Politics has often been compared to theater, but Sandy Springs’ future city hall could put a whole new twist on the concept.
Mayor Eva Galambos, speaking to the High Point Civic association on Feb. 28, said many residents would like the planned municipal complex to have a performing arts center. Galambos suggested the City Council’s future chambers could double as a space to stage plays when the city isn’t using it for meetings.
Galambos said it would take a “creative architect” to make that idea a reality.
The city has long-planned to build its municipal complex around city-owned site at 235 Johnson Ferry Road, though some on the City Council have questioned whether that is the best spot. The property, formerly a Target store, has been vacant since 2008. The city recently put out a Request for Information, seeking alternatives to the Target property. That generated two responses that were not considered because the responses did not follow the RFI guidelines.
Galambos says the Target site the right place to put a city hall. In speeches to both the civic association and the Sandy Springs/Perimeter Chamber of Commerce, the mayor said she intends to move forward with that plan.
She wants the public and the business owners from Interstate 285 to Johnson Ferry Road to join the discussion that will ultimately help shape what the complex will look like.
“One of the most important aspects has got to be the involvement of the property owners,” Galambos told the Civic Association. “ …I want the property owners at the table when they plan (the City Hall.) They have been invited to participate in this process.”
The city plans to purchase the whole block around the old Target, and some of those property owners aren’t wild about the idea.
The owners of a Waffle House, a dry-cleaning business and a tattoo shop say they aren’t interested in selling to the city. City Attorney Wendell Willard said the city isn’t considering any eminent domain actions, but said the city won’t take that option off the table.
