Milton staff outlines incentives, density trade-offs in Deerfield implementation update

Bob Buscemi, Milton’s director of special projects, updated the City Council Wednesday on the Deerfield Implementation Plan and proposed incentives that would let developers increase residential density in exchange for specified amenities.

The update matters because the plan is intended to reshape the Deerfield corridor’s development pattern and to boost Milton’s commercial tax base; it would change allowable mixes of residential and nonresidential uses and create conditions for developer-funded open space, trails and parking structures that could affect taxes, public services and traffic.

Buscemi told the council he has refined district-level guidance and incentive formulas after community meetings and follow-up conversations with developers. He said Deerfield is being treated as four distinct character areas and that the proposed incentives were vetted with developers: "Everything I'm showing you tonight here has kind of been blessed by the development community as far as what they're thinking," Buscemi said.

Under the proposal staff described: the city would increase the public open-space requirement from 10% to 20% and grant a 10 percentage-point residential-ratio credit in return; provide a second 10-point credit for providing public-access trails and a trailhead with restroom and parking; and award a credit of roughly 3 residential units per acre if a developer builds a parking structure to replace surface parking. Buscemi said those three amenities together could move a development from roughly a 50/50 residential/nonresidential split to a 70/30 residential mix in smaller subdistricts.

Buscemi described how the approach would vary by subdistrict. In the T4 (north Deerfield) zone he said townhomes and multifamily would generally be excluded and the area would be limited to smaller-lot single-family homes with neighborhood commercial along Highway 9. In T5 (central/south Deerfield) townhomes would be permitted as-of-right while multifamily would require a use permit; Buscemi said he plans conditions for townhomes and multifamily such as requiring a 45-foot linear park where units abut existing city streets and making half of any multifamily units age-restricted to 55-and-older.

For larger T6 parcels Buscemi said the city would aim to preserve existing office buildings and would allow a roughly 60/40 ratio if developers retain office space and add the amenities. He said he was reducing the TDR-based density cap in T6 from 36 units per acre to 18 because the earlier cap was “astronomical.”

Mary Kronk, a resident who spoke during general public comment, urged the council to collect fiscal and operations data before approving the plan. "I believe you would want to ensure that these plans accomplish that goal of increasing the commercial tax base," Kronk said, and asked whether police, fire, code enforcement or public works staffing or equipment would need to increase if the plan is implemented.

Buscemi said staff has begun work on fiscal questions and has contacted Fulton County to understand how mixed‑use parcels would be classified for tax digest purposes; he said county practice is to treat a mixed‑use parcel as commercial for valuation, which could raise Milton’s commercial share. He also said staff will return with more detailed conditions for each amenity, population projections, and school and service impact data requested by council members.

Council members asked about examples and market comparators; Buscemi showed illustrations from nearby developments including Alpharetta City Center, Halcyon and Avalon to show how a 70/30 mix can translate on the ground. He also described working with local property owners — including the owner of existing office buildings he said are largely vacant — and with some developers on design and trail routing.

Buscemi told the council that the incentives are intended to secure amenities at the developers’ expense rather than require the city to fund parking structures or enhanced public space. "We're kind of getting that. We're sort of buying ourselves out of that and we're incentivizing the parking structure," he said.

The council asked for more detail on projected student generation, school capacity, and exact fiscal impacts. Buscemi committed to return with numerical estimates, architectural character descriptions, and a wholesale list of conditions for townhomes and multifamily before further approvals.

The presentation drew extended discussion and multiple follow-up requests; no formal zoning or code changes were adopted at the meeting.