Guest Post: While working with Concerned Citizens of East Cobb against the Isakson Living CCRC development plans, I had the opportunity to walk the 54-acre Tritt property, as part of a tour with Isakson Living's landscape architect to understand where the 11 mostly 4-story apartment buildings and 65 homes would be located in relation to existing subdivision homes, East Cobb Park, and streams including Sewell Mill Creek.  I actually got to walk on the Tritt property 2 times because the first time not all the buildings at been staked out completely.  Here's the CCRC building plan to show where I was standing when I took the pictures, so that you can understand the CCRC plans more fully, and see how the buildings would look like if this zoning passes. 

I will say that I was against the CCRC plans before the tour. But now I'm overwhelmed, because the property is so beautiful, even in the middle of winter, and the CCRC buildings are much closer to the borders of the property than I thought.   I realize that people need to live and work somewhere, and there's only so much space that can be saved.  However, the scale of these plans is so completely out of character here, and very urban when compared to anything else in East Cobb. As far as I know, there are no 4-story buildings anywhere in East Cobb, so I was surprised to see so many 4-story buildings on the plan!  

Thank Josh Groban, Don't Give Up

Topography: The landscape is so beautiful, it's rolling hills with spaced hardwoods in every direction.  I noticed some micro-zones on the property, and one of my favorite was a grove of elms.  I also especially liked climbing to the top of the main hill, it's a perfect view of the area: to East Cobb Park, the hill to Glenside, across to Providence, and over to Hidden Hollow.  I was quite upset to learn that 28-30 feet of 'ground' would be taken away to make it flat enough to build on.  Why wouldn't the developers build on a property that is already flat?  Wouldn't that be better for the environment? Cheaper? Easier? I was told they would 'replant' on this property after the buildings were built... But then why wouldn't they just replant after building on already developed property?? If they are going to cut down all the trees anyway, why wouldn't they purchase a different property that is already developed?  These trees should be saved.  I can see why this property was highest on the Park Bond 2006 and Park Bond 2008 list:  It is meant to be saved.

Insight about the retirement concept: When I first learned about a retirement community on the Tritt property, I thought, how sweet, seniors can age in a beautiful forest near their grandchildren playing at East Cobb Park... but now I realize, all the trees will be cut down on the property, and there is no 'little' retirement community in the woods... there are huge multi-story buildings with homes so close to the next subdivision you could easily toss a football between them.  Then, East Cobb Park would be changed forever by towering buildings.  Even the donated land would run along the edge of 50-60 ft tall buildings that go on for the entire length of East Cobb Park.

Insight about schools: I had also been told that this 481-unit retirement community would be better than a subdivision because it wouldn't add children to the schools.... but now I understand if even 100 East Cobb seniors moved out of their existing homes into this CCRC retirement community, that would mean 100 homes available for new families to move into... and that could overcrowd the schools.   Ironically building an 80-home subdivision on the Tritt property could mean less students for the schools!  Of course, I would rather see this property saved, but that's another topic...  For now, this development plan should be stopped.  

Cumberland Mall comparison: I had heard that this Isakson Living CCRC would have more square footage than Cumberland Mall, and I can see that now. Honestly it felt even bigger. I walked over 2 hours during each visit to cover much of the property, and I didn't see everything.  I walked around the perimeter to see the potential views from the 11 multi-story CCRC buildings and some of the 65 CCRC homes. 

Directions to Tuesday, March 3 at 9:00 AM meeting at the Board of Commissioners, 100 Cherokee Street near the Marietta Square

Online Petition

Some extra pictures of nature on the Tritt property

The history of the Tritt land goes back much further.  In 1832, Georgia held the Gold Lottery, to give away several thousand parcels of 40 acres each.  The Cherokees had recently been forced from the area (the Trail of Tears), and there was the belief that much of their former land had gold, including the present area of East Cobb.  There was so much demand for the gold land, that the state divided the area into 40 acre parcels (called Land Lots), rather than the usual 160 acre parcels. The Land Lot system is still used today to describe land in Cobb County.

Also, in 1832 Cobb County was formed from the former Cherokee land.  We don't know the earliest history of the current Tritt land, because the Union army burned the Cobb courthouse, along with most records, in 1864, during the Civil War.  However, we know from available tax lists that Jackson Delk (1814-1897) owned the land by at least 1864.

In January 2014, Isakson Living offered to donate 9.5 acres of the Tritt property to expand East Cobb Park, contingent on the their rezoning being approved.  This was intended to placate some members of the community, by offering land which mostly could not be built upon anyhow (protected flood plain and stream buffers), but which would make fine park land - most of the current East Cobb Park is flood plain land.

Now there are strings attached to the park donation.  In Isakson Living's most recent stipulation letter, they are not required to make the park donation until the final "certificate of occupancy" is issued by the county.  A "certificate of occupancy" is the final inspection that a house or building is safe for occupancy.  There are at least 76 structures in their plan, including 65 houses, 9 large apartment buildings, and 2 other large buildings, all of which will each require a certificate of occupancy.  Thus, the park donation is contingent on 76 or more  "certificates of occupancy", and if even one of their planned buildings is not built, Isakson Living is under no obligation to make the park donation.

We have asked Isakson Living for a reasonable time-frame for making the park donation, such as either when a particular phase of construction was complete, or 48 months after zoning approval, whichever comes first.  They have thus far refused.  When asked how long construction will take, Isakson Living has consistently answered 3 to 4 years, so why not set a definite time for the park donation?

The market may not exist for Isakson Living's full plan, meaning the site may never be built out, which would mean they are never obliged to make the park donation.

Isakson Living is making no guarantees about when the park donation will occur, which is one more reason to fight this rezoning.  Join us at 9 AM, Tuesday, March 3rd, at the Cobb County Planning Commission zoning hearing in Marietta.  We need many people in opposition to defeat this rezoning!  Also, here is the Petition if you haven't yet signed. 

Above is the image of Building 7 of the 11 large apartment  buildings: Building G is planned to be 178,300 square feet and 4-Stories tall (to compare, WellStar across the street is 162,000 square feet).  Read the next post below or click here for all the images of the proposed Isakson Living CCRC development.

On Friday, February 6, 2015, representatives of East Cobb Civic Association (ECCA) and Concerned Citizens met with representatives of Isakson Living, including their attorneys, architects and landscape designer to review the latest changes to their proposal for a retirement community on the 53.7 acre Tritt property, next to East Cobb Park.  This blog post relates much of the information Isakson Living provided at that meeting about their proposed Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) plan for the Tritt property located on Roswell Road.

The 2 images below put together would be the front view of the CCRC development from Roswell Road, according to the latest Isakson Living plan for the 54-acre Tritt property. In other words, there does not appear to be any overlap in these 2 pictures of the proposed view from Roswell Road.  

This Isakson Living image above is the view from Roswell Road near Providence Road,
 and includes Buildings A, C, and H, and some of the 65 cottages.  

This Isakson Living image above is the view from Roswell Road near East Cobb Park,
and includes Buildings I, J, and K.

With both pictures side by side, the enormity of
the Isakson Living CCRC development proposal is clear.  

The image below is the map of all the buildings of the Isakson Living CCRC plan.  On the right, the blue water is Sewell Mill Creek next to East Cobb Park. The 11 buildings A-K are shown in detail in images provided by Isakson Living below. The squares at the back and left of the map are the 65 cottage homes.  The top view is Roswell Road, near Providence Road in the Walton school district.

The images below are Isakson Living plans for:
 Buildings A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, and K that house 416 units,
the Health Care Center, the Fitness Center, and Other Amenities
as well as 4 designs for the 65 cottages.

Building A is 57,420 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over parking)

Building B is 48,396 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over parking)

Building C is 94,770 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over parking)

Building D is 11,800 square feet and 2-Stories tall
(Fitness Center)

Building E is 63,300 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over parking)

Building F is 87,510 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over Parking)

Building G is 178,300 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over Parking)
(to compare, WellStar across the street is 162,000 square feet)

Building H is 79,650 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over Parking)

Building I is 96,810 square feet and 4-Stories tall (3-stories over Parking)

Building J is 38,355 square feet and 3-Stories tall (Assisted Living)

Building K is 68,160 square feet and 2-Stories tall (Skilled Nursing)

The 2 images below are the color schemes for Building B and Building I.

Below are images of the 4 designs for the 65 cottages planned. The size of each home has been confirmed to be between 1,870 and 5,200 square feet.  To calculate the overall square footage of the project, the average 3,535 sq ft x 65 homes was used.

Intensity and density are the key descriptions when viewing this CCRC proposal.  It does not fit in East Cobb, nor has a plan been provided that would fit in any low density residential area, as former district 3 Commissioner Helen Goreham pointed out in the initial passage of the CCRC zoning code in 2008 (start at minute 58:00). 

A CCRC with 11 mostly 4-story apartment-style buildings and many commercial amenities, in addition to a 65 home subdivision, is an intensity far greater than a subdivision developer could build. Approximately 88 houses total could fit on the property as it is currently zoned (R-20), and if modeled on the High Gates subdivision (also R-20) on Robinson Road, which has similar acreage as the Tritt property and a floodplain, perhaps as few as 48 homes would fit.     

We want to emphasize again that we support CCRCs, just not a CCRC of this magnitude on this location near East Cobb Park in the Walton school zone.  The Isakson Living plan is far too intense and commercial for this residential area, especially given the topography and environmental features of the Tritt property. 

This Tritt property is zoned low density residential and it should remain so, in order to protect this area from overdevelopment of the East Cobb community, schools and recreational areas.  We hope that Isakson Living can find a suitable location where they could easily build 4-stories or higher, on already developed land rather than pristine forests, to make a cost-effective and practical CCRC development. 

We trust the Board of Commisssioners to follow the zoning guidelines to protect areas from being overdeveloped.  It must be pointed out the WellStar on Roswell Road did not go through zoning, and so the impact of that massive development should be taken into account when any future rezonings in this corridor come up for a vote before the Board of Commissioners. The Isakson Living CCRC should be considered in light of the huge impact that WellStar has made on this East Cobb community, and Z-6 the Storage Facility across the street from WellStar and next to the Tritt property should also be considered in light of WellStar's footprint in this corridor.

4 Views Provided by Isakson Living of the CCRC Compared to Actual Views

Below are images provided by Isakson Living of 4 views from the neighboring subdivisions. Isakson Living has asserted that enough trees will remain to mitigate the views of the CCRC development; however, that viewpoint does not appear accurate based on real images of the Tritt property trees. 

Some homeowners in neighboring subdivisions were invited to walk the Tritt property with maps of the proposed development with Isakson Living's landscape designer, in order to understand where the houses and buildings would be located and to see how the subdivision views would be impacted. 

We have included a several Isakson Living-provided images side-by-side with photos of the Tritt property to illustrate the nature of the trees and how the CCRC buildings and houses would not be hidden from view by those trees that would remain. Rather, the CCRC buildings would dominate the landscape for everyone travelling on Roswell Road, living in the homes of the 5 subdivisions surrounding the property, or visiting East Cobb Park.

In the Isakson Living image above, the trees seem different from the actual trees.  Note how high the tree canopy is in the real image below.

In the Isakson Living image above, the trees seem different from the actual trees.  Note how high the tree canopy is in the real image below.  Many of the Tritt property trees appear 60-70 feet tall, and appear quite different in actuality than depicted in the images..

Damage to home foundations from planned blasting is a real concern for all the subdivision houses surrounding the property, in part because many of the surrounding neighborhoods are situated on a ridge above creeks that feed into Sewell Mill Creek.  Isakson Living plans to 'grade' at least 25-30 feet of large sections of the property in order to make it flat.  

Erosion and flooding are real concerns as well, and here are 2 videos of the flood of 2009.

This latest Isakson Living plan was put forward after the wetlands probability blog post.   Some very small areas of wetlands are now acknowledged on the latest Isakson Living plan but the main areas of probable wetlands are not included on this plan. 

Freshwater Forested / Shrub Wetlands are most likely located in the floodplain along Sewell Mill Creek, and not only can wetlands not be built on but often different construction techniques would need to be used so as not to damage them, according to federal and state wetlands guidelines. 

The impact to East Cobb Park cannot be overstated either.  Isakson Living has stated the project would take roughly 4 years of intensive construction, but this is after being told it would take 10 years for the project to be complete.  Very little in the footprint of the project has changed since the first plan, so it is difficult to know how the timeline became shorter. 

East Cobb Park is the jewel of East Cobb.  Residents from all areas of metro Atlanta come to enjoy the trails, playgrounds, green spaces and  Sewell Mill Creek.  A development of this size takes years to complete and the environmental  impact of a multi-year construction project on the surrounding area can't be underestimated.

Isakson Living has been good stewards of Park Springs in Stone Mountain, and the recent media coverage of the talent show performance at that CCRC speaks well of senior living communities. We want to restate that we support senior living communities. However, it is clear that the large-scale commercial Isakson Living East Cobb CCRC  would not be compatible with the topography of the Tritt property, or with the surrounding community.