Likely due to recent negative

publicity, a plan to move a federal homeland security office - and

an estimated 100 jobs - to Peachtree City is on hold.

Jim Pace, President and CEO

of Group VI, which was marketing the building next door to the firm's

headquarters on Westpark Walk, said the city needs the white-collar office

jobs a project like this would provide.

Group VI had negotiated a lease

for an entire floor of the building, which had been approved by the Government

Services Agency, Pace said. But after erroneous news reports earlier this

week alleged that dangerous criminals would be processed at the office,

Group VI was notified the decision on the lease was "put on hold,"

Pace said.

"As an economic development

coup, this would be huge," Pace said, adding that government officials

were interested because of the proximity to Hartsfield International Airport.

"Information that it was going to be a jail was incorrect."

The flap began when an anonymous

letter circulated among area news agencies, alleging that the U.S. Immigration

and Customs Enforcement office, now under the federal Homeland Security

Program, would be relocating to Peachtree City and its Atlanta office

would be closed.

That is not the case, according

to Peachtree City Mayor Steve Brown, who says he has looked into the matter.

Brown says ICE officials have

told him anyone apprehended would be sent to its facilities in Atlanta

and would not be detained in Peachtree City.

"The ICE office as described

be a quality tenant in what is now vacant office space," Brown said.

"We have several federal offices and facilities in Peachtree City

and an even greater number of federal employees who appreciate the quality

of life here."

Brown was interviewed by at

least one Atlanta television station on the matter earlier in the week,

and the broadcast report cut short some of his comments, making them appear

negative in nature, and that's unfortunate, Pace said.

Pace said Brown is not to blame

for the way his comments appeared. He suspects, however, that someone

else is waging a campaign against the office coming to Peachtree City.

"Somebody doesn't

want them here and is going to a lot of energy to keep them from coming

here," Pace said.

Pace said efforts would be

made to communicate to federal officials that the project is still wanted

in Peachtree City. Federal officials liked that the space could be moved

into as-is because of existing modular or "cubicle" desks, Pace

said.

In today's economic climate,

landing a client to lease an entire floor of an office building is hard

to come by, Pace added.

"I don't quite get

it," Pace said of the covert resistance to moving the homeland security

office to Peachtree City. "We're talking about the good guys

here."

The Citizen did not receive

a copy of the alleged anonymous letter, which was supposedly authored