Sandy Springs Moves Forward With New Pocket Park

SANDY SPRINGS, GA — Five years after the city was given the go-ahead by the state and federal government to use land situated in a floodplain for a public park, Sandy Springs is taking the first tangible steps in transforming this this long-held dream into a reality.

The City Council at its Nov. 20 work session received an update on a plan to develop passive greenspace in the River Shore Estates community. Plans call for using .68 acres at 6285 River Shore Parkway NW, which is located between Colewood Way NW and Riverhill Drive NW, for a pocket park.

Recreation and Parks Director Michael Perry said the land was acquired years ago by the city and in 2013, it received approval from the Federal and Georgia emergency management agencies to use the land as a neighborhood park.

Since the acquisition, Perry said city leaders have been working with the River Shore Estates Homeowners Association on design concepts and sharing information with residents in the community.

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A survey was distributed to the community asking for feedback on the park, with 113 respondents saying they were in favor of the plans and six expressing opposition. However, there were 154 people who did not respond to the survey.

Perry said since the survey was taken, the HOA president said there have been more residents who've signed on to the project. Transforming the land into the park would be about a $100,000 investment, according to the city. Broken down, this amounts to about $80,000 in construction costs, $10,000 for design-related work, $5,000 related to state and federal permitting and $5,000 to perform topographical surveys.

City Manager John McDonough said the project could be placed on the city's list for ranking as a priority for the next year's budget. Councilman Chris Burnett, who has lived in this neighborhood for 25 years, said one of the unique things about the community is it doesn't have a "gathering space." This means the HOA has to hold meetings in the backyards of residents.

"So I would love to see this get done," he added.

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