Friday, May 20, 2005

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TDK extension crucial, chamber reminds council

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

Local government officials are being reminded once again that the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce and local businesses want to see the extension of TDK Boulevard completed as soon as possible.

City spokesperson Betsy Tyler said work on the project is ongoing and city officials agree that the project is very important to the business community. The road, once built, will provide another road link between Coweta County and Peachtree City, but it has been hung up for some time with engineering issues after the first proposed road layout was found to travel through the runway safety area for Falcon Field.

The project briefly hung in limbo earlier last year as several Peachtree City council members said they didn’t want to pay any more city funds for the project. Mayor Steve Brown in particular argued that the county should fund the redesign because the city technically had met its end of the intergovernmental agreement.

The agreement requires the city to pay for design and land acquisition, with the county actually building the road. The impasse was broken by funding from the Peachtree City Airport Authority for the latest round of engineering work.

While the latest conceptual plan for the road is complete, the city is doing some extra survey work and the city’s Airport Authority is securing appraisals for the land needed, Tyler said.

The new design will necessitate moving two holes at the Planterra Ridge golf course so the road can be looped around Falcon Field’s runway safety area, which was seen as necessary by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Chamber President Virginia Gibbs said due to the extended timeline for construction of the bridge and establishment of the two new golf course holes, it is important for officials to press forward on the matter to avoid further delay.

In her e-mail, Gibbs noted the road would benefit businesses in and around the industrial park area, including various merchants in the Braelinn Village shopping center and such industries as Panasonic, TDK, Hoshizaki and Cooper Lighting.

“For many companies in this area, 30 percent or more of their employees come from Coweta and outlying counties, and this road would be an excellent alternative to Highway 54/74 to reach their facilities,” Gibbs wrote. “Ultimately, diversion of that traffic will help alleviate the congestion on Highway 74 surrounding the industrial park, particularly during business shift changes.”