Could it be possible that Cobb County residents and officials are determined to stiff-arm the one demographic the rest of the world is coveting right now? Details from a recent Board of Commissioners meeting would suggest that millennials — that generation of well-educated, well-connected income disposers — are persona non grata in the likes of Cobb. According to the Marietta Daily Journal, a barely OTP proposal by Marietta-based Lynwood Development Group is in serious jeopardy because the six-story building would house 280 rental units. Slated for the intersection of Windy Ridge Parkway and Powers Ferry Road, the development would also include 8,000 square feet of retail, and judging by the way the rental units are referred to as "condominiums" in rezoning paperwork, you'd think they'd qualify as nice. Nonetheless, commissioners recently delayed a vote on the land's rezoning because some were hung up on the rental aspect, and the developer's attorney said it's still impossible to gain financing for condos. "Please vote all units for sale and say no to rentals," one nearby resident told commissioners. "Please support us in having neighbors as homeowners who care as deeply as we do about building a home, building a community they can invest in for the long haul."
The developer's attorney assured commissioners that none of the units would be three-bedrooms, and thus would be unlikely to overburden schools. The target market for the "condos," the attorney added, would be millennials, which might have been a bad word choice. One man who lives across the street at Horizon at Wildwood condos spoke in support of the apartments and dropped a D-bomb on his neighbors. "Some seem to discriminate against these millennials and tell them that it's OK to work in (the area), but they've got to go back at night and commute to Buckhead or to Midtown," the resident said, according to the newspaper.
At one point, Commissioner Bob Ott, who represents that particular area, said flatly that he would not support the development if it would include rentals — a notion that was backed by Commission Chairman Tim Lee, who's gained infamy for questionable deals involving the departing Atlanta Braves and recent upgrades to his office.
Eventually, commissioners agreed to table their rezoning decision until they could write some stipulations into the deal that would require the developer to flip the apartments to condos after a certain period of time. The county's attorney, however, seemed pessimistic, adding that such arrangements are "difficult to enforce."
· Board delays vote on condo development [Marietta Daily Journal]
· Are Millennials Sorta Responsible for Skyline Monotony? [Curbed Atlanta]
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