Board approves mixed‑use rezoning on Winder Highway with variances, denies multi‑use path waiver
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Summary
The Board rezoned a 5.49‑acre parcel near downtown Lawrenceville from R‑75 to MUN for a mixed‑use project (20 townhomes, five live‑work units, and about 8,500 sq ft of commercial space), approving several site variances and denying a waiver to reduce the multi‑use path without the requested modification.
The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 28 approved rezoning of a 5.49‑acre parcel east of downtown Lawrenceville along Winder Highway from R‑75 to MUN to allow a mixed‑use development, adopting the planning department and planning commission recommended conditions.
Planning staff said the proposal includes 20 townhomes, five live‑work units and roughly 8,500 square feet of commercial space (a 5,500‑square‑foot retail/office building and a 3,150‑square‑foot restaurant), and that the rezoning conforms to the county’s urban‑low future development area. Miss Chen, planning staff, reported that staff and the planning commission recommended approval with conditions of the rezoning and variances and recommended denial of a waiver request.
Tyler Lasser of LJA Engineering, the applicant’s representative, described the site layout: townhomes and live‑work units with rear‑entry two‑car garages, a central public plaza, sidewalks throughout the interior and a 10‑foot landscape strip along Winder Highway and Old Athens Road. Lasser said the applicant requested four variances related to site design (including orientation of some units and location of parking and dumpster) and a waiver to reduce the multi‑use path required width from 12 feet to 8 feet because the narrow parcel and additional right‑of‑way work (including a left‑turn lane) constrain available space.
The board voted to approve the rezoning with the planning department and planning commission’s recommended conditions. The record shows staff recommended denial of the waiver to reduce the multi‑use path width; Lasser asked that condition 6 be altered to reflect an 8‑foot path. No one spoke in opposition at the hearing.
What’s next: approval authorizes the rezoning but requires the applicant to satisfy conditions and complete permitting and land‑disturbance plans before construction. The record did not include a construction schedule or exact timing for variances’ final disposition in the development permit process.
