By JOHN THOMPSON
jthompson@thecitizennews.com

Peachtree City Mayor Bob Lenox assured Tyrone officials in a letter late last month that he shares their concerns about a possible annexation by Peachtree City.

The mayor responded to an April 12 letter from Tyrone Mayor Sheryl Lee about the city's efforts to annex the “West Village” which borders Tyrone and Coweta County.

In her letter, Lee pointed out that Tyrone considers the impact on other cities when making decisions concerning development, and asked Peachtree City to show the same concern.

If the 900-plus acres are annexed into Peachtree City at a higher density than exists in the county, it could pose problems for the Fayette County Board of Education, Lee said.

“It is our understanding that the Fayette County Board of Education utilizes Fayette County's land use plan for their school planning purposes. Any significant increase in density above that shown on the county plan could adversely impact their planning for this area,” she said.

Lee also said development could shift traffic away from Ga. Highway 54 to Ga. Highway 74, which would be “devastating,” she said.

In his response letter, Lenox said he shared the mayor's concerns on a number of issues, including traffic and schools.

Lenox added the city has not received an annexation request and is merely conducting an “in-depth” evaluation of the situation.

He concluded the letter by saying he welcomed the opportunity to update the Tyrone Town Council on the issue.

Tyrone Town Councilman Ronnie Cannon has been the point man for letting Peachtree City know how he feels about any annexation. Cannon started the recent debate by bringing up the issue at an April council meeting.

“This would impact the quality of our life, especially if it's zoned under Peachtree City's four homes to an acre,” he said.

Town manager Barry Amos said the property is currently zoned in the county for one- to three-acre lot sizes. Cannon would like to see that zoning stick, and said the quality of life issues could become even bigger if Peachtree City decides to zone any of the land for apartments.

“That would be 12 units to an acre. That's a lot of cars on [Ga.] Highway 74,” he said.

Cannon recalled two years ago when Peachtree City Mayor Bob Lenox had questions about a development in Tyrone because the town was at “Peachtree City's front door.”

“I'm concerned because Peachtree City is at our back door. It's time to take a more proactive stand and aim for high standards,” he said.

If higher density is allowed on the property, Cannon said more cars would create more congestion on Hwy. 74 and add to the region's bad air quality.

The entire Town Council agreed with Cannon.