Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Boone to challenge Rapson for PTC Council Post 3 this fallBy JOHN MUNFORD Another candidate has come out for a seat on the Peachtree City Council. Stephen Boone, 60, who lives in the Planterra Ridge subdivision, announced this week that he will run against current Councilman Steve Rapson for the Post 3 seat. Boone, a former U.S. Army colonel whos now an executive consultant, feels his experience in engineering, planning and budgeting for major military installations will be of use to the city. Many of those installations had a larger budget than Peachtree City, he added. Boone said he was convinced to run for council by some of his friends. He hopes to improve the working relationship with Fayette County officials along with those in Tyrone and Fayetteville. But dont expect Boone to knock on any current council members. One thing Im not going to do is throw stones, Boone said, adding that he feels the council on a whole has done a good job. I want to throw my hat into the arena just to bring in some fresh blood. Boone agrees with councils decision to deny the commercial rezoning request for Christ Our Shepherd Lutheran Church, which at the time wanted to sell its property to a developer, clearing the way for a Walgreens drugstore. Boone said he felt changing the zoning didnt make sense because the city has plenty of other pharmacies in town. Boone thinks the widening of Ga. Highway 74 from Ga. Highway 54 to Ga. Highway 85 is important, and he understands that its in the plans for the Georgia Department of Transportation. Boone said the recent recommendation from the citys consulting engineering firm not to widen MacDuff Parkway also needs to be studied much closer. Making the road four lanes might be necessary in the future to divert traffic coming from Coweta County away from the intersection of Ga. highways 54 and 74, he said. I think that really needs to be looked at, Boone said. Another issue in the area, the potential 360-acre annexation proposed by John Wieland Homes, should also be carefully handled, Boone said. He doesnt want to see a lot of townhomes spaced close together, and its important to make sure the development matches the property, he added. Boone said hes not opposed to annexations in general, if its designed and built out properly. He noted that the city is about to run out of residentially-zoned property to develop. Peachtree City is one of the best communities in the country to live in, and its important to maintain that for the future, Boone added. The citys current tax level is about right, Boone said, adding that he wouldnt like to see taxes increase more. He cited a number of residents who have lived here since the 1970s, and are retiring here, living on fixed incomes. Peachtree City works well for young families and retirees, Boone noted. It really is an amalgamation, a melting pot of a lot of people from all over the country, Boone said. Thats what makes it a very fun and unique place. Boone wants to see the city attract more professional type businesses such as attorneys and certified public accountants. Boone said he had not gotten deeply into the citys proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year, but he plans to examine it in further detail. Boone also plans to go door-to-door to determine where Peachtree City residents want the city to go in the future. His campaign committee will be doing the same thing, and they will cull the information. Boone said he hopes to see a better turnout at the polls than is traditionally seen in an off election year. He particularly wants to see more younger voters get involved in the process. It comes down to the election and what the citizens want, Boone said. Boone and his wife Jan have three grown children. They have lived in Peachtree City for 11 years. He belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. |
|
Copyright 2005-Fayette Publishing, Inc. |