Wednesday, November 22, 2000
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Wednesday, November 22, 2000 |
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Oppose school near railroad Last month I expressed my bewilderment at how the City Council of Peachtree City could rezone the Katz property near the intersection of Ga. highways 54 and 74 from industrial to residential. I believe that Dan Tennant was the sole vote in opposition to the rezoning and the conditions (Carol Fritz was not present). What really amazed me was the fact that council stipulated that a donated school site was mandatory if the developer wanted to obtain the higher density of 350 homes for the Katz property. An elementary school site was somehow deemed safe adjacent to the railroad tracks because the location met a minimum 500-foot distance required by an ambiguous methodology used by certain city officials that desire high density developments. The National Transportation Safety Bureau (NTSB) is responsible for setting the evacuation safety distances for train derailments. Unfortunately, their process is flawed. After the Katz approval I found that the equation used in determining such distances does not factor in population densities. For example, a small farming town in Iowa would be served well by the 500-foot requirement; however, the same distance would be thoroughly insignificant in downtown Chicago because of the vast number of people on site to be evacuated. In my review, the NTSB guidelines do not make special considerations for schools, nursing homes and hospitals (difficult targets for evacuation) either. Factor in our own unique traffic density and limited access to the property in question and a school simply does not belong on that site. You can imagine my astonishment when Council member Carol Fritz openly stated before a small audience prior to a later council meeting that she was fully aware of the shortcomings of the NTSB's distance requirements. Knowing the flawed methodology, she still opted to have a school site adjacent to the tracks! Even though she has no children in the school system, should not there still be some compassion towards the children of others? Now I direct you to Scottsbluff, Neb., where the local newspaper, the Star-Herald, has been covering their train derailment of Nov. 5 that necessitated "an evacuation call of most of the city." Unfortunately, three of the tanker cars ruptured and one was estimated to have been losing up to 20 gallons of product per minute (each car holds 30,000 gallons). The situation would have been much worse if the contents had been in pressurized containers. The product was a petroleum mixture containing 50 percent benzene that is a known carcinogen. Benzene is used as a solvent, a component in gasoline and it is also present in tobacco smoke. The immediate danger was that the chemical might ignite. The derailment took place near an agribusiness facility and "forced an evacuation for much of the city due to airborne chemicals." According to the Star-Herald, "short-term exposure to high levels of benzene can cause drowsiness, dizziness, unconsciousness and death." The newspaper also added that since most studies of benzene exposure had been performed with adults in a workplace setting, "there exists very limited data on children from environmental exposure to benzene." How on earth can we morally place an elementary school site next to the train tracks (even if it's someone else's children attending the school)? The question is not "if" derailments happen but "when." Luckily, in Scottsbluff the high schools are not adjacent to the railroad tracks and they were used as emergency evacuation shelters. The stealth-like Wal-Mart appeal and the fact that City Council is willing to place our children next to the railroad tracks prove to me that our standards are drastically slipping. Council member Fritz has told a great number of people that there was nothing that the city could do to alter or change the zoning in the Wal-Mart scenario, and that is totally erroneous. People are being fed a large dose of misinformation in response to their complaints. The Wal-Mart is dependent upon Ga. Department of Transportation approval. Please speak to DOT Commissioner Tom Coleman at 404-656-5206 or e-mail him at tom.coleman@dot.state.ga.us and let him know that you think that the Wal-Mart mitigation plan is a threat to our health, safety and welfare. Also, please attend the Planning Commission meeting on Nov. 27 at City Hall and speak out against the rezoning of the Lexington Circle property to higher density residential. This substantial rezoning will greatly add to our school overcrowding and our tax burden. The rezoning of the Lexington project is yet another glorious part of Mayor Bob Lenox's legacy to our children. Please attend and speak up for the protection of our school system. Steve Brown Peachtree City Steve_ptc@juno.com
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