Evermore CID Receives Additional Funding for Highway 78 Improvements

A 4.5 mile collector road project along Highway 78 will receive additional funding from the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), advancing the project funding goals by $283,000.

During a recent review of the Walton Court/Old US 78 Livable Centers Iniative (LCI) project, the Evermore Community Improvement District (CID) requested that the Commission review the current funding to better understand if additional financial assistance could be applied to the collector road project. After careful review, ARC has awarded an additional $283,000 in LCI funds to be applied to the Walton Court phase of what has become a 4.5 mile collector road, beginning at Walton Court and terminating at Jessica Daron Court, just above Yellow River along Highway 78. “As we neared the end of the federal fiscal year, we began working to use an unobligated balance of federal funds that would otherwise have expired. So, we offered our LCI …

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Highway 78 Connector Roads Funded With Assistance Grant

Evermore Community Improvement District (CID) has been awarded half a million dollars for the project.

In a letter received last week from the Georgia Department of Transportation, the Evermore Community Improvement District (CID) confirmed that it has been awarded $500,000 in LMIG (Local Maintenance Improvement Grant) funds to be applied to one of several connector road projects currently being developed along Highway 78. In recent weeks, leadership from Evermore CID and Gresham Smith & Partners met with County, State and Georgia DOT officials to determine if a series of connector roads along US 78 would qualify for funding through the LMIG program. The primary objective of these funds is to assist local agencies and governments in improving roads and highways in local jurisdictions. Generally, these funds are used for repair, maintenance…

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New Hyundai Dealership Coming to U.S. 78

The former Baranco car dealership is undergoing a major renovation to make way for Hyundai.

Hyundai is moving into the former Baranco car dealership at 4355 U.S. 78/Stone Mountain Highway. According to Jim Brooks, executive director of the Evermore Community Improvement District (CID), the new car dealer will be moving in near the end of the year -- maybe sooner. Brooks told Patch in July that Baranco was in negotiations with another new car dealership for the facility, which is near Ross Road in Lilburn. More recently, he said the space in is undergoing a major renovation which will bring the building up to Hyundai's new dealership standards. Hyundai's move to the area is one of a number of economic development projects happening in the CID, which runs 7.5 miles on Stone Mountain Highway/U.S. 78, starting from the Gwinnett-…

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Burlington, L.A. Fitness Coming to Highway 78

The Evermore Community Improvement District is seeing growth.

A new Burlington Coat Factory and L.A. Fitness will spruce up U.S. Highway 78 leading into Snellville before long, bringing two sorely needed businesses to the challenged corridor. And that's not all. The grand opening of Stone Mountain Toyota's renovation is coming up in July, road improvements are continuing and other projects are on tap, said Jim Brooks, executive director of the Evermore Community Improvement District (CID). The Evermore CID, a self-taxing business district that includes parts of Snellville, Stone Mountain and Lilburn, has been integral in championing development changes along Highway 78. A number of vacant businesses sit along the way, a corridor that acts as a gateway to Snellville. The Burlington Coat Factory is …

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Evermore CID Awarded State Funds

Evermore CID, a self-taxing district along Highway 78, received $500,000 in grants and loans through a Georgia State Road and Tollway Authority program.

The Evermore Community Improvement District (CID) has received a $200,000 grant and a $300,000 loan from Georgia’s State Road and Tollway Authority. The money will go toward an intersection project at U.S. Highway 78 and Walton Court. According to a press release, the project is aimed at improving safety and enhancing access to surrounding properties. Right-of-way acquisition is expected in the current fiscal year, and project is expected to be completed by the next year. "SRTA is committed to helping communities invest in mobility solutions that enhance quality of life and provide greater access for all Georgia citizens," said Gena Davis, SRTA's executive director, in a press release. Evermore CID was among 11 groups receiving awards …

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Ceremony for U.S. Highway 78 Upgrades

Officials will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday, February 7, 2012, to celebrate the opening of the intersection of U.S. Highway 78 at McGee Road and Cambridge Street.

City, county and other local officials will gather today for a special ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate improvements to U.S. Highway 78 through Snellville. The event will take place at 4 p.m., on the front lawn of Westside Baptist Church, 2925 Stone Mountain Highway in Snellville. The ceremony -- hosted by the Evermore CID -- is the culmination of five years of work and more than $1.5 million invested at the Cambridge Street and McGee Road intersection. The city of Snellville, state and federal grants and the 2005 and 2009 SPLOST sales tax programs funded the improvements. The road project realigns and eliminates the need for dangerous U-turns, among other upgrades. The streets involved had several challenging spots, and according to a…

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Landscape Crew Chosen for Highway 78

Evermore CID board members recently decided on Russell Landscape Group to tidy up Highway 78.

Evermore Community Improvement District board members recently selected Russell Landscape Group as their choice for landscape maintenance  along the Highway 78 corridor for 2012. The unanimous decision came at the recent board meeting on January 26, 2012. Russell’s crews will begin providing service in February. The maintenance service will continue four times a month from March through October and on a reduced schedule October through March. The goal is to keep the corridor looking attractive and to maintain a neat appearance throughout the year. Additionally, the new landscape team will collect litter and illegal signage. Curbs also will be edged and weeded. “We are excited to have Russell back along the corridor, and we feel that within…

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Report: Big Plans for Former Target in Evermore CID

An AJC article says developers are in the early stages of the concept that's very similar to a consultant's study reported last year on re-purposing the Stone Mountain Tennis Center and vacant Target store.

Nearly a year after Patch reported on a consultant’s study about a massive re-purposing of the Stone Mountain Tennis Center and nearby vacant Target store in the Evermore CID, a news article reports developers are looking at a very similar, gigantic concept for the property. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that location would include a 7,000-seat arena, 33 sports fields, 700 hotel rooms, 915 town homes and 180,000 square feet of commercial space -- according to the proposal submitted to Gwinnett County, the article said. A partner in the proposed Stone Mountain Athletic & Recreational Training Center, David Stedman, told the AJC the project is still in its infancy and it would take some ten years to come to fruition. This location…

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Editor's Notebook

Patch in Review: August 14 - August 20

Your look back in Snellville Patch.

Thanks for staying with us. If you missed anything over the past week, here's a quick recap. August 14: Suspects Arrested in Waffle House Robbery Spree After robbing numerous Waffle House's from Georgia to Alabama, two suspects were caught as they attempted to steal loot from yet another Waffle House. We're guessing they are no longer hungry for waffles. August 15: UPDATED: Police Arrest Suspected Snellville Arsonist DeKalb County police arrested and charged Mia Hamer, a Stone Mountain resident, in an arson at an apartment complex in Snellville. Police says Hamer intentionally set her daughter's boyfriend's clothing on fire in a closet. August 16: You Might Be From Snellville If... In our Snellville life column by Marlene Buchanan, we take…

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UPDATED: Evermore CID Taps Jim Brooks for Director

Jim Brooks, who previously served as executive director, is returning to the helm of the Evermore Community Improvement District.

UPDATED: 11 p.m., August 18, 2011 After an an exhaustive search that included more than two dozen candidates Evermore CID has tapped Jim Brooks to lead the embattled organization, again.  Brooks, who previously led the community improvement district from May 2009 to September 2010, was ousted 11 months ago following infighting among board members at the time. Still, in a press statement from interim director Wayne Hill, Evermore CID said Brooks was the "best qualified" candidate to fill the position. Hill later said in an email to Patch that the press release did not come from him, but that it came from Evermore CID's attorney. The attorney's name was not listed on the statement, but Hill's was. "I did not vote, and I don't wanted (sic) it…

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