By JOHN THOMPSON
jthompson@thecitizennews.com

A proposed village style shopping center dominates Thursday night's agenda for the Tyrone Planning Commission.

The commission is set to discuss seven different rezoning and variance requests for John Callaway's property, just off Ga. Highway 74.

Callaway wants to build a shopping center near the current Town Hall that would feature more than 100,000 square feet of retail development.

His site is near the intersection of Senoia Road and Palmetto-Tyrone Road. He believes the site is ideal to create a village-type development that would set new standards for development in the area.

Included would be a 52,000-sq. ft. grocery store, along with smaller shops such as ice cream stores and cafes that would be built along a heavily landscaped street to give the impression of a typical village or small town.

There would be five outparcels on the Hwy. 74 side of the development that could possibly be used for fast food restaurants or other small businesses, but in previous meetings Callaway was adamant that he would listen to the type of tenants the town wanted.

“If you don't want fast food, we won't put one there,” he said.

He emphasized that he wanted to raise the architectural standards for this development and make it a pedestrian-friendly development.

“I don't want big box development there,” he said.

The property is currently zoned agricultural-residential, and the project also would need a variance, since the town's zoning does not allow any commercial development over 30,000 square feet.

Callaway also is seeking a reduction of buffer on the north side of the property from 20 feet to 10 feet and a reduction on the south side from 75 feet to 25 feet.

The commission meets at 7 p.m. at Tyrone Town Hall.