Cobb residents discuss Jekyll Island’s future

November 22, 2007
By KELLY BROOKS | Marietta Daily Journal

COBB GALLERIA - Whether through school field trips or family vacations, many Georgians say they first saw the ocean from Jekyll Island.

Now metro-Atlanta residents want to make sure a $350-million development project does not taint that emotional attachment, or the nature of the island itself.

At the Cobb Galleria on Tuesday, dozens of north Georgia citizens gathered for a meeting on the proposed redevelopment of 63 acres on the island. Under state law, only 35 percent of the island can be developed.

"The plan that you're going to hear today is not, is not, is not set in stone," said Jim Langford, a project executive with Greensboro-based Linger Longer communities. "Think of it as the beginning of a conversation."

In September, the Jekyll Island Authority selected Linger Longer from among four developers to revitalize the island's town center in hopes of bolstering its economy. Last week, Linger Longer initiated a mini-marathon of public meetings on the issue around the state. Company leaders made two stops on the Island itself, one in St. Mary's, and one in Augusta.

The Galleria meeting was the fifth. The developers will revise their tentative plan over the winter and bring it back to the public in February or March. State Rep. Debbie Buckner (D-Columbus) and Joe Wilkinson (R-Sandy Springs) attended the meeting, as did Jim Stokes, president of the Georgia Conservancy, and dozens of interested residents.

Stokes stressed the need for an evaluation of how many residents and tourists the island can support, and said development needed to be consistent with conservation efforts. "We need to proceed very, very carefully," Stokes said.

Others said environmental components such as rain barrels on 277 proposed cottages are good but not enough. Development plans now call for three hotels totaling 725 rooms - an "economy" hotel with rooms under $100, one mid-scale, and one attached to a new convention center.

Developers would raze an existing shopping center of about 25,000 square-feet and replace it with about 56,000-square-feet of retail stores and restaurants in a couple of areas, all within one block of each other. Plans also include 160 time-share units and an Environmental Discovery Center.

Others at the meeting criticized the intensity and upscale nature of the plan, asking for more restrained revitalization geared toward the average Georgia resident. "We don't want a Sandy Springs by the sea," said Robert Bird, an Atlanta resident and Jekyll homeowner.

According to Island Authority figures, about 65 percent of the island's residents also have homes in metro-Atlanta, and most of those are from Cobb, Gwinnett and Fulton counties.