To our honorable Mayor, City Council and Recreation Commission Members,
We, the undersigned, support the City of Roswell’s purchase of the 53 acres of undeveloped land along the south side of Holcomb Bridge Road between Eves Road and Martin’s Landing Drive for the following reasons:

Connectivity

• A multi-use trail through this property will allow connections to East Roswell Park, the new library, and 4 schools including Centennial High, Holcomb Bridge Middle, River Eves and Esther Jackson with the Chattahoochee River parks and points west. Unlike other trails, this connection will be off the main roads and will not have the steep grades usually found when coming off the river.
• With the advent of new, higher density development in the area, alternative transportation options will be critical for residents and visitors alike. A trail through this property meets both existing needs for a sidewalk along Holcomb Bridge, as well as future needs for our transportation and recreation network
• This trail is already in the City of Roswell Transportation Master Plan, (RDOT number 06-1004) as “Holcomb Bridge Road Multi-Use Trail.” It is described as follows: “This project would construct an 8-10 foot multi-use trail along the South side of Holcomb Bridge Road from Martin’s Landing to Eves Road”.
• This trail is a critical part of the 4-segment master plan to provide a continuous multi-use trail spanning Roswell’s Chattahoochee assets from Azalea and Wileo Drive all the way to Garrard Landing Park. 

Environmental Stewardship

• This forest contains one of Roswell’s last large stand of never timbered, old growth trees.
• Its creeks, situated at the bottom of a beautiful natural canyon, flow directly into a 52 acre lake which flows directly into the Chattahoochee River.
• Because of the steep grading on the property and its highly erodible soils, development without serious water quality problems is nearly impossible.
• Because of its old growth forest, original piedmont terrain and proximity to the river, this property offers countless environmental educational opportunities for students at nearby schools.

Recreation

• The property, which already contains the old Holcomb Bridge roadbed, is ideal for a multi-use trail, enhancing Roswell’s reputation as a bicycle-friendly community. In fact, a project of this magnitude might move Roswell up into a higher category by the organization that oversees the “Bicycle Friendly” designations. 
• Likewise, the gentle terrain makes a pathway ideal for walkers and runners who wish to start or end at East Roswell Park or the Chattahoochee River Parks.

Timeliness

• Rezoning applications for these properties continue to come forward periodically, however, all major property owners have now agreed that it’s in the best interest of Roswell’s citizens to keep the land in its natural state. Therefore, they are currently willing to discuss selling the land at a fair price to the City. Once their interest has faded – and the land is developed – this opportunity is gone forever.
• Much like the Big Creek and the Chattahoochee River Park initiatives, this is a project that will be applauded regionally and will benefit Roswell’s citizens, visitors, and, in fact, the metropolitan Atlanta area – forever. This is a legacy project, but one with a narrow timeframe in which to reach a successful outcome.
• The Mayor has asked that we, as citizens, alert you, our elected and appointed leaders, as to how we wish our money, whether it be in reserves or bonds or elsewhere, to be spent. Because we so firmly believe that much of what makes Roswell unique and special in our increasingly dense, noisy and congested region, is our parks, we ask that you make acquisition of this property a priority. Like Big Creek and the Chattahoochee River Parks were for prior Councils, this is your legacy project.