A proposal to rezone St. Paul Lutheran Church to allow for a new cellphone tower off Ga. Highway 74 north was tabled by the Peachtree City Planning Commission tonight.

In doing so the proposal will sit on the shelf until after a Feb. 2 workshop on how the city will proceed in the future with requests for new cellphone towers.

The church owns two adjacent parcels, one of which is currently zoned GR-4 which allows for a residential subdivision of up to four units per acre. The other parcel is zoned estate residential which allows residences with minimum lot sized of three acres.

The church is seeking a rezoning to open space-public in which cell towers are allowed as a conditional use.

Community Development Director David Rast noted that several years ago the city began initiating requests of churches to rezone their properties to open space. That initiative was undertaken to keep those properties as being developed for more intense uses should the churches ultimately leave the city and sell their properties, Rast said.

Because the rezoning also would allow for a potential cellphone tower, several residents in the Ardenlee subdivision adjacent to the church opposed the rezoning.

Bill Jones, president of the Ardenlee homeowners association, said he has heard concerns over the potential of the tower reducing property values and also concerns about its visibility.

"If it's needed, it's needed, but is this the best place for it? I'm not sure," Jones said.

Rast noted that Verizon has been working with the city for the past several years on potential areas to locate a celltower in the Kedron Village area. A Verizon representative said several other locations were investigated but deemed impossible, among them the existing Fayette County water tower.

The county has a policy that prohibits cellphone equipment from being located on the tower, said Verizon attorney Jen Blackburn.