By MONROE ROARK
Staff Writer

Perhaps the most critical topic discussed at Monday's regular meeting of the Peachtree City Planning Commission was one for which the applicant did not even show up.

City staff requested at the beginning of the meeting that the landscape plan for the new practice fields at McIntosh High School be tabled, since the plan had not been submitted.

“We've been waiting for many weeks now” to get a plan, according to city planner David Rast. He said he sent a letter last week to the Fayette County School System outlining several items that he felt should be addressed soon, and he has not heard back from anyone.

Development of the new fields is not progressing like the neighboring residents and the city staff would like to see it, so the Planning Commission took some time to discuss the city's various options and hear from some residents who had come to make themselves heard on the subject. The commission ultimately approved a resolution that specifically expressed concern over the lack of progress.

Two citizens who live next to the school addressed the commission, and neither was very happy. Their concerns were echoed by Rast, who listed several points that have the city taking a close look at the project.

Rast reported that the city has improved the cart path, at a cost of several thousand dollars, and seeded one of the slopes leading down to the field. No other slopes have any grass on them, he added.

A guard rail is to be installed along Walt Banks Road as a safety measure, since a car that left the road next to the field due to an accident could tumble downhill and cause serious injury. So far, Rast said, only an orange mesh fence has been put up at the top of the slope.

Also lacking at the site is a silt fence to help with erosion control. Rast said that in this respect, the city is fortunate that there has been little rain in recent weeks, since that could cause an erosion problem in the field's current condition.

“The neighbors have been very patient,” said Rast. “The school system has promised a lot.”

But since the city does not feel that those promises have been met yet, Rast recommended that the field not be used until the proper steps are taken to complete the needed work. He added that he did not know exactly what legal authority the Planning Commission has in this regard, although the city is mandated by the state to enforce erosion control regulations.

Commissioner Wes Saunders agreed that the city needed to get a handle on the safety and erosion issues as soon as possible. “It's an accident waiting to happen,” he said.

Development director Jim Williams suggested that the commission inform members of Board of Education personally that they are concerned about this problem.

Rast said he hopes everything can be resolved without the city having to issue citations, which could result in a judge ordering the work to be completed.

Saunders also pointed out that there is no certificate of occupancy that can be withheld in this case to ensure timely completion of the work. Rast and Williams agreed, saying that the schools fall under state jurisdictions in that area anyway.

The commission approved a resolution to be sent to the Board of Education as well as the City Council and Peachtree City Police Department.

In other business Monday night, the Planning Commission:

• Approved a rezoning from Limited Industrial to Limited Use Commercial for a tract on Clover Reach behind Waffle House and Schlotzsky's Deli, next to City Circle.

• Tabled a landscape plan for the NAPA auto parts store on Petrol Point, since grading has not been completed and construction has not yet begun.

• Approved a landscape plan for the Photocircuits parking expansion at 320 Dividend Drive.

• Approved a landscape plan for the new McDonald's restaurant on Crosstown Drive near Ga. Highway 74.

• Tabled a landscape plan for the Peachtree City Distribution Center at Hwy. 74 and Dividend Drive, since the applicant did not show up.

• Approved a buffer replanting plan for the Tiernan and Patrylo facility on Dividend Drive.

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