Wednesday, June 12, 2002
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Wednesday, June 12, 2002 |
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PTC buys land for 3rd bike bridge By CAL BEVERLY
Peachtree City is the new owner of 5.1 acres of prime real estate fronting on Ga. Highway 54 West at the entrance to the venerable Wynnmeade subdivision. And on that $840,000 piece of real estate, the City Council plans to build the city's third cart path bridge, which will connect the residents of Wynnmeade, Summit Apartments, Cedarcroft subdivision and the new John Wieland Homes development to the southern side of the city. Calling the lease-purchase an "opportunity to do really good here," Mayor Steve Brown said the two parcels on either side of Wynnmeade Parkway were "a key piece" of the city's strategy to draw a limiting line to the Home Depot and Wal-Mart development just to the east. "I count 240 [potential commercial] parking spaces" on just one of the parcels, Councilman Steve Rapson said. "This 5-acre tract is a slam dunk" for the city. Councilman Murray Weed said the purchase was "vital to help the people in Wynnmeade help themselves." A citizen at the meeting last Thursday night, Robin Lorber, said the bridge was too far west of the main section of the city and asked, "Who going to use it?" She got a quick response from a Wynnmeade resident. "We are," said the unidentified black woman. "There are other people [using cart bridges] than the ones who live on [Ga. Highway] 74 North." Brown said the city may already own part of the southern approach to the bridge as part of a nature trail area, next to the Day's Inn motel property. He said the site was the best one for a bridge anywhere along Hwy. 54 West. The cost of the bridge itself will be $650,000, paid for by a grant from the Atlanta Regional Commission. The bridge will link the northwestern city residents with Planterra Ridge subdivision on the south and The Avenue shopping center about a half-mile to the east. Chuck Lehman, who has run for mayor himself, quizzed the council on the financing. He was told the city expects about $86,000 a year in lease costs, to be paid for out of city operating funds. The financing comes through the Georgia Municipal Association's Bricks for Mortar program, the same program that is financing the city's new police department. Lehman asked the council to put the question to the voters in a referendum. Council members agreed that the land likely would be sold to another developer by the time a referendum could be held. "Timing is of the essence," Councilwoman Annie McMenamin said. "The staff has determined that this is the only viable method of financing the land acquisition, at this time, that does not involve the outlay of city cash reserves," said a staff memo to council members. The city is buying the Blount Tract parcels after the owner asked for a commercial rezoning for one of the parcels. "Blount wanted a Quik-Trip [convenience store] at the [Wynnmeade] corner," Brown said. "Wynnmeade residents didn't want that." Brown said some parcels along Hwy. 54 West were being offered for sale at $750,000 per acre, but that the city got the tract for well under the asking price. "There were three important objectives," Brown said. "Stop the strip commercial [development], get a recreation area, and build a bridge." The land not used for the bridge approach will be used for passive recreation, well away from the highway, Brown said. The pedestrian bridge is included in last year's Livable Cities Initiative Corridor project adopted by last year's outgoing council, according to a staff memo.
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