By MONROE ROARK
Staff Writer

Two variance hearings highlight a very light agenda for tomorrow night's City Council meeting in Peachtree City.

Chadwick Homes is building a home and free-standing garage on a Kedron Hills lot owned by James Herrin. The required rear setback has been encroached because of an error in the layout of the garage, according to city staff reports.

The setback requirement is 30 feet. The garage extends into the setback a maximum of 3.3 feet. Construction was in an “advance stage” when it was discovered, according to city staff, and the area next to the rear setback is in unincorporated Fayette County.

Neither the Fayette County Planning Department nor the next door property owner has responded to the incident, although both parties have been contacted by the city.

Because the encroachment is relatively minor and was accidental, city staff recommends approval of the variance. The adjoining property, zoned agricultural by the county, is unlikely to be affected in the near future, staff said.

In an unrelated request, John Barrow is developing an 18,000-sq. ft. commercial complex on a 1.9-acre tract on Ga. Highway 74 on the south side of the convenience store at Wisdom Road.

The site plan has been approved by the Peachtree City Planning Commission, contingent on Barrow securing a variance for an encroachment into the landscape buffer along the highway.

The project has been redesigned after its initial rejection by the Planning Commission, due in large part to the proposed removal of a large oak tree. The movement into the buffer area is partly due to the new design and its efforts to save the tree.

The 20-foot variance request into the 40-foot buffer requirement is reasonable in city staff's view, since the tree is being saved, and enhancing the landscape along the highway is in the public's interest.

Approval of the variance is recommended.

The only other agenda item initially announced for tomorrow night's meeting is the presentation of the results of the recent City Council elections, won by Annie McMenamin and Dan Tennant. The results will be read into the record for historical purposes.