Sandy Springs City Council approved the expansion of the City Springs Open Container District to include properties along Hildebrand Drive, Blue Stone Road, and Sandy Springs Circle that the city owns and plans to develop.
“As the City Springs District evolves, we identified the need to expand the open container district boundary with the proposed additional boundaries shown in red on this map,” Assistant City Manager Kristin Byars Smith told the council during its Aug. 15 meeting.
City Councilmember John Paulson, serving as Mayor Pro Tem in Rusty Paul’s absence, asked if he read the map correctly that people could walk up and down Hildebrand Drive with alcohol, but not step off the sidewalk onto private property.
Smith said yes.
“We tried to think carefully about where events would be happening, where folks would be walking, and that sort of thing when we came up with the map,” she said.
City Councilman Andy Bauman said he wondered if other property owners in City Springs would want to be included in the Open Container District, including properties along Roswell Road.
“I certainly would not want to impose it on properties that the city does not control. But would we not want to consider inviting some of these adjacent properties?” he asked.
Smith said all the properties in the Open Container District are city-owned properties.
“If it’s the desire of council, we certainly can approach other property owners and ask them if they have an interest in being included and bring that forward to you all for consideration in the future,” she said.
City Attorney Dan Lee said private property owners can drink outside on their property.
“You already can go out on your own property with alcoholic beverages. But this ordinance applies only to licensed sellers of alcohol,” he said.
Smith said the expansion of the Open Container District goes into effect immediately, but it only applies if the right of way has been closed by the city. It will be in effect for the upcoming Blue Stone Arts & Music Festival on Sept. 29 and 30.
City Council picked the project team of Regent Partners and Morris & Fellows as its preferred development partner for the second phase of City Springs during its June 6 meeting.
