Soon the residents of Cobblestone Farms will no longer travel the 20-minute trip to downtown Cumming to do business with Forsyth County, because the county administration is moving right off Keith Bridge Road on Freedom Parkway, only 10 minutes and 5 miles away.
You’ve probably seen a huge office building under construction along Georgia 400 just as you approach the Exit 17 Keith Bridge Road exit. That is the exciting new Forsyth County Administration Campus, a sprawling 42-acre project currently under construction on Freedom Parkway, representing a significant strategic investment poised to transform public service delivery within the rapidly expanding county.
This ambitious undertaking, with a total budget exceeding $134 million and notably funded entirely by accumulated county surplus funds, aims to consolidate 17 disparate county departments into a single, modern “one-stop shop.” Slated for substantial completion by May 2026 and a public opening in Spring/Summer 2026, the new campus promises significantly enhanced convenience and reduced travel times for residents, particularly those in northern Forsyth County, such as the Cobblestone Farms subdivision.
Forsyth County has experienced an extraordinary surge in population, nearly doubling from 137,643 residents in 2005 to 272,887 by 2023. Projections indicate a continued upward trend, with the population expected to surpass 300,000 within the next five years.
This rapid demographic expansion has placed immense strain on existing county facilities, leading to significant overcrowding and the necessity of displacing some departments into rented office spaces. This fragmentation has complicated both citizen access to services and internal employee collaboration.
The new campus is a direct response to these pressures, purpose-built to accommodate current demands and future growth, offering “room to grow for at least 30-40 years into the future” with inherent capacity for expansion.
The decision to develop this new campus on Freedom Parkway is not merely a matter of constructing a larger building; it reflects a deliberate strategic shift in county planning. The current administration building in downtown Cumming has been explicitly cited as “outgrown”, leading to operational inefficiencies and the costly necessity of renting external office spaces. The selection of a 42-acre site on Freedom Parkway, chosen for its ample “generous surface parking” and its location “out of the congestion of downtown Cumming”, directly addresses the logistical bottlenecks created by the county’s burgeoning population.
The new 130,000-square-foot facility is specifically designed to achieve a major operational goal: uniting 17 distinct county departments under one roof. This consolidation is envisioned as a “one-stop shop”, fundamentally transforming the citizen experience by centralizing services and eliminating the need for residents to visit multiple, geographically dispersed locations for various county businesses. To further enhance efficiency, the campus will feature a dedicated “permit center,” designed to significantly speed up and simplify the often-complex permitting process.
The existing Administration Building at 110 Main Street in downtown Cumming will house the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Department, and interestingly will also be where the County Commission public meetings must continue to be held because Georgia law requires those meetings to occur within the boundaries of Cumming, the county seat, but the new Administrative Complex on Freedom Parkway isn’t within the city so official meetings cannot occur there. Courts will also remain downtown.
Click the button to read more on the Forsyth County website.
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