Seventeen-year-old Peachtree City resident Clara Comiskey, left, and 16-year-old Fayetteville resident Chase Johnson were two of the presenters at the Nov. 29 meeting on the Fayetteville 20-year Comprehensive Plan. Photo/Ben Nelms.
100 people tell officials what city’s new 20-year Comprehensive Plan should look like
It was a meeting where residents were asked to have their say on what Fayetteville will look like in the next 20 years. The second of three town hall meetings on the Fayetteville 20-year Comprehensive Plan was held Nov. 29 at City Hall and was attended by 100 people. Their choices indicated what type of development should occur and where it should be located over the next two decades.
The comprehensive plan process Nov. 29, also explained by city Planning Director Jahnee Prince at the Nov. 1 meeting, represented a follow-along experience for the participants. The Nov. 1 meeting had residents view a large number of side-by-side photos of various residential, commercial, industrial, downtown and amenities and select the ones they felt best exemplified Fayetteville’s future.
Residents on Nov. 1 also completed a community survey. That number, 66, had their input included with the 158 surveys completed at Market Day events and the 254 surveys completed online, for a total of 478 surveys.
Essentially, Prince on Nov. 1 said, “Tonight the topic was what do you want? At the next meeting (on Nov. 29), you’ll be asked where do you want it?”
That is what happened on Nov. 29. The group of approximately 100 broke into smaller groups and were situated at 10 tables spread out through the building.
Each group had a number of small, sticky-back photos of types of properties identified in the first meeting to place on two large maps — one of which was a map of the city while the other was a blow-up of the downtown area. The small photos represented a wealth of different types of residential and lot size, along with many examples of commercial, office and industrial properties and city amenities. The photos represented the top choices of those attending the Nov. 1 meeting.
The idea was to place the small photos in the areas where each group believed a particular type of development would be best suited. The participation in this portion of the town hall meeting was fascinating.
Residents discussed their ideas, asked questions and positioned the photos according to what was seen as the best fit for various types of residential, downtown and suburban commercial, office, industrial and amenities. The 20-member steering committee was also at the meeting, with one member at each table.
After that session, the group of 100 assembled to present their choices and hear final comments from Prince.
It was very noteworthy that among the 100 participating were a group of much younger people than normally attend such meetings. Several in their teens, and one as young as nine years, actively participated in the table discussions. Two of those, 16-year-old Fayetteville resident Chase Johnson and 17-year-old Peachtree City resident Clara Comiskey, also presented their group’s choices to the room full of people. They did not miss a beat in their presentation.
Attending with representatives from AVPRide, Comiskey and Johnson were not at the meeting because they were required to be there. Asked about their attendance, both said they “wanted to be here” to see the community process and have a say in what the future of Fayetteville might look like. Both, provided they still reside locally, will be in their mid-30s when the time comes for the next 20-year comprehensive plan to be formulated.
Prince during the meeting told the group that, based on the community survey, the top choice for residential was one-third acre lots followed by a near-tie for one-quarter acre and one-acre lots. Respondents also liked townhomes in the downtown area rather than in the “suburbs” of Fayetteville.
Respondents also said apartments were alright, though they preferred they be located over businesses. As for amenities, which also came with the highest scores of any category, residents preferred walking streets that are closed to vehicular traffic, Prince said.
Based on the Nov. 1 town hall meeting where residents said what they wanted for Fayetteville, the data showed:
• More nightlife
• More arts, performing arts center
• More greenspace
• Better/more restaurants, not fast food
• Better/more shops, not chains
• Golf cart, bike and walking paths connecting to the county system
• More affordable housing
• Reverse the decline of north Fayetteville
• Better transportation planning, including complete street standards
• Better quality/paying jobs
• Re-use old commercial areas
• More community activity centers
The town hall meeting was advertised through the news media, at the Fayetteville Library, in local businesses, at all public schools in the city and at the elections office during early voting times.
Prince at both meetings gave an overview of 20-year comprehensive plans as a guide to development and redevelopment in the city where the idea is to assess conditions, anticipate growth and implement strategies to achieve community goals.
An open house will be held on March 27 so that staff can present “what we heard from you,” Prince said.
The Georgia Department of Community Affairs will review in the plan in April and send it back to the city for adoption in June.
