Bad Links?
Other glitches?
Notify Webmaster

Merchants want Shannon Mall area spruced up

By BEN NELMS
bnelms@theCitizenNews.com

If the merchants in and around Shannon Mall and Ga. Highway 138 have their way, the Jonesboro Road interchange at I-85 will become a visual draw for travelers along the interstate and for home town residents. An estimated $300,000 to fund the proposed new look of the interchange would likely come from area businesses.

The need to upgrade and beautify the landscape along the entrance and exit ramps at the interchange was the topic Jan. 27 at a called meeting of the Union City Council. Mayor Ralph Moore and council member Helen Turner were joined by Union City merchants, land planning firms, realtors and others in the Shannon Mall meeting room. They held a formative discussion to explore ways to thin trees, clear away undergrowth and replace them with the types of plant material that will make the interchange inviting while letting travelers know that merchants are present and ready to serve them.

“We need to collectively look at improving the aesthetic environment of the interchange,” Moore said.

The growth of clusters of trees and significant undergrowth along the ramps on both sides of I-85 prohibits travelers from realizing that businesses are present and available to serve their needs, several merchants said.

Jordan, Jones & Goulding Director of Landscape Architecture and Planning Mack Cain provided a visual conception of how the interchange could look if the land around the entrance and exist ramps was cleaned up and replanted with different types of plants and trees designed to promote the feeling of accessibility to businesses and safety for shoppers. Once the current vegetation is thinned according to state Dept. of Transportation (DOT) guidelines, regionally significant, low maintenance plant material such as dogwoods, azaleas and wildflowers could be installed.

“It’s a very simple design,” said Cain. “It will bring notice to the intersection and help bring customers to your front door.”

Participants at the meeting said the next steps would be to get DOT to approve the project and have a group of business owners, in concert with the city, contact other businesses to solicit their participation in funding the project. Though still in the initial discussion phase, business owners were provided with three options through which their participation could fund the project.

Spread among the nearly 50 businesses in the immediate area, the estimated $300,000 in funding could come through a share by acreage method, share by tax assessment method or by the number of trips generated to the respective businesses. During the discussion, Moore said he could envision the city being the prime caretaker.

Though further off into the future, Cain and Shannon mall owner Lee Najjar introduced a new concept that would dramatically alter the look of Shannon Mall and the immediate area. Enhancements to the mall’s facade, restructuring road usage and the addition of various greenspaces and new, more accessible stores would make the mall a destination. Such a project would create a village atmosphere, said Cain.

“It would create an indoor/outdoor mall that will attract big retailers,” said Najjar. “It will help establish Shannon Mall as a retail hub.”