A new library on the Eastside will be built off Barnett Shoals Road, Athens-Clarke County commissioners decided last week.
The commission voted unanimously at its Sep. 3 meeting to choose the county-owned site for the $16 million SPLOST-funded library. It’s located near the Clarke Gardens apartment complex and the Lakewood subdivision on the stretch of Barnett Shoals between Lexington Road and the intersection with Gaines School Road.
Other sites considered included the YWCO, the Kroger shopping center at Barnett Shoals and College Station, Southeast Clarke Park and the old Gaines School, now an early learning center. None of them worked out, though. The commission was constrained because SPLOST funding, pared back to fit other projects on the list for a 2020 referendum, did not include money to acquire land.
“Many of us might have had a different desire to begin with, but the other sites wound up not being logistically or financially appropriate for us,” said Commissioner Carol Myers, who chaired the site selection committee. “This site, though, I think will end up being a wonderful place.”
Several commissioners said they were glad the library is not being built further out. The property is connected to the North Oconee River Greenway, and as Commissioner Allison Wright noted, that stretch of Barnett Shoals has bike lanes and sidewalks. However, some commissioners raised concerns about speeding traffic. When the library opens in 2026, it could have a traffic signal with crosswalks.
A split commission also rejected a rezoning request for a 60-home subdivision along Shadybrook Drive, off Lexington Road. Opponents cited neighborhood opposition, although no nearby residents spoke out against the development, either at last week’s meeting or prior commission and planning commission meetings.
Prior to the vote, landscape architect Ken Beall told the commission that removing a bridge at the entrance seemed to quell neighborhood unrest. “We think we’ve worked hard to address all the concerns raised thus far,” Beall said.
Commissioner Tiffany Taylor disagreed. “In working with the residents, this is not what they would like in their backyard,” she said, adding that they were upset by The Atlas, a new student apartment complex nearby.
When Jesse Houle raised the need to build more housing, Taylor responded, “You’re absolutely right, we do need housing, but we have to be very responsible where we do have housing, because while we just approve things, we have residents who live in Athens-Clarke County who cannot live in these things we approve for them to live in.”
The proposal was for 60 “cottages” of 2,000–3,000 square feet that would sell for $500,000–$600,000. Although out of reach for most local families, Commissioner Melissa Link said they might attract buyers who would otherwise gentrify existing neighborhoods.
Commissioner Ovita Thornton was put off by the lack of a binding site plan. That issue could be addressed by the planning commission in the future. After a 6–4 vote against approval, Taylor agreed to allow the developer to withdraw the proposal so that he would not have to wait a year to resubmit it. Houle, Myers, Link and Commissioner John Culpepper supported the rezoning.
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