Friday, January 23, 2004

Fairburn’s fast growth rate continues

By LINDSAY BIANCHI
Special to The Citizen

Fairburn is bursting at the seams with new development, both commercial and residential. A whole slate of new projects were considered at the January 12 meeting that will add to the city’s population and tax base.

Three preliminary plats with a total of 74 new houses got the green light from the City Council. Valley View Estates, Pine Valley Estates and Herndon Road Estates are set to become the next neighborhoods of choice.

Of the three, Herndon Road Estates has the unique distinction of being a subdivision designed especially for seniors, adults and people with handicaps or special needs. Houses with more accommodating doorways, hallways and countertops are constructed to make daily life less of a chore for more encumbered individuals. Located on Virlyn B. Smith Road, the 10.81 acre development has 28 single-family lots.

Valley View Estates is on the west side of Malone Street and has its entrance at the intersection of Valley View Drive.

The subdivision is a 15.5 acre tract being developed by the Gaddy Construction Company. The 30 unit subdivision is zoned R-3 Residential with 56 percent of the area to be dedicated to open space.

Pine Valley Estates, also zoned R-3, is designed as a somewhat smaller community of 16 lots on 8.022 acres. The property's proposed location at the end of Pine Street abuts the Shannon Chase subdivision. The Fairburn Panning Commission recommended approval of the design with a list of six conditions ensuring proper easements, landscape buffers, exterior requirements and other city standards. A water and sewer capacity report would also be needed for the development to move forward.

The City Council also gave approval to a concept plat.

The Legacy at Riverview subdivision, engendered the most discussion from the Council. The 65 acre site utilizing the existing combined R-1 and R-2 residential zoning was "the best that we can do for this area" City Administrator Jim Williams said.

Clarification on the necessity for the inclusion of an emergency road into the development helped to finalize the decision by the Council to ultimately approve the design. The 51 lots to be located opposite Duncan Park would bring the grand total of new houses planning to be built in Fairburn to 125.

Additionally, Ed Wyatt, representing the Green Oil Company, asked the City Council to annex a 2.8 tract on Oakley Industrial Boulevard into the city and zoned C-2 Commercial. The added acreage is to be used for truck storage by Green Oil.

Fulton County approved the proposal with the stipulation that a 50 foot wide landscape strip be provided adjacent to apartment property in the neighborhood. Along with five other conditions put forth by the Fairburn Planning Commission, all of them sensitive to their residential surroundings, the Green Oil Company was given the green light.

Another C-2 Commercial tract at the corner of Milam Road and Ga. Highway 74 received permission for rezoning from its previous ER Estate Residential status. A community bank is to be built on the property provided that the developers meet their share of a half dozen conditions set down by the Planning Commission.

Finally, four condemnation resolutions were reviewed and passed which will affect the proposed Plantation Estates townhouse project. The first resolution concerned the acquisition of an easement needed to extend sewer line service to the future community. The other three resolutions involved procuring land to extend Harris Road from Plantation Road to Hwy. 74.

     All of the projected growth has Fairburn starting the year off busier than ever.