St. Jude campus overhaul gets staff backing with enrollment caps unchanged

Sandy Springs planning staff recommends approval of a six-phase redevelopment of St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church & School at 7171 Glenridge Drive. Conditional-use case U-26-5 seeks to amend existing permit conditions; staff recommends allowing a total of 171,747 square feet of church, school and accessory uses.⁠[1]

The plan includes a two-story parish life center, church expansion, preschool relocation, a two-story gymnatorium and a new one-story middle school replacing the former gymnasium. Enrollment limits would remain at 525 private-school students and 50 preschool children, while the church’s largest assembly area would retain a 700-fixed-seat limit.⁠[1]

Staff’s proposed conditions require playground equipment to be 100 feet from protected-neighborhood property lines and screening along the southern parking edge to shield car lights. A turning lane on Glenridge Drive could also be required by the city engineer during Phase 2.⁠[1]

The packet lists an Oct. 20, 2026, mayor and council hearing. The applicants anticipate the first two phases in 2027 or 2028 if the permit is approved; later phases have no definite schedule.⁠[1]