Coweta supports Senoia annexation of 88-acre commercial and residential development

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The Coweta County Commission last week voted to support annexation requests from Senoia for an 88-acre commercial and residential development along Ga. Highway 16 and for Peachtree Baptist Church, home of the Coweta Charter Academy, also on Hwy. 16. The Senoia City Council had previously agreed to both annexations.

The proposed 88-acre Village West commercial and residential development is situated along the north and south sides of Ga. Highway 16 adjacent to Senoia’s west side.

Parcel A of the proposed development, located on the north side of Hwy. 16, includes nearly 44.47 acres situated adjacent to the city limits. The rectangular-shaped property, with an north-south orientation, is surrounded by properties within Senoia, according to city documents. The subject property is currently zoned RC (Rural Conservation) by Coweta County.

Proposed for Parcel A are 40 residential lots and, along the highway, one commercial lot and two office lots. The residential portion of Parcel A consists of more than 23 acres and 15 acres of open space. The city’s Rural Conservation Subdivision ordinance allows 35 lots.

Parcel B, located on the south side of Hwy. 16, includes 44.14 acres. The property, essentially rectangular in shape with an east-west orientation and positioned perpendicular to Parcel A, has more than 3,100 feet of highway frontage.

The primary proposed use for Parcel B is commercial space, with a small amount of office space along with a nine residential lots on the west side of the property.

The conceptual plan calls for three curb cuts for Parcel B and one curb cut for Parcel A. Any curb cuts would require approved from the Georgia Dept. of Transportation.

The council’s approval came with several conditions. Pertaining to zoning, the commercial portions of the property will be zoned GC (General Commercial) that conforms to the Ga. Highway 85 and Ga. Highway 16 Commercial Overlay while the residential portions will be zoned R40C (Conservation Subdivision). Other conditions include the use of a 50-foot vegetative buffer, a traffic study to determine adequate ingress and egress along Hwy. 16, a water and sewer study, sedimentation and erosion plans and a stormwater assessment.

The Peachtree Baptist Church on Ga. Highway 16 just west of the city is the site of the new Coweta Charter Academy.

Florida-based Charter Schools USA operates the new school, having signed a lease/purchase agreement for the Peachtree Baptist Church property in 2010. The existing building provides classroom space for the current K-3 grades. The 11.2-acre site will provide adequate room for the expansion needed to accommodate grades 3-8, according to Charter Schools USA.

A site plan submitted by Florida-based Red Apple Development, LLC for the expansion shows a proposed two-story, 34,066 square-foot addition at the rear of the current building and a 1,560 square-foot addition on the west side of the current building situated along Hwy. 16. The parcel has 1,020 feet of frontage along Hwy. 16 and 854 feet of frontage along Morgan Road on the south side of the property.

Included in the site plan is a soccer/multi-purpose field located on the west side of the property surrounded on three sides by an access road that extends from the west side of the front parking lot on the north to Morgan Road on the south.

Red Apple’s request includes having Senoia provide sewer services at the site. Red Apple would be required to pay for the expansion of sewer lines to the property.

City administrator Richard Ferry said a gravity sewer line could be tapped for the project. That action would have the opportunity to serve more customers in the immediate area, Ferry said.

Water to the site could continue to be provided by the Coweta County Water and Sewerage Authority through an intergovernmental agreement with the city.