In quest to build thriving downtown, Smyrna closes on church purchase

Josh Green

Thu, 12/19/2024 – 15:52

The trend of repurposing church properties for a range of new uses that’s kicked into overdrive around the City of Atlanta in recent years is bound for a large campus in Cobb County.

Smyrna First Baptist Church has closed on a deal to sell its 9-acre property to the City of Smyrna for $15.8 million, according to officials with CCI Real Estate, which brokered the deal.

The Cobb County city plans to combine the church campus with an adjacent former Presbyterian church property the city previously acquired as part of a densification project dubbed “Downtown the Downtown.”

The church properties are adjacent to the mixed-use village considered downtown Smyrna today, situated along Atlanta Road about three miles outside the Interstate 285 Perimeter. The city’s Village Green redevelopment is just beyond the church properties, with a second location of Suwanee’s popular StillFire Brewing in the works as part of the commercial component there.

Church properties that would be included in the “Downtown the Downtown” initiative. Google Maps

Plans call for saving and repurposing the church’s stone chapel for public use, such as community events and performances. City of Smyrna

Founded 138 years ago, Smyrna First Baptist Church plans to use the nearly $16-million windfall to develop a new 5.5-acre campus, which is in design now, within walking distance of its current one along Atlanta Road.

The closing is part of a sale-leaseback agreement between the church and city. Church officials plan to keep operating on the existing property for two years as construction plans for both the city and church are finalized.

The project is considered part of Smyrna’s placemaking B.O.L.D. Downtown Master Plan, but exactly what the church property may become has not yet been determined. A Request for Proposals was issued to developers in the spring.

One building that will remain standing, the church’s century-old stone chapel, is expected to be converted to public uses, such as live performances and community events.

The scope of Smyrna’s 9-acre redevelopment plans off Atlanta Road. City of Smyrna

Smyrna First Baptist Church’s campus today. Google Maps

A process involving “extensive citizen input” and “careful market analysis” will steer what redevelopment of the church properties looks like, city leaders previously said.

City officials expect construction to begin in 2027.

“After years of negotiation on behalf of Smyrna First, we reached a mutually beneficial solution that places both the church and the city on paths toward long-term success,” said Jeff Warwick of CCI Real Estate in an announcement today. “This creative deal unlocked resources that allow the church to design a modern ministry campus that can serve its congregation for the next 100 years.”

Find more site context in the gallery above.

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