Friday, January 19, 2001
Friday, January 19, 2001 |
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Task force to assist city with grant to design walkable, livable, workable West Village plan BY JOHN
MUNFORD
What started out with a grant to plan development of the cart path system in the rapidly-growing West Village area of Peachtree City may turn into much more. The grant from the Atlanta Regional Commission under its Livable Centers Initiative program may also help plan architectural controls for parcels along Ga. Highway 54, a landscaping plan for the area and other ways to make the area cohesive, said City Planner David Rast. That could include the development of "gateway features" near the bridges over the railroad tracks and near the Coweta County line. There's also the possibility of using a zoning overlay district to control the architecture of the highway corridor, Rast added. The city will use a consultant to help guide a citizens task force to come up with the plan for the West Village area. Ideally, the plan will include the areas south of Hwy. 54 like the Planterra Ridge subdivision and the businesses on Huddleston Road, Rast said. The project will also address the Marketplace and The Avenue retail centers which are nearby and also will be connected to the cart path system. Also, the task force will consider planning for a commuter rail station in the area, which may or may not actually become a reality in the future, he added "We want to take what's there and blend it all together," Rast said. The hope is that the city will get funds to implement the task force's plans from the ARC in coming years, he said. The LCI program is designed to help plan new developments to encourage people to use alternate methods of transportation to get to work. Particularly, the ARC hopes LCI projects will discourage the use of cars and encourage walking, biking and as in Peachtree City using golf carts to get people where they need to go. There's already a good mix of residential property in the area, with one of Peachtree City's oldest subdivisions in Wynnmeade to apartments and other living spaces, Rast said. The original plans were to use the LCI grant to design the cart path system, but as city staff began preparing to solicit a consultant, the idea grew. "It's a lot more exciting than what we were originally thinking about doing," Rast said, admitting that it will involve a lot of work. The process will begin with a brainstorming session after the City Council selects a consultant for the project, Rast said. City staff is recommending using The Brookwood Group of Atlanta. The West Village area is the largest remaining undeveloped portion of Peachtree City, although it is beginning to grow rather quickly with residential projects. In the near future, a Wal-Mart Superstore and Home Depot store will be located there also, just off Hwy. 54. "All this vacant land will have to develop," Rast said.
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