New Commercial Space at Kelleytown Presents to Zoning Board

Architectural rendering for Yule Forest Village commercial space (Moore Bass Consulting photo).
New commercial space is proposed at Georgia 155 and Kelleytown Road. (Moore Bass Consulting photo)

Yule Forest Village, a proposed commercial development with shops and restaurants, is looking to build at Georgia 155 and Kelleytown Road. They presented to the county zoning board in January.

The proposed development is the first test of Henry County’s new village concept. The village concept — born out of the 2023 comp plan — encourages walkable neighborhood commercial at select locations. This intends to provide residents with greater retail variety closer to home instead of having to travel to the I-75 corridor. Village commercial nodes are located at Fairview, Kelleytown, Union Grove, Ola and Luella.

Yule Forest Village

Allen Grant, owner of Yule Forest, is seeking to rezone 24 acres from RA to C-2 (general commercial). His family has farmed the property for forty years, and he is now looking to retire. The proposed development would develop various retail and restaurant uses. No specific tenants have been mentioned at this time.

Yule Forest Village is proposing a total of 143,500 square feet of building space. This includes buildings of various sizes for anchor tenants, auxiliary shops and outparcels. A total of sixteen buildings are shown on the site plan.

The property is located at the southwest corner of Georgia 155 and Kelleytown Road. Located across the street is the Publix at Kelleytown Village shopping center. Vehicle access points along GA 155 would align with the Publix development. A third vehicle access point would also be off Reagan Road.

A notable element of the development would be a large central pedestrian plaza. This area features a large walking trail with landscaping and trees. It bisects the site both north-to-south and east-to-west. The pedestrian plaza encourages walking between different shops and restaurants.

Staff Review & Zoning Board Recommendation

Henry County staff reviewed the request based on compatibility with the comprehensive plan, adjacent uses and other criteria. They recommended approval of the request with conditions. Within those conditions, staff had a list of prohibited uses. They include gas stations, drive-thru fast food restaurants, nail salons and car washes. Other conditions require a traffic impact study, berm on the western property line and enhanced landscaping.

Two residents in the adjacent subdivision, Crown Reserve, spoke in opposition to the proposed development. In response, the zoning advisory board requested a larger buffer between the commercial development and residential homes. They asked for a 60-foot buffer and fence. The county code otherwise requires a 40-foot buffer.

The zoning board recommended approval of the request. The board of commissioners must consider the rezoning request at a later date to make a final decision. Such meeting is not yet scheduled.

Featured image shows a concept rendering for Yule Forest Village. Moore Bass Consulting photo.

About Clayton 1745 Articles
Clayton Carte is the founder and owner of The Henry Reporter. He founded the site in 2017 to highlight transportation projects. Over time, he began covering other topics like new development so residents can best know what’s happening in our community.

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