PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
Three single-family home permits were issued in the month of May, averaging 2,666 square feet. Five multi-family permits were issued for the Prestwick Company’s project at Hillcrest Drive and Highway 20. The project will include 296,529 square feet of living space, 3,300 square feet of retail space, a parking deck, and a pool house. Several commercial permits were issued this month. These included Aqua Blue Carwash located at 85 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, two buildings, A and B, located at 4300 Westbrook Road that are approximately 2,500 square feet and a 93,000 square foot four story storage facility, Sugar Hill Self Storage, located at 6002 Cumming Highway.
Residential Permits Issued by Month with Year-to-Date Comparison
Residential Certificates of Occupancy Issued by Month with Year-to-Date Comparison
In the month of May, 181 building inspections were accomplished; a 50% decrease from this time last year. Year-to-date, about 400 fewer inspections were performed in 2020 as compared to 2019. A total of 587 zoning and property maintenance code inspections were carried out this past month which is on par with the 589 performed in May of last year.
PARKS AND RECREATION
Parks. Regular maintenance was completed throughout Gary Pirkle Park. The playground equipment was thoroughly cleaned and sanitized. Trimming of trees and shrubs continued throughout the park. New stone was delivered to the Community Garden and will be added to the garden pathways this week. The pollination garden was built, and new soil was installed.
Downtown and City Hall. Weekly maintenance occurred through the downtown area. Weed control measures were performed and applications of fresh mulch were added. Restroom facilities continue to be cleaned and sanitized daily. Testing on the Splash Park continues in preparation for the opening.
E Center. The gymnasium opened with restrictions and is currently averaging around 15-20 guests per day. There are currently 9,929 members. Deep cleaning continues daily throughout the facility. A fresh coat of paint was applied to the Waterfall Room.
Golf. The course had another successful month mirroring April with historical numbers reached. This was the most prosperous May in the past six years. The greens were punched and sanded resulting in softer ground and healthier conditions. The Sugar Hill Golf Association hosted the Club Championship on Saturday and Sunday, the 16th and 17th of May. Participants enjoyed two days of golf and nice weather. Two additional tournaments are scheduled for June. For more information on the course or membership, contact a representative from the Golf Course at 770-271-0519.
EVENTS
Nearly all May events were postponed or cancelled in The Bowl, The Eagle and in Downtown Sugar Hill. The Roots & Boots concert originally scheduled for May 2nd has been rescheduled to October 3rd in The Bowl. The New Orleans Jazz concert originally scheduled for May 21st will be rescheduled to a date in 2021. The city hosted a Memorial Day Ceremony on the 25th of May with the planning, assistance and execution from Council Member Brandon Hembree, the American Legion, the Daughters of the American Revolution, and many community volunteers. The event was hosted at the newly completed Veterans Memorial, with an unveiling of the new bronze eagle statue, livestreamed on Facebook. If you missed the event and would like to watch, you can view it by clicking here. Also, the Veterans Memorial is now open for the public to visit anytime. Our May virtual events included Tuesday Trivia, Tour de Chalk, and the Lip Sync Battle with the City of Norcross. We also continue to update the At Home activities pages on The Bowl and The Eagle websites, as well as interactive social media content.
The 20 Days of Summer Fun campaign will launch in June encouraging creativity and activities for those at home. The i9 organization is sponsoring the campaign by providing mini and grand prize winners, including a full free program for any of the upcoming camps or seasons (excluding golf). Several public and private rentals are scheduled on the Community Plaza in June. The public event was a town hall discussion held on Saturday, June 6th with a 5K held that same day. Another 5K is scheduled for the morning of June 27th.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT/COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
The Sugar Hill Economic Recovery Task Force continues their work of assessing needs, discussing opportunities, and identifying strategies to support community and economic health in Sugar Hill. The group has organized subcommittees focused on: Safe Reopening, Financial Resources, Community Health and Wellness, Community Research and Engagement, Restaurants and Retail. Staff continues participation in webinars as well as regional and statewide conversations to stay informed about best practices that can be applied to the downtown community development, business support, and community engagement through communication. Work on larger projects continue with a focus on updates to the website, branding, and programming for the downtown entertainment district, and resuming and expanding operations at the Suite Spot. Mike Ramirez will officially join the Sugar Hill Economic Development Department as a Community Engagement intern this month for a summer internship as part of his coursework. Mike grew up in Gwinnett County and is completing a degree at The University of Georgia. He brings a range of writing experience and communications perspective to the team.
PUBLIC WORKS AND UTILITIES
Gas Department. The total number of transmitters on our automated metering system is now at 4,658 or about 40% of our total meter count. Our utility locating staff completed locate services on 502 sites for the month and worked with our construction contractors in various sites around the city to protect our underground utilities. All of our staff has been working through regulatory compliance tasks, new service installations, and 46 other service requests to round out the workload last month. We are extending our customer service and billing relief program for a few more weeks. This provides flexibility for online payment and late fees.
Street & Stormwater Department. The street department cleared trees at Emory Drive, South Roberts Drive, Sycamore and from Appling Road blown down by recent storms. The staff delivered 18 loads of mulch and provided 7 dumpster rentals during the reporting period. Yard debris collection and other sanitation services resumed in May with a few bumps and adjustments to the scheduling. A total of 86 loads of bagged yard debris were collected and along with the chipped debris, produced 20 loads to the disposal site in Gainesville.
The stormwater staff checked and cleared drains before and after rainfall events in May. Stormwater sampling, testing and inspection at various locations was completed during the month. In addition, the staff also completed our annual stormwater report to the state.
CONSTRUCTION UPDATES
E Center. New floor finishes are being installed during the evening hours and on weekends in many of the common areas and has been coordinated with most of the businesses now reopening. The fountains and pools of the E Center are operational with a few more warranty items being corrected on these systems.
22 Acre Park (Sweet City Park) The concept for phase 1 is being developed currently and consists of walking trails, parking, perimeter buffer landscaping, restroom building, and dog park.
Peachtree Industrial Greenway Trail Project. Work has been completed on nearly half a mile of new greenway primarily on Whitehead Road and will include a segment on Peachtree Industrial connecting the two parks on that road.
Whitehead Road Greenway Trail Segment. This portion of the greenway will be constructed near the Whitehead Road bridge and include a few short segments of sidewalk to tie-in the recently completed contract with the Chattahoochee Group. Ohmshiv Construction will be building this scope along with that on Peachtree Industrial (PIB).
Sugar Hill (Main) Greenway Trail. The bid documents for the main portion of the greenway project have been advertised with a due date of the 16th of June.
Veterans Memorial Relocation. Surfaces Group is working on the last few punch list and warranty items before wrapping up final completion. The grand opening was announced, and bronze eagle sculpture unveiled at the Memorial Day ceremony on the 25th of May.
Bowl Improvements. The project is substantially complete with a few punch list items still being addressed.
Gary Pirkle Park Field Improvements. Bids were received by nine prospective bidders and the apparent low bidder was Advanced Sports Group. The recommendation for contract award is being prepared. The scope of work will include synthetic turf fields, new trail around the fields and relocated field lighting.
Art/History Room Buildout – Broadstone Project. The final design is underway with construction documents expected to wrap up very soon. This project is a part of the proposed 2020 budget and is expected to reach completion in late summer.
Level Creek/Alton Tucker Intersection Improvements and Road Extension. The construction plans are substantially complete as the project moves into right-of-way acquisition. The project will connect West Broad with Highway 20 on the east side of the E Center gym. Right-of-way acquisition will most likely affect the construction schedule for this project.
OTHER IMPORTANT UPDATES
Updates on phased re-opening plan. Unless otherwise posted, the E Center will resume normal hours beginning on Monday, June 15 as will many of our other parks and recreation facilities. We are also excited that we will be able to make the Splash Park available to our residents beginning Saturday June 13th, pending the expected expiration of state emergency public health regulations. Many offices previously operating on an appointment only basis will resume normal operation. Please watch the city’s website and social media for details this week.
Advanced Disposal’s City-Wide Annual Cleaning Week rescheduled to week of August 24th. The Annual Spring Cleaning event, originally scheduled for the week of May 4th has been rescheduled to the week of August 24th. An updated flyer will be included in gas bills closer to the date and notification will be posted to the City of Sugar Hill website and social media.
