The Citizen reveals the big secret. The West Fayetteville Bypass was not built for traffic relief in downtown Fayetteville.
This road was approved for developers at a cost of many millions of dollars.
The Rivers Elementary School was also built for developers at an approximate cost of $11 million.
Neither of those projects made any sense until the secret was revealed. Our elected officials have given (my guess) $60 million from the taxpayers but public officials did not want the taxpayer to know what was the driving force behind these gifts.
We now know it is for future development of the Fayetteville Neighborhoods.
It is not like no one knew what was going on. I think that Mayor Steele, Terri Smith, Janet Smola, Jack Smith, Eric Maxwell, Herb Frady, Lee Hearn, Robert Horgan, the property owners and development authorities were all aware of plan and the deception.
They are the elite group. The people that are paying for this, the taxpayer, well, you could not handle the truth.
Why did the three holdover county commissioners or the county manager not reveal this information to Steve Brown and Allen McCarty in their capacity as county commissioners?
My conclusion would be the lie was easier to continue.
Something really smells. I cannot see a downside to letting the people know what is going on and why. Remember the taxpayers are paying for this. If the people do not want this development, would it go forward regardless, like the bypass?
The elected officials led by Jack Smith changed the priority of the 2004 SPLOST from the East Bypass to the West Bypass in 2007 with no real explanation other then it was to relieve traffic in Fayetteville.
The Board of Education led by Terri Smith built Rivers Elementary in the region of the new neighborhood when there was no plan or any need available for the taxpayer to see.
The county commissioners led by Herb Frady have rushed the West Fayetteville Bypass construction while citizens were saying stop. Phase One is complete and if you go look at the curbing, you will see that streets have already been cut in. While this is evident, Frady continued to tell people it is to relieve traffic in Fayetteville.
Mayor Steele stays under the radar with public comment but it would be hard to believe he did not play a major role in where we are today.
When the taxpayers are not properly represented by elected officials or are misled by public officials, it is easy to become cynical. It seems similar to insider trading and you wonder who are reaping the rewards.
There are allegations of a conflict of interest involving Lee Hearn and his cousin Addison Lester III being reported.
The public has been mislead, going back to the last group of county commissioners as well as the current three holdovers, as to the real purpose for the West Fayetteville Bypass.
Fayette County has more schools than they need but still built a new one, and I understand that the BOE also bought property for a new high school from the Lester property.
None of the people I have mentioned in this article has done a good job of representing the taxpayer and I think if they are currently serving, they should be removed from office.
One irony from the plan concept study is “the preservation of the existing landscape was a key component in creating the neighborhoods. This gave each hamlet a unique characteristic unto itself and mature trees give the hamlets instant character.”
The irony of cutting down trees and taking property from existing owners to reach this conclusion is remarkable.
This letter isn’t to say that growth is either good or bad, but the process that has taken place in Fayette County is dishonest.
Lastly, I would like to thank The Citizen for reporting this story.
Ray Watt
Peachtree City, Ga.
