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That's a great point that Kennesaw a very small rural town that was engulfed or swallowed by the explosive growth of Atlanta's metropolitan area.
But when talking about the attractiveness of a small town/city like Kennesaw from an economic development standpoint, it's important to note that it is not just the 9.4 square-mile area inside of the city limits of Kennesaw with a population of about 32,000 residents that developers are attracted to.
It is the entire 44 square-mile area with a Kennesaw mailing address (the entire area of the Kennesaw 30152 and 30144 zip codes combined) that has a population of about 95,000 residents, as well as most of Northwestern Cobb County, that developers are attracted to....An area that includes the huge cluster of commercial and industrial development (near Town Center Mall and along US Highway 41 Cobb Parkway) as well as the very fast-growing campus of Kennesaw State University (a school which is reported to have the 3rd-highest enrollment of any college or university in Georgia).
Being a heavily-developed and heavily-populated area with a large and fast-growing university campus (KSU) with many retail and recreational amenities (Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield Park, Lake Allatoona, etc) located just north of the county seat of government and the largest city (Marietta) in a heavily-populated and very fast-growing county of 732,000 people (Cobb County), one can see how Kennesaw is a very attractive target of real estate developers.
I can't rep Born2Roll due to the dreaded "you must spread..." A slight pain... But educational as his posts always are. There are a lot of people living outside the boundaries of Kennesaw. Town Center is a full blown edge city now I guess. I went to Google Maps and it is filled with office parks and commercial areas, particularly around Chastain Rd. Really nice area. I think I could get into Kennesaw!
I can't rep Born2Roll due to the dreaded "you must spread..." A slight pain... But educational as his posts always are. There are a lot of people living outside the boundaries of Kennesaw. Town Center is a full blown edge city now I guess. I went to Google Maps and it is filled with office parks and commercial areas, particularly around Chastain Rd. Really nice area. I think I could get into Kennesaw!
The average Kennesaw resident makes no distinction between Kennesaw in general and the City of Kennesaw in daily parlance. The only time it seems to come up is when City of Kennesaw residents bemoan the added tax we pay while everyone else in Kennesaw benefits. No one says, "I live in South Kennesaw" (or whatever other part). The area, though, and population are larger than commonly perceived.
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All great points as usual. I think Kennesaw is underestimated, and many will be surprised in the next 10 years or so, if not sooner.
I agree that the Kennesaw area is an area with lots of potential, particularly because of the presence of the very large cluster of commercial and industrial development, the presence of Kennesaw State University and the presence of nearby recreational amenities like Kennesaw Mountain and Lake Allatoona.
But one thing that is concerning about an area like Kennesaw as well as most areas outside of the I-285 Perimeter is the lack of a high-capacity transit link (preferably passenger rail-centered high-capacity transit) between a fast-growing outlying area like Kennesaw/Northern Cobb County and Central Atlanta (including the world-leading Atlanta Airport).
That lack of a high-capacity rail transit link between Kennesaw/Northern Cobb County and Central Atlanta is concerning because of the continued explosive growth of development and population on what appears to be a largely built-out road network in and around an area like Kennesaw.
In Downtown Kennesaw real estate developers are planning and building multi-story high-density multi-family residential developments in an area that is accessible almost exclusively by only winding two-lane roads that already struggle with traffic congestion during peak hours.
The toll lanes that are currently under construction on Interstates 75 and 575 north of I-285 will help an outlying area like Kennesaw and Northern Cobb County stay viable from an investment standpoint because those toll lanes should provide a congestion-free lane for the direction with the heaviest traffic during peak hours....Congestion-free lanes that potential investors (investors who want to bring high-paying jobs to the area) can use to travel in when traffic is gridlocked in the general purpose lanes of Interstates 75 and 575.
But the biggest concern is that the increasing traffic generated by the continuing growth of development and population of an outlying area like Kennesaw could potentially one day in the not-too-distant future become a hindrance to continued economic growth without a high-capacity transit corridor to move people around through a severely-congested heavily-developed and heavily-populated area where the road network can no longer be expanded to accommodate the increasing traffic.
If an area like Kennesaw and Northern Cobb County can obtain a high-capacity transit link (preferably rail transit) to Central Atlanta and the world-leading Atlanta Airport in the not-too-distant future, the area will be set from an economic development and quality-of-life standpoint over the long-term as the population of the Atlanta region continues to grow but the region's road network does not.
I absolutely agree about the need for transit amid the concerns of continued development and a still-growing population that shows no signs of stalling. However, I am cautiously optimistic about any rail-based options coming to fruition any time soon (it was needed, like, yesterday, as you know). While the city planners of Kennesaw have talked recently about the need and interest in such options, having taken polls of residents and in coordination with others (developers, planners, businesses), it seems like the plans are co-dependent on plans by / with the ARC.
It is such a shame that Metro Atlanta developed the way it has, with no long-term look at what the population surges and development around (rather than within) the city would do for transportation in the future. There should have been an outer perimeter constructed in addition to 285 - one that would have connected the surrounding suburbs and job centers to each other (rather than the COA necessarily). Many people live in areas like Woodstock, Kennesaw, Roswell and Lawrenceville but work in Alpharetta, Cartersville, etc. Lots of people have no need to go through the city or to traverse it, but simply need to be connected to the network of surrounding towns and cities for work and home life.
Nonetheless, people will still continue to move to places like Kennesaw on account of the quality of the schools, the natural/outdoor options (as you mentioned, which is apparently a big draw for quite a few), the cost of housing (though increasing), the various shopping options and the proximity to the city. While I do know of people in my neck of the woods who, unfortunately, have to drive all the way to places like the CDC or GA Tech for work, most people I've met/know around here either work within Cobb County and /or can work from home entirely or several days a week. In fact, with traffic as bad as it can be at times, it seems like the government would incentivize companies that institute telecommuting options for their workforces, from a quality of life, environmental and productivity POV.
By the time, or if, rail transmit makes its way throughout Cobb County, Kennesaw will probably be approaching 200,000 people. LOL. Like you mentioned, it's already near the 100K vicinity.
A $150 million mixed-use development at the intersection of Cobb and Barrett parkways is moving forward as the developer has obtained funding for the project and purchased the 52 acres the project will be built on.
Atlanta-based Fuqua Development plans to build a shopping center to be called Kennesaw Marketplace with about 300,000 square feet of retail space. It would be anchored by Whole Foods and Academy Sports, with 180 age-restricted senior living units at the intersection, currently home to the Castle Lake Mobile Home Park.
Garvis Sams, attorney with Sams, Larkin, Huff and Balli who represents Fuqua on the project, said the developer closed on the 52-acre property about two weeks ago and began the process of relocating the residents of Castle Lake.
“They’re already moving some tenants out. It’ll be mid-August when they start taking down trees and start grading,” Sams said, adding, “They just started that process, so they probably haven’t moved out more than about 20 or so. So they’ve got a lot to go.”
Sams told the Kennesaw City Council in April that 62 of 118 owners have accepted Fuqua Development’s offer to move residents, and their trailers, to other nearby mobile home parks.
Kennesaw Councilwoman Cris Eaton-Welsh praised the work Fuqua has done to help relocate the residents of Castle Lake.
“One of the things we asked them from the very beginning was to make sure that all of the residents who were relocated were relocated with courtesy and dignity and respect, and I believe they accomplished that,” Eaton-Welsh said. “They treated each one of these families individually. They didn’t do some blanket ‘Hey here’s a number, get out.’ And that’s a very hard thing to do and a very expensive thing to do.”
Darryl Simmons, Kennesaw’s director of planning and zoning, said while the City Council approved a new site plan for the development in April, construction cannot start until the residents of the mobile home have all been relocated.
“They are nowhere near ready for construction of anything because they still have to take care of the families, make sure everyone is relocated first,” Simmons said, adding it may take 60 to 90 days for the relocation to be complete.
Hmm...I really do hope the residents who are being made to leave benefit somehow from this. Oftentimes when people are told they have to leave their homes, it's to their detriment.
Kennesaw does seem to be getting more and more developed. I wonder if it will ever get to a point where residents see no need to go to Atlanta when they can get their entertainment in Kennesaw (don't mean not ever go to Atlanta but mostly choose to have fun in Kennesaw over Atlanta).
And I am curious if and how the new Braves stadium will affect the North Cobb area (in terms of investment, etc). What do you guys think? This may be another thread...not sure.
In terms of everyday things, like parks, shopping (for most things), dining and kids' activities, there is absolutely no need to go into Atlanta. Lots of people I know around Kennesaw spend most of their time in Kennesaw, Marietta and Smyrna. Now, of course, for those who must commute for work to the city or who must traverse the city to get to work --- that is a different story. I think many people spend most of their time within a certain footprint of their residence, no matter where they live, unless they are in a really inconvenient area or in a place with few amenities.
Kennesaw IS getting built up. There are other residential development projects and planned retail in the "downtown" area and elsewhere on the horizon. I have met some long-timers (people who have been in Kennesaw for 15+ years), and some of them cannot stand what's going on. They miss the more pastoral, far-flung feel of the old Kennesaw, I guess. On the other hand, there are others (like me) who enjoy all the development for personal and other reasons.
ETA: I'm not sure where the trailer park residents are going. It has been a controversial happening. I have heard that Kennesaw has banned any future trailer parks from being erected in the city, so as they go away, i don't think more will take their place.
The housing market is picking up, too. Homes in my neighborhood are sometimes under contract within a week or two. I have heard that some people think the Braves stadium will actually be a plus for folks up here, though I don't see how. The general consensus on traffic, though, is not favorable!
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