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Planning panel recommends approval of 588‑bed Campus Realty student housing near KSU with conditions including 15‑foot buffer and commissioner review
Summary
The commission recommended rezoning and a special‑use permit for Campus Realty Advisors to develop two purpose‑built student‑housing buildings (up to 588 beds) on Chastain Center Boulevard, contingent on a 15‑foot landscape buffer, coordination with KSU and Cobb County Police, and commissioner review of final safety/transportation/security plans.
The Cobb County Planning Commission on July 7 recommended approval of a rezoning and special‑land‑use permit for Campus Realty Advisors to build purpose‑built student housing on approximately 6.6 acres along Chastain Center Boulevard. The applicant said the project would demolish two underused office buildings and replace them with two student‑housing buildings totaling up to 588 beds in suite configurations.
Kevin Moore, representing the applicant, told commissioners the property sits adjacent to Kennesaw State University athletic and intramural fields and argued the site is well‑located for student housing. "Right now, since 2022, there's been an increase of 8,100 students in terms of enrollment at KSU," Moore said, noting he and staff see a persistent shortfall of student beds off and on campus.
Neighbors and civic‑association representatives urged caution. Karen Heck of the Bells Ferry Civic Association said the conversion of office parks to student housing could set a precedent and expressed concern about traffic and limited road condition on Chastain Road. "This would be a backdoor way to put student housing in a business park without actually planning where student housing is going," she told commissioners.
Commissioners who supported a recommendation for approval added multiple specific conditions. The panel asked for a 15‑foot landscape buffer with trees and plantings between the proposed student housing and adjacent RM‑12 residential properties, mandated final commissioner review of safety, security and transportation plans before final approval, required ongoing coordination with KSU on transportation/marketing/branding and required coordination with Cobb County Police on security arrangements. Commissioner Micheletto moved the rezoning and the special‑land‑use permit with the added stipulations; the commission voted to recommend approval with the stated conditions.
What’s next: The item is a recommendation from the planning commission and will go to the Cobb County Board of Commissioners for final action; the applicant must satisfy staff conditions (stormwater, traffic, landscaping) and the added stipulations before final site‑plan approval.
