A new “live work play” community is the future of Forsyth County. The City of Cumming will look a little different in a few years, as the City Council just approved, with conditions, rezoning 151 acres between Marketplace Blvd., Turner Road and Hwy. 400, to allow for a mixed-use community. Westshore will be a 57-acre development that will include a village green surrounded by residential units over retail shops.
According to Scott Morgan, Director of the City of Cumming Department of Planning and Zoning, the plan also includes, “a mixture of housing types, freestanding restaurants, office buildings, an assisted living facility, a bed and breakfast facility and a hotel.”
Residential housing will include a total of 518 units. There will be 29 single-family homes, 127 townhomes, 252 free-standing multi-family homes and 110 multi-family homes in mixed-use buildings.
Morgan says the developers, Atlantic Realty, have a plan to develop the area in phases. “The project build-out is estimated to be five years, made up of two phases,” says Morgan. The first phase will include the green, retail shops and housing and then expand with a hotel, assisted-living facility, medical offices and more in Phase Two.
Both the Planning and Zoning Boards, as well as the City Council have been involved in the proposal. The project was approved with conditions, to ensure Westshore will be a good fit for the current community. They require that none of the stores be convenience stores, gas stations, bars, lounges, nightclubs, vape shops, adult novelty stores, adult entertainment stores, pawn shops, pool halls, massage parlors, tattoo parlors or auto sales/service.
They also have specifications on the exterior of the buildings, including directives on the visualization all the way down to the exterior design, which has been specified as a “Southern Coastal” style. They also have conditions on trash containers, light poles and other exterior fixtures and they are required to install sidewalks.
