Tyrone residents could get a glimpse of their future Thursday night as the town council holds a discussion on a proposed sewer deal with the city of Fairburn, about two miles up Ga. Highway 74 from the town.

Town manager Barry Amos said late Monday afternoon that he was still waiting for a written proposal from Fairburn officials, but expected to have it in his hands by Thursday.

Last month, Amos told the town council about an offer from the city of Fairburn to purchase some of the city's excess capacity at its proposed wastewater treatment facility.

Tyrone officials started looking at the offer after the county's school system rejected the town's efforts at purchasing the school-owned treatment facility on Jenkins Road, next to Sandy Creek High School.

The town has offers from Richard Bowers to build a massive office park on Hwy. 74, but must find a way to dispose of the park's wastewater. The town also has a John Wieland subdivision development in the works that also needs a septic system.

Since the town announced plans for proposed talks with Fairburn, a number of officials have weighed in on the negotiations. The Fayette County Commissioners have said they are opposed to any deal with Fairburn that would use county property, but Amos explained at last month's meeting the pipes would be placed in Hwy. 74 right-of-way.

This week, Tyrone councilman Paul Letourneau reacted to criticism the measure could lead to uncontrolled growth.

In a letter to the editor, Letourneau explained the primary motivation for examining the Fairburn offer was environmental in nature. "The county school system has a treatment plant operating at Sandy Creek High School which is fast approaching the end of its life span. This plant will need a major overhaul within the next few years at a substantial cost. A plant will also soon be constructed at the Wieland development on Hwy. 74. We would like to pursue the environmentally preferable method of conventional sewer service," he said.

The councilman invited the county commissioners to Thursday night's meeting as the discussion with Fairburn officials begins and said a conventional sewer system could be a "win-win" proposal for everyone from the county development authority to the town of Tyrone.