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Euramex clears first hurdle in Kirkwood

Kirkwood and East Lake

Euramex clears first hurdle in Kirkwood

File Photo: Sept. 10, 2014. Euramex attorney Steve Rothman shows an artist's rendering of a proposed apartment project in Kirkwood. Photo by Dan Whisenhunt
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Sept. 10, 2011 Euramex attorney Steve Rothman shows an artist's rendering of a proposed apartment project in Kirkwood. Photo by Dan whisenhunt

Sept. 10, 2014 Euramex attorney Steve Rothman shows an artist’s rendering of a proposed apartment project in Kirkwood. Photo by Dan whisenhunt

Euramex Management won the endorsement of the Kirkwood Neighbors’ Organization for its apartment project during the KNO’s Sept. 10 meeting.

Members voted 37 to 6 in support of the company’s rezoning application. There were four abstentions.

The company is proposing a development of 250 to 260 apartments behind Kirkwood Station. The company has the adjacent apartments at 1910 Bixby Street under contract. Those apartments will be coming down if the Atlanta City Council approves its rezoning application. But first things first. The project will be up for a vote by the local Neighborhood Planning Unit at the end of the month.

“The plan is for the 85 units to start with,” Euramex Vice President Jetha Wagner said. “Obviously, Kirkwood is up and coming.”

The Kirkwood residents won some concessions in the process of giving the project the OK.

“The first plan they showed was all surface parking and a big building, and they heard the neighbors,” said Stan Sugarman, who also handles zoning issues for KNO. “They wanted to shield the residential from the noise of a parking. That’s when … they brought back the deck idea.”

The developers are proposing apartments that would wrap around secured parking.

As another condition, all of the impact fees the developer pays will stay in the community for traffic improvements and Euramex is agreeing to work with the neighborhood on planning those.

The development will consist of one-bedroom apartments that will be available for $1,100 to $1,200 and two-bedrooms available for $1,500 to $1,600.

“There is no product in Kirkwood today like this,” Wagner said.

Some residents were skeptical about Euramex’s traffic predictions. The company says the first phase will be essentially a wash in terms of how many cars enter and exit the property. The next phase of the development will require some traffic improvements. The property is bordered by Bixby, Warren and Howard streets.

Euramex attorney Steve Rothman told the KNO that the company has been “labeled as pioneers” in developing properties with apartments wrapped around parking decks, which cost more to build.

“They believe it would lease fast enough or absorb fast enough to justify the expense,” he said.

In zoning news, Ted Bradford with City Councilwoman Natalyn Archibong’s office, said that the special use permit to expand a daycare on Anniston Avenue has been approved. The permit application would allow iCare to enroll up to 18 children. Many neighbors objected to the expansion of a commercial business on their street, and it also received two conflicting votes from residents: KNO voted against the application, but NPU supported it.

Bradford said the neighborhood will have an opportunity to review and weigh in on renewing the special use permit in two years.

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