Wednesday, December 17, 2003
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Wednesday, December 17, 2003 |
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Exemption to multifamily ban sought for Rockaway Road tract By J. FRANK LYNCH Bob Adams will finally appear at Thursday’s Peachtree City Council meeting, asking for an exemption to the city’s moratorium on multi-family rezonings to allow a development of senior townhomes at Ga. Highway 74 South and Rockaway Road. The Adams project was initially on the Nov. 20 agenda, but that meeting was never held due to lack of a quorum forced by the intentional absense of Councilmen Annie McMenamin and Dan Tennant. The item was put back on the agenda for the Dec. 4 meeting, but removed at Adams’ request, city officials say. Adams hopes to get a multifamily rezoning approved for the acreage, known as the Stephens tract, because an abundance of wetlands on the site limits the number of acres that can be developed. It is bounded by Rockaway Road, Hwy. 74 and Line Creek and includes the current recycling center operation. Adams wants to include a section of attached fee-simple townhomes in the project and market it to senior citizens, similar to those at Village on the Green, according to an application letter. He also is proposing a realignment of Rockaway and Holly Grove Church Road at Wilshire Pavilion. That would likely result in the closing of the recycling transfer station, but the city was considering it for relocation anyway. “The main thing there is realigning of Rockaway Road,” said Mayor Steve Brown last week about the project, which he said fits his smart-growth agenda for the city. “We absolutely have to do that, and here’s a developer willing to pay for it.” Another concern has been expressed by the Airport Authority, which as a matter of course opposes residential development that lies in the approach paths to Falcon Field. The Stephens parcel is about two miles due south of the Falcon Field runway. The issue isn’t so much one of safety, but rather noise, said Brown, adding that the same concerns were raised when Planterra Ridge was built several years ago and there have been few complaints from homeowners. “It’s a problem maybe once a year,” said Brown, who lives in Planterra Ridge. Acknowledging that much of the property is undevelopable, Brown said it was in the best interest of the city to work with Adams and come up with a plan that works. “Iif he can get the right numbers (of units) in there and it works for him, if we get the road realligned and don’t impact the schools, then this is definitely a win-win for everybody,” said Brown.
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