The growth of development south of I-85 in Fairburn is obvious. Anticipating the water needs that will accompany future growth was the impetus Feb. 27 for the City Council’s approval of a study to generate a water system hydraulic model of the area.

The study area extends along the south side of I-85 to the Fayette County line and from Gullat and Johnson roads on the west to Spence Road on the east.

“This area is scheduled for significant commercial development in the next couple of years along with residential and industrial development,” said City Administrator Jim Williams. “This is an important area and we need to have a water study done. I feel this is the next step of taking a proactive posture.”

The cost of the study and the model is $19,750 and is comparable with a previous study of the city’s northwest area.

City Engineer and Public Works Director Troy Besseche said the scope of the project will involve taking development data, whether actual or potential, and creating a model of demand fire flows, pressures and overall system demand. Based on study results and associated recommendations, he said, any anticipated deficiencies can be adequately planned and implemented to avoid future emergency actions.

Keeping to the established practice of diminishing city costs by having developers bear significant responsibility in installing infrastructure, Williams said the study should have additional benefits.

“If we know in advance what we need we can have a portion of it included in the development cost,” he said.

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