Members of the Fischer Road community got exactly what they wanted Tuesday night as Coweta County commissioners voted unanimously to drop plans to construct a fueling station on county property on the north side of the fire station that sits adjacent to Northgate High School. Residents had recently held community meetings with commissioners and the school system, expressing their opposition to the plans.

Stating that residents had come together for a cause that had a direct bearing on their community, District 3 Commissioner Randolph Collins said, “I think the board will commit not to put the (fueling) station on Fischer Road.”

That commitment came moments later when the board voted unanimously to forego the project, saying, instead, that the county would begin looking for an alternative location and alternative ways to handle the issue.

Area resident Jerry Martin was one of the two people at the meeting to comment on the decision. As one of the few neighbors living across the street from the site, Martin thanked commissioners, especially Collins, for listening to the concerns of citizens and working with them.

Also prior to the vote, Sharpsburg resident and retired state employee Mike Merget suggested that the county could use the fuel card system employed by state agencies. Merget said the system has no cost and does provide an audit trail and monthly statements.

Martin during his statement also proposed that the Fischer Road property be used for the construction of a seniors center. The group of approximately 30 area residents in the audience apparently agreed, applauding as he completed his request.

In response, Collins addressed both the efforts of citizens in response to the proposed fuel station and the idea of establishing a seniors center on the property.

“You all don’t lose what you have. You’ve grown together,” Collins said, adding, “I think there’s a need for a community center.”

The issue to block the construction of the fuel station began last month when area residents attended commission meetings to express their dissatisfaction and later held a series of community meetings at the Fischer Road fire station.

Residents noted their objections to the installation of the fueling station based on concerns such as visual and safety issues and on the likely smell of fuel wafting across Fischer Road and onto their property. Residents at the commission meeting and those at the May 19 community meeting also cited issues such as potential health effects from gasoline or diesel fumes, ground contamination from possible fuel leaks, a decrease in home value, traffic congestion in a residential area, likely accidents caused by county and school system vehicles entering and leaving the station and other accident concerns with drivers mistaking deceleration lanes for the main road.

Other residents questioned the effectiveness of having a berm install along Fischer Road to shield the fueling station from view. They said it would likely not prohibit the view from homes across the street even if the berm was planted with tall plants.

Residents all along maintained that they were not opposed to the station as long as it is not located on property adjacent to the fire state at Northgate.

The fueling station would have been located at the north end of Fischer Road as it takes a sharp right turn at the right-of-way of I-85. It is located on property bordered by the fire station on the south and I-85 to the north and west. Approximately three homes are positioned directly across Fischer Road from the site.

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