Peachtree City's Planning Commission gave approval Monday night to the site plan for Kedron Office Park and its first structure, a four-story office building of precast concrete.

The approval was granted contingent upon seven conditions being met. The seventh condition, which was added Monday night, requires that a preliminary traffic study be done to determine if the additional cars and trips generated by the office park will exceed the limits of the city traffic ordinance. The results also could affect the debate over the number of parking spaces allowed in the office park. The city's land development ordinance maintains a minimum of three parking spaces per 1,000 square feet of office space. The applicant has requested more spaces, at least four per 1,000 square feet.

Jim Williams, the city's director of development, said the traffic issue had been “studied thoroughly,” noting that lane improvements made along Peachtree Parkway were designed to serve the Kroger shopping center and the new office park. But the original calculations will be provided to the commission to determine if they meet the specifications of the traffic ordinance.

The other conditions require the applicant to secure a variance for the overall building height prior to final site plan approval, that the applicant work closely with city staff during the grading process to preserve as much existing vegetation as possible, determine the center line of the outer drive and the edge of the parking lot before the pre-clearing inspection, design an aesthetically pleasing detention pond, submit a complete set of architectural plans to city staff for review as well as plans for exterior lighting.

The commission tabled the site plan for a warehouse expansion at MA Industries and deferred any decision on designating Sumner Road a scenic road until more data could be provided. The request to give Sumner Road a specific designation came from Cele Eifert, one of four homeowners along the tree-canopied road that starts across the street from the entrance to Publix and runs into the unincorporated area of the county.

Peachtree City has plans to pave the road, which is now gravel. Residents along the road have no problem with the paving, but fear losing the road's “character.” City planner David Rast said the scenic road designation provides some design leeway. “We can bend some in the design and save a good bit of the tree canopy,” Rast said.

Sumner Road has no official designation at present, such as “village collector” or “neighborhood collector,” which poses a problem. A variance would be required to make the designation and, according to Wes Saunders, commission chairman, “We need more to go on if we ask for a variance.”

Riley and Aberdeen parkways are the only two scenic roads designated in the city.

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