Transportation possibly is the biggest long-term challenge facing the city of Fayetteville, the city's leaders have concluded.

Dealing with that challenge is among problem areas the City Council identified during an intensive series of retreat meetings this past weekend.

In freewheeling, often spirited discussions that ranged from the serious to the hilarious, council members and staff identified problem areas and strengths and set out a series of goals and a program of work for the coming year.

"The ability to move traffic in and around Fayetteville is a big problem," city manager Mike Bryant told the council members as they gathered around a conference table at the Marietta Conference Center. "Coming up with concepts [to solve the problem] is fine," he added, "but being able to fund them is a problem."

Funding for transportation projects throughout metro Atlanta is tied to a federal mandate over air quality standards. Transportation projects simply aren't being funded if they add capacity to roads and streets, and won't be until the area makes headway on meeting the air quality standards, officials say.

Most of the funding is going to public transit projects, said Mayor Mike Wheat, and that means most of it is going to the city of Atlanta.

"It irritates the dickens out of me," said Councilman Kenneth Steele, "that all the transportation dollars are going into some very distinct areas and the rest of the cities and counties are left out of the process."

The city needs a bypass road to take through traffic out of downtown, council members agree, but that idea is on a shelf as long as the air quality problem exists. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will veto any new roads.

Meanwhile, Steele said, the city should take the money it has available, attach priorities to projects that can be done, and go to the state Department of Transportation for further assistance.

"Consider the funds we have, take care of what we can and get the show moving," he said.

The group set priorities for six intersection improvement and safety-related projects, and decided to set up a meeting between city leaders, DOT director Wayne Shackelford and local legislators early next year to push for progress on those projects.

Though transportation presented council its knottiest problem, the discussion on roads was one of many that the group discussed and dealt with.

Overall goals set for 1999 include:

Achieve all goals while striving for the lowest total cost [in Fayette County] for public services. "We're sneaking up on our goal of a zero millage rate," said Wheat.

Maintain a managed growth policy that requires quality development in concert with our economic development strategy. Among specific projects that fall under this goal, council will work toward tightening up city zoning ordinances, and will work for more cooperation between city and county in striving for lower density zoning on the borders of the city. City officials will study the possibility of inviting a county representative to sit on the city Planning Commission, and asking that a city representative sit on the county zoning board.

Provide for the public safety and welfare by committing appropriate resources to police, fire, streets, recreation, water and sewer.

Police and fire departments will need more space within five years, and council decided to begin looking for property to build a new police station. Staff will study whether the city is likely to have adequate sewer capacity at build-out and report by January.

Continue cooperative efforts with other governments. More cooperation on planning and zoning, transportation, taxes, emergency communication and shared fee collection will be the subject of ongoing discussion in meetings with the county legislative delegation and in the Association of Fayette County Governments and FUTURE Committee, said Wheat. City leaders also will seek a joint meeting with the County Commission to discuss mutual concerns.

Preserve our historic and cultural heritage and encourage revitalization of our downtown through support of Main Street initiatives.

Though it has often been an action item, this is the first time councilmen have included Main Street activities as one of the city's five main goals. But with recent completion of a $1.2 million bond issue, the program will be a major focus of activity for 1999, said Councilman Al Hovey-King, who is chairman of the Main Street Board of Directors.

A laundry list of projects will be under way all year, said Hovey-King. Council members also decided to work toward expanding the jurisdiction of the Downtown Development Authority to cover the whole city so the group can develop strict maintenance standards and revitalization incentives for vacant buildings.

Checking off the city's list of projects for 1998, council members pointed out that many have been accomplished or are ongoing. "I think we're doing really well," said Councilman Glenn Brewer.

David Nelms, auditor, reported that the city's finances are in top shape and its borrowing power is healthy.

Staff members, who had their own retreat meeting recently, showed off a new policy handbook, new forms for record-keeping, and plans for new training designed to raise the level of knowledge among staff.

City manager Mike Bryant also presented a new mission statement hammered out in the staff retreat. "This came dead from the heart from the staff," he said.

The statement: "The city of Fayetteville's mission is to ensure a superior quality of life for its citizens by providing the most cost-effective municipal service while preserving the cultural, historical and natural resources of the city."