Some Sandy Springs residents fear new police HQ may bring down property values

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. - The City of Sandy Springs wants to build a new headquarters for its police department, and a new facility to maintain their vehicles.

The total cost is $51 million. Yet, some homeowners worry the new digs would bring down the quality of their neighborhood.

Others, like Leslie Odmark, are slowly warming up to the idea.

"Overall, I’m in favor of it," Odmark said. "Building the police headquarters and the fleet maintenance facility sound like they’ll be upgrades from what they’re currently using."

The city is building a new fleet-maintenance facility on Roswell Road for its police department along with a new headquarters and municipal court about a-mile-and-a-half away on Morgan Falls Road. Sandy Springs will place a fence around the headquarters. There’s just one problem.

"They’re planning to use razor wire," Odmark said.

The city wants to place razor wire on top of that fence. Odmark is the HOA president of the Cambridge Townhomes that sit right next to where that fence would go.

"This type of fence would clearly decrease our property values," Odmark said.

The City Council recently decided to place a less imposing aluminum fencing, instead of razor wire, at the fleet facility. Odmark wants city leaders to reconsider plans at the headquarters.

"It just seems like they’re going to extremes without thinking about residing next to that property," Odmark said.

Susan Duffy lives just yards from the future fence. She says she’d have no problem with it as long she can’t see the razor wire. "If they come in after they said they wouldn’t take down those trees and take them all down and then put that fence there, that would be a problem," Duffy said.

Odmark says city officials will survey the property in question once the leaves fall from the trees to get a better look at what neighbors would see.

FOX 5 called the City last week. We are still waiting for a response.