By DAVE HAMRICK
dhamrick@thecitizennews.com

A new zoning category designed to encourage more creative mixed use developments will be on the agenda when Fayette City Council convenes to night and Monday.

Council will have a work session tonight and voting meeting Monday, both meetings at 7 p.m. The public is invited, and public comment will be accepted.

City planning staff originally wrote the PCD (planned community development) zoning category to replace the current PUD (planned unit development), but in discussing hte matter, the Planning Commission has recommended that only the “mixed use” section of the PUD category be erased if the council agrees to create the new type of zoning.

The category is designed specifically for large, master-planned like TheVillage, a proposed 110-acre development that would place 200 homes, a retail square, two types of offices, a hotel and several neighborhood parks on Ga. Highway 54 at Tiger Trail.

Master-planned by consultants Cooper Carry at the city's expense, the project is designed to create an upscale, pedestrian community in the heart of the city. City officials hope the result will be a boost to downtown revitalization efforts, and will help make the city center a focal point for community life.

The PCD category gives developers more leeway to design projects to fit specific pieces of property, but also gives teh city more control over every aspect of the project, according to planning director Maurice Ungaro.

The Planning Commission recommended approval of the new category 4-1, with member Joe Bruschetti voting against.

Also on the agenda tonight and Monday will be the city's annual mid-year budget review, and some proposed changes to the budget.