Friday, October 12, 2001
Friday, October 12, 2001 |
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Candidates sound off on budget, traffic, other issues By JOHN
MUNFORD
A standing-room-only crowd was treated to the views of Peachtree City Council candidates Tuesday night at the Wyndham Peachtree Conference Center. While some comments drew applause and the candidates were genteel, it was clear there were differences of opinion amongst the would-be mayors and council members. The questions, submitted by a variety of audience members, drew a variety of responses. Regarding city finances, some felt strongly about cutting the budget to prevent future property tax increases; others felt staffing cuts might be necessary. Still others disagreed with council's decision to raise taxes this year. No one disagreed, however, with the need to cooperate with Fayette County and other nearby jurisdictions particularly in the arena of working with the state Department of Transportation. A sampling of the opinions presented by the candidates: Post 4 candidate Carol Fritz, the incumbent, said she supported further annexation of land on the west side of the city "with a very, very careful plan" since the city will likely provide services to that property anyway. Post 4 candidate Gerald Ostrowski opposes such annexation, citing the trailers used at local schools who can't keep up with growth patterns. Mayoral candidate Gary Rower said he wants to solve traffic congestion at the intersection of Ga. highways 54 and 74 by asking executives in the industrial park to stagger their work shifts. Mayoral candidate Frank Murphy said the extension of TDK Boulevard into Coweta County would alleviate traffic at 54/74 also. Mayoral candidate Dan Lakly said he thought the city could get more help at the intersection by working closely with the state DOT. Mayoral candidate Steve Brown said he thought land planning and zoning would help the traffic problem, particularly if the city works with Tyrone and south Fulton County which are "going to explode" in terms of growth. Post 3 candidate Nancy Faulkner said she thought it was important to extend the southbound turn lane on Hwy. 74 for traffic wanting to got east on Hwy. 54. Post 3 candidate Steve Rapson, the incumbent, said it is important for the city to work with regional planning agencies like the Atlanta Regional Commission and the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority to make sure traffic improvements are funded; he added that the traffic improvements for Wal-Mart and Home Depot were already underway Faulkner and Rapson agreed they wouldn't support the property tax increase recently imposed by council; Faulkner said the city could have gotten by on the increased property valuations alone while Rapson said there was no need for any property tax increase this year. Brown said the city could hire more part-time workers instead of hiring full-time employees to reduce the budget. Murphy said he feels the city is not overstaffed. Rower said city staff is "operating at the minimum." Lakly said he wasn't up to speed on the city's staffing levels by department, but he "would never go out and willfully look to cut staff from one department over another." Post 4 candidate Alison Chambers said she thinks the city's toughest upcoming challenge would be battling crime and traffic, especially in light of the Wal-Mart opening next year and the length of time between hiring a police officer and being able to put him or her on duty; Fritz said she thought balancing the budget would be most difficult, adding "this year it was very tough."; Weed said he didn't see one large challenge but rather a number of smaller ones which could be handled "and the big things will take care of themselves." Post 4 candidate Murray Weed said he supported the projects on the bond issue referendum, adding that they could be operated without a tax increase. Ostrowski said he supported mandatory classes on golf cart safety rules with a requirement that one person from each family attend a class; later, he apologized to the audience for not being prepared for the forum and he pledged to be prepared "next year."
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