Retrofit Atlas

Other · Georgia

Mathis Airport

Imported, unreviewedRedevelopedRetrofit builtForsyth County, GA

Opened 1959. Closed 2014. Redeveloped in 2020.

Status nowRetrofit builtnewtypes-extraction
What it becamehousingWikipedia
Site size10.53 acresnewtypes-extraction
Last sale$1.4M · 2013public reporting
Retrofit year2020newtypes-extraction
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Site profile5 elements · what this retrofit is built with · tap a chip for the evidence

Place
County typical rent $2,000+This site: $2,222/mo zillow · all sites with this
Fast-growing county (8%+ 2018–23)This site: 18% census-acs · all sites with this
Scale
Under 20 acresThis site: 10.53 acres newtypes-extraction · all sites with this
Strategy
RedevelopedThis site: 32 homes in the new subdivision (Lakeview at Laurel Springs). record · all sites with this
New use
HousingThis site: …new_use field newtypes-extraction · all sites with this

All elements and lists · Trends

Now

StatusRetrofit builtnewtypes-extraction
StrategyRedevelopedWikipedia
New useshousingWikipedia
What is there now32 homes in the new subdivision (Lakeview at Laurel Springs).newtypes-extraction
Retrofit year2020newtypes-extraction
RedeveloperJEH Homesnewtypes-extraction

Planning

Zoning changeproposednewtypes-extraction
Planning notesApproved by Forsyth County Board of Commissioners.Wikipedia

Deals and debt

DateEventPricePartiesSource
2013Sold$1.4M closedJim Jacobi of JEH Homes ← Flyboy Aviation Properties LLCWikipedia

Site context

Housing permits, Forsyth County (GA), 2024810 units in 5+ unit buildings, 23 in 2–4, 1,692 single-family; 2023: 238 in 5+Census BPS
Other atlas sites nearby2 within 10 km, 21 within 25 km: Brookside One and Brookside Two (9.5 km); Medley (9.6 km)computed
Retail trade in the county, 2012 to 2023746 establishments (+27%); 12,245 jobs (+47%)Census CBP
Housing market in the countytypical home value $599,870 (-2% 1 yr, +28% 5 yr); typical rent $2,222/mo (+2% 1 yr), 2026-09Zillow Research
Traffic on the busiest road within 600 m (2024)20,400 vehicles a day on Mathis Airport Pkwy; (minor arterial, 4 lanes); 17 counted segmentsFHWA HPMS

Summary, model-written

Mathis Airport (FAA LID GA27) was a private, public-use airport in unincorporated Forsyth County, GA, about 5 miles northwest of Suwanee. LG Mathis opened it in 1959 with a single 1,800-foot runway. Flyboy Aviation Properties LLC bought it in 2004 and expanded operations; the Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 1415 was based there from 2004 to 2009. The airport closed in October 2014. In 2013, Jim Jacobi of JEH Homes purchased the 10.53-acre site from Flyboy for $1.4 million and filed a rezoning application. JEH Homes completed a 32-home subdivision called Lakeview at Laurel Springs in 2020.

Why. The site sat among existing residential subdivisions in southern Forsyth County, and the county has been growing (18.3% population increase 2018–23 per the record). The airport's closure removed the aviation use, and the land was already surrounded by housing, making a residential conversion a straightforward fit. The record does not state whether the runway was removed or what environmental review was done.

Where it stands. Status is 'built' — the retrofit is finished. The zoning change is listed as 'proposed' in the record, but the planning notes say it was approved by the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners. The record is flagged as a draft and has not been fully verified. No parcel-level, utility, or environmental data appear in the record.

For a planner

  • The site is a completed 32-home subdivision; no active planning action is indicated in the record.
  • Access is via Mathis Airport Pkwy, a 4-lane minor arterial with a 2024 AADT of 20,400 (FHWA HPMS).
  • Forsyth County building permits rose from 1,121 single-family units in 2023 to 1,692 in 2024, with total permit value up from $242 M to $440 M over the same period, suggesting continued residential demand.
  • Retail employment in the county grew 46.7% (8,349 to 12,245) between 2012 and 2023, indicating a broadening local economy.
  • Two other redeveloped sites (Brookside One/Two, Alpharetta; Medley, Johns Creek) are within 10 km but are still in 'proposed' status; 21 comparable sites fall within 25 km.
  • The record does not include information on stormwater management, runway remediation, or whether the site was subject to any environmental assessment.

For a developer

  • The land was acquired at roughly $133,000 per acre (2013 sale price of $1.4 M / 10.53 acres).
  • The 32-home build-out on 10.53 acres works out to roughly 0.33 homes per acre, which is low-density; the record does not break out lot sizes or unit mix.
  • Forsyth County ZHVI is $599,870 (Sept 2026, Zillow Research), up 28.2% over five years but down 2.4% year-over-year. Median rent is $1,937.
  • The peer set in the record (six redeveloped malls/shopping centers of similar size and era) scores 7.0–8.5, but none of them are former airports, so the comparison is limited.
  • The record does not state whether JEH Homes retained the land, sold individual lots, or whether any residual parcels remain undeveloped.

What we do not know yet

  • Record is marked 'draft' / unverified; all field origins are listed as 'newtypes-extraction,' meaning the data was pulled from a non-mall extraction pipeline and has not been independently confirmed.
  • No environmental, geotechnical, or runway-removal information is present.
  • The zoning field says 'proposed' while the planning notes say 'approved' — the record is internally inconsistent on this point.
  • Truck traffic on the access road is not reported (null in the record).
  • No information on whether the site was subject to FAA noise overlays, easements, or other aviation-related encumbrances that might still affect the parcel.

Generated by qwen3.8-27b-64k:latest on Dell 5820 RTX 3090 (Ollama) from the fields, parcels, deals and context layers on this page, with no outside knowledge. It is regenerated when the record changes and has not been checked by a person. How it is made.

Similar sites

  • Midtown Square Mall, Charlotte, NC · Malls · similar size (10 acres); opened 1959; same strategy: redevelop
  • North River Shopping Center, Sandy Springs, GA · Strip centers · similar size (13 acres); same strategy: redevelop; also in GA
  • D.R. Horton Engineering Drive, Peachtree Corners, GA · Office parks · similar size (9.35 acres); same strategy: redevelop; also in GA
  • City Center, Columbus, OH · Malls · similar size (9 acres); same strategy: redevelop

Elsewhere on the web

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Multifamily screen

  • retrofit already built
  • county grew 18.3% 2018–23
  • median rent $1,937
  • housing in the record

Inputs: record fields (size, status) and county Census ACS 2018–2023 figures (growth, rent). How the points work. Not a recommendation.

History and original facts

Opened1959newtypes-extraction
Closed2014newtypes-extraction
Acres10.5newtypes-extraction
Original developerLG Mathisnewtypes-extraction
AnchorsExperimental Aircraft Association Chapter 1415
CountyForsyth County
Census division5 · South Atlantic
NotesDraft from Wikipedia, model-extracted, unreviewed: Mathis Airport, a private airport in Forsyth County, Georgia, closed in 2014 and was redeveloped into a 32-home residential subdivision by JEH Homes (later Taylor Morrison) by 2020.

Not yet recorded: GLA. Know it? Tell us.

Background

Mathis Airport (FAA LID: GA27) was a private airport located in unincorporated Forsyth County, Georgia, United States, about 5 miles (8.0 km) northwest of Suwanee in the northeastern part of metro Atlanta. The airport closed in October 2014. It had an 1800-foot or 550-meter runway, 1,171 feet (357 m) or 357 meters above mean sea level (AMSL). Mathis Airport sat among residential subdivisions in southern Forsyth County. From 2004 to 2009, Mathis was home to Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 1415, but in 2009 this chapter moved to Air Acres airport in Woodstock, Georgia. == History == LG Mathis founded Mathis Airport in 1959 as a privately owned/public use airport.

Excerpt from Wikipedia (authors and history), CC BY-SA 4.0. May be older than the record above.

Timeline

  1. 1959 Airport founded
  2. 1959 Opened
  3. 2004 Airport sold to Flyboy Aviation Properties LLC
  4. 2004 Airport expanded by Flyboy Aviation
  5. 2013 Sale arranged and rezoning application filed
  6. 2014 Airport closed
  7. 2014 Closed
  8. 2020 Houses built
  9. 2020 Retrofit: redevelop

Sources

  • Mathis Airport · CC BY-SA 4.0
    7 quoted sentences
    Mathis Airport
    LG Mathis founded Mathis Airport in 1959
    In June 2004 CJ sold the airport (10.53 acres) and an adjacent subdivision lot (3.54 acres) in the airpark to Flyboy Aviation Properties LLC
    In 2004 under the ownership/management of Joe Voyles, Flyboy Aviation expanded the airport in many ways

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