt. Bethel Christian has operated a high school campus on Post Oak Tritt Road near Holly Springs Road since 2014 and is making plans to add middle school grades.

But the latest proposal before the county to alter an existing site plan and renew a special land-use permit would also would relocate the school’s K-5 classes there.

The school wants to purchase 9.7 acres of land at the northwest corner of Post Oak Tritt and Holly Springs Road, and add a right-in, right-out access point on Holly Springs.

The Cobb Zoning Division recommended approval of the application, which you can read by clicking here.

*Cobb Planning Commission member Deborah Dance*

But local residents opposed to the request said existing traffic issues would grow worse. Mt. Bethel Christian said its long-term enrollment projections would have 1,100 students, which concerned nearby residents.

The school was started by Mt. Bethel Church in 1998 but became a separate entity in 2021, right before before the church’s departure from the United Methodist Church. Since then, the academy has leased space from the church for Grades K-8 on its grounds on Lower Roswell Road.

In 2023, Mt. Bethel Church decided to terminate the school’s lease by 2028, prompting the academy to find new facilities.

Late last year, Cobb commissioners approved a master plan for the school. But since then, Mt. Bethel Christian has revised the site plan contingent on the special land-use permit renewal and after planning to acquire the 9.7-acre tract from Dodgen Farms, LLC.

That land was sold by John Dodgen in June for $1.393 million, according to Cobb property tax records, and would bring the school’s property to 42 acres, including sports facilities and parking.

On Tuesday, nearby residents said they haven’t been informed of traffic impacts and said a vote should be delayed until a full traffic study can be studied by Cobb DOT.

“Without it, the county cannot properly assess” what those impacts may be, said Mabry Manor resident Neil Dougherty, especially as Cobb DOT is conducting engineering design for Post Oak Tritt-Holly Springs intersectdions improvements.

He said he was speaking on behalf of nearly 75 residents in his community, which is located across Holly Springs Road from the Dodgen property.

*A revised Mt. Bethel Christian Academy site plan includes an additional access point on Holly Springs Road (at right).*

Another Mabry Manor resident, Heather Tolley-Bauer, said that “dropping a regional school in a neighborhood area” is “going to impact us for decades.”

Kevin Moore, Mt. Bethel Christian’s attorney, responded that “Pope High School was dropped into residential neighborhood with 1,800 students.

“Cobb County [schools] doesn’t have to go through this process. Only private schools have to do this.”

He said Mt. Bethel Christian’s enrollment projections of 1,100 total students is a long-range number, and it’s not arbitrary. The school currently has a total enrollment of around 700 students.

Moore added that the school “doesn’t have to go there,” meaning to get to 1,100 students, only that that figure would be an enrollment cap.

Richard Grome of the East Cobb Civic Association said a new master plan should be redone and approved again by the county, and said the enrollment projections are “premature” until more detailed traffic information can be evaluated.

But Moore said “the master plan stays as the master plan.”

In her motion recommend approval, Planning Commission member Deborah Dance of District 3 in East Cobb didn’t include a recommendation for a master plan update, saying that’s something that appointed body hasn’t delved into.

Cobb commissioners will hear the Mt. Bethel Christian application on Dec. 17.

*The master plan for the Mt. Bethel Christian Academy campus.*

RaceTrac withdraws NE Cobb rezoning; 7 Brews Coffee delayed

November 18, 2025 by Wendy Parker

RaceTrac rezoning case in NE Cobb continued to November — *RaceTrac wanted to build on the former site of the McAfee House, but residents, the Cobb County School District and others fought the proposal.*

A proposal for a RaceTrac gas station on an historic site on Bells Ferry Road was withdrawn without prejudice Tuesday morning.

The Cobb Board of Commissioners voted 5-0 to approve RaceTrac’s request to withdraw the request without prejudice, meaning it can reapply at any time.

The request was a last-minute action and thus required commissioners’ approval.

RaceTrac proposed a 24/7 gas station and convenience store (filing and analysis here) at the northwest intersection of Bells Ferry Road and Barrett Parkway (2595 Bells Ferry Road), on land where the McAfee House once stood.

It was a home built in the 1840s and was used by a Union general during the Civil War. The home was relocated to Cherokee County earlier this year by Cobb Landmarks, an historic preservation non-profit.

There wasn’t any discussion before the vote at a zoning hearing on Tuesday, and a reason for the withdrawal was not given.

But the withdrawal comes a month after the Cobb Planning Commission essentially scuttled any plans for what RaceTrac had in mind, recommending denial of any gas station use, along with uses that involve alcohol, vaping and tobacco sales, other automotive uses or any type of drive-through business.

That was due to vocal community opposition, and 25 people turned out Tuesday who were against the plans.

The Cobb Zoning Division continued the request to November for a traffic study update (revised Oct. 15).

Opposition came from nearby residents, the Bells Ferry Civic Association, the Cobb County School District (the land is across from Bells Ferry Elementary School) and others for traffic, educational and environmental reasons.

The property also is next to a child care center. The applicant conceded that traffic in a congested area would increase.

In an October Planning Commission meeting, RaceTrac attorney Kevin Moore was asked if his client was looking at other locations.

“I’m not aware of any other options that they have in particular,” Moore said. “I am aware of this option which they consider ideal.” He added that it was “not inherently evil” for a gas station and convenience store to be located there.

At the same meeting, Planning Commission member Fred Beloin said that “this would be the opposite of an old Beatles song where you take a sad song and make it better. This would be take a bad road and make it far, far worse.”

In 2023, a car wash was proposed for the land, owned by the Medford Family LP, and the Cobb Planning Commission recommended approval. But the request was withdrawn by the applicant due to what it said were other business obligations.

Also on Tuesday, Cobb commissioners voted to continue a request for a drive-through coffee business in Northeast Cobb.

BRKI, LLC wants to convert part of a former health clinic on Sandy Plains Road at Gordy Parkway for a 7 Brews Coffee.

That request will be delayed to the December zoning hearing.

Opposition mounts to church plans in East Cobb neighborhood

November 18, 2025November 18, 2025 by Wendy Parker

Opposition grows to church plans in East Cobb neighborhood

Nearly 600 people have signed a petition opposing plans by a church to build a new worship facility in an East Cobb neighborhood.

In December Grace Resurrection Methodist Church will be asking for a variance from the Cobb Board of Zoning Appeals to build a 15,000-square-foot building and a 286-space parking lot on Oak Lane, near the intersections of Casteel Road and Bill Murdock Road.

Oak Lane is a minor or local road, and the Cobb County Code requires churches located in residential areas to have direct access to a major or collector road.

The online petition (you can read it here) names Cobb commissioners as “decision makers.”

But the hearing will be before the BZA, a five-member appointed body that hears requests for zoning variances and appeals for waivers to county zoning ordinances.

The church also is requesting a variance to reduce a required 50-foot setback to eight feet for an accessory structure, a 6,200-square-foot playground (case filing here).

The hearing is scheduled for Dec. 10 (our previous coverage here).

Grace Resurrection doesn’t need rezoning, since churches are zoned for residential use. The 6.49 acres at 3650 Oak Lane is owned by the Barkis Family Revocable Trust and contains a home. It is otherwise undeveloped and is zoned R-30, a mid- to low-density residential category.

But nearby residents have said that traffic is already a problem in an area with narrow, curvy roads, and they’re concerned about noise, light and environmental issues.

Grace Resurrection was formed in 2022 by former members of Mt. Bethel Church, and currently leases a former Lutheran church building on Indian Hills Parkway at Roswell Road.

Church officials told East Cobb News in a statement last month that the congregation is growing and needs more space, and that the Oak Lane property is one of several options under consideration. The proposed building on Oak Lane would seat 750 people.

The church has hired Kevin Moore, a prominent Cobb zoning attorney to handle the request before the BZA.

After the Oct. 30 East Cobb News story was published, some readers expressed vocal opposition to the Oak Lane property for the church.

Rev. James Williams, the Grace Resurrection senior pastor, also commented on an East Cobb News Facebook page thread, expressing thanks for the feedback and said that “you need to know we’re exploring many avenues for the future. We also understand the concerns expressed here.

“Please pray with us about what’s next for our fast growing congregation. We have no solid plans at this point. The East Cobb story is about a first step that must taken in any property we’re considering. God bless you!”

Another reader replied that “I live there and I’ve been fighting to make that road safer for years. We will fight to the last breath to not let you have the release from the requirement to be on a major road. Oak Lane is dangerous. The two blind curves at that driveway are dangerous. That intersection is dangerous.

“You are attempting to further in danger our lives and the lives of our children. Look elsewhere and walk away from this idea.”

Church eyes East Cobb neighborhood for new worship facility

October 30, 2025 by Wendy Parker

A new faith community in East Cobb wants to build its own worship facility in a residential area, which isn’t unusual.

For the last three years, Grace Resurrection Methodist Church has leased a former church building at Roswell Road and Indian Hills Parkway.

But Grace Resurrection, which was formed by former members and a former senior pastor of Mt. Bethel Church in 2022, wants have its own facility.

Grace Resurrection is seeking to build a 15,000-square-foot building and a 286-space parking lot on 6.5 acres of undeveloped land surrounded by subdivisions.

The land, owned by the Barkis Family Revocable Trust, is located near the intersection of Oak Lane, Casteel Road and Bill Murdock Road. It contains a single-family home and like surrounding property is zoned R-30.

Grace Resurrection doesn’t need rezoning since houses of worship are zoned in residential categories.

But the Cobb County code requires that worship facilities in residential areas have “primary access” to and from major or arterial roads.

The point of access would be on Oak Lane, which is considered by the county to be a collector or neighborhood road.

The church will be requesting a waiver from that requirement at a Cobb Board of Zoning Appeals hearing on Dec. 10 (you can read the filing here).

The BZA is a five-member appointed body that hears such matters as zoning variances and appeals for waivers to county zoning ordinances.

The church also is requesting a variance to reduce a required 50-foot setback to eight feet for an accessory structure, a 6,200-square-foot playground.

In a statement, Grace Resurrection told East Cobb News that it is “exploring long-term options for a permanent church home to support its growing congregation. One of the properties under evaluation is a nearly seven-acre parcel on Oak Lane in East Cobb. This location is one of several being considered, and no decisions have been made regarding its future use.”

The statement didn’t identify any other properties, and indicated that its application before the BZA is a “request for clarification” as it does due diligence in the zoning process.

Grace Resurrection has hired noted Cobb zoning attorney Kevin Moore to handle the case. There’s been some concern expressed on social media channels, especially over traffic and environmental issues.

Applicants before the BZA are asked to “state what hardship would be created by following the normal terms of the ordinance.”

In its response, Grace Resurrection said that “to grant the requested variance and allow the development of the Church campus would in minimal impact upon adjacent properties and residences as the surrounding roads are arterials.”

The northwestern part of Barkis property is located at the curved intersection of the three roads, and is bordered on the south by the Blake Ford subdivision and on the east by the Greyfield neighborhood.

There is no other non-residential use of property in the area, and there are a number of other nearby larger parcels along Oak Lane that are also owned by family trusts.

Grace Resurrection initially was leasing the former Lutheran Church of the Incarnation site on Indian Hills Parkway from the Southeastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

In April 2023, the synod sold that property to the adjacent Congregation Etz Chaim synagogue for $1.1 million.

In its statement to East Cobb News, Grace Resurrection said it “remains committed to transparency, responsible planning, and being a good neighbor in the East Cobb community. We will continue to provide updates as our evaluation process moves forward and as additional information becomes available.”

Cobb to hold Unified Development Code open houses in November

October 28, 2025 by Wendy Parker

The Cobb Community Development Agency will be holding open house sessions in November about the long-proposed Unified Development Code.

The UDC was proposed in 2022 to update and unify existing zoning, land use and development regulations and to make “the code clearer, easier to use, and better aligned with Cobb’s vision for the future,” according to county officials.

The open houses are designed to provide information and solicit public feedback. They will take place at the following locations and dates around the county:

Wednesday, Nov. 12, 6:30–8 p.m.
Ron Anderson Community Center
3820 Macedonia Road, Powder Springs

Thursday, Nov. 13, 9–10:30 a.m.
Cobb Board of Commissioners Meeting Room
100 Cherokee Street, Marietta

Thursday, Nov. 13, 6:30–8 p.m.
North Cobb Regional Library
3535 Old 41 Highway, Kennesaw

Monday, Nov. 17, 6:30–8 p.m.
Windy Hill Community Center
1885 Roswell Street, Smyrna

Tuesday, Nov. 18, 6:30–8 p.m.
Mountain View Community Center
3400 Sandy Plains Road, Marietta

The last time there was an update on the UDC was in February, when Cobb commissioners were briefed about a proposed planned development category, for large-scale mixed-use projects.

That didn’t require any action, and the county has been silent on the subject of the UDC for the last few months.

There were to have been public meetings this spring on the UDC initial draft that was released in November 2024, but those were not scheduled.

The draft is a 97-page document that includes general provisions, transitional provisions, definitions, terms of construction and related topics. Related documents can be found by clicking here.

The primary updates for the first installment cover administrative articles that establish procedures for the review of all development applications, including applications for rezoning, special land-use permits, for subdivisions and for zoning variances.

Some citizens have objected to the UDC, calling it “a war on the suburbs.” But county officials say an overhaul is long overdue, more than a half-century after Cobb first adopted a zoning code.

At that February work session, Commissioner Keli Gambrill complained that she and her colleagues didn’t have much time to absorb a significant amount of information, and further said that “we have a lot of animosity out there about this whole process and how it’s being handled.”

Cobb Community Development Agency director Jessica Guinn said at that work session that “ultimately, the document is adopted as a whole, as one big code amendment. We want to be sure that before we do that we’ve got something that the board will be comfortable adopting.”

She didn’t provide a timeline.

Drive-through coffee proposal on Sandy Plains Road continued

October 24, 2025 by Wendy Parker

Drive-through coffee proposal on Sandy Plains Road continued

What once was a pediatric clinic on Sandy Plains Road is being proposed for a drive-through coffee shop.

But a request to amend a site plan to accommodate the new business is being continued to November.

The Cobb Board of Commissioners was to have heard the proposal this week by BRKI, LLC, for a 7 Brew Drive Through Coffee.

But at the start of Tuesday’s zoning hearing, they voted to continue the matter for a month, to their Nov. 18 meeting.

The location is 3618 Sandy Plains Road at Gordy Parkway, where an Egleston Children’s Hospital Clinic once stood, and it’s part of the former Gordy property.

When those parcels are subject rezoning or site plan changes, they must be approved by a special architectural control review committee, and that process has not been completed.

So Cobb Zoning Division manager John Pederson asked for the continuance. The building was completed in 1995, and the clinic closed in 2020 it has remained vacant ever since.

The five-acre tract is zoned for general commercial, and the 7 Brew proposal wouldn’t change that.

The applicant is seeking to put the drive-through on the northern side of the building, keeping an existing 50-foot buffer intact.

“The proposal meets setbacks, parking and impervious zoning criteria,” according to the staff analysis. “If the amendment is approved, all previous stipulations would remain in effect, which includes the [Gordy] Architectural Control Committee review and approval for the property.”

A similar process was necessary last year when Whataburger amended a site plan nearby to convert the former O’Charley’s location.

7 Brew is a national chain of drive-through coffee locations that opened in 2017, and includes a location in Mableton. In addition to coffee, menu items include teas, lemonades, smoothies and shakes.

In the staff analysis, Cobb DOT recommended the applicant conduct a traffic study.

RaceTrac rezoning case in NE Cobb continued to November

October 18, 2025October 18, 2025 by Wendy Parker

RaceTrac rezoning case in NE Cobb continued to November

On Friday the Cobb Zoning Division updated its agenda for Tuesday’s zoning hearing by the Cobb Board of Commissioners, with a major change to that schedule regarding a case in Northeast Cobb.

The revised agenda states that a rezoning request by RaceTrac Inc. for a 24/7 gas station and convenience store on the former site of the historic McAfee House has been continued by the staff to November.

No reason was given, and the only new document is an updated traffic report by Cobb DOT.

But the delay comes a week after a Cobb Planning Commission vote that recommened denial of any gas station use, along with uses that involve alcohol, vaping and tobacco sales, other automotive uses or any type of drive-through business.

Opponents spoke out in force at the Planning Commission hearing for traffic, environmental and other reasons, even though zoning staff recommended approval (analysis here).

The two-acre tract at Bells Ferry Road and Ernest Barrett Parkway is owned by the Medford Family LP, and was proposed for a car wash in 2023 before applicant pulled out due to other business issues.

Although it’s surrounded by commercially-zoned land, it sits next to a child-care center, and is across the road from Bells Ferry Elementary School.

Planning Commission member Fred Beloin made the motion to restrict the kinds of commercial uses that could go on the site under the Neighborhood Retail Commercial (NRC) category.

“This would be the opposite of an old Beatles song where you take a sad song and make it better. This would be take a bad road and make it far, far worse,” Beloin said.

The land is where the McAfee House, used by a Union General during the Civil War, stood until it was relocated to Cherokee County earlier this year.

The RaceTrac request is scheduled to go before Cobb commissioners on Nov. 18.

Another case in the East Cobb area that has been delayed is set to be heard again on Tuesday. It’s a request by Annie Lou Crispell for a land-use permit to operate a dog- training and boarding business at her home off Terrell Mill Road that’s drawn opposition from neigbhors.

The Planning Commission voted to recommend denial in August, and Cobb commissioners heard the case in September before voting for a 30-day continuance.

The Cobb commissioners zoning hearing begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the second floor board room of the county office building at 100 Cherokee Street, Marietta. You can view the full agenda by clicking here.

You also can watch the hearing on the county’s website and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.

Planning Commission scuttles NE Cobb RaceTrac proposal

October 11, 2025October 11, 2025 by Wendy Parker

The Cobb Planning Commission this week recommended approval of rezoning the former site of an historic home in Northeast Cobb for a variety of commercial uses.

But they didn’t include the use the applicant, RaceTrac Inc., had in mind.

After a very long discussion and by a 4-1 vote, the board recommended to allow Neighborhood Retail Commercial (NRC) zoning on Bells Ferry Road at Barrett Parkway where the McAfee House once stood.

That’s a home built in the 1840s that served as headquarters for a Union general during the Civil War, and was relocated earlier this year to Cherokee County after an effort to save it by Cobb Landmarks.

But the planning commission vote excludes fuel sales as one of the permitted businesses that could go on the two-acre site across from Bells Ferry Elementary School, along with no alcohol, vaping and tobacco sales, car washes, automotive uses or any type of drive-through business.

Nearby citizens turned out to oppose RaceTrac’s plans, citing safety, environmental and traffic congestion issues, among other things.

The decision rebuffed a recommendation for by Planning Commission member David Anderson, who represents the area in question, District 2.

His motion would have prohibited fuel sales and drive-through businesses, and would have required light automotive uses to come back to the county with a noise mitigation plan.

The board’s vote also went against a recommendation for approval by the Cobb Zoning Staff (analysis here).

After being satisfied with the results of a traffic analysis and an explanation from Cobb DOT, Anderson made a motion to recommend what RaceTrace was asking for—NRC designation for 24/7 gas sales and a convenience store.

But his motion died because it didn’t get a second, and another motion by Planning Commission member Fred Beloin of North Cobb added the stipulations that were approved. Under the motion that passed, small businesses and retail and some office uses would be allowed.

Anderson was the only vote against Beloin’s substitute motion. The Cobb Board of Commissioners will decide the matter at its Oct. 21 zoning hearing.

RaceTrac’s request was delayed a month after a previous Planning Commission hearing generated plenty of community opposition.

Beloin said the issue of methane gas emissions near the school—or at least the lack of definitive information about the threat it may cause—made it “impossible for me to support this request.”

He also said that school traffic issues that would arise both in the morning and afternoon “are profound. This would be the opposite of an old Beatles song where you take a sad song and make it better. This would be take a bad road and make it far, far worse.”

The land, owned by Medford Family LP, was proposed for a car wash in 2023 before applicant pulled out due to other business issues.

Some opponents wished the property, located next door to a day care center and near a retail center, would not become commercialized.

But Anderson’s issue was what he said was a lack of clarity in the county code about how close gas stations could be located next to day care centers.

“I see this site as having a lot of conflicts in terms of uses,” he said.

Anderson, an East Cobb resident initially appointed by former Commissioner Jerica Richardson, was reappointed earlier this year by Commissioner Erick Allen, whose District 2 includes the Medford property.

When the application was first filed, the land was in District 3, represented by Commissioner JoAnn Birrell.

Updated: East Cobb rezoning cases continued to October

September 16, 2025September 16, 2025 by Wendy Parker

Earlier this month the Cobb Planning Commission voted to hold a proposal for a gas station/convenience store by RaceTrac at Bells Ferry Road and Barrett Parkway until October.

Two other cases in East Cobb that were to have been heard Tuesday by the Cobb Board of Commissioners also will be waiting for a month, continued by Cobb Zoning Staff.

That includes a proposal for a dog- training and boarding business by Annie Lou Crispell at a home off Terrell Mill Road that we wrote about in August.

During a Planning Commission meeting in August, Crispell tearfully explained how she’s tried to satisfy opposition from some neighbors.

But the five-member board voted on Sept. 2 to recommend denial, with Planning Commission member Deborah Dance saying the business was not appropriate for a residential neighborhood.

Since that vote, no new information has been added to that filing. Cobb Zoning Division manager John Pederson did not explain the reason for the continuance.

That case will go before county commissioners Oct. 21.

Little Sunshine’s Playhouse to rezone two acres at Sandy Plains Road and Trickum Road for a 12,330-square-foot day care center also is on hold until October (you can read the filings here).

The two land parcels fronting Sandy Plains Road are residentially zoned and have older homes on them, and are surrounded by other residential properties.

On Aug. 27, the applicant’s attorney, Parks Huff, submitted a list of stipulations to satisfy concerns from the East Cobb Civic Association.

Those cases will be heard by the Planning Commission on Oct. 7.

East Cobb Zoning Update: RaceTrac proposal gets 30-day delay

September 3, 2025September 3, 2025 by Wendy Parker

The Cobb Planning Commission on Tuesday voted to continue a proposal by RaceTrac Inc. for a 24/7 gas station on the former site of an historic home.

Planning Commission member David Anderson moved for a 30-day delay with a 5-0 vote to further study traffic data and to gauge the impact to schools and nearby neighborhoods.

The vote came after concerted opposition to a request to rezone 2.009 acres at 2595 Bells Ferry Road where the McAfee House once stood.

The applicant wants to rezone the land from planned shopping center (PSC) to neighborhood retail center (NRC) for a 24/7 fueling facility with a convenience store.

The McAffee House was a home built in the 1840s and was a Union general’s command post during the Civil War, and has been relocated to Cherokee County.

But more contemporary concerns brought out citizens who spoke against RaceTrac’s proposal.

They included Max Ramsey, a fourth-grader at Bells Ferry Elementary School, who spoke about the pollution coming from a gas station open all hours.

“This will not be good for our health,” he said, adding fears of crime that could stem from the new facility as a result.

A Bells Ferry ES parent, Erin Quackenbush, raised some of the same issues, and added traffic and school capacity concerns.

The school is undergoing a replacement renovation to address overcrowding, and new development in the area that will add more traffic in a congested area.

She also alleged that Cobb Commissioner Erick Allen, whose district includes the area, may have a conflict of interest because he’s received an endorsement from RaceTrac in the past.

The Cobb County School District also objected to the RaceTrac proposal, and Cobb DOT officials said in response to questions from Anderson they weren’t aware of additional capacity produced by the Bells Ferry ES construction that might affect traffic flow.

Cobb DOT had estimated that 5,000 trips a day could pass by the RaceTrac business, mostly vehicles passing through a busy intersection.

Kevin Moore, the attorney for RaceTrac, reiterated several times that the land owned by Medford Family LP was strictly commercial, and wanting to use it for a gas station and convenience store “is not inherently evil.”

In 2023, a car wash was proposed for the land, and the Planning Commission recommended approval. But the request was withdrawn by the applicant due to what it said were other business obligations.

Planning Commission member Nadia Faucette asked Moore if RaceTrac was looking at “any other options” to service the area aside from the Bells Ferry Road property “if this does not go through.”

There was a smattering of applause, and then Moore replied by saying that “I’m not aware of any other options that they have in particular. I am aware of this option which they consider ideal.”

RaceTrac rezoning plans on historic NE Cobb site to be heard

August 30, 2025August 30, 2025 by Wendy Parker

NE Cobb rezoning historic preservation efforts

The Bells Ferry Civic Association is opposing plans for a RaceTrac gas station on a busy intersection in Northeast Cobb where an 1840s-era historic home was recently relocated.

The BFCA sent a written letter to Cobb zoning staff last month, before an attorney for the applicant asked for a continuance and submitted a new site plan and additional stipulations.

A request by RaceTrac, Inc. to rezone 2.009 acres at 2595 Bells Ferry Road and across from Bells Ferry Elementary School is on the Cobb Planning Commission agenda for Tuesday.

The applicant wants to rezone the land from planned shopping center (PSC) to neighborhood retail center (NRC) for a 24/7 fueling facility with a convenience store.

What was called the McAfee House was the headquarters for Union Gen. Kenner Garrard, whose cavalry troops guarded the Noonday Creek valley after Northern troops seized Big Shanty in June 1864, in the run-up to the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain.

Earlier this year the house was relocated by preservationists to Cherokee County. In 2023, a car wash was proposed for the land, owned by the Medford Family LP, and the Cobb Planning Commission recommended approval. But the request was withdrawn by the applicant due to what it said were other business obligations.

In its letter (you can read it here) the BFCA referenced a glut of gas stations in the area—it counted 10 within two miles—as well as alcohol sales and gasoline fumes near the school and an adjacent KinderCare child care facility.

The civic group also referenced the historical nature of the property, asking that “prior to any development on this property, it is essential that a thorough search be conducted for Indian and Civil War artifacts, trenches, gravesites, and other items of historical significance. Furthermore, a memorial plaque needs to be erected at the corner of Bells Ferry and Barrett Pkwy to identify and commemorate an important part of our county’s history.”

In its analysis, the Cobb Zoning Staff offered brief historic preservation comments, saying that it recommending “an archaeological survey and report before any development occurs. Any artifacts discovered during the survey should be donated to an appropriate museum.”

The staff is approving recommendation (full analysis here) with none of the variances requested by RaceTrac.

Last week, RaceTrac attorney Kevin Moore submitted a stipulation letter (you can read it here) that includes an eight-foot landscape buffer around the property, and agrees with the historic preservation comments about doing an archaeological survey and report if rezoning is approved.

You also can watch the hearing on the county’s website and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.

New townhouse plans filed on rejected East Marietta site

August 26, 2025 by Wendy Parker

Wooded tract along I-75 proposed for townhome development

A real estate investor whose attempts to redevelop land in the South Marietta Parkway-Powers Ferry Road area were unsuccessful four years ago is proposing another high-density residential community there again.

RGM Properties Partnership, LLLP and McMullan Partners, LLC, based in East Cobb, are seeking rezoning of nearly 20 acres along Interstate 75, off of Powers Ferry Road and north of the Loop, for a residential development.

According to plans filed with the City of Marietta, the applicant wants to turn that property—most of it a wooded lot fronting the interstate—into a townhome-focused community of up to 119 units.

The homes would be built by Traton Homes Inc., a prominent homebuilder based in Marietta, and the applicant has hired high-profile zoning attorney Kevin Moore to represent it before the City of Marietta.

An initial hearing before the Marietta Planning Commission is scheduled for next Tuesday (you can read through the filing here).

The application calls for 80 townhomes, with the rest single-family detached homes, for a density of 6.2 units per acre.

But the details present similar issues and concerns that foiled property owner Ruben McMullan’s attempts in 2021 to build a high-density residential development in the same community.

The Marietta City Council turned down plans for Laurel Park, which was proposed for 204 townhomes on much of the site that’s being proposed now.

That was part of a push by McMullan’s real estate interests to build in that vicinity. But Marietta also quickly rejected plans for what was proposed to be Nexus Gardens—featuring apartment buildings, a senior-living facility and restaurant and retail space—after heated community opposition.

That project also would have been accessed through neighborhood streets in the Meadowbrook subdivision off Powers Ferry Road, south of the Loop.

At the time, Moore said the Loop corridor between Roswell Road and Interstate 75 hasn’t seen new development in 50 years. The Nexus Gardens project, Moore said, is an opportunity that “would be fantastic for the city and fantastic for the nearby community.”

Before the 2021 vote, Moore whittled down the Laurel Park proposal—which stretched across 30 acres—to 134 units, but the council rejected both requests unanimously with little discussion.

There isn’t a name for the newly proposed community, nor are there any renderings. In its analysis, the Marietta zoning staff noted that a home would be demolished to create access to the new project from Crestridge Drive (see zoning map below). Three other residential lots, on Blanche Drive and Herbert Road, would be turned into another access point.

The analysis noted that projects like this usually require direct access to arterial and collector roads, but the RGM/McMullan proposal calls for access via local streets.

City zoning staff also noted that while the application says 80 townhomes would be built, the site plan (above) shows 113 units, with 52 of them three-story units, and the others two stories.

The analysis, which didn’t make a recommendation, also notes parking and stormwater runoff issues, and concerns expressed by the Marietta Fire Department regarding emergency access that may not meet city code. The city’s public works department also has asked for a traffic study to be done but the transportation department hasn’t offered any comments.

The zoning analysis concluded that the large wooded tract of land that’s zoned for large-scale retail along I-75 has never been developed for a reason.

“With access only available through existing single-family neighborhoods, developing a ‘regional retail center’ at this location does not appear feasible. Considering also current market conditions and the need for housing, rezoning the property for residential use is more suitable.”

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