SMYRNA, Ga. — City council members have voted to approve a land sale that will bring a brewery to downtown Smyrna.

With the resolution passing by a vote of 5-2 at Tuesday’s city council meeting, StillFire Brewery is now set to build a two-story, 15,000-square-foot building on Atlanta Road next to the city’s community center.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

“I believe it’ll be an economic driver for our downtown for years to come. It’s something desperately needed here. It’ll create a destination,” Mayor Derek Norton said. “This is something I campaigned on. This is something I heard from residents — 3,000 doors I went to. They were wanting new energy in downtown.”

The proposed site is currently a green space next to the Smyrna community center. The price tag is $600,000.

“We put a lot of protections in there in case they didn’t succeed, or if something went wrong to protect our taxpayers,” said Norton. “We put a lot of controls in there. Deed restrictions, a right of first refusal, a clause that if they don’t do anything with the land in five years, we’re able to buy it back.”

TRENDING STORIES:

• Local pastor, wife charged with running illegal group home, holding elderly against their will
• Wintry mix, snow still possible this weekend. Here’s what we know now
• 71-year-old Georgia woman shot, killed while driving, police say

Smart Smyrna, a grass-roots citizen group, doesn’t support the land sale.

“The property should not be sold. People who move their families here expect that the city have their interests at heart,” said Shaun Martin of the group. “This needs to stay in the hands of the city, in our hands of our taxpayers so that we can control this very visible spot.”

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Smart Smyrna said more than 1,200 people have signed a petition.

IN OTHER NEWS:

©2022 Cox Media Group