By Eric Curl
Sept. 22, 2024 – The Savannah City Council will consider an almost $12.6 million contract to upgrade the Industrial & Domestic Water Treatment Plant, as reported this week. In addition, the city council will also consider a $929,000 design contract for the Tide to Town Middleground Trail, which will extend about three miles along Middleground Road, connecting Abercorn Street and Montgomery Cross Road in the north with Abercorn Street and Science Drive at Georgia Southern in the south. Tide to Town, a “protected network of walking and bicycling trails connecting all of Savannah’s neighborhoods” is expected to eventually stretch more than 30 miles to downtown, the islands, midtown and southside Savannah, providing bikers, joggers and walkers with safe and efficient routes for recreation or for necessity, as previously reported. Tide to Town is being funded by SPLOST VII ($1 million), Tourism Development Product ($1 million), and the General Fund ($689,000), according to the staff report.
The city council will also consider an agreement with Johns Hopkins University, on behalf of its Bloomberg Center for Public Innovation, under the Bloomberg American Sustainable Cities Initiative. Launched in March, Bloomberg American Sustainable Cities is a three-year initiative to “turbocharge 25 U.S. cities’ efforts to leverage historic levels of federal funding to proactively build low-carbon, resilient, and economically thriving communities,” according to the website.
In addition, the city council will consider an amendment to the lease and operating agreement with Fans First Entertainment, LLC to govern proposed renovations and associated use of funds at Grayson Stadium.
Tybee Island
The Tybee Island City Council will consider an agreement with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to receive a $4 million appropriation for the state’s share of the planned 2026 beach renourishment.
Metropolitan Planning Commission
The Metropolitan Planning Commision will consider a petition to establish the Kensington Park/Groveland Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District, which would be bounded by DeRenne and Waters avenues and Abercorn and Johnston streets. Designed to preserve the character of Savannah’s older neighborhoods, the conservation district establishes a public process and standards to evaluate demolition of contributing buildings to ensure historic buildings are preserved and the character of the district is maintained. Established in 1950, Kensington Park-Groveland is a post-World War II residential area situated along DeRenne, just south of downtown.
In addition, the MPC will consider an amended master plan for The Reserve at Savannah Harbor, a residential development on Hutchinson Island.
The MPC will also consider a special use permit to allow retail sales of alcohol for on-premises consumption, along with package sales for off-premises consumption, in association with a proposed restaurant at 17 West Park Avenue, as reported.
The MPC will also consider a petition to rezone the former fairgrounds property from Conservation – Park and Residential Multifamily 2-25 to Planned Development, as part of the city’s effort to develop the 66.5-acre site as a mixed-use development consisting of residential, retail, recreation and community development uses. The proposed rezoning comes after the Georgia Department of Community Affairs recently announced that the plan to construct up to 64 apartments for seniors on the site will be awarded low-income housing tax credits, considered essential by developers to make the financing work for such projects. The application was the second attempt after a 2023 application did not score high enough to be awarded the highly competitive tax credits, as reported last week.
Historic Preservation Commision
The Historic Preservation Commission will consider plans for 2517 Bull St. and 2517 West 42nd St., where the C&S Furniture & Upholstery buildings are located. The buildings are being converted into a “managed food hall” that would include bar uses and restaurants with alcohol sale, as previously reported.
The Chatham Area Transit Authority is meeting at 11 a.m. on Tuesday.
The agenda for the Sept. 24 meeting is now available to view. The meeting can be viewed live on CAT’s YouTube page at: https://www.youtube.com/ChathamAreaTransit.
The Metropolitan Planning Commission is meeting at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
The agenda for the Sept. 24 meeting is now available to view. The meetings can be accessed remotely by registering via the MPC’s homepage.
The Georgia Ports Authority is meeting at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday.
The agenda is now available to view. The meeting can be accessed remotely at 762-233-1679
Conference ID: 617 704 833#.
The Historic Preservation Commission is meeting at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
The agenda for the Sept. 25 meeting is now available to view. The meetings can be viewed remotely by registering via the Metropolitan Planning Commission’s homepage.
The Board of Registrars is meeting at 12 p.m. on Wednesday.
The agenda for the Sept. 25 meeting is now available to view. Conference call login information for virtual meetings is located at the bottom of the agenda.
The Chatham County Savannah Authority for the Homeless is meeting at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
The agenda is not available to view.\
The Savannah City Council is meeting at 2 p.m. on Thursday.
The agenda is now available to view. A workshop will be held at 12 p.m. before the meeting. Due to an ongoing restoration project in City Hall, the meeting will be held at the Board of Education’s Whitney Administrative Complex. Remote viewing options include SGTV Comcast Channel 8, the city of Savannah YouTube page and the city of Savannah Facebook page.
The Savannah Zoning Board of Appeals is meeting at 10 a.m. on Thursday.
The agenda is now available to view. The meetings are in-person, but the public can also access the meeting remotely by registering on the homepage.
The Tybee Island City Council is meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.
The agenda is now available to view. Meetings can be watched live and later on Tybee’s video page.
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