In the midst of a major annexation and rezoning request, Fayetteville

city officials took some time Thursday afternoon and braved scorching

temperatures to get a firsthand look at the property in question

and, perhaps, some insight into the pros and cons of making it a

part of the city.

While the visit gave them some added information with which to consider

the request, neither the City Council nor the Planning and Zoning

Commission will act on the application concerning the proposed Deer

Pointe development until at least late September.

Developer Bob Rolader has petitioned the city to allow 873 acres

on the south side of Ga. Highway 54 west of Fayetteville to be annexed

for his 454-lot residential development, and he has offered to donate

215 acres at the rear of the property for permanent open space,

along with two large lakes at the site for a future water source.

Rolader escorted members of the City Council, Planning and Zoning

Commission and city staff to the site Thursday afternoon, beginning

with a drive to the property boundary on Lester Road, across from

Heritage Church. The tour then wound down Huiet Road past the Fayette

Family YMCA to the site of a large dam that separates the two lakes.

Huiet Road continues, unpaved, across the dam, and some local residents

have voiced concerns that it might not be strong enough to support

a regular residential street. But after inspecting the base of the

dam, including a walk through the three 72-inch pipes that allow

water to spill from one lake to the other, city officials for the

most part expressed confidence in the dam's structure.

"The dam was impressive," said Planning and Zoning Commission

Chairman Myron Coxe, who added that the city would have experts

examine the dam and give an opinion as well.

Thursday's field trip was the only major action taken concerning

Deer Pointe this week. The City Council voted Monday night to table

the annexation and rezoning public hearings until October, as Mayor

Kenneth Steele noted that the development plan was still before

the Planning and Zoning Commission, and that body was almost certain

to table it at last night's regular meeting (held after this

edition of The Citizen went to press).

The city is still looking at a number of issues, including the appropriate

way to dispose of the 215 acres of open space, should the annexation

occur. Some city officials have suggested immediately turning it

over to a nonprofit group such as the Southern Conservation Trust,

so that future city governing bodies cannot undo the permanent open

space designation.

A plan for the city concerning the disposition of the open space

could be done within a couple of weeks, Coxe said, although he could

not say whether it would be something the applicant approves of.

"We heard a lot," said Coxe of the site tour. "We'll

be better prepared to make an intelligent decision when the time

comes to vote."

Unlike a standard rezoning request for a tract already in the city,

Fayetteville officials do not have to even consider an annexation

request and are not required to give a reason for not considering

or approving it.

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