GAINESVILLE – Members of the Hall County Commission agreed with a developer’s plan Thursday evening to bring 300 apartments to White Sulphur Road as part of an effort to provide affordable “work-force housing”.
That is the descriptor used by Williams Brothers Development, LLC, representative Steve Gilliam for the ten, three-story buildings that will be constructed on 33.9-acres near the growing State Route 365 industrial corridor and Lanier Technical College.
“The genesis is to provide work-force housing, not subsidized housing, but the rental rates are less than what you would find typically in Gainesville,” Gilliam said. “It will provide for workers in the 365 corridor and also for students over at Lanier Tech.”
Applicant Cameron Grogan told commissioners, “What brought us to this location was the growth along the employment corridor…and the Inland Port that’s coming just north of here…and the Lanier Tech campus.”
“I think this is a unique opportunity to bring a work-force housing product to an area in Hall County that needs it,” Grogan said. “We’re just following the jobs.”
Grogan’s rezoning application involved six adjacent parcels currently zoned Agricultural Residential and was seeking a change to Planned Residential Development.
He said the apartments would be forty-percent 1-bedroom units, forty-percent 2-bedroom units and twenty-percent 3-bedroom units, totaling 540 bedrooms. Grogan says his site plan calls for 560 parking spots.
As to price point, Grogan said, “We want to be about $300 less than the competitors around us.”
“Unfortunately people are being priced out of single family homes…and as to new homes…construction cost is driving the price up…those factors make for a compelling argument for this product,” Grogan added.
When no one came forward to speak in opposition to the project, commissioners gave the rezoning request a unanimous approval.
OTHER APPROVALS FROM THE HALL COUNT COMMISSION
Also given final approval Thursday evening by the Hall County Commission:
- A rezoning application from Solidum Holdings, LLC, for 105-acres on Barrett Road at Dorsey Peek Road to allow for a mixed-use commercial and industrial development up to 950,000-square feet
- A rezoning application from Provident Partners 129, LLC, for 66.85-acres on Athens Highway at Roy Parks Road to allow for a distribution warehouse up to 380,000-square feet
- A rezoning application from Gainesville Freezer, LP, for 42-acres on Athens Highway near Baker Road to allow for additional cold storage space up to 451,439-square feet
The above three applications were all approved unanimously.
