Roswell council approves site-plan amendment to add Arnold Mill access for Grand Reserve at Litchfield

The Roswell City Council on March 10, 2025, unanimously approved a site-plan amendment for 9935 Old Chadwick Lane (Phase 4 of the Grand Reserve at Litchfield subdivision) that repositions a secondary emergency access to Arnold Mill Road and allows that opening to become a full access if the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) approves.

The amendment, approved 6-0, requires the developer to build substantially in accordance with the site plan dated Jan. 17, 2025, notes that the number of lots may be reduced during permitting, prohibits telecommunication towers on the property, and requires the applicant to provide sight-distance certification for any full access. If GDOT approves full access, the median striping on State Route 140 (Arnold Mill Road) must be modified to add a 12-foot left-turn lane; the city’s transportation director will validate compliance during the land-disturbance permit review. The council also added a condition that construction traffic use Old Chadwick and Arnold Mill Road as the primary ingress and egress pending GDOT approval.

Why it matters: the change is intended to improve neighborhood ingress and egress and reduce pressure on a single subdivision entrance while balancing state approval and traffic-safety requirements. The revised alignment also moves the access farther from a stream buffer and adjusts lot lines to retain residential standards set in the 2021 rezoning.

Staff presentation and technical details: Angela Rambo, a city planner, told council the request affects 15 lots rezoned in 2021 on roughly 21.64 acres and that the access was moved south to meet GDOT requirements. Rambo noted that all lots meet the city’s 120-foot road-front width requirement except for cul-de-sac lots, which the city allows at 50% of that width provided the front building setback meets the 120-foot standard. She also said a 30-foot Cobb EMC easement shown on Lot 117 is expected to be removed prior to construction and that the number of lots could change during the development-review process.

Council debate and public comment: Council member Lee Hills said he had received “a ton of emails” from residents and that the new access “makes so much sense to put an access road there.” Council member Sarah Beeson criticized the prior emergency-access-only design, saying, “It is incredibly asinine to build the infrastructure for having a connection into a road that you're only going to gate in order to have it for emergency access only.” Director of Transportation Jeff Littlefield summarized GDOT-related technical limits: sight distance of about 465 feet is needed for a 45 mph, three-lane road and GDOT driveway spacing for a full access at that speed is roughly 230 feet.

Residents who spoke at the public-hearing portion backed the change, citing safety and congestion at the subdivision’s lone entrance. Kevin Umstead, who said he has lived in Grand Reserve for almost four years, told council the neighborhood currently has about 100 homes and that the new phase will add roughly 40 more, and asked the city to push for a full access aligned with Chadwick Farm Boulevard. Anka Bridal asked the city to limit construction traffic through the interior neighborhood, citing safety for children.

Developer response: Bryson Mercer of Toll Brothers and JR Crowe, the builder’s vice president of land development, said the access shift responds to an existing private drive and to GDOT spacing requirements. Crowe said the project team will use Old Chadwick Lane for primary construction traffic and will restore that route after construction. He acknowledged that final authority on full access rests with GDOT and that the applicant would provide the requested sight-distance certification.

What the council approved: The final motion (as amended) includes five conditions: (1) develop substantially according to the Jan. 17, 2025 site plan; (2) prohibit telecommunication towers; (3) allow a full-access entrance aligned with Chadwick Farm Boulevard if GDOT approves, or a right-in/right-out access otherwise, with required sight-distance certification and median modifications if full access is allowed; (4) give the transportation director authority to validate condition 3 during land-disturbance permitting; and (5) require primary construction ingress/egress via Old Chadwick and Arnold Mill Road pending GDOT approval. Council member Will Moreland moved the amended motion; Council member Lee Hills seconded it. The council approved the amendment and final motion unanimously, 6-0.

Next steps: GDOT must decide whether to allow full access. If GDOT grants full access, the developer will submit sight-distance certification and the city will require the specified median and lane changes within the State Route 140 right-of-way. The transportation director will confirm compliance during the land-disturbance permit review.

Closing: The approval resolves the site-plan amendment request for Phase 4’s access location, but implementation depends on GDOT sign-off and the developer meeting the city’s permit and construction requirements.