Dear Citizens of Peachtree City, I have ignored the mistruths about Plan for PTC for too long and wanted to share some relevant facts.
Plan for PTC is an Independent Committee. It is NOT a PAC.
Plan for PTC has never contributed money to a candidate.
Plan for PTC has never supported a specific candidate until one of our founding members decided to run for City Council in August of 2023. At that point, we decided to show our support publicly and to dissolve Plan for PTC.
Plan for PTC began as a grassroots effort in the spring of 2021. We first engaged an attorney about forming an official committee in April of that year. The process took several months, and the Articles of Incorporation were filed on August 5, 2021, which coincidentally, was several days after the Committee was supposedly “outed” online.
Plan for PTC is not “secret.” The committee was formed by a group of women who have raised and are raising their children in this incredible place we call home and who found some alarming data:
• Fayette County is aging at an unusual rate. According to the US Census Bureau, the percentage of the population 65+ grew from 12.9% in 2010 to 19.5% in 2021. One of the many reasons this is compelling is because our citizens can opt out of contributing tax dollars to our school system at age 62.
• Many of our large corporate citizens were leasing office space in Midtown because they were having trouble hiring talent to work in Peachtree City. Please keep in mind, this was before Covid and the work from home revolution.
• Less than 3,000 people voted for the two open city council posts in 2019.
We found this information very concerning and wanted to raise awareness and get other citizens engaged. Our mission was to reach as many people as possible. We wanted to be a source of unbiased information and ultimately impact voter participation.
During the 2021 election cycle, we shared information about all the candidates and hosted two candidate forums. I am very proud of the work that we did, but most importantly, we never had anything to hide. The Plan for PTC Facebook page is evidence that the group was sharing information and encouraging citizens to participate. The mission was simple, and it was never nefarious.
Plan for PTC does not support a “pro-stacked-multi-family housing complex.” At no point during the formation of Plan for PTC, or in any of their communications after that, did the group express that they were “devoted to building densely stacked apartment complexes across the city.” None of the founding members of Plan for PTC believe that our town needs more apartments. Any misguided attempt to prove otherwise is simply fiction.
On a more personal note (since I have been personally libeled), I am not a real estate developer. I am a real estate broker and an Independent Contractor. I represent businesses in buying, selling or leasing real estate. I actually help fill the vacant retail spaces that our citizens are so concerned about. My profession is not a nefarious one, and I do not stand to receive financial gain from building apartments in our town.
I genuinely love this community. I was born and raised in Fayette County, and I chose to move to Peachtree City over 20 years ago. That was indeed one of the best decisions of my lifetime. I am very passionate about the future of this community, and that is why I started Plan for PTC.
It had absolutely nothing to do with potential financial gain and everything to do with our exceptional schools, our incredibly unique path system, our top-notch public services, and protecting all the incredible things about Peachtree City for generations to come.
I urge anyone with questions to please contact me directly. I am happy to share all the Plan for PTC financial records and openly discuss any concerns without citing my own opinion pieces as evidence.
Lastly, local elections are vitally important. Please get out and vote!
Emily Winkle
Peachtree City, Ga.
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