Dear Parishioners:
I want to update you on the zoning application that the parish and Holy Spirit Prep are working on for submission to the city of Sandy Springs.
There will be a public meeting on Wednesday, April 24, at 6:00 p.m. in McDonough Hall. This is required by the City. We will present the latest version of our combined Master Plan. This includes the parish portion, which deals with parking and a retirement rectory, and some possible future needs. The School’s plan involved consolidating the Lower and Upper Schools by leasing a portion of our 13 acres of undeveloped land. We will field questions and feedback from those attending the meeting.
Many neighbors are resistant to the plan and we expect they will voice opposition to the project. For the city of Sandy Springs to have a balanced view, it is important that we have people at the meeting to support our plan. So, I urge you to attend and to speak, briefly, to the attendees. Child care will be provided. (Please sign up your children for child care here.) We invite you to wear green that evening in support of the school.
Where We Are in the Zoning Process
In August and September 2018, the school and parish hosted two meetings for members unveiling a 20-year plan for developing the wooded acreage adjacent to the parish. The plan included a rectory for retired priests, a parking deck, two Lower School buildings, and a recreational field.
As part of the process to seek a conditional permit from the City of Sandy Springs, the city required that we host several public meetings. We held the first in October 2018 in the Upper School library. Following the meeting, we amended our site plans based on community feedback, reducing the amount of development on the property, and are prepared to present the updated site plan on April 24.
In the meantime, some neighbors are resistant to the proposed plan, and have campaigned against it. They cite a 2003 agreement between the school and neighborhood limiting construction and enrollment. The neighborhood group that negotiated the agreement was administratively dissolved in 2005, which legally nullifies the terms of the former agreement. The parish and school teams have met with neighbors on a number of occasions, but no agreement has been reached. We continue to seek such an agreement.
Supporting Remarks
At the April 24 meeting, we will provide an opportunity for attendees to voice their feedback on the campus plan. You can wear green in support of the plan.
The proposed parking deck is critical. This will give us the additional space to accommodate parishioners, especially on Sunday mornings. I hear many complaints from parishioners who have great difficulty finding a parking space, especially at the 10:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Masses. The Archdiocese has a number of retired priests. If we have a rectory which would accommodate them, it would give us the benefit of them being able to assist us with Masses, and other pastoral services.
Having the Lower School and Upper School facilities on the same campus benefits us in that the priests will not have to go back and forth between the facilities. It also benefits the parish because we can use those facilities for religious education on weekends, and other meeting, such as adult education, retreats and the like.
In addition, the School has identified some benefits from their point of view:
- keeps siblings - and therefore families - together
- simplifies carpool for families on both campuses
- increases mentoring, role modeling, and collaborative opportunities for elementary-high school students
increases all-school assembly opportunities, particularly for faith- and service-based opportunities, but also academic enrichment
- improves curriculum by increasing opportunities for cross-division faculty collaboration and planning
strengthens our athletic program with a natural evolution from Little Cougar to middle school to varsity sports, and better support between programs
- improves student leadership opportunities and cross-division House activities
strengthens student-teacher relationships by remaining on the same campus long-term
- optimizes new facilities for a middle school program
- modernizes facilities, including an air-conditioned Lower School gym
Sincerely,
Msgr. Edward J. Dillon, J.C.D.
Pastor
