The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
'Project Rocket' gets Gwinnett approval, but questions remain
Gwinnett County has granted “Project Rocket” permission for takeoff.
But plenty of questions — and a potential complication in neighboring DeKalb — remain.
The Gwinnett Board of Commissioners gave final approval Tuesday afternoon for the permits necessary for a massive, 2.5-million-squarefoot distribution center near Stone Mountain, referred to by the code name Project Rocket. The facility will occupy 78 acres on West Park Place Boulevard, just south of U.S. 78 and just inside Gwinnett County lines.
It is projected to create more than 1,000 jobs, and county officials have expressed excitement about its potential. But they haven’t named the company that will be doing business at the site.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the vote was handled quickly and passed 4-1. Commissioner Tommy Hunter — who represents the area where the project is proposed — was the only “no” vote.
“No one cared to share, or ask if I wanted to know, who or what the end user was, so I didn’t feel I had all the information I needed,” Hunter said in a post-meeting text message to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Over recent weeks and months, various officials from across the county have either declined to comment on the project’s would-be tenant altogether or said they genu- inely didn’t know who it was. Engineering firm Eberly & Associates, which is named as the applicant on filings with the county, has not used the future tenant’s name and has not responded to media inquiries.
Speculation has focused on e-commerce giant Ama- zon, which has reportedly been scoping out sites for a new Atlanta-area fulfillment center.
Commissioner Jace Brooks made the motion to approve Tuesday. The property’s zoning allowed for a ware- house and distribution facil- ity, but guidelines restricted the potential height to 45 feet. The special-use permit approved Tuesday allows for the project to be built as high as 80 feet.
The Atlanta Regional Commission and the Georgia Road and Tollway Authority gave the project the necessary regional approval, as long as about $15 million of proposed “transportation improvements” are completed in the surrounding area.
The entire “Project Rocket” facility would be inside Gwinnett, but developers are hoping to include an additional entrance from the DeKalb County side of nearby Bermuda Road. A few dozen parking spaces would be on the DeKalb side as well.
Hunter had previously delayed calling a vote on the project while waiting to see how things played out with the DeKalb County Planning Commission.
During its Sept. 6 meeting, that planning commission voted to recommend denial of the zoning change necessary to build the additional entrance, according to online records. DeKalb’s Board of Commissioners is scheduled to have the final say next week.