Sounds like a welcome change to a corner that typically has very questionable activity occurring much of the day.

A lot of people feel as you do, Carl.

Quick Trip is a great store. The one on Sydney Marcus is excellent. The staff is exceedingly courteous. The store is clean and the pastries are fresh. This project is opposed by overgrown children who want to preserve thier Victorian neighborhood while sipping an overpriced Starbucks coffee in their SUV. Little do they know the coffee taste better at Quik Trip.

Ummm, Milo, maybe you should come down to Ormewood Park to see what you're dissing. There are no Starbucks down here; we can't even keep an independent coffee establishment in business. We are not Grant Park, Inman Park, Va-Hi, much less Buckhead or Ansley. We are mostly middle-class, and doing everything we can to hold on to our cottages, ranches, Cape Cods, etc. There is absolutely no need for QT to build its "convenience store with gas pumps" right up against single-family lots. In fact, along Moreland, there are plenty of perfect sites. Cheek-to-jowl with families and SFH isn't the right place. All they have to do is move this a mile or so south and they have the perfect site: the front part of Value Village's parking lot. No residences, right across from a CVS, Wells Fargo, Sonic, and still easy ingress and egress for all those Henry County commuters - and neighbors - who would use it. Honestly, the shabby establishments there now are preferable to this. At least to THIS Ormewood Park resident.

Two more points:

1) Sometimes the status quo we can control is better than a "prettier" development that disrupts the neighborhood. Imagine if this was right behind YOUR house. Fuel tanks, 24-hour lighting, traffic issues? There are plenty of other places on Moreland that NEED this kind of development.
2) More importantly, after living in intown Atlanta for over 30 years, I've watched countless Atlanta developers get away with murder because what they "bring to the table" is "better than what's there now." Could be, but it doesn't mean it's right for the neighborhood.

i favor a lawsuit. the creation of an unbuildable lot in a transparent attempt to circumvent a substantive zoning requirement intended to protect residents from breathing gas fumes and getting hemmed in by traffic is basically fraud, and the purpose of the buffer stands a good chance of being upheld by a court in the face of such a scummy maneuver. I also favor public picketing of any QT that goes in there, and a boycott of all QTs anywhere if they go forward with this.

How would you like tanker trucks rolling down your narrow, residential street at 3am--the one you walk your children and your dogs down to get ice cream at Morelli's or dinner at Spoon or to attend services at Holy Comforter? Or ride your bikes through the neighborhood and into Grant Park to go to the zoo? That would all end for a measurable portion of our neighborhood if this project moves forward.

And what the article failed to mention is that this would not be just a corner gas station (of which there are plenty up and down Moreland), but that it would be a QT mega-station with 14 pumps and a 5600sq ft convenience store--significantly larger than both the Sydney Marcus and Briarcliff locations. This development would create significant light pollution, fume pollution from refueling, increased traffic on side streets (with no entrance/exit on Moreland), loud speakers, and patronage 24 hours a day. All of this situated in the middle of densely populated single-family homes.

Until three days ago, I was a tremendous fan of QT. I would drive several miles out of my way to patronize a busines that seemed to care about their employees and their customer experience. Yesterday, I drove right past my normal QT (and even paid .08 more per gallon) because it now seems that they do not care about the communities in which they place their stores.

This Ormewood Park resident says thanks, but no thanks.

This would be the most residentially "embedded" QT in the City thanks to a sneaky work around on the City Regs. Really not at all Appropriate.

Think how you would feel if this was in your FRONT yard. As for several folks that is exactly what this would mean. Not a NIMBY issue at all. Semi trucks, cars and all traversing your FRONT yard 24hrs/day to serve a massive commercial enterprise. An improvement for the neighborhood?

I completely agree with Jennifer! Those who are not directly affected by this development will not understand, sadly. Buckhead is much, much different than Ormewood Park...I believe that is why we have chosen to live there, so yes, we want to keep it that way. Woodland Avenue is one of the best streets in the area. Not only will this development impact those on Ormewood Ave, but it will also impact those who back up to the development on Woodland. I don't see much upside to this development...there are plenty of gas stations within a short distance to Ormewood Park. The ONLY upside is to save 5 minutes to grab your gas, coffee, and do-nut or taquito in a safe place. I'd rather use what is already in our area for those needs. I've been going to the BP on Confederate and Moreland or the one on Boulevard and I-20 for 5 years and have had zero problems. This isn't about improving the community....it's about QT making a boat-load of money because of the volume of traffic that travels down Moreland. As Marcia says, they could place this down in the heavy commercial area down Moreland and the same volume would flow through there. As far as "questionable activity" goes....I'm not sure what you are talking about. The jiffy grocery may not be pretty, but there isn't anything going on there...

Milo, you crack me up man. Comparing Buckhead to NYC? what you been smoking boy? I think the word "generic" springs to mind. Living next to a Publix, Target and office building. You sure do love some asphalt. That green stuff you see on our side of town, it's called grass.

Also worth noting, Buckhead is not the center of Atlanta.

If you live in Buckhead your input doesnt really pull much weight. Living in an urban environment doesnt mean you have to live in a high rise and not have a yard. Personally I feel that Buckhead is generic and uninteresting - feels more like a highway than a neighborhood. I dont want my neighborhood to turn into that which is why several people are against this type of development. Not that I want the jiffy mart to stick around, I would just rather see a development that encourages walkability rather than increased traffic flow - even if that means waiting around for a while.

Good gawd people. Would you really rather have Jiffy?

Additionally, only a damn fool would think a tractor trailer would head west on Ormewood. Sheesh.

Bulldawg - Truck has to head west on ormewodd or hall to service the location as there is NO access off moreland as proposed. So yep - semis are gonna be there.

Just a bit more info on this issue: In case you missed this in the last Porch Press, Elizabeth Dillon’s article "The Gas Station – An Inconvenient Neighbor" is a must-read: http://theporchpress.com/?p=167

Elizabeth is a respected member of the community. Professionally, she is with Historical Concepts, which designs and creates homes, neighborhoods and communities based on the long-standing principles of traditional architecture and planning. In the community, among other responsibilities, Elizabeth is a member of the SouthStar Board, is one of our area’s representatives to NPU-W, and is on the SAND and NPU Land Use and Zoning Committees.

In other words, this is someone who knows her stuff.

Ormewood may not be home to a MARTA station like Milo's beloved Buckhead, but it is a very close drive to several rail stations. I made the quick commute to the Inman Park/Reynoldstown station every day for 6 years and rode the train to work. Some days, I picked up the bus on the corner until budget cuts eliminated the route. I put very few miles on my car. And when I needed to drive downtown for work, my commute from Ormewood was just 3 miles, much closer than Buckhead. Ormewood ain't the sticks. It's a sustainable intown neighborhood with houses of modest size, walkable streets, and perhaps the best ice cream and Thai food in town. From our house, we can easily walk to three parks, the Zoo, drug stores, cafes, restaurants, schools and bars. We know our neighbors.

QUOTE: Thornbrugh, the QuikTrip spokesman, said the company, which has 120 locations in metro Atlanta, isn't seeking to be disruptive and wants community dialogue. "We always do everything above board; we meet with all the neighbors and affected businesses and explain what we're trying to do," he said, advising residents should call the comapny's real estate executives at its Atlanta division at 770.368.1616."

I'm sorry... This is basically saying, "At whatever point you find out about what our plans might be, and that we are willing to take advantage of a loophole to change the rules in our favor, you can call us and we'll get back to you."

Shame on you, QuikTrip. You could have engaged the community from the start by asking at any one of a half-dozen monthly meetings, "What does the community want, and how can QuikTrip be a part of it?" Had QuikTrip done so, you might have gotten exactly what you wanted (or much of it) with the support of the community. What you have now is a fight. A fight in the courts, in the City's bureaucratic process, in the media, and online. And Mr. Madan, this is your fight too.

Over the past three years QuikTrip has lost, and lost and lost when communities organize against them, and I don't expect there will be any diffrerent outcome here. The best option for QuikTrip at this point will be to look at alternate sites, be as "above board" as they claim to be, and to engage the communities surrounding those sites.

Milo: You're right, the property owner is one of the parties that needs to be made whole, too. However, the building's on that property — one which serves as his accounting offices — have been in a state of disrepair for quite some time, now. When I asked him why he let them fall into such a state, he said he was being wooed continuously by developers and didn't see the point in pouring $$ into fixing them up. Plus, he said he's not a developer and doesn't know anything about developing properties. From the residents' side, however, it might appear a tad disingenuous, to sit and hold onto properties, let them fall in a state of disrepair and then sell — or in his case, offer a long-term lease — to a third party and then say it's better than what's there now.

One could argue, the property owner, who declared bankruptcy in December, is partly, to blame for the conditions his buildings are in. The owner and the city building inspectors. You can be sure that wouldn't be tolerated in Buckhead.

The residential streets may not look depressed but that particular corner certainly looks dilapidated. All you need to do is post a photo of the Jiffy Grocery on your Web site and it will end all argument of whether Quik Trip should take it over. Case closed.

Milo, it's always fun to read your posts, so completely free of logic and in-depth knowledge of our area and our residents. You see, many of us don't believe in the "anything is better than what's there" reason for development. We believe in waiting for right development for our neighbors and our community... and we ARE a community.

In this case, the property was replatted so that there is a mere 10 feet in some places and 20 feet in another between gas tanks and single family houses. The city regs say it should be no less that 100 feet. But because this new completely unbuildable, 10 & 20 foot L-shaped lot is zoned commercial, they are able to circumvent the spirit of the regulations designed to protect homeowners from proximity to tanks of highly flammable, explosive gasoline. Forget QT. This is the kind of maneuver that, if allowed to stand, could devastate neighborhoods across the City of Atlanta, and endanger millions of people. That's what we're trying to stop. This is NOT the right place for QT. There are lots of other places on Moreland that are perfect. We just want to protect our neighbors, and will welcome QT when they choose a more appropriate location, distant from single family homes.

If you are genuinely concerned about explosions, it would be safer next to single family homes where there would be fewer deaths than if it were beside multifamily homes or in a busy shopping center. Nice debate. Bye.

I welcome this change to the neighborhood. The Jiffy is falling down and is an eye sore.

The QT on Sydney Marcus is routinely used as an APD Paddy Wagon and DUI Mobile Truck staging area during all hours of the night. Ugh. I would hate to see that coming in right next to my house!

You would hate to see an abundance of police protection in your neighborhood?

Logistically, I could see why QT would choose that location (it's closer to I-20) as opposed to further south on Moreland...But I don't like the sneaky way of putting it there, and I don't feel it should be a SUPERSIZED QT...I also agree that they should get community opinion before any groundbreaking takes place!

Perhaps the neighborhood should push for a smaller QT instead of rejecting it outright. Supersize sounds like it belongs at a highway exit. A neighborhood scale QT should be OK.

When I first moved to Ormewood in 1997 there was ONE restaurant in the EAV: the Heaping bowl and Brew, surrounded by defunt hair salons and mattress stores. Now it is a booming nightlife destination. But that didnt stop some neighbors from whining. For years the local Krogers was something out of Russia and if I wanted to go to a big box store I had to drive to Buckhead. When they built the Target complex on Moreland and Caroline street, the hippies in L5p wailed and gnashed thier teeth. Now they all shop there, I know I can tell by thier bumper stickers. When they built the development across from Jiffy I heard the same protestations. NOw the whole neighborhood que's up for ice cream. Carla Smith, our CC rep lives on Woodlawn Ave, you would think if something was being done underhanded, surely she would be on top of it, right? I welcome QT over Jiffy, a bankrupt tax business ( !?) and the Big 'H' 'casino that operates a half a block away. your milage may vary. Remember this city was burned completely to the ground TWICE: rebuilding this city is part of our culture. The QT is an upgrade to what is there now, in my humble opinion.

Is "It's better than what's there now" REALLY how we want development decisions made in SE ATL? God, I hope not. I hear people say, 'Well, it could be worse!" but it could also be BETTER! We should a) be more demanding, and, b) value the potential of our neighborhoods and intown location more than that. Hundreds of residents were involved in the South Moreland Livable Communities Initiative, aka LCI, and an exciting and ambitious consensus was reached on what would be BEST for our area. This kind of business in this particular location isn't it. (Do many people feel as I do, Peralte? <heh>)

Most people I talk to on both sides of Moreland, say that corner needs improvement. Some are even OK with a QT until they learn about the potential loophole.