A proposal to build 80 homes, an event center and 12 villas on a 37-acre site near Falcon Field Airport will be vetted by the Peachtree City Planning Commission Tuesday night.

The property is zoned for industrial use and Pathway Communities is seeking a rezoning to limited use industrial and limited use commercial. The villas would be rented in conjunction with the event center, Pathway officials have said.

The commission is expected to vote whether or not to recommend the rezoning to the City Council, which has the final say-so on the matter. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at City Hall.

The site in question is part of the Southpark International Industrial Park. It is also separated from Falcon Field by two golf holes at Planterra Ridge golf course.

If ultimately approved by the council, the rezoning would be a significant departure from the city’s village concept and most recent land use plan, as the subdivision would not be directly adjacent to any other residential area.

According to city records dating back to 1987, officials have only approved two rezonings from general industrial to residential uses. In both such cases, the parcels were not physically connected to the industrial park.

The first industrial to residential rezoning happened in June 1987 for a 140-acre tract on the east side of Ga. Highway 74 south across from Meade Field that became the Wilshire Estates subdivision. The other was in September 2000 for a 180-acre tract that ultimately was developed as the Centennial subdivision in the city’s Wilksmoor Village.

Pathway Communities has argued the land’s proximity to Lake McIntosh makes it a prime site for lakeview homes that would also border the Planterra Ridge Golf Course.

If the subdivision is approved, its initial road access would be through the Southpark industrial park. But later a new entrance would be built off an access road to Lake McIntosh that will extend from TDK Boulevard.

The Southpark industrial park includes mostly office and distribution facility uses along with some manufacturing. Companies there include Rinnai, Aventure Aviation, the Shinsei Corporation, FieldTurf, Metal Forming and Jasper Transmissions. But those sites are zoned for industrial use and ultimately could be used in the future by other companies that have a more intensive manufacturing type process.

The limited use residential and limited use commercial classifications would allow the city to specifically tailor the uses of the property and also enact special restrictions such as increased buffers.

The proximity to the airport may be an issue if the subdivision/event center is in the runway protection zone for Falcon Field.

The runway protection zone extends from the end of the Falcon Field property line in a trapezoid at either end of the runway. The zone starts 200 feet from the end of the runway and is 1,700 feet deep; at its farthest end it is 1,010 feet wide, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Peachtree City’s Airport Authority, which operates Falcon Field, has asked that an engineering study be conducted to determine if Callula Hill is in the runway protection zone or not.

Although the FAA discourages development in runway protection zones, the federal agency has no power over the zoning of off-airport property, Bergen said. That responsibility rests with local governments, she said; in this case the decision is up to the Peachtree City Council.

Falcon Field serves not only small engine aircraft but also corporate jets which can, at times, make a significant amount of noise at takeoff.