Friday, January 2, 2004
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Friday, January 2, 2004 |
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Peachtree City Year In Review [Editor’s note: The following article was provided by Peachtree City Mayor Steve Brown.] Peachtree City had another banner year in 2003. The city’s population surpassed 35,000 residents, and the city issued 283 residential building permits (an increase over 207 in 2002). Nearly 300 new businesses were registered via payment of the city’s occupational tax, including 11 new restaurants (La Hacienda Mexican Restaurant, Cindy’s Southern Café, Bimini Bay Café, Buckhead Brewery & Grill, Casa Vieja, Gumba’s Rotisserie Café, Mellow Mushroom (opening in February 2004), Mike & C’s Family Sports Grill, Ashland Grille, Saffron Market, and Zaxby’s), keeping Peachtree City the dining capital of Fayette County. It was also a terrific year for Peachtree City’s youth athletic teams. There were five national championship baseball teams and one state champion. Eight local youths in the Southern Crescent Aquatics Team earned state championships. One football team earned state champion status, and five of the local youth soccer teams earned state championships, with four going on to earn regional or national titles. Additionally, the Booth Science Olympiad team again took national honors. These young people are probably the best public relations effort there is for our community. They represent us and get our name out there at each game, and the local youth continue to excel. City Manager Bernard McMullen also established a marketing strategy committee to help devise a program for continued attraction of business to the community, replacing the marketing efforts that Pathway Communities shouldered for years. The committee succeeded in developing a new logo and slogan for the community, will work in 2004 to develop marketing materials to assist the local development authorities, the Airport Authority, and the Tourism Association, in fulfilling their missions to augment Peachtree City’s tax base through the attraction of quality businesses and the promotion of tourism. Additional milestones for 2003 are chronicled below: January 2003 Aircraft Spruce and Specialty Company moved its eastern regional distribution center to a location adjacent to the Peachtree City-Falcon Field Airport. The addition of the Piper dealership later in the year marked impressive growth in Peachtree City’s aviation business sector. After meeting with officials from Panasonic, Mayor Brown worked with State Senator Mitch Seabaugh to secure a traffic light to help employee traffic, which was backing up due to the increased volume of vehicles on Ga. Highway 74. This addressed a major safety concern for industrial park residents. Chris Clark, president and CEO of the Fayette County Development Authority, said in a presentation to the city council that 155 industrial prospects had been recorded in the first half of fiscal year 2003, compared to 97 for the entire previous fiscal year in 2002. The authority also hosted 24 state and national project managers in the first six months of the fiscal year compared to 32 the previous year. February 2003 Peachtree City leveraged an additional $200,000 investment into approximate $1.2 million on the new TDK Extension agreement with Fayette County and Coweta County. The city was initially asked to pay an additional $750,000. This new deal was a substantial savings for the city. March 2003 The Peachtree City Library Commission announced plans to introduce a referendum for a new library expansion. The referendum would later pass by 76 votes. The city council approved funding for the first dog park in South Metro Atlanta. The $5,000 in seed money for the project will be repaid by funds raised by the Dog Park Committee. The city’s Teen Study Circles projects concluded with the groups participating asking for more teen activities and better relations with the police. The Peachtree City Youth Council was created, as well as a Police/Youth Relations organization, and the call for more usable space for teens was included in the library expansion proposal. The Youth Council’s first project, The Battle of the Bands, was a huge success with approximately 500 attendees. The first new building along the road frontage of Ga. Highway 54 in the city’s Livable Centers Initiative (LCI), a Tires Plus store, began the approval process. The new building will become a standard for the upcoming architectural overlay zone under consideration by council in early 2004 April 2003 The state legislature passed legislation that requires all law enforcement agencies in the state to have a high-speed chase policy. This legislation originated from a campaign launched by Police Chief Jim Murray after a recent high-speed chase through Peachtree City resulted in a fatality. At the invitation of Mayor Brown, the first meeting was held of a group of local governments to discuss how to protect the Hwy. 74 traffic corridor. This voluntary display of cooperation was the first of its kind in Metro Atlanta history. The initial group included Senoia, Peachtree City, Tyrone, Fairburn and Fulton County. The South Fulton CID joined soon thereafter, followed by Union City, Fayetteville, Fayette County and Sharpsburg. The Dixie Wing Commemorative Air Force World War II Flying Museum celebrated its opening. The museum, located at Falcon Field in Peachtree City, is an educational resource for local citizens and students. The Buckhead Brewery opened, signaling some significant new restaurant development on the city’s eastern-most border. May 2003 Bernard J. McMullen was selected as the new city manager of Peachtree City. His previous position was as director of the General Services Department of Fulton County. J.C. Booth Middle School’s Science Olympiad team once again claimed the top prize at the National Science Olympiad Competition. This was their seventh first place finish. The McIntosh Lady Chiefs soccer team was ranked number one in two U.S. polls. The Atlanta Regional Commission announced that Peachtree City received an additional $400,000 in grants to improve pedestrian features near the hwys. 54 and 74 intersection, including a pedestrian walkway underneath Hwy. 54. Construction is expected to start in spring of 2004. In total, the city has received nearly $1.5 million in Livable Centers Initiative grants. June 2003 The Georgia Appeals Court ruled that a driver’s license is needed to operate a golf cart. The ruling affected 15-year-olds as well as senior and disabled citizens unable to obtain a driver’s license. The city has pending legislation before the General Assembly in January 2004 to make necessary changes in state law. July 2003 Peachtree City unveiled a new July 4 parade route and Gov. Sonny Perdue accepted the invitation from Mayor Brown to lead the parade. A record 15,000 spectators were on hand and the new route received rave reviews for viewing capacity and safety. After months of preparation, Peachtree City took its first steps towards creating a stormwater utility. The city council authorized spending $12,750 to fund a feasibility study. The Battle of the Bands is a big success. The first project of the Peachtree City Youth Council attracted sponsors, fans and let them put some money in the bank. Nearly 3,000 local people got a first look at what is hoped will be a repeat performance, watching the digitally mastered movie “E.T., The Extraterrestrial,” on a 50-foot tall, inflatable screen at the Peachtree City Baseball Soccer Complex. The event was called “Movie Under the Stars” and was sponsored by Star 94. August 2003 The Frederick Brown, Jr. Amphitheater kicked off its new Jazz Series with Lou Rawls on Aug. 9, followed by Carol Welsman in September and Spyro Gyra in October. Reports indicated that 80 percent of the ticket holders for this series were first-time visitors to Peachtree City’s amphitheater. The new Crabapple Lane Elementary opened in Peachtree City on Aug. 11. Fayette County schools saw record attendance with 21,000 students countywide. The city council approved an assistant city manager position. The assistant city manager has been designated as the staff member to handle the transition of the venue management from the Development Authority of Peachtree City. September 2003 The annual Great Georgia Air Show had a wonderful turnout and placed tens of thousands of dollars in the hands of local charitable organizations. At the request of Mayor Brown, the air show had to cover the expense of security and fire protection on its own, and they did so without a problem. Vice Chairman of the Peachtree City Development Authority, Scott Bradshaw, resigned. Saying the operation of the Peachtree City Tennis Center and Frederick Brown Amphitheater had become too much for a part-time board to manage, the Development Authority of Peachtree City resigned from its management contract with the city council and handed the two venues back to the city, effective Dec. 1. October 2003 Students at McIntosh and Starr’s Mill high schools played the Peachtree City police in a basketball fund-raiser. The game was sponsored by the Police/Youth Relationship Organization, which was created out of the Teen Study Circles project. A $30,000 reward was offered for information leading to a suspect who assaulted a clerk and robbed the hotel. The Peachtree City Police Department had identified the suspect within 48 hours of the crime. The suspect would die in a high-speed chase with a Coweta County sheriff’s deputy nearly 72 hours after the crime was committed. The Peachtree City Fire Department hosted its first Haunted House at the Leach Fire Station site on Paschall Road. November 2003 Stuart Kourajian defeated incumbent Dan Tennant for the Post 2 City Council seat, while Judi-Ann Rutherford won in a runoff for the Post 1 seat. The library referendum passed by 76 votes. The Fayette County Commission officially accepted the master transportation plan priority listing. Peachtree City was not given a single project in the top five, which meant that the residents would be paying for the rest of the county’s road improvements. After facing some criticism in the news media, one of Peachtree City’s projects was elevated to number four (there still would not be enough funding to start the project). The Peachtree City Tourism Association, Inc. was created to manage the operation of the Tennis Center and Amphitheater. State Sen. Mitch Seabaugh formally announced that the first phase of the Hwy. 74 widening project will be moved up to 2006. In addition, the remaining phases of Hwy. 74 will receive right-of-way funding in 2006. December 2003 The city council approved a new logo and, for the first time ever, a city slogan, “Plan to Stay.” The Peachtree City Police Department received its international reaccreditation with no files returned and an excellent rating from the review panel.
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