About 70 East Cobb residents packed the East Cobb Library on Thursday, Aug. 27, to oppose a proposed 95-unit senior-living complex on the Eastside Church campus at 2450 Lower Roswell Road.

The nearly two-hour community meeting, hosted by Cobb District 3 Commissioner JoAnn Birrell, drew sharp criticism of The Haven at Eastside, East Cobb News reported. The project would rezone part of the church property from R-20 residential to RSL (residential senior living) under case Z-22-2026. The Cobb Planning Commission is scheduled to hear the case Tuesday, Sept. 1, at 9 a.m. in the second-floor board room at 100 Cherokee St. in Marietta.

The church's attorney, Kevin Moore, filed an updated site plan and rendering before the meeting showing the main building reduced from three stories to two. The revised plan shrinks the project footprint from 10.10 acres to 8.65 acres by removing church-owned homes that are part of the Red Oak Park neighborhood. The complex would still include the 95-unit main building, eight independent cottages and a 150-vehicle parking lot, with units starting at $6,000 a month.

Richard Grome, president of the East Cobb Civic Association (ECCA), told the crowd the revisions didn't go far enough. "Nothing has really changed," Grome said. "The technicality is how high is this building and where is this being measured from?" The ECCA has voted unanimously to recommend denial, citing the proposed density of 13 units per acre.

Lyndsay Webb, a Red Oak Park resident who has led the neighborhood opposition, was among those pressing for answers. Denise Merritt, who has lived in Red Oak Park for 23 years near the church, described existing problems with the property. She said security lights in the church parking lot are so bright that in winter, without tree cover, she can read a book in her front yard at night. Merritt called the project "all about revenue" and questioned the church's tax-exempt status for what she described as a luxury development.

A citizen group called "Stop the Eastside Church Conversion" distributed flyers before the meeting referencing other church-related rezonings in the area.

Birrell and her Planning Commission appointee, Deborah Dance, both attended but said they could not offer opinions on a pending case. Birrell urged residents to show up at the Sept. 1 hearing and flood officials with emails. Dance encouraged residents to document traffic conditions near the site even without a formal study.

A traffic study, cited as the reason for the case's most recent delay, had not been submitted as of the Aug. 27 meeting, according to Birrell. The Cobb Department of Transportation has estimated the facility would generate 426 daily vehicle trips in a corridor already handling 13,000 trips per day on Lower Roswell Road.

The case has been delayed twice since the Planning Commission first heard it in June. Eastside Church requested a continuance in August to conduct the traffic study as the school year began. In a July 30 East Cobb News report, church elder Ray Farmer said the church believed it had addressed community concerns. Opponents at the Aug. 27 meeting directly disputed that claim.

The church would manage The Haven through a nonprofit and hire a vendor to operate the facility. East Cobb News reported that Eastside Church officials did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Unless the case is held again, the Planning Commission will make a recommendation to the Cobb Board of Commissioners, which has a zoning hearing scheduled for Sept. 15.