They want to say "this is it" to apartment-building in Peachtree City, but legally the door must be open a tiny crack, according to City Attorney Rick Lindsey.

City Council unanimously approved a moratorium on "multifamily rezonings" at its last meeting, following what Mayor Bob Lenox and other council members have called a "mandate" of the residents of Peachtree City. A survey by Peachtree City Development Corp. in 1997 showed that 88.6 percent of city residents "do not want apartments," a statistic frequently quoted in council meetings.

However, the moratorium resolution includes a process by which a property owner may request that it be lifted, and the moratorium must be reviewed and renewed annually in November. Lindsey said that "it shouldn't be rubber-stamped every year, it should be carefully considered, but ... someone would have to come up with a really good presentation on why it shouldn't be renewed."

Peachtree City has just one site that carries multifamily zoning, after the approval of 217 apartments on Eric Edee's 21-acre site at Ga. Highway 74 and Kedron Drive. City Manager Jim Basinger said the Adams property at Crosstown Road and Peachtree Parkway has been zoned for senior citizen condominiums for "quite a while" as part of the overall land use plan. All other multifamily parcels have already been used or are under development, he added.

Council member Annie McMenamin brought up the issue of potential annexations, particularly on the west side. Lindsey said the council has the advantage that "no one can demand or require" that the city annex land, zoned for multifamily use or not.

Bob Brooks noted that the moratorium seemed to be based on "measurable and defensible" factors, such as air quality standards, water scarcity issues, traffic flow and school classroom space.

The council also approved an encroachment of less than one foot into a rear setback area on Albemarle Lane for Jerry Ballard Homes. The area in question is adjacent to a greenbelt.