By MONROE ROARK
Staff Writer

The Peachtree City Recreation Commission approved an amended draft of a seven-year Public Improvement Program at Monday's regular monthly meeting, with some adjustments resulting from the survey of local residents taken earlier this summer.

The citywide survey asked residents to rank projects in the Recreation Master Plan according to priority, so the city could see if any warranted special funding such as from a bond referendum or local option sales tax.

Acting on the belief that a bond referendum would not be an appropriate course of action for any new recreation projects at this time, the commission incorporated some of its higher-priority facility needs, such as a multipurpose rink, into the PIP over the next several years.

Response to survey questions about new sources of revenue to fund the projects was lukewarm, commission members say. And residents already are dealing with funding requests coming from other sectors of the county, such as the proposed special purpose local option sales tax for schools that will be voted on this fall.

With all that, commission members felt that making any major move such as a sales tax or bond referendum would not be wise, especially since failure at the ballot box would lead to a lengthy wait before being able to try again.

This was agreed upon by the commission in June, and staff was directed at that time to redirect certain projects into the PIP, with special emphasis placed on the rink. Some of these projects were also covered briefly at the City Council's budget hearing in July.

The first two phases of the rink have been incorporated into the PIP for fiscal year 2000, at a cost of $275,000. Several other projects have been added for 2001, including expansion of the Gathering Place, a multipurpose lighted field at Kedron, amphitheater improvements, and site master plans for the Meade complex. Later phases of the rink also are listed under the 2001 plan.

Later projects include soccer fields with concession facilities, picnic areas at Glenloch and McIntosh Trail, playgrounds, Riley sewer improvements, and replacement of a swimming pool cover at Kedron. All of those projects are scheduled for 2002 and 2003.

Major projects scheduled for 2004 and 2005 include a gymnastics facility and two indoor basketball courts. Four baseball fields currently are slated for 2006.

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