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Council awards Farmhouse Heritage Park design-build contract, members press for parking and access fixes
Summary
After public support and extensive questioning about safety and parking, Alpharetta council approved a design-build contract not to exceed $1,898,860 for Farmhouse Heritage Park, a voter-approved parks bond project, while asking staff to pursue parking and access assurances.
The Alpharetta City Council on Monday awarded a design-build contract for the Farmhouse Heritage Park — a voter-approved parks bond project — after a lengthy staff presentation, council questions about site access and public comment urging preservation.
Morgan Rogers described the selected proposal from Hashburn Construction with design partner Cason Collaborative and said the work includes an entrance plaza, a 12-foot raised boardwalk with historical markers and ADA-compliant viewing that will overlook the farmhouse and a dam. The proposal addresses site constraints including steep topography, a floodplain and limited staging area; the contract amount presented for approval was $1,898,860.
Several council members said they support the historic preservation goals but repeatedly questioned practical site access: the proposed public entrance is off Old Milton Parkway near high-speed lanes and currently offers no on-site parking. Council members asked whether nearby future office development would fulfill a condition of zoning to provide parking, whether temporary gravel parking had been explored and whether staff could secure a permanent pedestrian connection or parking arrangement with neighboring landowners.
Speakers from the community, including Pat Tatum Miller of the Alpharetta and Old Milton County Historical Society and Shaq Lewis, a longtime proponent, urged the council to preserve and make accessible the site. Lewis said, "It is a miracle that farmhouse exists at all," and urged the council to proceed.
Councilman Mitchell moved to approve the RFP award and a motion to authorize the mayor to execute all necessary documents for the not-to-exceed amount. The motion passed unanimously. Council members asked staff to continue work on access and safety solutions and to enforce any condition of zoning requiring parking as the development proceeds.
Staff said two state permits are required (a state buffer encroachment and a DOT right-of-way encroachment permit) and that construction is expected to take less than a year once permitted.
