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Hwy. 74 South widening moved up By JOHN MUNFORD The widening of Ga. Highway 74 South in Peachtree City has been fast-tracked to occur three years earlier than previously scheduled. Construction on the $30 million project is set to begin in the 2006 budget year which starts in 2005, state Sen. Mitch Seabaugh told the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce Friday morning. Right-of-way acquisition for the northern leg of the project will begin in 90 days, he added. “Highway 74 has been moved up to the most aggressive schedule there is,” Seabaugh said, crediting the work of state representatives John Yates, John Lunsford and Lynn Westmoreland along with Fayette County Commission Chairman Greg Dunn in helping make the project a priority. “We’ve had a great team that has worked very hard on your behalf. At the state level they have been approaching things the right way, identifying a need and developing a way to get it done.” The project is divided into two segments by Crosstown Road, but construction on the southern leg will begin as soon as the work is done on the northern leg, Seabaugh said. “So they can just keep on going right on down to Highway 85,” Seabaugh said. The senator said Sam Wellborn, the Department of Transportation board member who represents Fayette County, and DOT Commissioner Harold Linnenkohl also played a major role in speeding up the project. Industries in Peachtree City have been clamoring for the widening to help with truck traffic delivering goods to and from their locations via Interstate 85. Seabaugh’s next goal is to focus on economic development and attracting appropriate industries here, “Now that we can get people in and out like we need to.” Seabaugh also mentioned that construction should begin soon on the Coweta leg of the project to widen Ga. Highway 54 from Fisher Road in Coweta to the Hwy. 54/74 intersection in Peachtree City. The Peachtree City side of the project has been delayed somewhat due to engineering and land acquisition issues, Seabaugh noted.
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