MARIETTA — In its first public meeting before a city board, developer Bridger Properties received approval to convert a small parking lot at the Marietta Station office complex to a public plaza, and give a facelift to its stores along Church Street.
The city’s Historic Board of Review voted unanimously to approve the design at its Monday night meeting, with board member Chris Brown absent.
Bridger can now proceed with its plans to replace a 22-spot parking lot along the Mountain to River Trail into a park, and spruce up its Church Street properties with new paint, doors, awnings and other features.
The developer has more dramatic plans to change downtown, however. Bridger, which owns more than four acres of downtown real estate, is looking to build a 135-unit, 84-foot-tall apartment building off Marietta Square. The historic board is scheduled to hear that proposal and vote on the apartment building’s appearance at its May 1 meeting.
Unlike the plans approved Monday, new construction must be approved by both the historic board and the City Council.
Bridger’s Monday presentation to the board was well-received. It came 24 hours before the firm planned to hold a community meeting with Marietta residents about its plans for downtown.
“I’d just like to say when I came in here I was very skeptical about this, but I like it,” board member Jim Trimble said.
Merritt Lancaster, the firm’s principal and co-founder, presented Bridger’s plans to the board. He said the changes approved Monday would be an investment of roughly $3-4 million.
“I’m a little bit concerned with the way the economy is going that you … (have) one foot on the dock, and one foot on the boat here,” said board member Martin Kendall.
Responded Lancaster, “This is going to be all equity, so, there is no financing.”
Bridger hopes work will begin in about six…
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