WNEG - Old Chamber Building Coming Down To Make Way for Passive Park

Local officials are in the process of finding a new use for an old property.
The city of Toccoa, Stephens County, Development Authority, and Chamber of Commerce are working together to turn the property that has housed the old Chamber building into a passive green space.
The property is at the corner of Currahee Street and Big A Road in Toccoa. Recently, crews have demolished the old Chamber building to make way for the passive park.
For months, local and state officials have negotiated the sale of the state-owned property to the local community. That sale was going through and was expected to be completed in the Fall.
However, Stephens County Development Authority Executive Director Tim Martin said more recent developments pushed the timeline on the demolition of the building itself forward.
“In the meanwhile, the county realized that the landfill is full and it could not accept any more construction and demolition waste, so we told the state the plan had to be accelerated,” said Martin. “They gave us permission to get onto the site even though we do not own it yet, to take the building down and dispose of it properly.”
The sale of the property is still expected to go through in the Fall, and the state is receiving around $33,000 for the property.
According to Martin, the next step is to assemble a team to create a design for exactly what the space will look like.
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