Wednesday, May 5, 2004

Target on council agenda again By J. FRANK LYNCH jflynch@theCitizenNews.com Target isn’t a done deal in Peachtree City just yet. Likewise, talk of annexing the west side of town has been delayed at least two more weeks. A request from John Wieland Homes to open a discussion on annexations by lifting the city’s moratorium didn’t arrive in time to qualify for Thursday’s agenda, said City Spokeswoman Betsy Tyler. At least half of the homeowners who live in the neighborhood they fear sits directly across from a “compromise” access road to the Target site will attend Thursday’s council meeting to protest. The residents of St. Simon’s Cove off Georgian Park near Ga. Highway 74 met Tuesday night to plan strategy. They have not dimissed seeking a legal challenge to again delay the Target project, which was first announced nearly a year ago. Spokesman John Turner said the homeowners plan toÊpresent a “new plan” to the council Thursday for the Kedron Shopping Center expansion.ÊAccording to Turner, the new plan protects all the neighborhoods off Georgian Park, and still provides the developer with five entrances and five exits throughout. Ê St. Simon’s Cove residents recently fired off letters to Mayor Steve Brown and councilmembers asking to be heard. Officials have said they really won’t know where it will go until Faison submits its formal site plan. The City Council approved the deal 3-1 in an early-morning meeting March 26. Brown voted against it, and Councilman Steve Rapson was absent. With the settlement, Faison backed off on a threat to test the constitutionality of the city’s “big box” ban. Privately, city officials concede that the law likely would not have passed court muster and thus the settlement with Faison was beneficial. But even though the settlement required Faison to scale back the size and scope of the overall expansion, the Target store remained exactly as originally proposed, 125,000 square feet. The “compromise” reached in late March between neighbors up the street and Faison Corp. makes the St. Simon’s Cove communinty feel “dumped on,” said spokesman John Turner. The deal brokered between members of the Lake Kedron Homeowners Association and Faison called for moving the Target access road from a planned extension of Regents Park nearest upscale homes to a location “on the southwest corner of the property,” according to court documents. But the language used in the March 29 settlement was vague enough about the road’s location, city officials say they have no idea where it will go until Faison submits final site plans for approval. Though he expressed regret for the St. Simon’s Cove community, City Manager Bernard McMullen said recently the city was powerless to do anything until Faison shared its intentions. There is no indication when the retail developer with resubmit a new “compromise” plan to the city. Meanwhile, City Attorney Ted Meeker has expressed concerns about a 50,000-square-foot outparcel “housing a single tenant” that the Council also gave Faison permission to eventually develop at Kedron, a clear violation of the standing moratorium on “Big Box” clients. According to Brown, the city is trying to convince Faison to subdivide the 50,000-square foot building into several smaller retail spots — allowable under current “big box” rules. Faison gave no inidcation where the compromise outparcel would go either, or when its plans would be ready to submit to staff again.