It will take about 17 months to fully complete the MacDuff Parkway extension, which will link the road with Ga. Highway 74 north, according to officials with John Wieland Homes.

The Peachtree City Council Thursday night voted 3-1 to rezone an 88-acre tract for 208 homes near MacDuff Parkway. The vote came with a condition that only 100 homes could be built prior to completion of the road extension.

The 88 acres is located along the CSX railroad that was previously zoned for industrial development. Councilman Eric Imker, who voted against the rezoning, argued that the land should have remained available for industrial use. Mayor Vanessa Fleisch, a real estate agent, abstained from the vote, having said that she will not make any money from marketing the homes but a co-worker has signed a deal to sell Wieland homes in the area.

The road extension, which will include a bridge over the railroad tracks, will be a very welcome sight for residents in Wilksmoor Village, who currently only have one way in and out of their homes every day: Ga. Highway 54 West.

Hwy. 54 gets so clogged in the evening commute times that traffic can back up nearly two miles to the east, all the way to Willowbend Road. The city has ordered a traffic study of the entire corridor in search of solutions to help move traffic more efficiently, and that study will take into account future commercial development on the highway along with the Wieland subdivision that was rezoned Thursday night.

Wieland officials have said some of the homes will be sold above the $350,000 mark and some will eclipse $400,000. The development will have a number of pocket parks designed to be used by residents.

The parcel is home to the “Peach Pit” construction landfill, and there will be no development on that site, Wieland officials have said.