Friday, November 7, 2003
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Friday, November 7, 2003 |
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Homeland Security office for PTC on hold; not a jail as rumored By JOHN MUNFORD Likely due to recent negative publicity, a plan to move a federal homeland security office — and an estimated 100 jobs — to Peachtree City is on hold. Jim Pace, President and CEO of Group VI, which was marketing the building next door to the firm’s headquarters on Westpark Walk, said the city needs the white-collar office jobs a project like this would provide. Group VI had negotiated a lease for an entire floor of the building, which had been approved by the Government Services Agency, Pace said. But after erroneous news reports earlier this week alleged that dangerous criminals would be processed at the office, Group VI was notified the decision on the lease was “put on hold,” Pace said. “As an economic development coup, this would be huge,” Pace said, adding that government officials were interested because of the proximity to Hartsfield International Airport. “Information that it was going to be a jail was incorrect.” The flap began when an anonymous letter circulated among area news agencies, alleging that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office, now under the federal Homeland Security Program, would be relocating to Peachtree City and its Atlanta office would be closed. That is not the case, according to Peachtree City Mayor Steve Brown, who says he has looked into the matter. Brown says ICE officials have told him anyone apprehended would be sent to its facilities in Atlanta and would not be detained in Peachtree City. “The ICE office as described by officials, versus the claims of the misleading anonymous letters, would be a quality tenant in what is now vacant office space,” Brown said. “We have several federal offices and facilities in Peachtree City and an even greater number of federal employees who appreciate the quality of life here.” Brown was interviewed by at least one Atlanta television station on the matter earlier in the week, and the broadcast report cut short some of his comments, making them appear negative in nature, and that’s unfortunate, Pace said. Pace said Brown is not to blame for the way his comments appeared. He suspects, however, that someone else is waging a campaign against the office coming to Peachtree City. “Somebody doesn’t want them here and is going to a lot of energy to keep them from coming here,” Pace said. Pace said efforts would be made to communicate to federal officials that the project is still wanted in Peachtree City. Federal officials liked that the space could be moved into as-is because of existing modular or “cubicle” desks, Pace said. In today’s economic climate, landing a client to lease an entire floor of an office building is hard to come by, Pace added. “I don’t quite get it,” Pace said of the covert resistance to moving the homeland security office to Peachtree City. “We’re talking about the good guys here.” The Citizen did not receive a copy of the alleged anonymous letter, which was supposedly authored by an agent of the Department of Immigration and Naturalization Services.
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