GWINNETT: Road changes OK’d near future Amazon facility,

County awards $2.17M for road work at busy intersection.

The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners approved a $2.1 million contract to upgrade a busy intersection near the site of a future Amazon facility.

The contract for $2.17 million, awarded to CMES Inc., covers the construction of additional turn lanes, a new traffic signal and new side- walks at the intersection of West Park Place Boulevard and Rockbridge Road in Stone Mountain.

The upgrades will be paid for with funds from the 2017 SPLOST.

That intersection is near the planned site for a 700,000-square-foot Amazon warehouse. The new facility, which will bridge Gwinnett and DeKalb coun- ties, is expected to create 1,000 jobs, from workers on the warehouse floor to employees managing finances and IT.

The facility was approved by the county under the code name “Project Rocket” in September 2018, but neither commissioners nor the public knew what company would be occupying the warehouse. In July 2019 their suspicions it would be Amazon was confirmed when the Seattle-based e-commerce giant formally announced its plans to open in Gwinnett. It’s still not clear when the new facility will begin operations. State documents indicate Amazon could invest $200 million in the project.

The county’s road contract will include new curb, gutter and drainage improvements, according to county documents.

Two left turn lanes will be added to the eastbound side of West Park Place Boulevard and right turn lanes will be added on the northbound and southbound sides of Rockbridge Road, according to county documents. The current traffic signal will be replaced with a new one.