Peachtree Corners May Lose Industrial Park to Neighboring City

Efforts by the City of Duluth to annex remaining parcels of Blue Ridge Industrial Park appear to be gaining momentum. Duluth City Administrator Phil McLemore reported to the Duluth City Council at its Monday (Aug. 22) work session that four owners of parcels in the industrial park have requested Duluth city staff draw up voluntary annexation documents. 

The city is waiting to hear from two other park parcel owners expected to request annexation and is contacting the others about the advantages of becoming a part of the Duluth.

Part of the industrial park, located off North Berkley Lake Road, is already in the Duluth city limits. (See Map 1. The yellow areas indicate indicate the four parcel owners who are asking to be annexed by Duluth. The blue areas are parcels Duluth would like to annex.)

The remainder, except for a corner in the City of Berkeley Lake, lies in unincorporated Gwinnett County. The boundaries of a proposed city of Peachtree Corners include the rest of Blue Ridge Industrial Park up to Duluth’s city limits.

It is not known if this area was also targeted for annexation by the City of Norcross, which has launched its own annexation effort for some businesses in the proposed Peachtree Corners boundaries.  

Duluth hopes to convince owners of parcels in the industrial park of the advantages of becoming a part of Duluth before the November 2011 referendum to create the city of Peachtree Corners. Also, the only access to the interior of the park is through Blue Ridge Industrial Parkway. The entrance to the parkway is in the Duluth city limits.

Duluth recently hosted a luncheon for Blue Ridge Industrial Park parcel owners and gave a presentation on the benefits of annexation. These include improved public safety provided by the Duluth Police Department, access to the parks and programs offered by the city’s highly regarded parks and recreation department at a lower cost than non-residents, and a new stormwater utility fee that is cheaper than Gwinnett County’s. The city also contracts with a single solid waste disposal company while the county uses multiple haulers.

“Almost half of the park is already in the city,” McLemore said. “Four longtime businesses want to become part of the city and have already come forward,” he said. “They have looked at the options and want to be in the City of Duluth.”

The city likely will have the 60 percent of the park necessary to bring the rest of it into the city limits, McLemore said. Under the 60%/40% rule, if 60 percent of landowners apply for annexation and the area is contiguous to the city limits, the other 40 percent also would be brought into the city. “This may be what happens here,” he said.

Duluth would also like to annex several businesses and a church across from the industrial park between the railroad tracks and Buford Highway as well as an area between the park and Turman Drive.

Blue Ridge Industrial Park is part of an ambitious plan by the city to annex 13 contiguous areas. The properties being eyed for annexation include residential, commercial and industrial properties.

Intern Steven Lau, a Harvard senior majoring in economics, presented an analysis of tax revenue the properties would generate balanced against their need for city services to the council at the work session. Lau has assisted city staff with developing the annexation proposal.

In addition to Blue Ridge Industrial Park, the 13 areas include Gwinnett Place Mall and areas along Pleasant Hill Road, Steve Reynolds Boulevard, Duluth Highway, Buford Highway near Sugarloaf Parkway and Buford Highway near Suwanee. (See Map 2. The areas are color coded.)

Other areas being eyed for potential annexation by Duluth include Sugarloaf Country Club, Boles Farm subdivision, the Burton Farm, Cardinal Lake Estates, Canterbury Woods, Leafland Estates, and Hermitage Plantation.

Annexation of these areas, Lau said, would better define Duluth’s boundaries, enhance the city’s tax base, and allow more orderly planning and code enforcement. “There may also be spillover effects such as attracting commercial and industrial development, increasing employment opportunities, raising the level of (the city’s) political influence, and increasing its ability to attract grant funding,” he said.

Lau’s presentation also included a chart comparing Duluth’s tax millage rate with those of the county, nearby cities and the proposed city of Peachtree Corners.

Duluth Planning Director Glenn Coyne recommended that the city council prioritize the areas targeted for annexation and that the city’s marketing director and economic development manager collaborate on an annexation information packet. The council also needs to develop a strategy for approaching residents and businesses in the potential annexation areas, he said.

Coyne suggested that the council hold a separate work session and involve the city’s planning commission in prioritizing the areas to be annexed.

Annexation methods include landowners, contiguous to the city, petitioning for annexation with 100 percent in favor. This land can be annexed anytime with approval by the council. The 60%/40% rule is also a possibility.

Another method requires passage of local legislation by the Georgia General Assembly to place an annexation referendum on the ballot for city voters to decide. The soonest this probably could be done would be November 2012.