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PTC sues GRTA over 4-lane TDK rulingTue, 02/13/2007 - 5:04pm
By: John Munford
The Peachtree City Council has decided to take the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority head-on. Friday the city filed a lawsuit in Fulton County Superior Court challenging GRTA’s power to require the city to make transportation improvements on the TDK Boulevard Extension that are tied to the McIntosh Village project in the neighboring county. The city argues in the suit that it shouldn’t be forced to pay for the improvements because McIntosh Village is located entirely in unincorporated Coweta County and thus Peachtree City has no control over the development. The city is asking the court to set aside GRTA’s notice of decision or issue a restraining order that would keep GRTA from enforcing the notice of decision. In the alternative, the city wants the court to order GRTA to amend the notice of decision by removing the transportation requirements GRTA wants to happen in Peachtree City. One of GRTA’s requirements is for Peachtree City to design the bridge over Line Creek to be four lanes wide. The city has resisted doing so, as it only has right-of-way for two lanes on the road path from the creek to the current terminus of TDK Boulevard. The current bridge design is to accommodate just two lanes of traffic; a redesign will cost the city more money and so far the City Council has not authorized spending any more funds on the design. Under Georgia law, GRTA is allowed to withhold state and federal transportation funds for future projects in Peachtree City if the city doesn’t comply with its requirements. City officials worry that GRTA might apply that power to Peachtree City if it resists making the TDK Extension bridge four lanes. GRTA also wants the city to install a traffic signal at the intersection of TDK Boulevard and Dividend Drive when there’s enough traffic to require it. GRTA officials have said the agency has not yet withheld transportation funds from any jurisdiction under similar scenarios. In the suit, City Attorney Ted Meeker argues that the law outlining GRTA’s authority and powers does not allow the agency to impose conditions on Peachtree City when the project is located outside the city’s jurisdiction. The suit also argues that GRTA is usurping the city’s powers to construct and maintain streets, roads and other transportation fixtures. The case was filed in Fulton County because that’s where GRTA’s headquarters is located. The city appealed GRTA’s initial ruling but the requirements were upheld by the GRTA board. The city is responsible for design and right-of-way acquisition while Fayette County will construct the road to Line Creek. Coweta County is responsible for all construction on its side of the road. There are also concerns that if the TDK Extension were four-laned, it would allow Ga. Highway 74 South to be clogged with drive-time traffic as that would be the main route to and from Interstate 85 for residents in the proposed 3,000-home McIntosh Village. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking as the city must complete the road project by October 2009 or the city will lose its right of way for the TDK Extension, which would revert back to possession of Pathway Communities unless Pathway officials agree to an extension. Another problem with making TDK four lanes all the way to Hwy. 74 is that the current bridge over the CSX railroad would have to be replaced, county officials have said. The county has not identified any funding for such a project. In the suit the city notes that items required by GRTA for the McIntosh Village project were not in the overall transportation plan for Fayette County, thus they are considered “new projects.” Also named in the suit are Coweta County and McIntosh Partners LLC, the developer that has proposed the 3,000-home McIntosh Village project in Coweta County that would be located off the TDK Extension just across the county line in unincorporated Coweta County. login to post comments
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