Wednesday, May 30, 2001
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Wednesday, May 30, 2001 |
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West PTC's future: Should it look 'like the rest of PTC'? By JOHN MUNFORD
Take a glimpse into the future. Imagine what Ga. Highway 54 West will look like in several years. The state Department of Transportation plans to widen it to four lanes. A Home Depot and Wal-Mart probably will be tucked away on the northern side, possibly drawing significant traffic from Coweta, Fulton and Spalding counties. Other commercial developments will follow, adding on to the residential subdivisions and apartments nearby. A task force studying the developing West Village area is preparing a plan to handle the new development and encourage alternate transportation such as golf carts and bicycles. Some task force members dispute whether the area should look like the rest of Peachtree City with large buffers or look more "downtown" with storefronts closer to the highway, since there are few trees to include in the buffer. In developing its plan, the task force has to answer a host of questions: Will residents in the area face four or six lanes of crushing traffic just to get into Peachtree City? Or can access roads behind commercial developments be used to provide alternate routes to the city? Where are cart path crossing bridges needed? Where can a tunnel under the road be used? What about where the rest of the cart paths go? Hopes are that the task force's plan can be funded, at least in part, by funds from the Atlanta Regional Commission. The ARC will study the proposal once it's submitted and could look favorably on funding the cart path improvements such as bridges and tunnels since they encourage "alternate" forms of transportation. At its meeting Thursday night, the task force was briefed on the Department of Transportation's latest design for widening the highway. In addition to widening the highway to four lanes, the design features a wide grassy median that could be used to expand the road to six lanes if necessary in the future, said city planner David Rast. Task force member Todd Strickland suggested a plan to use the median for cart path and pedestrian traffic. He admitted it was a radical idea, but with speed limits on 54 lowered to 35 mph, it could work, he said. But many on the task force were hesitant to buy into the concept, especially since the DOT's design for the highway could already be set in stone. This coming fiscal year, the DOT plans to spend $1.8 million in right of way acquisition for the widening portion of the project, while the $4 million construction funds are earmarked for the 2003 fiscal year. That doesn't include the widening of the bridge over the CSX railroad track near Huddleston Road, which is scheduled to receive $871,000 in the 2003 fiscal year. Strickland also suggested having the commercial developments placed closer to the highway with parking available in the rear. Although that wouldn't be similar to the other legs of the Hwy. 54-74 intersection, there aren't many trees to save off Hwy. 54 West, some argued. But the majority of the sentiment appeared against creating a different "feel" than exists in the rest of Peachtree City. "How are you going to sell this?" asked task force member Eileen Shaw. She pointed out that local residents would have to be convinced to try anything different in the area. Most of the task force members at the meeting appeared to lean toward the plan with more buffering that was presented by Jerry Peterson of Pathway Communities. But there's a possibility the task force could submit more than one drawing for the area, with each having basically the same amenities for the ARC to consider. On the cart path issue, city officials have the railroad bridge solution fixed with a unique cloverleaf design that will link the western area with The Marketplace and The Avenue at Peachtree City retail centers. But the problem remains of getting traffic across Hwy. 74 to the Westpark Walk retail/office complex. Shaw said linking up Westpark Walk to the West Village could help the complex. Peterson suggested seeking funds for a tunnel under the road. Peterson also suggested that a smaller transit station could be located between Clover Reach and Huddleston Drive near the current skating rink. That way, it would serve only local residents and it could be designed to have access to both sides of the railroad tracks, he added. Task force member John Dillahunt said that plan looked much better than the previous location for the station, which was at the current site of Line Creek Baptist Church on Hwy. 54 across from Huddleston Road. The transit station concept merited relatively little discussion compared to other topics the task force covered, however. The time frame for completing the plan is dwindling, as ARC officials have to be updated on the city's progress the second week of June, Rast said. The plan must first be approved by City Council before it is passed on the ARC for consideration.
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