It was about five years ago when a small group of PTC residents, including myself and our current mayor, Steve Brown, contributed to the tabling of the Westside Village, so strongly supported by then-Mayor Bob Lenox.

I thought I was through with politics and writing letters to the editor. But, like all bad ideas, the Westside Village is back. And it’s bringing me back for the last time.

Some candidates for mayor, surprisingly including Mayor Brown, and several members of the City Council, are pro-annexation with the usual caveat: we can better “control” the development to PTC standards, or “this protects us from Tyrone’s annexing and putting in undesirable housing.”

Some thoughts, many from five years ago:

• Isn’t annexation all about zoning? Much of the property is limited to two-acre lots. The county’s two-acre minimum has been affirmed by the courts. When the developer is turned down by the county, he goes to the city promising various amenities for the rezoning. This example is not meant to be accurate (roads, infrastructure, amenities), but might give some idea of the possible value of rezoning.

A two-acre lot currently might be worth $200,000. The same lot with rezoning, assuming ?-acre lots (8 lots) might be worth as much as $1,600,000. No wonder amenities are offered, like five years ago, a railroad station for commuters. With “senior housing,” the density will be even greater.

• Have you heard, “We want to annex to protect us from Tyrone annexing,” and, “We can control the development to our standards”? Tyrone can’t annex because the property is not contiguous to Tyrone. Further, Tyrone has stated they have no interest in the property.

• Annexation will have an impact on our police, fire, and schools. With respect to the latter, the former Mayor Bob Lenox took me to task by saying, that’s not the city’s problem, it’s the county’s. I guess he felt someone else pays the school taxes that the county imposes.

• Without annexation, the developer will have to provide access to his property across the railroad tracks to Ga. Highway 74. I don’t believe current home owners (Centennial) need worry about this. One way or another, access to Hwy. 74 will be provided, simply so the two-acre lots (houses) can be sold.

Is anyone really worried that the infrastructure for these more expensive homes would not meet “PTC standards”? I wonder whether the access road would not have been already started were it not for the expectation of annexation. And with annexation, I wonder what the increase in traffic would be?

• Mr. Turner of the Sewage Authority tells us the sewage system has excess capacity and so this would be good for PTC. I suppose Mr. Turner would pass on that new revenue to those citizens who pay extra sewage fees for watering their lawns in the summer time. Believe that, and you would believe the earth is flat.

• Lastly, approximately one-third of the property is non-buildable, wetlands and the like. Those in favor of annexation will refer the density to the total acreage, rather than the buildable, to make us think the density isn’t so great. Ask,what is the density on buildable property? You will be surprised how much the density magically increases.

I could go on, but the above should certainly give you an idea on how I feel, and would like think, for the vast majority of PTC residents.

George Kadel
Peachtree City, Ga.