Without city's land, developer can’t build big box on Hwy. 54 West

PUBLISHER’S OPINION: If council sells land to developer, it’s a perverted sell-out of the PTC vision — See Cal Beverly’s column in the right rail.

The Peachtree City Council is expected to vote whether or not to abandon part of Line Creek Drive and all of Line Creek Court, both public roads.

Developer Doug McMurrain of Capital City Development is asking for the move so he can buy or swap land with the city to acquire the road.

Doing so would allow him to dodge the city’s setback rules to create enough room to place an 89,000 square-foot Kohl’s Department Store at the intersection of Ga. Highway 54 West and Planterra Way. Without the city-owned land, McMurrain can’t build the Kohl’s project.

If council votes to abandon the road, it has several options to dispose of the property in the future, though under no circumstance can it sell or trade the property for less than its fair market value, according to an opinion from City Attorney Ted Meeker.

It is not known if council will settle Thursday on a plan to dispose of the roads, assuming council votes to have them abandoned.

McMurrain initially sought to acquire all of Line Creek Drive, but competing commercial developer Tree Top LLC, a spinoff of Flexxon Operating, opposed the move. Tree Top owns land adjacent to a portion of Line Creek Drive closest to Hwy. 54.

Meeker noted in his opinion that the burden is on McMurrain to prove that the road is no longer being used by the public.

Under Georgia law, Capital City would get first crack at acquiring the property in a 60-day window, as Meeker indicates such is required for property owners adjacent to the abandoned road. If that “right of acquisition” is not exercised in the time frame, the city may sell it to the highest bidder, though it can reject any and all bids, re-advertise or abandon the sale.

Instead of an auction, the city could choose to list the property for sale through a broker for at least three months. Another option is to have it sold at a public auction.