Local Growth creates Strain on Infrastructure
Posted: Saturday, September 30th, 2006, 12:44 pm EST
Category: Real Estate News
Everybody wants the economy to do well and keep growing. It means more jobs and more pay. But with growth comes problems, especially when growth happens rapidly. Metro Atlanta has been growing rapidly for years, decades actually. Population has increased about 1 Million per decade over the last 20 years and the pace is predicted to continue for the next two or three decades. 100,000 additional people in Metro Atlanta every year. No wonder traffic gets worse and infrastructure lags behind.
Recently, I have posted about new projects planned for Canton in Cherokee County. Russ Sims, director of planning and forecasting for the Cherokee County School District, said “there are more than 2,300 houses in the county that are ready to be occupied, more than 5,100 lots prepped for construction and more than 13,100 undeveloped lots in neighborhoods where construction is underway. There also are more than 12,600 lots that are zoned for houses, but not yet under construction.”
Sims added, “the school district is predicting both the county population and the student population will double by 2014.” Wow - double the population in only 8 years?
The school district is asking dvelopers to set aside land for new schools. By law, developers do not have donate any land to schools districts. “All we can do is beg vehemently,” Sims said. If developers don’t help out, then tax payers would have to finance the purchase of land for new schools. Macauley Companies, developers for one of the larger proposed devleopments in Cherokee County has said, “We are absolutely committed to providing enough schools for that area.” The question is what is enough?
All of this comes back to the same problem…growth creates strain on infrastructure such as roads and sewer lines, plus school districts and traffic problems. There is no stopping this growth and ignoring this fact will only make things worse. The best solutions I have read about and studied seem to point towards Higher-Density Development.
The executive director of the Urban Land’s Institute’s Atlanta chapter, Jeff DuFresne, said “When you look at the problems facing Atlanta - air quality, water quality, and traffic - the real challenge is the attitude toward change. People just see red when it comes to higher-density development, even though it may take cars off the street, use less land, improve the local tax base, and give mixed-use and housing options to residents. It can save taxpayers money.”
This story used quotes from the Cherokee Tribune, Cherokee Ledger-News and Atlanta Business Chronicle.
Canton is exploding with new developments
Posted: Thursday, September 28th, 2006, 12:01 pm EST
Category: Real Estate News
Canton is getting another huge development, in addition to the Macauley project and Canton West I posted recently. 1,300 Acres along the Etowah River near GA Hwy 369 could have up to 1,800 homes and begin development in 2007 with homes delivered as early as 2008.
To summarize the 3 recently proposed developments:
- Macauley Project 4,000 Acres 12,000 Homes
- Canton West 2,341 Acres 3,080 Homes
- Hwy 369 Project 1,300 Acres 1,800 Homes
Total Proposed: 7,641 Acres 16,880 Homes (Total density of 2.2 Homes per Acre) If we assume 2.5 people per household, that is a population growth of 42,200 more people.
Thanks to Knox over at Cherokee Real Estate Blog for the tip on the Hwy 369 project.
Marietta Landmark makes YouTube
Posted: Wednesday, September 27th, 2006, 12:21 pm EST
Category: Real Estate News
I wanted to have my first video blog post… so I searched the famous (infamous) YouTube.com and found this video about The Big Chicken. I have no idea what the video contest thing is about and I sure don’t know pixelchick or mr. pixelchick, but I like this guy’s choice of music and his focus on the Marietta icon. I also like how it shows the population of Atlanta: 4.8 Million
Did you know that you can get to anywhere in Georgia from the Big Chicken?
It seems everyone uses this as a landmark.
“Just go down 41 and hang a left at the Big Chicken…”
“Take Roswell Road to the Big Chicken…”
“Go from the square towards the Big Chicken…”
I hope you enjoy my first vlog. Thanks to Giles over at Developing Atlanta for inspiring me to find video about Marietta, GA. Props are also due to justpassnthru for making the video.
LoopNet needs love too: the best commercial real estate website
Posted: Monday, September 25th, 2006, 12:38 am EST
Category: Real Estate News
With so much talk about real estate 2.0 and new websites such as Trulia, Zillow, Redfin, et al…it seems everyone is overlooking commercial real estate and in particular the 10 year company LoopNet, Inc. www.loopnet.com is the best website for commercial real estate in terms of usability, functionality, and affordability. As a member and frequent user of Loopnet.com, I am excited to see the service gaining users and recognition.
National Real Estate Investor recently wrote:
“Online information service LoopNet, Inc. observed a significant milestone last month when it officially exceeded 1.5 million registered members on Aug. 13th.LoopNet hit one million members last October. This makes LoopNet.com the most visited commercial real estate web site. According to comScore Media Matrix, an Internet consulting firm, more than 900,000 unique visitors visited LoopNet in June.
By the end of that month, incidentally, the LoopNet site featured more than $335 billion of properties for sale and 2.9 billion sq. ft. of space for lease. NREI spoke with LoopNet president and CEO Richard Boyle last month about the company’s strong growth trajectory…”
…read the September interview here and the click here to read the August interview.
LoopNet is not just a great listings website for commercial real estate, but they have been using many of the web 2.0 tools other sites are just now integrating, such as their map search feature. While I realize there is a lot of competition in this sector, CoStar and CityFeet lack the quality web experience LoopNet offers. Check it out and let me know what you think?
(I should disclose I am also a stock holder. But if you use the service and believe they are the best, why not buy them?)
THE FUTURE OF TRANSIT IN METRO ATLANTA
Posted: Sunday, September 24th, 2006, 10:36 pm EST
Category: Real Estate News
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
7:30 a.m.- 9:30 a.m.
Transportation and mobility issues are among the greatest challenges to continued growth throughout the metro Atlanta region. With all the divergent discussions concerning different transit initiatives in metro Atlanta, ULI Atlanta is bringing together leaders from the Beltline, the Atlanta Streetcar project and the Brain Train Group to discuss their latest plans and initiatives, both independently and in the context of their interconnectivity with existing and planned transit alternatives throughout the metro region.
These proponents will share with attendees the political and economic hurdles they are working to overcome and the timelines for making these proposed transit options a reality. Panelists will address the transit alternatives they are considering and the impact these choices will have on initial development costs, long-term operating costs, and expected revenues from ridership. Finally, these experts will discuss the impact these initiatives are expected to have on development and land use throughout the entire metro region.
This program promises to be an exciting and informative discussion about one of the most pressing issues facing the all of metro Atlanta – we hope you can attend.
MODERATOR
Steven R. Cover – Commissioner: Department of Planning and Development
City of Atlanta
SPEAKERS
Emory Morsberger – CEO – The Morsberger Group
Ed Ellis - Regional Vice President - Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.
David Green – Principal - Lord, Aeck & Sargent
LOCATION
The Biltmore
817 W. Peachtree Street
Atlanta, GA 30308
http://www.novareevents.com/biltmore
Parking is $7.00
Misty D. Ivie
Coordinator
ULI Atlanta
1330 Spring Street
Atlanta, Georgia 30309
T 404-888-8765
F 404-888-9502
atlanta.uli.org
This is a huge issue and the key to Atlanta’s future success or failure.
Thanks to Giles over at Developing Atlanta for this information.
