Proposed Bond Referendum To Cover $236M of Proposed Projects

County commissioners next month get their first look at a laundry list of newly planned developments such as a $100-million, 80,000-sf convention center; a $60-million, 2,500-seat amphitheater; $79 million for road improvements; and $53 million for new libraries. A funding committee, comprised of area residents, has shaved a county government wish list of $604 million in needed improvements to $236 million.

County officials favor the convention center and amphitheater as magnets to increase the county tax base by attracting new hotel and retail development for a population that is projected to grow to one million in 30 years from 700,000 today. Land for the convention center near the 960,000-sf Northlake Mall in Tucker would probably cost about $30 million, commissioners will be told. The amphitheater is proposed at the 1.3-million-sf Mall of Stonecrest in Lithonia.

However, opponents of the two projects argue metro Atlanta is saturated with convention centers and a new center would likely produce deficits for years. Residents have also reminded commissioners at public meetings about the bond referendum debacle of 2001. At that time, the county purchased several buildings, including an abandoned church property acquired for $2.4 million and now leased to a cable television network for a dollar per year.

But high on the residents' list of needed improvements are road improvements, bicycle lanes, sidewalks and libraries, commissioners were told at their last public meeting.

As the county reviews needed infrastructure for its growing population, developers continue to focus on the area's potential growth, submitting rezoning applications on near-future developments at a steady pace. T. K. Moreland Inc. of Loganville is the latest applicant. The developer plans River Village, a 109-acre, mixed-use development along Rock Chapel Road near the intersection of Rock Chapel Road and Hightower Trail. The project includes an undetermined amount of retail, office and residential space. The Atlanta Regional Commission is also reviewing the project's plans.