GAINESVILLE – A second middle school for the Gainesville City School District took another step towards realization Tuesday evening when the Gainesville City Council approved an annexation, two rezonings and a special use request made by the Board of Education.
Just over 22.5 acres along McEver Road at Gould Drive are now all under one jurisdiction and zoned identically. Last month the Gainesville Planning and Appeals Board recommended approval of the requests made by the Board of Education that will allow for the construction of an 183,400-square foot, two-story school building able to accommodate 1275 middle school students.
Gainesville Community and Economic Development Deputy Director Matt Tate told council members that bringing the four parcels that make up the proposed building site under one jurisdiction and into one zoning classification was not actually required by law.
“The school (board) actually came to us on their behalf to really bring all the property under one zoning, one jurisdiction, and schools are allowed by right, so they really didn’t have to go through this process; they just elected to do it to make it a cleaner process,” Tate said, commending the district for the way they conducted the application.
No one came forward during the time for public comment to speak in opposition to the applications, so the resolutions quickly were put to a vote and all were approved unanimously.
GAINESVILLE LOOKS SOUTH FOR NEXT MASTER PLAN EXTENSION
Last week the city announced plans to focus on what many refer to as the Park Hill Corridor, when city leaders unveiled an extension of the Downtown Master Plan in a direction north of the city along U.S. 129.
Tuesday evening Gainesville City Manager Bryan Lackey announced that the city already is looking to its next target area once the Park Hill Corridor is completed.
“We’ve had discussions with the representatives of the Carl Vinson (Institute of Government at the University of Georgia) to do our next study,” Lackey said. “We think these are such great studies.”
“It’s going to be neighborhoods on the south side; it’s going to be the MLK–Athens Street area…extending off our Downtown Master Plan,” Lackey told council members.
That announcement put a giant smile on the face of Ward 3 Councilwoman Barbara Brooks because it involves the area of the city she represents, and bringing development to the area south of Jesse Jewell Parkway has been one of her main objectives.
“My reaction is one of exuberance,” Brooks said after the meeting. “For anything south of Jesse Jewell I absolutely get excited about.”
“I’m going to venture and say, ‘My people are patient.’ They don’t make a lot of fuss…but this is exciting,” Brooks said.
