Avondale Estates, GA — The Avondale Estates City Commission will hold a regular meeting on Wednesday, April 10, at 5:30 p.m., followed by a work session, at Avondale Estates City Hall, 21 N. Avondale Plaza, and via Zoom.

During the regular meeting, the city commission will consider approving a property exchange with 278 Oak Holdings, a company owned by Avila Real Estate. Avila has plans for a large, mixed-use project in Avondale, which has been a decade in the making.

To access the meeting, follow these instructions:

To view the meeting agendas, click here.

Public comments can be made either by attending the meeting in-person or through Zoom.

The city of Avondale Estates purchased the property at 2950 Franklin Street from Fenner Dunlop in 2022 for $23,000. It is located north of the Town Green, at the end of Lake Street, and next to the Avila property.

Lifeline Animal Adoption Center was previously located at that property. The parcel has been appraised at $166,828.

The city purchased that property to construct Lake Street. According to the resolution, the city did not use about 0.15 acres for the road project.

Avila owns the property at 147 Oak Street, the 13 acres of concrete behind the Town Green. The city needs 0.355 acres of the property to complete the road connecting Washington and Parry Streets.

In 2021, the city commission had declared its intent to use eminent domain to acquire that 0.355 from Avila. That portion was appraised at $560,000.

The city has constructed a section of the road between Oak and Lake Streets.

The resolution would authorize the property swap, so the city can build the rest of Washington Street, and the portion of 2950 Franklin Street would become part of Avila’s development plans for the 13-acre lot.

In other business:

– The city commission will consider approving a construction contract, among other agreements, for the U.S. 278 complete street project. U.S. 278 is the main drag in Avondale Estates, which has the names of East College Avenue and North Avondale Road as it runs through the city and its historic downtown.

The city commission will vote on these contracts at its April 10 meeting:

– A contract between the Georgia Department of Transportation

– A contract with IP Construction to build the project

– A contract with Midtown ATL Solutions to help with grant administration

– A contract with Stantec for construction administration

The project includes a road diet that will reduce the travel lanes from five to three between Sam’s Crossing and Ashton Place. The length of the project corridor is 1.15 miles.

There will be some on-street parking. The project also calls for a 10-foot path along the entire corridor on the north side of the street, new traffic lights and streetlights, a center median, and a five-foot sidewalk on the south side of the street between South Avondale Road and Sam’s Crossing. The city is not planning to touch the Abelia hedge as part of the project.

The total cost of the construction is about $8.5 million. Construction will likely begin in May or June and take about 18 months. Avondale Estates also received $2 million in funding from the Atlanta Regional Commission for the project.

– The city commission will consider setting the sanitation and stormwater fees for the year. At the March 27 work session, the commission discussed setting the sanitation fee at $380 and the stormwater fee at $180.