Stockbridge Works to Implement TSW’s LCI Plan in 2013

In 2011, Stockbridge retained TSW to work with community stakeholders to update the City’s Livable Centers Initiative (LCI) study, which had been prepared ten years earlier. As part of this, TSW was tasked with defining a new, market-based plan for completing the the partially-built Town Center project, exploring how to better serve the area’s aging population, and identifying new transportation needs. Via a year-long process, TSW worked with residents businesses and property owners to establish a framework for growth and change in Stockbridge that addressed these key issues and others.

Since the adoption of the new LCI Plan by the Stockbridge City Council on July 9, 2012, the City has made significant progress in implementing the plan. During this time:

• The Old Downtown Streetscape Project on North Berry Street from Nolan Street to Love Street was completed.

• The City Council approved the acquisition from the First Baptist Church of Stockbridge the remaining parcels surrounding City Hall known as the Town Center Project. The Town Center Project includes a proposed splash pad and amphitheater.

• The City secured $150,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) money towards a proposed community pool in Old Downtown Stockbridge. The City intends to survey residents to determine their preference for a community pool versus a splash pad, both of which are eligible for CDBG funding.

• The City applied earlier this year for an Opportunity Zone job tax credit incentive, which required an updated Urban Redevelopment Plan and for the policies of the LCI to be incorporated into the document. The City Council adopted the amended Urban Redevelopment Plan on July 25th, 2013 which expanded the Urban Redevelopment area in order to maximize the number of businesses eligible for the tax credit.

• All right-of-way acquisition for Reeves Creek Trail Phase II is complete and the City is awaiting a “Notice to Proceed” from the state to finish the project.

• The City has invested nearly $250,000 into the engineering of the proposed Rock Quarry Extension project. The new roadway would connect the North Henry Boulevard/Rock Quarry Road intersection with the East Atlanta Road/Valley Hill Road intersection. The City and County have committed a combined $5.5 million in SPLOST IV tax dollars toward this project.

• GDOT completed its turn movement counts at the intersection of State Route 42 and East Atlanta Road in front of City Hall. GDOT counts indicate the need for a left turn signal phase for southbound vehicles on East Atlanta Road turning left and proceeding east on State Route 42. A left turn storage lane would need to be constructed on East Atlanta Road along with the needed traffic signal improvements. The City would likely need to relocate utilities and right-of-way may need to be purchased. Given the scope of the work, GDOT has determined that the City should be responsible for completing these improvements. The City has engaged a civil engineer with the goal to pursue and obtain a special encroachment permit to complete this project.

TSW congratulates the City of Stockbridge on their successes, and looks forward to their further implementation of the LCI plan in the coming year.