At a time when the city of Atlanta is facing a massive budget deficit and unincorporated South Fulton facing a possible deficit of it own in 2009. Cliftondale and Sandtown communities are at odds on the boundary of their respective overlay districts. Fulton County approached each community after a developer showed interest in an area that sits in both overlays. Neither group could agree who has control the disputed area just south and west of Camp Creek Parkway.
Why is there such a dispute from two groups that have worked together in the past? If you read the March meeting minutes from Cliftondale (www.cliftondale.org) you'll see there is fear of annexation of Westlake High School because it sits in the disputed area.
With Atlanta facing budget cuts of 25% and up to possibly 40% in all non public safety departments Sandtown couldn't possibly want to be annexed into Atlanta now, would it?
Sunday, April 20, 2008
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7 comments:
Now the mayor is threatening to cut police and fire if taxes aren't raised. They're already a lot higher than unincorporated S. Fulton.
The overlay disput has NOTHING TO DO WITH ATLANTA OR ANNEXATION FOLKS! Overlays are areas with architectural guidelines for commercial and multi family dwellings. Any changes in municipal boundaries would not look at an overlay. Educate yourselves folks.
Actually the two overlays are quite similar in nature and the county will continue to look to both groups for zonings near the borders. The change approved by staff and the CZB merely restores the acerage formerly in the Sandtown Overlay that was mistakedly included in Cliftondale.
The Sandtown Overlay was created in 1998. When the Cliftondale overlay was created in 2004 the border incorrectly included what was historically and geographically included in Sandtown including the High School, tha Canans and Owl Rock United Methodist Church.
This was not a land grab, merely a correct of a mistake that the county acknowledged and administrative fixed with public hearings for this zoning. It is unfortunate that some played to fears with misinformation much like these same folks did in their quest for a City of South Fulton.
In this case truth once again is ultimately prevailing. For the unbiased facts from the county go to their website:
PETITION TO AMEND THE FULTON COUNTY ZONING RESOLUTION -
ARTICLE 12F - SANDTOWN OVERLAY DISTRICT AND
ARTICLE 12L - CLIFTONDALE OVERLAY DISTRICT
2008Z -0010 SFC
Department of Environment and Community Development
Recommendation APPROVAL
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS
To amend the overlay district maps for both the Sandtown and Cliftondale Overlay Districts to reflect the clarified common boundary line.
STAFF ANALYSIS
At the time of the adoption of the Sandtown Overlay District in April of 1998 a map was approved that illustrated the boundary of the overly district. In April of 2004 the Clitondale Overlay District was adopted by the Board of Commissioners with a similar map illustrating the boundary of that overlay district. While the Sandtown and Cliftondale Overlay Districts share a common boundary along the southern edge of Sandtown and the northern edge of Cliftondale, the two maps did not correctly illustrate the same boundary causing a large area of land to fall within both overlays.
Up to this time, this conflict has gone unnoticed as this area has not been the subject of zoning or development requests. This conflict has only recently come to light as a developer has shown interest in a tract of land in the overlap region. Staff approached the leaders of both overlay areas and hosted two meetings to discuss the issue and hopefully negotiate a boundary resolution which was agreeable to both concerns. No resolution resulted from the joint meetings leading staff to host additional independent community meetings. Staff met with the Sandtown Community on the evening of Tuesday, April 22nd and the Cliftondale Community on the evening of Thursday, April 24th. Both of these meetings were well attended. At these meetings staff asked for each community to identify their areas of priority and to state their official position on where they would like the boundary to be placed. Taking the results of these meetings, staff generated the proposed map showing what Staff feels is an equitable compromise.
For the purpose of providing a written description the common boundary will follow the centerline of Camp Creek Parkway starting at the intersection of Camp Creek Parkway and Campbellton Fairburn Road. The common boundary line will follow the centerline of Camp Creek Parkway in a westerly direction until the intersection of Camp Creek Parkway and Merk Road. The common boundary line then moves south along the centerline of Merk Road until it reaches the centerline of Camp Creek (waterway). The common boundary will then follow the centerline of the Camp Creek (waterway) in a westerly direction until it intersects with the Georgia Power easement located in Land Lot 128 of the District 14F. The common boundary will then turn in a northerly direction and follow the Georgia Power easement along its eastern and northern sides to its intersection with Stonewall Tell Road. At this intersection the common boundary will turn again in a northerly direction to follow the centerline of Stonewall Tell Road. At the intersection of Stonewall Tell Road and Campbellton Road, the common boundary will turn in a westerly direction and follow the centerline of Campbellton Road until it reaches the existing western boundary of the Sandtown Overlay District.
In addition to the adoption of a new common boundary line between the Sandtown Overlay and the Cliftondale Overlay a new policy statement will the added as the final paragraph in the Purpose and Intent sections of both overlay districts (Section 12F.1 for Sandtown and Section 12L.1 for Cliftondale). The new policy statement is as follows:
In order to allow for wider community involvement, any proposed development that would fall under an overlay district's purview and that abuts the common boundary with another overlay district will result in Fulton County staff contacting the appropriate adjoining overlay district representatives. Each community will then be invited to participate in all County facilitated meetings. However, the project's final development standards shall be governed by the Overlay District Standards in which the parcel lays.
http://fultonecd.org/zoning/08z-010.htm
South Fulton Guy - what are your feelings on Sandtown holding meetings with developers proposing projects in other communities? (i.e. the proposed Kroger gas station)
I don't know the particulars but I would see no problem with listening as long as Sandtown made it clear that they were not taking a position as community representatives and it is clear that the group defers to the decision of the local community.
If you mean the Kroger on Cascade since many in Sandtown shop the Cascade corridor, it does not seem unreasonable for the Sandtown Community to listen.
This is currently the only Kroger in the vicinity unless you want to go all of the way to Greenbriar.
Since this project is in the Cascade Overlay County staff and the Commissioners should be deferring to the position that West Cascade residents and the AWCC takes anyway which is customary.
It is not without precident to solicit community feedback from communities in the proximity of an overlay's prevailing group.
We are pleased to announce that today the Fulton County Board of Commissioners voted 5-1 to approve the compromise plan to resolve the border conflict of overlapping territories between the Sandtown and Cliftondale architectural overlays that set higher standards within the overlays for commercial and multi-family developments.
Most of the land mistakenly moved from Sandtown to Cliftondale, when the Cliftondale Overlay was created 6 years later has been restored to Sandtown’s Overlay and consequently our zoning community’s oversight over the area historically known as Sandtown.
We appreciate the support of Fulton County Staff and the support of the Community Zoning Board and the Board of Commissioners in resolving this issue satisfactorily.
We look forward to a continued partnership with our neighboring community of Cliftondale.
South Fulton Guy, thanks for blogging. Even though I live in Cobb now (work up there, glad I do with the way gas is these days), I'm a native of East Point, and I'm proud to call south Fulton part of my heritage.
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