This page lists, in date order, what the city and county records say about St. George Crossing in Waynesboro and the Sylvan Road rezoning in Atlanta. Wording of motions and results is the record's own. Draft minutes are marked draft, and minutes not yet posted are marked not posted.
What the Record Says
Dated rows
| Date | Body and record | Item and what the record says | Motion and recorded result | Present and absent | Name printed for the applicant or party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 16, 2023 | Waynesboro Housing/Finance committee, minutes (link) | Minutes record that Mr. Abebe and a second presenter "shared their vision" of mixed-use development for St. George Crossing with the committee, which "will be potentially located at 065-027 and 065-027S". The same meeting listed overlay zoning districts and tax allocation districts. | No motion or vote recorded in the source. | Not given in the source. | Not stated. Mr. Abebe is named as presenter. |
| April 15, 2024 | Waynesboro Planning Commission, minutes (link) | "187.64 acres located at 6th Street, Map & Tax Parcel: 065-027, requesting the approval for the Planned Unit Development (PUD) to be named 'St. George Crossings'. The applicant Mike Abebe, St. George Ventures LLC." | Motion Michelle Fort, second Katherine Kelly. "All board members voted unanimously in favor." | Not given in the source. | Minutes print "Mike Abebe, St. George Ventures LLC". The agenda version prints "Abebe, St. George Ventures LLC". |
| April 30, 2024 | Burke County commissioners, called meeting and work session with the Waynesboro City Council (file "2024-04-30 Called Mtg Worksession.pdf" on the county's minutes index) | A presenter from a building company "showed plans for the St. George Crossing project". A statement by the presenter, as the minutes print it: "Phase I of the project would begin in 2025 if approved." The minutes do not name Abebe. No county commitment is recorded. | No motion or vote recorded in the source. | Not given in the source. | Not named. It is the only one of 153 county minutes files from 2023 to September 2026 that mentions the project. |
| September 23, 2025 | Waynesboro Planning Commission, minutes (link) | "St George Crossings - Regulating Plan and Ordinance review ordinances. Changes requested. Planner will present plan at next PC meeting." The record does not say who requested the changes or what they are. The later meeting is not online. | No motion or vote quoted in the source. | Not given in the source. | No applicant printed. |
| February 16, 2026 | Waynesboro agenda, "Dates to Remember" (link) | "St. George Crossing Groundbreaking March 17, 2026 11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m." An agenda entry, not a vote. | Not a vote. | Not applicable. | No applicant printed. |
| June 8, 2026 | Atlanta Zoning Committee, ordinance 26-O-1039 (Z-25-001), rezone I-1-C/BL to MRC-3/BL for 1215 and 1313 Sylvan Road SW and 984, 985 and 997 Cox Avenue SW (file page) | The file prints "Staff Recommendation Denial / NPU Recommendation Approval / ZRB Recommendation Denial". The item was held in committee from January to June 2026. | "FAVORABLE [UNANIMOUS]". Mover and seconder not given in the source. | Ayes: Westmoreland, Norwood, Bakhtiari, Worthy. Absent: Bond, Martin, Collins. | "OWNER: ABEBE CAESAR VENTURES, LLC.; APPLICANT: MEKONNEN ABEBE" |
| June 9, 2026 | Atlanta Community Development/Human Services Committee, companion land-use amendment CDP-25-002 (26-O-1016), Industrial to High-Density Mixed Use | Favorable. | "Favorable", unanimous, as the research notes record it. | Not given in the source. | Not printed in the source. |
| June 15, 2026 | Atlanta City Council, ordinance 26-O-1039 (file page) | Adopted. The file page reads "ADOPTED BY A ROLL CALL VOTE OF 14 YEAS; 0 NAYS". The printout's history reads "ADOPTED BY CONSENT VOTE [14 TO 0]" (the source checker's read). Both are dated June 15, 2026. The printout is marked last updated June 11, 2026. | 14 to 0. Mover Wan, seconder Bakhtiari, as the research notes record the file's history. | Norwood away, as the research notes record it. No full attendance list in the source. | "OWNER: ABEBE CAESAR VENTURES, LLC.; APPLICANT: MEKONNEN ABEBE". "Renewal" does not occur in the file page or the printout. |
| June 15, 2026 | Atlanta City Council, companion land-use amendment 26-O-1016 | Adopted the same day. | 14 to 0, as the research notes record it. | Not given in the source. | Not printed in the source. |
| June 15, 2026 | Waynesboro City Council, item 8, Rural Workforce Housing Initiative Agreement; draft minutes in the July 20, 2026 packet, page 3 (DRAFT; link). Agreement in the June 15 packet, pages 19 to 24 (link), an unsigned copy. | "Council received the Rural Workforce Housing Initiative (RWHI) Agreement between the City of Waynesboro and Abebe Ventures, LLC for St. George Crossing." The minutes record no discussion of the item. | "Council Member Byne made a motion to approve ... Vice-Mayor Bates seconded the motion. Council voted unanimously in favor of the motion". | Present, as the draft minutes print it: Mayor James Jones; Vice-Mayor Vickey Bates; Council Members Alberta Anderson, Richard Byne, Monica Payton. Absent, as the draft minutes print it: Council Member C. Britt Herrington and Willie Williams. The minutes record the vote as unanimous and do not list each member's vote separately. The minutes are marked draft. | "Abebe Ventures, LLC" (the agreement's party; notice line "Attn: Mike Abebe") |
| August 18 to September 2, 2026 | Waynesboro, The True Citizen legal advertising | "Sealed bids for construction of the St. George Crossing Subdivi- sion Project will be received until September 17th, 2026 at 3:00 PM at the City of Waynesboro City Hall" | Not a vote. | Not applicable. | No applicant printed. |
| September 17, 2026 | Waynesboro Utilities Committee, bid opening; draft minutes, page 4 of the September 21 packet (DRAFT; link) | "opened the bids for the Rural Workforce Housing Initiative (RWHI) grant infrastructure project at St. George Crossing (PE24218). The following bids were received: Total Earth Services $3,397,409.23; Piedmont Mining $2,998,149.33; Reeves Construction $2,959,746.50; Shockley Plumbing, Inc. $2,930,454.00; Sikes Brothers, Inc. $2,975,245.00. Shockley Plumbing, Inc. was identified as the apparent low bidder." | No motion or vote quoted in the source. | Not given in the source. | No Abebe entity is a party to the contract in the pages read; the contract's owner is the City. |
| September 21, 2026 | Waynesboro City Council, agenda items 5 and 6, "Resolution 2026-09-01 to Award Rural Workforce Housing Initiative (RWHI) Grant (St. George Crossing Project)" (packet). Minutes NOT POSTED. | The engineer's letter "recommends the project be awarded to Shockley Plumbing, Inc. in an amount equal to the base bid amount of $2,930,454.00." The draft resolution reads "the City of Waynesboro hereby makes contract award of the construction contract to Shockley Plumbing, Inc. in the amount of $2,930,454.00. This Award is subject to the City's review of the contract documents." The signature blocks in the packet are unsigned. | Not confirmed: the minutes of this meeting are not posted, so the vote on the construction award is not confirmed. | Not available: minutes not posted. | No applicant. The contract's owner is the City. No Abebe entity is a party to it in the pages read. |
Company names as the records print them
Records on St. George Crossing print different company names. This is stated as a fact about the records. The relationships among the names are not stated in the records read.
| Record | Name printed |
|---|---|
| Waynesboro Planning Commission minutes, April 15, 2024 | "Mike Abebe, St. George Ventures LLC" (the agenda version: "Abebe, St. George Ventures LLC") |
| Burke County delinquent-tax sale notice, September 2023 | "Defendant in Fi Fa: Abebe Ventures LLC Current Record Holder: Abebe St George Ventures LLC" |
| Waynesboro agreement and draft minutes, June 15, 2026 | "ABEBE VENTURES, LLC, a Georgia limited liability company"; the minutes: "Abebe Ventures, LLC" |
| The site's earlier capture of the county assessor's owner of the 187.64-acre tract (the assessor's page was not read in this research) | ABEBE ST GEORGE VENTURES LLC |
| Atlanta ordinance 26-O-1039, June 15, 2026 | Owner "ABEBE CAESAR VENTURES, LLC."; applicant "MEKONNEN ABEBE" |
What a Party Says
At the April 30, 2024 Burke County work session, a presenter from a building company is recorded as saying that "Phase I of the project would begin in 2025 if approved." This is a statement by a party, as the county minutes print it.
The Governor's release of December 5, 2024 says: "The City of Waynesboro was awarded $2,496,190 in OneGeorgia funds to construct street, drainage, water, and sewer infrastructure that will allow for the construction of 51 new, housing units in St. George Crossing. The development is on a 190-acre tract." The release names the City as recipient and does not name the developer. It is the state's own description of the project.
The June 15, 2026 draft minutes state that "Abebe Ventures, LLC, the developer, will be responsible for all project costs exceeding the grant award and City contribution." The agreement's own text says: "The Developer will be responsible for any additional costs that exceed the grant award." The agreement copy is unsigned.
Open Questions
How did the Waynesboro council vote on items 5 and 6 on September 21, 2026? The minutes are not posted, so the vote on Resolution 2026-09-01 is not confirmed.
Which company was the applicant for the planned unit development on April 15, 2024? The minutes print "St. George Ventures LLC"; the 2026 agreement prints "Abebe Ventures, LLC". The records read do not state how the two names relate.
What did the council decide on the St. George Crossing zoning, regulating plan or ordinance, and when? The source did not find the council's zoning approval, any annexation, the grant application resolution, or any item on the December 2024 award, and lists no council records for 2023 or 2024.
What changes were requested at the September 23, 2025 Planning Commission meeting, and what did the planner present at the next meeting? The later meeting is not online.
On September 23, 2025 the Planning Commission minutes say of the project's regulating plan and ordinance: "Changes requested." No later approval of that plan was found in the records read. On June 15, 2026 the council approved the infrastructure agreement. Were the project's plans approved before the city signed?
The June 15, 2026 minutes read for this page are marked draft. Were they approved as written, and where are the approved minutes posted?
Were any conditions attached to the Atlanta rezoning as adopted? The adopted district carries no "conditional" suffix and the printout lists no conditions; the signed ordinance would confirm.
The council file page and the ordinance printout describe the June 15, 2026 Atlanta vote differently (roll call, consent vote), both 14 to 0. Which procedure was used?
Records That Would Settle It
| # | Office | Record | What it would show |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | City of Waynesboro, City Clerk or City Manager | Approved minutes of June 15 and September 21, 2026; Resolution 2026-09-01 as adopted; the construction contract; every council packet and set of minutes for 2023 and 2024 | The votes, members present, and what the council decided |
| 2 | City of Atlanta, Municipal Clerk and Office of Zoning and Development | The full rezoning application file and the signed ordinance 26-O-1039 | Owner authorisation, any change of applicant, and any conditions |
Sources
Agreement, pages 19 to 24. Unsigned copy.
July 20, 2026 City of Waynesboro council packet, page 3Draft minutes of the June 15, 2026 meeting.
September 21, 2026 City of Waynesboro council packetAgenda items 5 and 6, the engineer's letter, and the September 17 bid-opening draft minutes on page 4.
September 23, 2025 Waynesboro Planning Commission minutesRegulating plan and ordinance review.
April 15, 2024 Waynesboro Planning Commission minutesPlanned unit development named St. George Crossings.
June 15, 2026 Atlanta City Council legislation file 26-O-1039Caption, recommendations and vote.
December 5, 2024 Office of the Governor press releaseAnnouncement of the OneGeorgia award to the City of Waynesboro.
Waynesboro Infrastructure Agreement
The June 15, 2026 agreement: the amounts, the terms, the vote, and open questions.
Related ReportA Company Number, Two Names
Control number 24062142 under two names, with the records and the open questions.