TUCKER, Ga. (August 31, 2017) – At a special called meeting on Wednesday night, Tucker’s City Council cast a series of votes to deny the permissions needed to go ahead with an 88-acre mixed-use development.
“The Rise” promised to bring a supermarket, retail and approximately 700 residential units to the intersection of Hugh Howell Road and Mountain Industrial Boulevard. The site is currently home to warehouse space owned by Sears.
After a lengthy public hearing, City Council had to weigh three petitions from developer Stephen Macauley: a change to the Comprehensive Plan from Light Industrial to Neighborhood Center to allow such a development, a re-zoning of the property to the MU3 designation and a special land use permit (SLUP) to allow a personal care home to be constructed on the site. Citing a number of concerns, including the possibility of disrupting the industrial corridor, Council voted 5-2 against a motion to approve the Comprehensive Plan amendment. That was followed by a pair of 6-1 votes to deny the re-zoning and SLUP petitions.
During the meeting, both councilmembers and the developer pointed out that, despite a denial, the property can still be developed by right – or without the special permissions being sought from the City. Under the current zoning, that could mean construction of restaurants, a movie theater and several other aspects included in “The Rise” proposal. It would not permit construction of the residential facilities or the supermarket included in the proposal.
