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Brown pushes annexation

By J. FRANK LYNCH
jflynch@theCitizenNews.com

Developer John Wieland, who has built more than 20,000 homes throughout metro Atlanta since 1970, is taking a personal interest in one 465-acre tract of land he owns in western Fayette County.

And Peachtree City may get a “town center” it’s never had as a result.

Wieland joined about 80 people Monday night at the Wyndham Peachtree Conference Center to brainstorm ideas for developing the land, 50 acres of which already lie in western Peachtree City.

The remaining 415 acres are zoned for two-acre residential lots in unincorporated Fayette County, which would yield a maximum of just over 200 new houses under current county zoning.

Last week, Wieland submitted a formal request to city officials to annex the other 415 acres located beyond the termination of McDuff Parkway at his Centennial neighborhood. The northern boundary of the property is roughly even with the Comcast Cable offices on Ga. Highway 74.

The City Council will take up whether to proceed with the annexation request at a later date.

Joining their boss Monday were a dozen Wieland executives, Mayor Steve Brown, neighbors from Wynnmeade and Planterra Ridge subdivisions and other citizens who want to see the property developed to its full potential.

“It was a good turnout and it was a diverse group,” Brown said, explaining that there was equal representation from all of the neighborhoods that will be affected by the annexation, as well as folks from the Senior Council and Youth Soccer Association.

None of the attendees spoke out against the annexation plan, Brown pointed out.

Ray Strychalski and Michael O’Brien of the professional planning group EDAW led the forum, taking suggestions from the audience and writing ideas down on a big flip board.

“We don’t have any preconceived notions about what this should be about,” said Strychalski at the start of the charette

But clearly, many of the same ideas tossed about in early meetings between Wieland officials, residents and Brown remained at the top of the list Monday.

• An extension of McDuff Parkway from its present termination to a new intersection at Hwy. 74 North near Comcast, with an at-grade railroad crossing. At-grade means no bridge, but rather a crossing with signals at track level.

The connection is necessary to provide emergency response to the neighborhoods in the area, and would make it possible for the Fayette County Board of Education to go ahead with long-range plans to build a school at Centennial, annexation supporters said.

The route would also act as a traffic reliever, Brown said. “The desire to see the road connection is there,” Brown said.

• A senior citizens center that would provide relief to the heavily used Gathering Place on the city’s southside.

• A mix of residential development that would include at least 45 percent housing for seniors, to minimize the impact on local schools.

• A recreation component that would serve residents already living in the area as well as newcomers, especially swimming facilities and additional soccer fields. “The residents over there are desperate for some type of recreation,” Brown said.

• Room reserved for a church or private school.

• A commercial component that would provide streetside, pedestrian-friendly retail and office space.

Wieland was especially intrigued by the village concept, something he said he’d always admired about Peachtree City. But none of Peachtree City’s villages actually has a central gathering spot.

In recent years, Wieland has built new developments across the Southeast that have sought to recreate small-town America, complete with town halls, village squares, small shops and gathering places.

“The Avenue in Peachtree City is an eye-catching development, but it’s about money,” Wieland said Monday. “What if we built a place where people just come to gather together?”

When residents were asked what they would like to see in a so-called village square, they bombarded Wieland with suggestions: Restaurants, an ice cream parlor, a dry cleaner, a drug store.

“The neat thing about it was people started calling out the kinds of things they would want to walk to,” Brown said later.

Neither Wieland nor his staff would commit to anything Monday night, saying the proposal was still in its earliest stages.

A second charette was scheduled Tuesday night to further explore ideas for Wieland’s team, but Brown expected nothing more than positive feedback.

“Not one person spoke out against doing this,” Brown said Monday. “In fact, I’m having a hard time finding anybody who’s opposed to this.”