Forsyth Park Office Development

Forsyth Park Office Development

Many DNA members have expressed concerns to your DNA Board about their opposition to office buildings under development at Whitaker St and W. Park St.  Many residents oppose this development and have asked the DNA to publicly oppose it on their behalf.

This area is not in the boundaries of the National Historic Landmark District and thus not under the purview of the DNA. However, it is within The Victorian Neighborhoods Association (VNA) district and the VNA Board supported this project as it was originally proposed over a year ago. 

The DNA Board has long supported the approach of letting other neighborhood associations make decisions about their neighborhoods and believes they know best what is most appropriate in terms of current and future planning for their districts.

I write the above to provide insight into why the DNA has, until this point, issued no public position to the planned development of these office buildings.

However, we do have concerns about the process in which this development most recently is moving forward and fear it could set a dangerous precedent for future development in our National Historic Landmark District. 

As written in the October 23, 2025, edition of the Savannah Morning News (SMN):

Plans for a three-building office complex at the corner of Savannah's Forsyth Park will bypass approval from the Historic Preservation Commission, which considers certificates of appropriateness [COA] for developments within the city's local historic districts. (Emphasis added.)

State law exempts local governments from obtaining COAs, and City Manager Jay Melder notified the HPC of its intent to do so in an Oct. 2 letter. Land at the project site, located at West Park Avenue and Whitaker Street, will be conveyed to the city by the developer Forsyth Commons Holdings LLC. City ownership of the property permits it to use the exemption.(Emphasis added.)

You can read the full SMN article here.

Specifically, our concern is:

Bypassing Historic Preservation Commission Review (HPC)We do not believe this development should be permitted to bypass historic preservation review.  Our Zoning Ordinance provides residents with a process to comment on planned development in their neighborhoods.  We believe that residents should have as much right to comment on a planned development as a developer has in designing and constructing a project. Bypassing approval by the appropriate historic district review board eliminates a step in that process for input by those residents impacted by the proposed project.

In recent years both Chatham County and the Federal General Services Administration worked with residents, through the Historic District Board of Review or the Metropolitan Planning Commission, on the new County Courthouse on W. Oglethorpe Ave as well as the new Federal Office building on Telfair Square.

According to information publicly available, the developer of the proposed office buildings (at Park and Whitaker) will be deeding the land to the city.  This action means the city will own the land going forward, thus allowing it to bypass HPC review.

That is an unprecedented change to the review process for developments by the city.

So, let’s examine this process change (bypassing Historic Review) from our own Landmark District standpoint…..

Quite frankly, we view it as a major concern . . .

especially in light of the city-wide effort to solicit public input on the future of the Civic Center redevelopment.

How can Landmark District residents be assured that the city will not take the same action with the Civic Center redevelopment?

Our Landmark District has a very specific set of zoning ordinances and a review process at Historic District Board of Review (HDBR) designed to ensure historic architectural integrity is maintained within our district and to provide for public input.

Bypassing our HDBR robs our district of the opportunity to weigh in on what developers have designed for the redevelopment of the site.

Keep in mind that canvassing the city for public input as to what to build on the site is not the same as the historic review process conducted at HDBR. The HDBR review is where details of what has been designed are weighed against the Landmark District’s specific ordinances and design requirements. The HDBR review process is also where district residents are afforded opportunity for input.

Clearly, we have a long way to go before there will be a review of any specific Civic Center re-development design proposals….. But, we feel the time to raise this concern is upon us, and we want you to know where your DNA Board stands on this issue.

Rest assured, your DNA Board will be raising these concerns with the Mayor and the City Manager.

Paul CobetPresidentDowntown Neighborhood Association Savannah, GA Inc.