Friday, April 6, 2001
Friday, April 6, 2001 |
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Task force discusses possible transit station
By JOHN
MUNFORD The possible location for a future commuter rail/bus station in Peachtree City has caused a task force studying development of the West Village area to get a little off track. At its second meeting last week, the task force was presented with a new design for locating the station on land currently occupied by Line Creek Baptist Church. Some task force members questioned why that site was selected instead of two other sites mentioned at the previous meeting. City Planner David Rast said the Line Creek site was ideal since it comes closest to what the Atlanta Regional Commission is looking for in its Livable Centers Initiative program. The two other possible sites mentioned for the station further south near Falcon Field Airport, and further north on land across Ga. Highway 74 from Wisdom Road aren't located near a mix of retail, office and residential uses like the Line Creek site, Rast explained. The Line Creek site is near various retail projects including The Avenue at Peachtree City, the Marketplace retail center and the future Wal-Mart/Home Depot site, Rast said. It's also close to office space at Westpark Walk and several residential areas via the city's path system, he added. Consultants working with the task force met with city officials prior to the latest LCI meeting and that's when the decision was made to focus on the Line Creek site, Rast said. The LCI program provides grants for municipalities that develop plans using alternate transportation to create places where people can live, work and shop without using a car. The task force was mobilized to develop a plan for that area that might fit in with the LCI program, which would qualify the city for LCI grants from the ARC. The task force could determine that it doesn't want the city to participate in the LCI program with ARC, Rast said. "I don't think we need to do everything the ARC would like us to do," Rast said. "The task force may say this is feasible, so let's incorporate it into the plan; or they may say it's not something we want to do so let's not incorporate it in the plan." The task force could also recommend that the city decline to participate in the LCI program altogether, Rast said. In a letter to Rast, task force member Eileen Shaw questioned the reasoning for creating a transit station that could have a regional draw, thereby increasing traffic in the area. "If we come to an agreement with the owners for standards and guidelines to tie the area together architecturally, Peachtree City will benefit," Shaw wrote. "But frankly, I am not interested in being a rubber stamp for a high-density, high-volume, high-impact regional rail or bus facility located on the most congested corridor in Peachtree City just to obtain grant money from ARC or anyone else." The idea to plan ahead for a potential rail/bus station is based on studies that have identified Peachtree City as a potential stop on a commuter rail line that could run to Atlanta, Rast said. "The goal here is to do something a majority of the people are going to support," Rast explained. "It's not that commuter rail is coming here tomorrow or next week, or that commuter bus is coming anytime soon. It's just about getting ahead of the game and placing it in an appropriate area if it were to come." The LCI program doesn't require high-density residential or 10-story office buildings, Rast said. Consultants on the LCI project think the station could be built along the rail lines but initially used for a bus system until the commuter rail system becomes a reality. Rast said the next few meetings of the task force will focus more on the elements needed to tie the area together, including architectural standards and landscaping. The consultants on the project will not attend those meetings so the task force can focus on the project. "We're going back to ground zero, and we're going to look at the corridor and what the task force thinks it should have to tie it all together, especially looking at our alternate form of transportation: the cart path system," Rast said. The next few meetings will be dedicated to setting the task force's goals and objectives, Rast added. Another main topic of discussion will be the city's application for funding under the LCI grants. Rast also urged concerned citizens to attend the task force's future meetings and participate to learn more about the projects. The next task force meeting will be Thursday, April 12 at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall.
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