Perhaps the third time will be the charm.

The Fayette County Commission is expected to vote again Thursday on the latest proposed alignment for the second phase of the West Fayetteville Bypass. The commission punted a decision for a second time at its May 28 meeting, citing incomplete information about one of the homes that must be purchased or condemned under the latest road alignment.

The bypass vote being tabled dovetailed with other controversy at the same meeting, as Post 1 Commissioner Robert Horgan made his first appearance following an arrest for misdemeanor marijuana possession and driving with an expired tag. Horgan indicated in comments at that meeting he has no plans to resign from his post.

The new road path for the bypass, meanwhile, will require the taking of three homes and a barn.

A group of citizens, known as the West Fayette Bypass Coalition, has formed to try and squelch the bypass. They came out in force at the May 28 meeting wearing address labels on their shirts expressing their displeasure.

A coalition representative has also threatened to take legal action opposing the bypass for violating the federal Clean Water Act.

The two-lane bypass, once all three phases are complete, will provide a direct alternate route around Fayetteville for vehicles traveling between Ga. Highway 85 south at Harp Road and Ga. Highway 92 north at West Bridge Road.

County officials contend the road is needed to alleviate traffic congestion already occurring in Fayetteville and to accommodate future traffic “without further impacting the character” of existing county roads. Critics contend that existing roads can be widened to create a bypass, but the county contends a direct route is necessary for the goal of routing traffic around Fayetteville to be accomplished.

Bypass opponents also have claimed that the road is being built for owners of large undeveloped tracts in the area. The county disputes that claim, saying that the second phase of the bypass in particular was designed in large part to limit road access by setting it along property lines where possible and using existing streams and wetlands to act as a natural deterrent against future development on the road.

The second phase of the bypass will stretch from the phase 1 terminus on Sandy Creek Road just south of the new school campus. From there it will actually follow a stretch of existing pavement on Sandy Creek before continuing onto a stretch of the existing Tillman Road.

The road will not follow the northwesterly turn on Tillman but instead will continue in a basically straight pattern to Eastin Road before meandering around a subdivision and continuing to cross Lees Mill Road just north of the private drive Mallard Creek Lane where one existing home is in its path.

From there the road goes toward the end of Janice Drive where two homes are in the road path before continuing around another subdivision and linking up with Hwy. 92 at West Bridge Road.

From that intersection, drivers can continue straight on West Bridge to reach Ga. Highway 138 in Union City to access Interstate 85. They can also go north on Hwy. 92 and take Peters Road to Hwy. 138 or take Oakley Industrial Boulevard to reach the interchange of Ga. Highway 74 and I-85.

Fayette officials are hopeful that future improvements could be made to Hwy. 92 to provide access to the interstate, but none are currently scheduled by the Georgia Department of Transportation.

The two-lane bypass — now being called a “parkway” by the commissioners — will have a speed limit of 45 mph, and the second phase has an estimated construction cost of $12 million. The cost of the 4.6 miles in phase two is being footed by the county’s transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, and construction time is estimated at 24 months.

The county commission decided against acquiring enough land for the bypass to make it expandable to four lanes in the future if necessary.

Phase 1 of the bypass, which runs from Ga. Highway 54 and Huiet Road to Sandy Creek Road, is expected to be completed sometime in the fall, officials said.

Once the road alignment is approved by the commission, staff can move to the final design phase, which includes an appraisal of the necessary property needed the land can be acquired.

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