The

Atlanta Regional Commission's proposed new policy

on population density in the suburbs could put

Fayette between a rock and a hard place, say

Fayette's representatives on the ARC board.

Peachtree

City Mayor Bob Lenox and County Commission

Chairman Harold Bost will cast their votes on the

proposal, along with elected officials from nine

other metro Atlanta counties, in an ARC board

meeting May 24.

Under

the proposal, presented recently by ARC executive

director Charles "Chick" Krautler,

metro Atlanta counties would have 18 months to

rewrite land use and zoning laws to conform with

a regional emphasis on higher density in public

transportation corridors.

"Density

is a four-letter word to a lot of people,"

said Lenox, adding that elected officials on the

ARC board may have a hard time voting for the

policy. "It could be real hard to choke this

down," he said.

"But

there could be an awful price if they

don't," he added.

"It's

going to be darned hard to swallow," said

Bost, though he predicted the ARC board will

approve the plan. "I felt like from the very

beginning that it's designed to give the federal

government dictatorial powers as to how we're

going to develop the area," he said.

As

stated, the proposal is not too burdensome, Bost

said. It's expected to affect only the areas in

western Fayette near proposed commuter rail

stations, areas that will be mostly within the

city limits of Tyrone and Peachtree City.

"But

give the feds an inch and they take a mile,"

he added.

Lenox

said he is "conceptually" in favor of

the proposed plan, but will have to see more

details before deciding how to vote.

The

Atlanta Regional Commission, state Department of

Transportation and Greater Atlanta Regional

Transportation Authority all are rallying behind

a new $36 billion transportation plan designed to

reduce air pollution and thus free up federal

transportation dollars in the metro Atlanta area.

"Implicit

in it," said Lenox, "is smarter

development with high density along the major

transportation corridors.

"There

is a certain logic to it," he said, adding,

"I don't by any means think that density

means paving over the world."

Smart

governments will adopt policies allowing more

density but at the same time requiring more green

space, Lenox said.

Lenox

warned that the metro Atlanta area is expected to

grow by a million residents over the next ten

years, adding that counties that "dig in

their heels" and defy the ARC's growth

policies will still get their share of the

growth.

But

they won't get federal dollars to build roads and

other transportation facilities to keep up with

the growth, he said. "We're going to get

nothing except grief," he said.

Bost

reluctantly agreed. "I don't like it at all,

but I'm afraid that's where it's going," he

said, adding that he will probably vote against

the proposal.

<!--

-----------