Friday, September 12, 2003

New construction continues despite moritorium

By LINDSAY BIANCHI
Special to The Citizen

Union City may soon be one of the largest cities on the southside, with construction of new homes continuing at a record pace.

Although city officials passed a moritorium in June to try and give the town a chance to catch its breath, there is enough buildable lots to create another town with Union City's population.

While other southside communities, such as Palmetto and Senoia, have also enacted moratoriums, it's a safe bet that none of them have quite the number of platted lots Union City has.

"We have 3,586 lots available. That's everything in the pipeline," said City Administrator Alan Grindstaff.

In a city that was once know for its availability of apartment homes, the number of new single family homes staggers the imagination. Has the city decided to switch away from multi-family housing?

"We didn't plan it that way, but that's how it seems to be working," Grindstaff said.

In the 2000 U.S. Census, Union City had just over 11,200 residents. If all the lots "in the pipeline" are built, the city could quickly double its population.

But, it's not only the residential area of Union City that is starting to see favorable looks from developers.

Earlier this year, the city won a $60,000 planning grant from the Livable Centers Initiative (LCI) of the Atlanta Regional Commission and selected a firm to take its plan into action.

The community design and architecture firm of Tunnell-Spangler-Walsh & Associates of Atlanta was picked from three finalists out of six proposals submitted and has already begun work by reviewing existing Union City projects and inventorying land use and analysis.

One of the projects that most appealed to Union City officials is the firm's work on the Winter Park (Florida) Mall Redevelopment, partnering with the firm of Glatting Jackson, who will again team with Tunnell-Spangler-Walsh in Union City.

Winter Park was challenged by a 500,000 sq.ft. mall that was badly in need of reinvestment. The team worked with both the city and the property owner to develop an alternative urban design concept that essentially integrated the city into the mall.

Today, Winter Park Village is a revitalized live, work and play community that is highly successful.

"We are looking for the help of the Tunnell-Spangler-Walsh team to remake the Shannon Mall area and environs into a seamless community," said Mayor Ralph Moore, himself a professional city planner.

"With our enviable location on Interstate 85 and its direct connection with Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport and the amenities of Atlanta nearby, Union City has a very good chance of being a highly desired address."

The initial scoping session took place during the month of July and incorporated "visual preference survey" tools to help to understand what the citizens and stakeholders of Union City want in their community.

The LCI contract calls for all work to be submitted to the ARC by December 31. Tunnell-Spangler-Walsh plans for their final document to be presented to the City by November 21.