The City of Snellville, in accordance with the Comprehensive Plan and LCI Study, is currently developing a $10 million City Center complex, which will include a new City Hall and Senior Center.  The location of the City Center is an 8-acre abandoned shopping center, which the City has demolished.  The first phase of this project, completed in April 2004, was the realignment of Oak Road to intersect with Henry Clower Boulevard and Highway 78 at a signalized intersection.  The construction of the City Center will be one of the first Town Center developments and will set the stage for future development in this district.

July 14, 2005 - Wisteria Square Development Breaks Ground

November 8, 2004 - First Town Center Development Breaks Ground

Snellville’s Town Center District is quickly becoming a reality, with the issuance of a Site Development Permit for the first private development project, to be called One Wisteria Place.  The Shailendra Group, LLC, of Atlanta, has purchased a 2.5-acre tract at the northeast corner of North Road and Wisteria Drive.  The permit issued to the Shailendra Group will allow the development group to construct a 44,000 square-foot, three-story building on the property.  The building will front the corner, with parking to the rear of the site, and will include site features such as decorative street lights, street furniture, street trees, and pedestrian/bicycle paths, as required in the Town Center Overlay District ordinance.  Work commenced on the site on November 8, 2004 and representatives of the Shailendra Group estimate the project will be completed in late summer 2005.

Planning and Development Director Jessica Roth notes, "This project will be an important development for the Town Center District.  It is not only the first project to break ground, but it is ideally situated to serve as a welcoming gateway into the District.  We welcome the Shailendra Group to Snellville and are pleased they will be joining the City and Spohntown as partners in the Town Center."

The building is currently pre-leasing office and retail space.  Nanston Dental Group has leased an entire floor and is the first anchor tenant within the development.  For more information on leasing, please contact Bryant Cornett with Ackerman & Company at 770-913-3901.

May 24, 2004 - Council Approves $71 Million Wisteria Square

The Mayor and Council voted 4-1 to approve a 10.7-acre mixed use development at the intersection of Wisteria Drive and Clower Street.  The proposed development, to be constructed by Spohntown Corporation, will include 206 for-sale loft and luxury condo residential units, storefront retail and office spaces, and an urban market.  Central to the development will be a reflecting pool with a bridge and waterfall.  The bridge will be able to function as a performance stage and wide steps lining the pool will serve as amphitheater-style seating.  The four- and five-story buildings surrounding the plaza will have shops and restaurants lining the sidewalks with residential units on the upper floors.  Mayor Pro-Tem Chad Smith, in commenting on the development in relation to the City's Comprehensive Plan and LCI Study, notes, "This is the style of development that we hope to attract.  This is exactly what the doctor ordered."  City Manager Jeff Timler further adds, "The Wisteria Square development will be the model for suburban redevelopment and the ultimate creation of a truly sustainable sense of place that allows all to live, work, and play in Snellville.  This development will also be the catalyst for future developments in the area and set a tone of quality that will creates identity with our community. "

Developer Doug Spohn has spent significant time researching Snellville's history in an effort to bring a flavor of the past into what he considers an "evolution" of Snellville's downtown.  With the English roots of Snellville's founders, Spohn completed an architectural case study of English villages to bring that feel to the City once called New London.  As Councilmember Bruce Garraway notes, "Snellville took the old-fashioned tradition of parks, sidewalks, and gathering places, and is fashioning a new kind of neighborhood that feels like yesterday, but lives like today."

Spohn hopes the project will break ground in early spring 2005, with the reflecting pool and walkways built first.  He is anticipating a completion schedule of approximately 3-5 years for the whole project.  Planning & Development Director Jessica Roth notes, "I am very excited about our Town Center and Mr. Spohn's project, which will provide a unique live-work-play destination in the heart of the City.  The enthusiasm of our residents, Council, and staff for the Town Center has now caught the attention of private developers and investors.  With the development community teaming with the City now, our Town Center is quickly moving from just a vision to a reality."

Architectural Renderings ~ Site Plan

May 6, 2004:  Snellville Receives $2.2 Million for Town Center

The Atlanta Regional Commission has awarded a $2.2 million grant to the City of Snellville for implementation of the Livable Center's Initiative study.  The total project cost is projected at $2.8 million for infrastructure improvements, such as intersection enhancements and streetscapes. These improvements will complement the $10 million City Center Development, currently under construction, which encompasses the City Hall and Senior Center development, as well as Spohntown's $71 million mixed-use planned development, Wisteria Square.   City Manager Jeff Timler said, "As important as this money is to implementation, this grant is also an incredible stamp of approval from the Atlanta Regional Commission regarding our current planning and direction of sustainable development."