Kroger got Commissioner Steve Taylor’s rezoning approval to build a mega store on Fire Tower Road during his meeting Wednesday, but it came with many more conditions than the original recommendation from the Bartow County Planning Commission.
“Trust me folks,” Taylor said. “I hear from people every day about congested it is during school hours.” He added the area around Fire Tower Road and Highway 41 is one of the worst in the county.
Kroger representative Josh Suess, who spoke at the public hearing, said the project will cost between $30 and $40 million and will bring around 300 jobs to the area.
The plethora of conditions concern infrastructure improvements, buffers to protect neighborhoods from sound and light, mail and package delivery, and restrictions on construction traffic and delivery trucks once the store opens.
Kroger has agreed to pay for infrastructure improvements, according to Taylor.
Taylor took an unusual action of assigning the county engineer to work with retired GDOT (Georgia Department of Transportation) engineer Ronnie Nix to resolve infrastructure and traffic issues. Nix spoke at the public hearing held before Taylor’s approval and presented the commissioner with a diagram of improvements he would suggest.
Residents who spoke out at the public hearing said the section of road from the highway and down Fire Tower to the Hamilton Crossing round-about is under a traffic siege daily and Kroger construction shouldn’t start until improvements are made.
“Traffic on Fire Tower Road is gridlocked every single day. We are trapped in our neighborhoods,” said resident Gloria Shinall.
Jim Andrews said this plan is far from what was approved five years ago. He said the proposal then was a market-style grocery store with no gas pumps. Kroger plans a 20,000-square-foot store similar to the one on East Main Street in Cartersville.
“Today, we are discussing anything but a market-style grocery store. This will change the character of Cassville,” Andrews said.
Melody Dareing is a freelance writer for publications in the U.S, Canada, the UK and Germany. She is a former news director of Adelphia Channel 4 and WBHF Radio. She is on Facebook, X, YouTube, content on Substack, and has a podcast on Rumble.