Avondale Eyes Old Mill Property For Mixed Use
Decatur Metro | December 13, 2010
Sounds like Avondale Estates is looking to pull a “DeVry” on a large piece of unused property at the edge of its city limits.
Last week’s Champion Newspaper detailed Avondale’s plan to annex the remaining 9 acres of the roughly 13 acre abandoned Fenner Dunlop mill property into the city with plans of mixed-use development.
Like Decatur’s recent DeVry property annexation, there is no current developer for the property, but the city has a vision for the area that includes “pedestrian-friendly streets complete with sidewalks, crosswalks and bike accommodations. There could be a museum, a community center, community gardens, charter school and a residential area.” (Avondale has a few documents on its website detailing plans for the property.)
The Avondale Commission votes on the project tonight at 7:30pm.
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That Publix development turned out nicely. Oh wait,….
Whatever happened to that project? Last I heard it was moving forward again after a long layover…
The developer for the Publx project (and the future Finders Keepers – the steel frame structure on the corner of Maple Street) filed for reorganizational bankruptcy earlier this year.
I believe that they have plans for the whole complex to be torn down within the next 12 months. That would make the parcel a little bit more marketable.
The old mill that is.
Avondale is so business hostile.
It is tough to imagine why they are getting involved with the Fenner parcel, other than
Zoning changes. Currently their zoning and density regulations are more restrictive than surrounding areas.
It is private property, are they considering purchasing it?
If not why are they telling us what it is going to be?
The emanations (effluent?) from Avondale city Hall leaves me scratching my head much of the time.
Lotta talk not much measurable action…..
Super negative comments, HDog. A few facts for consideration:
The planning, zoning, and annexation processes in Avondale work just like they do in Decatur .
The Mill property owner requested annexation by Avondale.
All parties worked together to develop the zoning which supports mixed use, including up to 400 apartments and another 150+ condos/townhouses.
My guess is that you did not come to City Hall to participate in the half dozen meetings held over the 12 months, co-sponsored by DeKalb Planning and Avondale Estates, to solicit the input of the business and residential communities on the type of development that folks would like to see on the property.
Finally, the City can’t “tell” anyone “what it is going to be” – the City can only adopt zoning that provides flexibilities that the property owner can use to market the old mill property to developers.
It’s quite a large parcel, so I’m not too surprised that they are taking their sweet time figuring this out. When it comes to mixed used development sites, there are a lot of factors to consider:
Are we accommodating the community?
Are we applying ergonomic thinking to the overall design?
Are there zoning restrictions?
I’m looking forward to the answers to be provided by the town council……
Yes, the parcel is large, about 13 acres, some of which was already inside the Avondale city limits. The remaining 9 acres were annexed last night, at the request of the property owner.
Here is a link to more information: http://www.avondaleestates.org/fenner.html