When complete, the 113-acre project by the Goodman Co. of West Palm Beach, FL will generate an estimated $1 million annually in Cobb County property taxes; about $7.5 million annually in sales taxes; and more than $1.5 million for Cobb County public schools, a sum that equates to the salaries of 27 new teachers.
"More importantly," says Robert Lilly, Goodman's senior vice president of development, "we are designing a section of our community dedicated to housing for active seniors." Lilly anticipates the undertaking "will attract those so-called empty nesters to stay here, where they can be close to their families and especially their grand-kids."
The Village at West Cobb is also being designed to keep traffic inside the community. "With offices for medical professionals and other business endeavors, shops and cafes and a theater, most people won't want to leave the Village," Lilly says. "More than two miles of walking and bicycling trails will make it easier for residents to get around without getting behind the wheel" of a car.
The year-long project will generate more than $30 million in construction wages for about 500 workers with the bulk of the work going to local workers, Lilly says. The retail and office components of the project are expected to hire 800 full and part-time workers, "nearly all of them coming from the local area."
The Goodman Co has developed, owned and managed 18 million sf of commercial space, including eight regional malls in Pennsylvania, Ohio and New Jersey. The firm has four million sf of retail space under development in Florida and the Southeast.
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