MARIETTA — Before a crowd of dozens of locals, the developers behind a proposed 135-unit building downtown floated the idea that the 84-foot-tall building could include condominiums rather than apartments.
“Whether it’s a rental or for sale, I think we are 100% open to that conversation,” said Merritt Lancaster of Bridger Properties.
Lancaster and his business partner Jack Arnold held a community meeting at the Marietta History Center, fielding questions from an audience of roughly 70 people, many of whom live near downtown or operate businesses there.
Bridger has submitted plans to the city to build a residential building at a site just north of the Marietta Square Market food hall. The 1.25-acre site, owned by Bridger, is currently a surface parking lot.
The land is already zoned for a category which allows the building, and Bridger does not plan to seek variances from the city. Mayor Steve “Thunder” Tumlin and some City Council members have said they don’t want it to be built, but it’s not clear there’s anything they can do to stop it.
Relations between the mayor and Bridger have grown acrimonious. Speaking last month about Bridger forcing tenants out of the stores it owns on Church Street, Tumlin said that “Sherman didn’t damage Marietta Square as much.” Bridger, meanwhile, said the mayor had ignored their requests to meet him, and said the city leadership had engage in a witch hunt.
Bridger held the community meeting Tuesday evening to solicit input from residents, and has also distributed an online survey.
Lancaster said he doesn’t believe surface parking lots are a good use of real estate, and that the building would allow residents to live, work and play downtown without getting in their car.
The “modern industrial” building would be brick on all four sides with large windows, seeking to emulate the look of…
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