Wednesday, July 25, 2001
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Wednesday, July 25, 2001 |
| Planners:
Let's annex 80 acres into PTC
By JOHN MUNFORD
A request from John Wieland Homes to annex 80 acres into Peachtree City off the western side of MacDuff Parkway is one step closer to becoming reality. At its meeting Monday night, the Planning Commission agreed unanimously to recommend approval of the rezoning to the City Council, which is expected to rule on the matter Thursday, Aug. 16. The land is part of a 350-home subdivision which partially lies in the city limits. Current plans for the site include land that will be donated for a possible elementary school. Also, the plan includes approximately one acre that will be deeded to the city for a fire station. "This is a very difficult area to justify not being in the city," said Jim Williams, the city's director of developmental services. That's because the land currently is bordered by the city limits to the south, east and west, he explained. The Planning Commission recommended that the council condition the annexation approval on Wieland extending MacDuff Parkway to the school site, which is near the northernmost limit of the property. That will allow an access road to be built for a planned 107-home subdivision which will be built to the west. The company also has agreed to fund the right turn lane on Ga. Highway 54 so eastbound traffic can turn onto Huddleston Drive/Road and travel toward the industrial park. The funds will be given to RAM Development, which will actually be responsible for construction of that project, said Dan Fields, vice president of John Wieland Homes. Wieland also will be required to create a buffer, whether a privacy fence or through landscaping, between the western part of the subdivision and homes in the existing Wynnmeade subdivision. Wayne Roberts of the Wynnmeade Homeowners Association said residents there were worried the townhomes bordering the subdivision would become rental properties. Fields said covenants will forbid leasing more than 20 percent of the townhomes in the planned Centennial subdivision. Concerns also were expressed about the viability of the school site and what would happen if the school system decides not to locate a campus there. Williams said Wieland has committed to build no more than 350 homes in the subdivision regardless of the school site. John Wieland Homes also will be required to install water line infrastructure to create a "loop" among the other developments in the area, including Wynnmeade and others. Plans call for 104 homes on the property being considered for annexation with 246 units on the remainder of the property, which is already in the city limits. Mike Satterfield, facility director for the Fayette County Board of Education, said the board would like for the school site to be expanded to the south so it could have more room. The prototype school doesn't quite fit on the land, which would have an access road cut through the northern portion, according to current plans. The access road actually shrinks the 20 acres of usable property down to 13 or 14, Satterfield said. "It's extremely tight for us," he added. Although the commission approved the annexation plan 3-0 with two commissioners absent, it did not sign off on the concept plan for the subdivision, which will be reviewed at a later date.
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