Coweta County Road Department has closed two roads due to the heavy rains and subsequent potential flooding.

Hood Road in the northern portion of the county has water crossing the road around 422 Hood Road.

Lt. Dan Berschinski recovers from blast that claimed his legs

[EDITOR’S NOTE: This remarkable story about Lt. Dan Berschinski, a native of Peachtree City, was published Nov. 9 in The News Tribune, Tacoma, Washington. It is reprinted here by permission.]

By SCOTT FONTAINE
((The News Tribune), Tacoma, Washington)

WASHINGTON – No one knows how long the bomb lay under the packed earth of southern Afghanistan. How many times had the soldiers stepped over it? Each member of Lt. Dan Berschinski’s platoon had, at least twice. The Fort Lewis [Wash.] officer figures he walked by the area two times with no problems.

But the bomb lay there, inches below the dirt path. It was likely made of plastic and triggered by a pressure switch.

Bombs like this one kill and maim indiscriminately. It didn’t target Berschinski on Aug. 19 because he was an officer or because he was leading a Stryker platoon on foot into a Taliban-controlled area. Nor did other enemy explosives pick out his comrades from the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. Of the 26 men from the brigade reported killed to date, all but one died in bomb blasts, and many others have been wounded by bombs.

Developers want sewer service for shopping center the size of PTC’s The Avenue; a 50-acre sewage spray field eyed

In mayor’s race, Plunkett raises $13,710 vs. $2,543 for Haddix

Peachtree City mayoral candidate Cyndi Plunkett may have come in a thousand votes short of challenger Don Haddix in the Nov. 3 balloting, but she is beating Haddix by more than 5 to 1 in campaign fund-raising, according to campaign disclosure forms filed with the city.

It was a perfect morning and a perfect setting to remember those in uniform who serve and have served their nation. It was the Veterans Day observance held Nov. 7 at the new Veterans Memorial Park at Falcon Field in Peachtree City.

Fewer than one out of five registered voters cast ballots in last week's off-year election, but their choice in the only countywide vote was unambiguous.

The following arrests were reported by local law enforcement agencies for the past week. All persons are considered innocent until proven guilty:

For five years the Fayetteville Police Department has made a difference in the lives of children during the Christmas season. Again this year officers hope the community will help with donations for “Christmas with the Police.”

Fayetteville resident Trenton Andreas Siler was arrested Nov. 6 after threatening to shoot a man after he claimed the Weatherly Apartments resident had caused his brother to be arrested.

If they can do it, so can we. That was the idea behind a Nov. 5 decision by the Fayetteville City Council to appeal a decision by Georgia Department of Transportation that denied a city request to install angled parking spaces on the Stonewall Avenue side of the old courthouse.

Fayette Citizens for Open Government (FayCOG) made no secret about its preference on how the county 1-cent sales tax initiative should be decided. With the effort now defeated, the group says it will continue working on upcoming issues and will work with candidates for future elections while building a coalition among other community groups.

The Fayetteville City Council on Nov. 5 continued its look at a proposal by Thomas Stephens to install permanent lighting on the Tiger Trail property being used for league soccer play.

A group of Southern Living magazine staff and associates visited Senoia Nov. 5 to see the location of the publication’s 2010 Idea House located on the Gin Property residential development in the downtown area. Though long a Southern tradition, the Senoia selection marks the first brownstone chosen by the magazine.

Whitewater Middle School has been named a 2009 Georgia School of Excellence in student achievement by state Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox. Whitewater was one of 12 schools in the state that placed in the top 10 percent as measured by assessments in reading and math.

A large tree that fell near Peachtree City's baseball and soccer complex this morning knocked out power for less than five minutes for more than 5,100 Georgia Power customers this morning.

John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods Inc., and John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods of the Carolinas Inc., based in Atlanta and with a significant presence in Fayette County, have agreed to pay a $350,000 civil penalty to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Water Act, federal officials announced today.

Planning Commission to discuss Hwy. 74S proposal tonight

A proposal to annex 18 acres into Peachtree City’s southside to enable a sewer connection for a shopping center will be discussed tonight by the Peachtree City Planning Commission.

Anything relating to business development in Fayetteville has been practically non-existent in the past year due to the recession. But the city’s Planning & Zoning Commission is expected to hear two small proposals at its Nov. 10 work session.

Sandy Creek won their second straight region title with a 21-9 win over Banneker. Starr’s Mill will return to the state playoffs as the third seed from the region after a win over Villa Rica.

Peachtree City will continue to deflect any rezoning applications for multifamily housing per an annual moratorium adopted Thursday night.

Residents upset, wanted ‘no’ vote from City Council

Much to the dismay of several vocal audience members, the Peachtree City Council decided Thursday to further explore the possibility of allowing cell towers to be built at city-owned parks and recreation sites.

A resident’s request to change the minimum front yard fence height in Peachtree City from four feet to six feet will go unconsidered for now.

The 30 employees of Osmose Utility Services on Greencastle Road in Tyrone have a reason to celebrate. Having been in operation in Tyrone for three years the company is celebrating its 75th year in business. Osmose, Inc. has also operated a facility in Griffin for the past 25 years, with a total of 60 employees.

Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine and former Fair Tax State Director, Gene Key, will be in Peachtree City from 1-2:15 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 9 to conduct a Fair Tax Town Hall. They are traveling the state raising awareness about this important issue that impacts every aspect of life, including healthcare. The Town Hall will take place in the Peachtree City Library Committee Room.

The Fayette County Health Department has just received another 400-dose shipment of the H1N1 flu vaccine nasal spray.
The spray is also known as Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine (LAIV).

Council wants to wait for Court of Appeals to rule in West Village annexation lawsuit

The Peachtree City Council punted a developer’s request to deannex just over an acre of land to help nullify a lawsuit filed challenging a 648-home annexation along the Tyrone border that was approved in May 2007.

Incumbent Senoia City Council members Larry Owens and Jeff Fisher retained their seats Nov. 3 in a three-way race that included Rockaway Road area challenger Harry Ramos.

Newnan Police Tuesday afternoon arrested Columbus bank robbery suspect John E. Johnston at a traffic stop after he had exited his home where a search warrant was about to be served.

The bond for north Coweta resident Alec Bryant McNaughton accused of killing his wife in February was set at $3 million last week by Coweta Superior Court Judge Quillian Baldwin. McNaughton had been denied bond earlier in the year.

The Senoia City Council Nov. 2 agreed to allow Scott Tigchelaar of Historic Development Ventures (HDV) to purchase a $50,000 Certificate of Deposit in lieu of acquiring a Maintenance Bond for the first five brownstones to be constructed on the Gin Property. Tigchelaar explained that such bonds are not available in the current economic climate.