An effort to scale back promised development at Coolray Field, home of the Gwinnett Braves (Class AAA; International League), is meeting with resistance from local residents and elected officials.
Part of the rationale for the $64-million county investment in Coolray Field was the promise of associated development by the developer who sold the land to the county. But developer Brand Morgan was unable to pull off the original game plan and instead submitted a revised project calling for less retail, no hotel and more apartments, downsizing from the original upscale apartment plans.
That new plan earned the ire of locals, who saw the ballpark as a catalyst for an upscale urban-style downtown. And they might get their way: the Municipal-Gwinnett County Planning Commission basically rejected the new plan and is giving Morgan and another developer time to prepare a more presentable plan. (The Braves, by the way, are not a party at all to these negotiations.) Development at a ballpark site is always a tricky endeavor; it’s not a guaranteed success.
RELATED STORIES: Lack of development at Gwinnett ballpark draws criticism
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