Milton holds final workshop on District at Mayfield draft

By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com

MILTON, Ga. — The District at Mayfield, 22 parcels on nearly 18 acres in Crabapple, is moving closer to having its own vision –set in ink.

The area has been the subject of public workshops the past few months to develop an overlay district that would further distinguish and preserve it.

All elements of the overlay district, which includes properties off Broadwell Road, Charlotte Drive, Mayfield Road and Mid Broadwell Road, would fall under Crabapple form-based code.

But the District at Mayfield will have more strict development regulations to conform to the area’s unique character. Amendments to the city code could mandate certain building aesthetics for the proposed District at Mayfield.

To help the public understand the purpose of the overlay district, Milton Zoning Manager Robyn MacDonald provided an analogy at the first workshop.

“If this becomes what we call an overlay district, it would almost be like having the icing on the cake, and the cake is the form-based code,” MacDonald said. “The overlay is the icing that goes over the cake. It doesn't negate what's underneath it — it works with it.”

Site plans

Serving as more of an open house, the last of three workshops March 2 allowed around 30 stakeholders to lay eyes on two draft versions of the district’s master plan, drawn from their feedback. Stakeholders include the area's 11 property owners and owners of adjacent properties.

Ryan Snodgrass from TSW, the design

Forsyth:

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Kenney said he thanked County Manager David McKee, the Board of Commissioners and county staff for instilling in him the values of public service.

“In my 30-year career I have been very fortunate to work with some of the largest companies in the world,” Kenney said. “But today I consider the employees of Forsyth County my all-star team. I leave here today a better person for having worked with you.”

Commissioner Laura Semanson said Kenney’s contributions to Forsyth County have been transformative.

“I don't think most people realize exactly where we were before you were hired, and since you were hired, and the impact firm responsible for drawing the overlay, displayed plan details that spoke to a “village” feel — a desired element raised in previous workshops. Plans call for lower buildings with a smaller footprint.

The two maps are nearly identical, however one version for the Preferred Master Plan places an office space and adjacent parking lot behind the Milton Library, increasing the density.

Both are broken into four areas. The original Preferred Master Plan holds true to a density of 5 units per acre in each area and includes commercial/mixed-use, residential and programmed open spaces.

Visitors had the opportunity to speak with Snodgrass, TSW Founding Principal Tom Walsh, Milton city staff and steering committee members directing the project. The steering committee consists of members of the Design Review Board, the Planning Commission, the Board of Zoning Appeals and the Milton Historical Society.

Guests were also encouraged to mark up the site plans to the back of Council Chamber, using markers and post-it-notes.

Snodgrass said the team will give the final presentation to the City Council March 20, then look into potential code changes to adopt the plan.

Project beginnings

Charlie Roberts, chairman of the Milton Design Review Board (DRB), said the idea for a Mayfield overlay district stems from an incident around three or four years ago when a developer sought a demo permit to tear down one of the area’s historic buildings.

The DRB, the city’s authority for approving design aesthetics and building

See MAYFIELD, Page 23 that you’ve made,” Commission Cindy Jones Mills said.

Mills said Kenney helped connect county departments, and he was the county’s greatest hire.

Kenney takes a new position with the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.

In other matters at the hour-long meeting, Commissioners proclaimed March 3 Employee Appreciation Day to recognize county staff for their efforts.

Commissioners also voted 4-0 to approve a zoning condition amendment to prevent semi-trucks from making right turns from the RaceTrac onto Evans Road. Commissioner Todd Levent was absent.

Four speakers at the meeting asked commissioners to return to using paper ballots amid concerns about the accuracy of voting machines.