City Manager Jon Rorie has stated that the citizens of Peachtree City have to decide between wants and needs. There just isn’t enough money to fund all the wants. And with a budget workshop upcoming, I propose a way for the city to save $80,000.
Mr. Rorie is in the process of planning the relocation of the PTC Community Garden from Kelly Drive Park to Glenloch Park. Mr. Rorie has informed the community garden board of directors the city will erect an 8-foot black chain link fence at the new location, and build up the undersoil approximately 12 feet.
The city will disassemble the plastic bed frames at Kelly Drive and relocate those to the new location and then fill those beds with garden soil. Following that, the city will lay water lines.
Lastly, the city will cover the paths between the beds with landscape cloth and crush and run gravel, in short creating a garden on a hot gravel parking lot. The city in theory is going to make a top rate community garden. I estimate this project will cost $80,000 in man hours and materials.
There is only one problem. We, in the community garden, don’t want to move.
The new location has no close parking, gardeners carrying supplies will have to trek across or around the soccer fields to get to the garden. Tall trees lining the proposed site to the east will shade a portion of the garden for many hours of the day.
Many gardeners have spent years creating rich, friable garden soil at Kelly Drive only to see that effort wasted. Also wasted will be the work of the PTC Garden club who created and registered a butterfly garden at the front of the garden.
With limited parking at Glenloch, good luck finding a parking spot as the soccer fields are in constant use. The present site of the community garden on Kelly Drive is quiet, well situated with relation to the sun and has ample parking for gardeners of all abilities.
I encourage the city to save the expense and hassle of this unnecessary relocation. It is not a need of the city and it is not a want of the gardeners associated with the community garden.
The city should save itself the hassle of explaining why this expense is more important than many other line items that won’t get funded in this year’s budget.
Further, the city should save itself the hassle of explaining to the citizens of PTC why Kelly Drive Park will be sold to a developer soon after the community garden is relocated.
If indeed PTC is short of funds for the upcoming budget, leave the community garden at Kelly Drive. The unnecessary relocation of the community garden is neither a need nor a want. I encourage PTC citizens to contact the mayor and council before this week’s budget workshop.
Disclaimer: Although not a resident of PTC, I have countless hours of work helping establish the PTC community garden.
Larry Dove
Fayetteville, Ga.
