Key points:
• Developers are planning a 19-acre mixed-use redevelopment called Canopy at Crooked Creek along Holcomb Bridge Road between Peachtree Industrial and Atlantic boulevards.
• The project will feature a 320-unit apartment building, an age-restricted complex, and 30 townhomes.
• The development team plans to submit a special-use permit application on or before the September deadline, in hopes of having the Norcross City Council vote on the necessary permiting before the end of the year.
The owners of Jefferson Plaza and The Station office park are working with Crooked Creek Development Partners on a 19-acre mixed-use redevelopment at the Norcross-Peachtree Corners border.
The team behind the “Canopy at Crooked Creek” project held a second of three community meetings on Aug. 18 on the first floor of the Jefferson Plaza office building at 3169 Holcomb Bridge Road.
Bruce Fernald, a metro Atlanta commercial real estate developer, said the plan is to keep the existing seven-story office building at Jefferson Plaza but knock down all nine commercial buildings at The Station.
New gateway Canopy project
Fernald is the founder and principal of BD Urban, LLC. He’s worked on Inman Quarter, in Atlanta’s historic park neighborhood, and Lilli Midtown, on Peachtree Street across from Atlanta’s Fox Theatre.
The redevelopment team plans to submit the special-use permit application on or before the Sept. 4 deadline, Fernald said. The plan includes a 320-unit apartment building, a 150-unit age-restricted complex, 30 townhomes, and more than 30,000 square feet of retail.
The plan is to reduce some of the surface parking and build the four-story age “55-and -up” residential building on the southwest corner of the site. Public trails and paths are planned through the property and along Atlanta Boulevard, Crossing Park, and Holcomb Bridge.
Plans call for townhomes and multifamily housing on the south side of Crooked Creek, with a retail village and patio dining along Holcomb Bridge Road. A Scandinavian covered bridge will connect to a family gathering spot and quasi-park.
Showing plan to council
According to the Gwinnett County Assessors’ Office, the 9-acre Jefferson Plaza property is zoned office-institutional (OI). The surrounding parcels, totaling about 10 acres, are in the same zoning district.
The 125,000-square-foot building was constructed in 1978. It last traded for $12.5 million in 2017 and is appraised at $7.5 million today. About 45,000 square feet of office space is available.
The Station’s collection of one- and two-story commercial office buildings, constructed in 1984, will be demolished and replaced. There are two new roadway connections planned to Jefferson Plaza, one over Crooked Creek.
Fernald said the project team expects to have its Norcross Architectural Review Board meeting on Oct. 20, and he’s hopeful that preserving the mature tree canopy around the creek and “woodland” architecture will help. He said he thinks the proposal fits with the city’s comprehensive plan goals.
If the necessary SUP and rezoning applications are submitted and everything goes as planned, Fernald said the Norcross City Council could vote as soon as Dec. 7. It’s not clear which application is required.
