Friday, April 2, 2004
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Friday, April 2, 2004 |
| Countires get lesson in greenspace preservation By JOHN THOMPSON Representatives from four metro counties got a lesson in greenspace preservation last week. The leaders gathered at the Georgia International Convention Center in College Park March 25 to hear a presentation by Ed McMahon, who is vice president of the Conservation Fund. The meeting was sponsored by the Chattahoochee Hill Country in South Fulton County, which is one of the leaders in preserving greenspace in the region. “Progress does not demand you degrade your surroundings,” McMahon told the leaders. He emphasized that development can be accomplished that benefits both developers and residents who are concerned about the quality of the environment. “Trees increase the value of residential neighborhoods by 20-30 percent,” McMahon said. He also told the leaders that only about 40 percent of homeowners who buy in golf course developments actually play golf. The rest buy the property for the views, he said. Coweta County Commissioner Greg Tarbutton told the leaders from Douglas, Fulton and Carroll counties that his county was trying to increase their greenspace acreage. “We don’t have the resources of buying lots of greenspace, but we are working on a proposed ordinance to encourage developers to build and leave more open space,” he said. Fulton County Commission Chairman Karen Handel said the northside of Fulton County is almost built out, but complimented the efforts of the Chattahoochee Hill Country. “There’s an opportunity to do it right in south county,” she said. She added that it’s imperative to preserve the land on the southside. “We won’t have a quality of life if we don’t pursue the preservation of greenspace,” she said.
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