Peachtree City Mayor Bob Lenox says the city council's Jan. 7 vote to deny rezoning for a shopping center at Walt Banks Road and Ga. Highway 54 "was the correct decision," but the defeated developer says "the wisdom of that choice will be etched in brick and mortar on what is built on that property."

Since mid-November of last year, factions have formed on both sides of the question of whether to change some residential zoning to permit Callaway Land Co. to build a large, upscale shopping area at the intersection. Company president John Callaway says he initially received favorable comments from the city's planners, but the staff and the Planning Commission recommended denial of the rezoning based primarily on protection of the city's Land Use Plan.

The land, a 53-acre total area comprising land known as the Lassiter, Heard and Hendrix tracts, has been in dispute for decades. The city, the owners and developers have been involved in lengthy and expensive lawsuits over what to do with the corner. Part of the tract was in litigation at the time the Land Use Plan was adopted. The 19-acre Heard tract is zoned for residential use. The 33-acre portion nearest the corner was split, by court settlement, between 15.5 acres of commercial zoning and the remainder minus a 100-foot buffer facing Hwy. 54 for "office-institutional" use.

Callaway had sought to combine all the tracts and move to a "limited use commercial" zoning that would contain conditions specific to the project he proposed as "The Mews of Peachtree City." He had planned a Parisian department store, other exclusive shops and sit-down restaurants. In discussions with neighboring residents, Callaway agreed to delete a movie theater from the plans, and to exclude such tenants as auto repairs, fast food and discount stores.

Callaway also offered to increase the residential-side green buffer to 250 feet, donate five acres to the city for a cultural center, and make land available for sale to Holy Trinity Catholic Church to enable building a rectory (priests' residence.)

At the Jan. 7 meeting, speakers on both sides of the rezoning issue spoke for about two and a half hours. The public hearing was closed about 10:45 p.m., and then comments were heard from three of the five council members. A city ordinance prevented further discussion or debate of the matter after 11 p.m., and so a vote was taken in the last few minutes of the meeting not to rezone. The tally was 4-0, with Councilman Jim Pace abstaining.

At last week's council meeting, in a discussion about whether to change that time-limiting ordinance, Pace said he was "mortified" by what happened at the Jan. 7 meeting and "really disturbed" that not all council members had a chance to speak. He favored replacing the ordinance "with guidelines" so that the council might be able to extend a discussion if needed.

Pace said he was not questioning The Mews decision but "the process that got us there."

PETITION

Stephen D. Ott, attorney with the city's legal firm of Webb, Stuckey and Lindsey, has replied to a city resident that a procedure for petition and referendum to overturn the council's Jan. 7 decision is not "available."

In reply to a letter from Cele Eifert, asking whether a city-wide referendum on the question would be possible, Ott stated that a state law she cited had been ruled by the state Supreme Court to apply only to "amendments of ordinances and resolutions that affected city charters."

Ott continued that the power to zone property is not part of the Municipal Charter for Peachtree City and that such classification of properties does not affect the charter.