Friday, Apr. 8, 2005

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Volunteers needed to weigh in on PTC future

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

Peachtree City needs volunteers to serve on a committee for the next several months to update the city’s Comprehensive Plan.

The plan will address land use, capital improvements, recreation, transportation, housing, industry and open space issues through 2025. Basically, this will serve as the city’s next 20-year plan, officials said.

Applications are available at the offices of the planning and building departments and at www.peachtree-city.org.

The information involved in the process will get quite detailed, and the committee will be armed with such information as current land use, zoning designations and sizes of current parcels in town, both developed and undeveloped, officials said.

Redevelopment is also expected to be a significant issue in the plan, as some areas of town have seen commercial redevelopment despite the fact that they involved tearing down buildings that were in some cases quite new, or at least not old or decrepit by any stretch of the imagination.

For instance, the old Westpark Movie Theater was razed to make way for the newly-opened Carrabba’s Italian restaurant and the former Donato’s Pizza was leveled to make room for more retail shops at The Avenue shopping center.

The comprehensive plan is required by the state and will help shape how the city looks in the future. Another area that will be addressed is the need or lack of need for public transportation in Peachtree City.

Some officials predict that development on Ga. Highway 74 as it nears the Interstate 85 interchange in both Tyrone and unincorporated Fulton County will have a dramatic impact on weekday commuter traffic.

Residential redevelopment in Peachtree City is also expected to play a role in how the city changes in the future, officials predict.