A proposal to annex 360 acres in west Peachtree City includes neighborhood-style retail stores, but no major retail center, according to the application filed with the city by John Wieland Homes.
The application suggests a variety of residential structures from townhomes to condos and single family homes, some with detached garages served by an alleyway and some with attached garages. Also included are live-work units centered on a village green concept.
This will be a second chance for John Wieland Homes to convince the City Council that the idea merits further study and more intensive input from city staff. Council is scheduled to consider the possibility at its regular meeting Thursday night at 7 p.m.
A previous attempt to annex more than 900 acres, including the current acreage, was voted down by the council in August 2000.
An annexation moratorium was reinstated by the 2000 council, which lasted until last year when the current council removed the moratorium in favor of an annexation process that allowed developers unlimited tries at getting their projects incorporated into the city.
The current proposal includes extending MacDuff Parkway to Ga. Highway 74 with an at-grade railroad crossing, one of the key features sought by residents in the area who only have one way in and out: the often-clogged Ga. Highway 54 West corridor.
The failed 2000 proposal would have produced a bridge over the railroad, at developers expense.
The current two-lane parkway would also be extended northward to an adjacent property in the hopes that developer can help provide a bridged crossing over the railroad tracks, the application states.
The total size of the proposed development is almost 450 acres since it includes an 88-acre parcel in the city that is currently zoned for general industrial use.
The land outside the city is now zoned for one home every two acres, a low-density residential zoning upheld in a court challenge since the 2000 annexation attempt.
Wieland documents state the county portion of their land would have two-acre lots on septic tanks if the annexation doesnt occur. However, the previous owner, Pathway Communities, had obtained sewer rights from the city for the property, based on the sale of their privately owned sewer system to the city in the mid-1990s.
The latest proposal has more detail than the previous version last year, such as the types of housing proposed, said City Planner David Rast.
Wieland officials are also expected to have a design schematic to give council an idea of what the area might look like if annexed, including possible architectural elevations, Rast said.
The neighborhood retail stores would likely be located near the intersection of Hwy. 74 and MacDuff Parkway, and Class A office space is also a part of the proposal.
The proposal before council calls for a mix of residential units, including multi-family. It also proposes a senior living component and workforce housing for municipal workers.
Also included:
Up to four recreation fields that will be donated to the city;
A multi-use path system;
Possible neighborhood amenities such as a clubhouse, swimming pool and pocket parks; and
Open space to protect Line Creek, which will feed into the countys future reservoir.
Wieland is also committing to conduct a traffic study to determine the impact of the proposed development.
Dan Fields of John Wieland Homes said the company has gotten input from citizens who live on the west side and the east side of Ga. Highway 74, and the company wants to continue to get input on how citizens want the property to be developed and produce a plan that everybody can be proud of.
We really want this to be the citizens annexation, Fields said.
The commercial component suggested in the plan is for mom and pop stores and not for big box retailers, Fields added.
with additional reporting by Cal Beverly, editor.