PTC Council votes 5-0 to halt all work on the bridge and road into Coweta

Even though the Peachtree City Council has voted to halt the proposed extension of TDK Boulevard into Coweta County, there still is a chance the project could be revived in the future.

But since the city is releasing Fayette County’s hold on the funding for the road’s construction — including much of the cost of the bridge over Line Creek — the project looks dead for at least the time being.

Council voted unanimously Thursday night to halt all city work on the controversial TDK Extension, which drew heat earlier this year when it was revealed that a developer in Coweta County wanted to build a 3,100-home subdivision whose residents would most likely have used the extension to access Ga. Highway 74 for daily commutes. The Coweta County Commission already has approved the subdivision, called McIntosh Village.

Many Peachtree City residents worried the new development would choke traffic on Hwy. 74 and they clamored for the road extension to be stopped in its tracks.

The Georgia Department of Transportation could conceivably build a similar project by extending a nearby state highway such as Ga. Highway 154, Mayor Harold Logsdon suggested at Thursday’s council meeting. Logsdon quickly added that he doesn’t think that would happen at least in part to the current money crunch for state road projects.

It’s also possible that a future city council could decide to build the road, and the current council also could reconsider its decision at some point if it wished, City Attorney Ted Meeker agreed.

A reversal from the current council is unlikely simply because the city is releasing the county from its funding obligation to build the road so the money can be used for other needed projects.

Several council members indicated they would like to see the road reconsidered in future years once Coweta County improves its access to the interstate in the area.

Halting the TDK Extension is not without risk, however. The Georgia Regional Transportation Authority is requiring that the road to be built as part of its approval for the massive McIntosh Village project in Coweta, but the city has sued GRTA challenging its authority to force the city to build the TDK bridge at four lanes.

Technically, GRTA has the ability to withhold any state or federal transportation funds for Peachtree City if the city fails to meet the requirements by not building the TDK Extension. Logsdon and several council members have said they only want the bridge to have two lanes for traffic to keep Hwy. 74 from becoming bogged down with traffic from Coweta.

Council’s vote Thursday night was prodded by Rutherford, and Logsdon said he previously asked her to take the matter off the agenda until the first hearing in the lawsuit is held July 6.

“I said no, at least let’s make a public decision about what we need to do from here,” Rutherford said.

Logsdon explained his thinking on the matter.

“My big concern about not doing TDK, and I’m not sitting up here saying I’m for it. I’m against it. ... But the big concern is: what is our vision for the east-west transition of traffic through Peachtree City,” Logsdon said.

“... Whether we build TDK or not, it’s not a big deal to me. I just know that in the future with all the growth that’s going around PTC we need more than one east-west corridor through Peachtree City. ‘Cause we’re almost getting back to gridlock on 54. ... I did not create this monster, it just came to a head on my watch.”

Council discussed whether or not its decision could result in the DOT changing its plans on the widening of Ga. Highway 74, as the first phase of that widening is already under construction.

Rutherford noted that the first phase widens Hwy. 74 starting at Cooper Circle, which fulfills a promise state officials made to help get the road widened for Cooper Lighting and Cooper Wiring, which depend on getting their trucks to Interstate 85 via Hwy. 74. Cooper Lighting, with 650 employees, is the third-largest employer in the county.

Meeker added that due to the contract already being in place between the DOT and the contractor on the project, it’s unlikely the project would be halted mid-stream.

Rutherford noted that growth in unincorporated Coweta County will continue regardless of whether the road is extended or not.

“The fact that we don’t build TDK this year or next year doesn’t mean that TDK has died,” Rutherford said. “It just means we’ll have the opportunity to have better decision making about when TDK gets built and how wide TDK is when it gets built.”

Councilman Stuart Kourajian said he agrees that more east-west thoroughfares are needed for Peachtree City,

“But I’ve also been very steadfast in my thought that ... we Peachtree City, and we, Fayette County do not need to be the main thoroughfare for Coweta County residents to get to I-85,” Kourajian said. “.... Once they have a primary route, at that point we should consider extending another way into Coweta County.”

Coweta County officials said Tuesday that Thursday’s vote will not deter them from making progress on the road.

“We still think this is a very important part of the regional transportation plan and hope that eventually all parties will come to that conclusion,” said Coweta County Administrator Theron Gay.

Gay said the county has done some preliminary grading on the property, and believes the road is a crucial part of connectivity in the region.

“We’re trying to work with everybody and McIntosh Village will develop whether that road is built or not,” he added.

The administrator noted that there is a contract between DOT and Fayette County to build the bridge on the road, and hopes that differences will soon be settled.

— Coweta Editor John Thompson contributed to this article.