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Logsdon looking for ‘unbiased’ TDK advice (with audio)Tue, 04/24/2007 - 4:51pm
By: John Munford
Now listen to the audio of the meeting, see below
The Peachtree City Council has agreed to seek a cost estimate for an “unbiased” consultant to study traffic and other ramifications from the proposed extension of TDK Boulevard into Coweta County. Mayor Harold Logsdon suggested the idea, saying the city needs an unbiased opinion on the matter, especially in light of impending development on Coweta’s side of the road. Logsdon noted that the project has been in the city’s plans since 1972. But things have changed recently as the Coweta County Commission has approved a 3,100-home residential development that would be located on the Coweta side of the extended TDK Boulevard. “That’s only the tip of the iceberg of what’s coming,” Logsdon said, referring to a conversation City Manager Bernie McMullen had recently with Coweta officials. “We need to know more definitively the traffic impact we’re going to have and I would like to spend the money to get a consultant to get a professional opinion.” Logsdon said he wanted the city to select a consultant from perhaps the University of Georgia or Georgia Tech. The mayor said he mainly wants to make sure the report that comes back is unbiased, “somebody unrelated to the issues here.” “It would give us more information to base our decision on,” said Councilman Steve Boone, who suggested that council make sure the consultant doesn’t have ties to the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority or Fayette or Coweta counties. “It’s a good idea to see at least what it’s gonna cost to do it,” said Councilman Stuart Kourajian, who noted that the city’s most recent study on the road doesn’t factor in the pending Coweta developments. Logsdon brought the matter up a short time after the Peachtree City Civic Association asked Council to stop the TDK Extension based on the potential negative impacts of public safety, traffic and the environment, among others. The association presented a position paper to the City Council to support its assertion. “I share a lot of the concerns that are in this,” Logsdon said of the document. “I’m wondering if council would like to entertain pursuing a consultant to give us an unbiased opinion of the need, benefits, disadvantages of TDK?” Logsdon’s proposal came at the very end of a council meeting in which he verbally sparred with Civic Association President Paul Van’t Hof over an anonymous Free Speech item in last week’s issue of The Citizen that criticized Logsdon for allegedly admitting he was “a telephone lineman and not the financial genius he made himself out to be.” The anonymous person “... took a shot at me because I was a lineman 44 years ago,” Logsdon said. “I do not have to apologize for who I worked for or the career path I took to get to this point,” Logsdon said. “And an anonymous person taking shots at me, this goes either to the character of that person or your association.” Logsdon said he was certain that the negative comment came from a member of the civic association since that was a topic of discussion at a meeting between himself, McMullen and several members of the civic association. Van’t Hof said the Free Speech item didn’t come from him and he doesn’t know who submitted it. “When I take my time and come and meet with you guys and I do it openly and honestly, I don’t expect that kind of treatment right back,” Logsdon said. The exchange was heated and Councilwoman Judi-ann Rutherford tried twice to halt it, saying the council meeting “was not the time or the place” to hash out the disagreement. At the end of the meeting, however, Logsdon attempted somewhat to bury the hatchet, asking association representatives to meet with him again “If you ... will still speak to me again.” “A lot of this stuff I concur on, a lot of it I’ve got some questions on. Let’s discuss this and see if we’ve got some common ground,” Logsdon said. Association representatives agreed to take Logsdon up on his offer. login to post comments 
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