Buckhead-based developer Mesa Capital Partners, LLC has purchased an 80s era townhome complex in Sandy Springs with plans to redevelop it. Johnson Ferry Park Townhomes, located on Johnson Ferry Road near Emory Saint Joseph's Hospital, is comprised of 44 units on eight acres. Property records indicate the community was built in 1981.
The acquisition, which sources say has been in the works with Mesa for about a year, reportedly closed in May. Residents reportedly had 90 days from May 8 to vacate their units. Although there were some holdouts, eventually 100% of the residents accepted the developer's "above market value" offers on their units.
As of this week, only one unit appeared to still be occupied, with a moving truck outside the unit likely in preparation for an imminent move.
Multiple messages left over the past sixty days for Zach Schaumburg, Partner with Mesa Capital, have not been returned. In late May, a representative of the Sandy Springs development department promised a return phone call with regard to what has been approved on the site, but no call was forthcoming.
Johnson Ferry Park Townhomes occupies a prime location - in Sandy Springs, close to Brookhaven - and not far from Pill Hill, Perimeter Mall, MARTA's Medical Center station and multiple parks and recreation centers.
Local residents worry that the redevelopment was approved without their input and to the detriment of their community.
Neighbors in both Sandy Springs and neighboring Brookhaven have expressed displeasure with the nearby North American Properties project "The Hill" which will include about 300 units. The project, going up at 1160 Old Johnson Ferry Road, will also include a reported 10,000+ square feet of retail, restaurant and medical office space and is expected to welcome its first residential move-ins in the coming weeks, with plans to be completed by early next year.
Many neighbors, especially in Brookhaven, felt that the density of the development would severely negatively impact the quality of life in the largely single family neighborhoods nearby.
Mesa Describes themselves on their website as follows:
"We are a well-funded, well-trusted team of real estate investors who focus on adding value while solving the needs of tomorrow's multifamily assets in well-diversified primary, secondary and tertiary markets."
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| Multiple dumpsters are already onsite full of resident refuse |
Sources close to the situation indicate that Mesa may have actually already sold or reduced their stake in the project but their unresponsiveness along with Sandy Springs' continued unwillingness to be transparent, make it difficult to get a full and accurate picture of the plans.
Are you a former Johnson Ferry Park townhomes owner? Do you know what the current plan is for the property? Do you think Sandy Springs is approving too many projects without resident input?
Please share your thoughts below