Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Peachtree City Radio.
[00:00:08] Speaker B: Welcome back to Peachtree City Radio where we give you all the goings on happening under the a living in Atlanta's south side suburbs. A few things coming up on today's show. We're going to talk with Andrew Allen, the local owner of Choice Home Inspection Services, to answer the question, is your home making you sick? And we've got a special treat for you today, a recent interview with Mayor Kim Lernerd where she gives us a skinny on all things happening in Peachtree City, including what's going on with the intersection of highways 74 and 54. And of course, the pressing topic on everyone's mind, pickleball. Will she challenge other local officials to a match? Stick around to the end of the show to find out. Let's get started.
Our local Business Spotlight might be my favorite segment of the show. I can't wait to see how it materializes in future episodes because we've got some great ideas we're working on to really showcase the amazing business owners and their hardworking staffs in the area. For today, I guess I'm technically going to highlight two businesses and it's really because of their proximity to each other. I recently held an event at the Lyon Creek Brewing Bus Barn in Fayetteville and we had about a hundred attendees and it went off without a hitch, mainly because of the staff. Now Amber Wilson is the event coordinator for all of Line Creek Brewing locations and she couldn't have been more helpful with all the details leading up to the event and now at the venue itself. CJ Noel, a manager at the Fayetteville location, just goes above and beyond and was clutch with all the little details of the day and that's not where it ends though. Anytime you visit, the whole staff is amazing, from brewers to the beer tenders. I also have to shout out the folks at Hogpick Barbecue, the restaurant that shares a space with the brewery in the Bus Barn. Chef Eric Roberts leads the team there to deliver some of the best barbecue around. It's a little hidden gem and they help feed the folks at the event who left absolutely raving about it. Roberts also has is at the helm of MSP Pizza Co. Also in the bus barn, SC Center park in Fayetteville, and both these businesses are locally owned and give back to the community.
[00:02:12] Speaker C: I'll have to do a deeper dive.
[00:02:13] Speaker B: In another episode down the road because there's so much more to talk about and they're not a sponsor of the show. I just I wanted to shout them out because I had a great experience with them going forward. I'm, I'm going to try to get some, some interview like little small snippets of interviews of local business owners and really highlight maybe heading to location and whatnot. But I wanted to get the, the show started for episode one here. So that's what we got for the, for the, the business highlight. Highly recommend going to getting some barbecue and having a beer over over at the bus barn with Hog Pit barbecue and Line Creek Brewing.
All right, it's time for the real deal from under the A living in Atlanta Southside. Before we get into the local real estate news, I want to share a conversation I recently had with Andrew Allen, local owner of Choice Home Inspections.
He's going to warn us about the dangers of foam insulation. Is your home making you sick? Listen in.
[00:03:15] Speaker C: So give us, give us the quick rundown. Like just tell us about yourself. Tell us about choice.
[00:03:20] Speaker D: All right, so my name is Andrew Allen. I got into home inspections in 2016, into 2015, 2016, started doing inspections.
Got to where I absolutely fell in love with doing inspections. I fell in love with real estate as a whole. Flipping, having rental property, commercial stuff, home inspections. I really dived right into it.
[00:03:40] Speaker C: Are there any trends in construction that you've seen lately that might be causing it. Causing an issue?
[00:03:47] Speaker D: Well, one, one overall thing is they're making homes so energy efficient nowadays. They're, they're like tight, they're. They can't breathe at all. They're not, you know, it's, it used, they used to be a little bit more breathable, which, you know, drafty homes and stuff like that. People don't want that obviously. But that ox that having that, that does give it a little bit more of a chance to ventilate.
But yeah, so I, I do see some issues coming up with how, how much they're sealing everything up. And then you got the spray foam in the attic and the spray foam in the attic sealing is great. It's, it's do it doing the whole attic. It creates, you know, if you do the crawl space and you do the attic, it creates a one envelope.
But then the air exchange becomes really important as far as your heat and air. You really need to have really efficient heat and air systems that are going to be. You're supposed to pull out. You have to have four or five air changes per hour. So you're supposed to have brand new air in your home four or five times every hour. When your system's running that, that's what it needs to be on a really efficient home.
So I do see an issue with mold growth and some stuff like that. You get a leak in a wall, it tends to be a little bit more severe. Mold tends to thrive a little bit better with these higher energy efficient homes. And then having the spray foam applied, the temperature and humidity is very important.
So I've seen a lot of issues coming up and I've been to some seminars about this, but I've seen a lot of issues coming up where people are going in the attics and they're sticking their finger in the spray foam and it's like cake mix in the middle. It's like still goo and it's like it's not hardened out.
[00:05:27] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:05:28] Speaker D: And so it's actually still emitting a toxic chemical. When it's in that, that liquid state. When it hasn't foamed out and completely dried out, it's actually still emit. So I've done several inspections, mold testing where people have terrible migraines, they have terrible sinus issues, they're having these issues. And then we do the mold test. Nothing comes back high. But come to find out they're having a reaction to that chemical.
And it all starts with the temperature and humidity in the attic when they apply the spray foam. So can't always help when the house was built, all these different things. But it is something you can check when you go do an inspection.
[00:06:03] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:06:03] Speaker D: You know, it's hard to check everywhere, but I always will kind of slide something and when you pull it out, it'll be wet on it. So that's, that's one big problem with it's. I mean, it's awesome how energy efficient all these homes are. I mean, that's great. But there is a little bit of an issue with air quality, especially if you don't have the, you know, you got an.
A bedroom upstairs somewhere and you don't have a good undercut under the door or the returns not pulling air out of it. That one room can go lack of air pretty easily with how efficient everything is.
So that's an issue. And then the actual spray foam itself, not fully curing properly, which it can be redone. It's not, you know, especially during the home building process. You go up there when your home's being built or when you, you know, that's when you can catch it the easiest. But a lot of people, it's slipping by. So I'd say the number one thing is making sure if you do have spray foam added to your home that you have a full warranty. You pay for the full lifetime warranty of the foam.
[00:07:06] Speaker C: That's good. That's good advice. I didn't know that. I was not aware of that. I just learned something for sure.
If it's. If it doesn't cure properly, it's a. You got to redo it. It won't like eventually cure.
[00:07:18] Speaker D: No. As far as that. Because it's. It hardens on the outside. Gotcha. It creates that insulation barrier and now it's just goo in the middle. And that admits that actually has an emission.
[00:07:30] Speaker C: Huh. And how it can. Is that easily identifiable or is that something that you have to like probe it or what?
[00:07:36] Speaker D: Yeah, you'd probe it. Hire a contractor. You could call a guy that does spray foam and you could have them come check yours.
Okay. I see it happen a lot. Not really on new construction as much because I do have a little. A little bit more quality control. But it can happen on people that just. They decide they want to have their home done. This is the new thing. And they're calling somebody to come out. And because it mixes at the gun, at the nozzle. So you got the chemical and then you got another chemical. And as they spray out, they mix as they spray, as they intersect. And if the temperature and humidity aren't right around the atmosphere, right around it is not correct. Which people go out there in 25 degree weather like we are in now.
[00:08:16] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:08:16] Speaker D: And they'll go spray in that attic and it's just not gonna mix. So that's a problem.
[00:08:21] Speaker C: So absolutely.
[00:08:21] Speaker D: As a homeowner, you can learn more about it if you go online, but it'd be a good idea to tell your builder to bring it up or if you're gonna have it done, make sure you do it during, you know, low humidity and then you got actual hot temperature.
[00:08:34] Speaker C: Gotcha.
[00:08:35] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:08:35] Speaker C: Yeah. That's a lot low humidity around here. There's not much, much time in the summer.
[00:08:41] Speaker D: It's hard to actually have done. It's not as easy. It's just, hey, we're gonna have it done next week, like you can. And it might work out fine, but I've just seen a lot of cases where it's not and there's not. I'm sure they're going to figure out some type of additive to put to it to make this not happen, but I know there's going to be some lawsuits here if there. I think there already is.
[00:08:59] Speaker C: Yeah. Okay.
[00:09:01] Speaker D: People having to get their entire roofs torn off.
[00:09:03] Speaker C: Oh, wow.
[00:09:04] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:09:05] Speaker C: That's not. That's a. Yeah.
[00:09:07] Speaker D: Because you know, specific types of roofing. The hot, more high end luxury roofing. You can't just scrape it off from the inside. It's actually, we're gonna have to take off the deck decking. Normal roofs. Yeah, you're just scraping it. And I've been to houses where I'll tell you a story real quick. So this was kind of a catastrophic story for this lady, but she spent about 750,000 on new construction. They moved in. She's having all type of health issues from the spray foam. Come to find out, it was cake mixy in there and it was gooey. So they hired somebody to come out and scrape all of it off.
But in the meantime, they were going to put insulation normally in the sealant. Just spray foam. I mean, just spraying, spraying fiberglass. Yeah. But you know, when you insulate an attic now, you can run all your plumbing through the attic because it's fully insulated. So when she, she removed everything during the winter, two weeks later, all her pipes in her attic busted. It flooded her entire home.
[00:09:57] Speaker B: Oh, wow.
[00:09:58] Speaker D: So if you remove the spray foam, you've got to get a new unit, the new heat and air system, because it's a different type of system. And you're also going to have to reduce some plumbing. So it's just a big thing to look out for when you're purchasing a new construction more than anything. Gotcha. And definitely want to do your research before you call somebody and have your home that you already live in done.
[00:10:17] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:10:18] Speaker D: It can cause some other problems.
[00:10:19] Speaker C: We can sit here and talk about that all day, I'm sure, but I just learned something. Thank you for that. I'm sure a lot of people that are listening learned that as well.
[00:10:29] Speaker B: Here's the local market snapshot. In the heart of our vibrant south side suburbs, the real estate market is showing strong momentum. This February inventory is moderately tight and most new listings are still flying off the market. With over half selling in less than 30 days. Average home prices have risen about 5 to 6% over the past year. Taking a look at mortgage rates this February, currently, rates are trending in the mid 6% to 7% range. For example, as of February 7, rates were around 6.5%, while some sources report average rates closer to 7% for 30 year fixed loans.
Although we've seen some fluctuations and slight dips recently, several factors will likely keep rates in this range. Looking ahead, inflation remains a key driver.
[00:11:14] Speaker C: If it stays elevated, the Fed is.
[00:11:16] Speaker B: Unlikely to cut rates. Additionally, mortgage rates are tied to the yields on 10 year treasury bonds, so any increase there tends to push rates higher. Economic growth and fiscal policies also play their part, contributing to the overall uncertainty. In short, while there's some optimism for minor short term decreases, most expert expect rates to remain around 6%, 7% through 2025. So for our home buying tip this week, here's the golden ticket. 60% of the homes in Fayette county sold below asking price last month. There may be a chance to score a deal if you're ready to pounce. That means putting your team of real estate professionals together and securing your mortgage pre approval. That will put you in a position to move fast. Now we are headed into the spring market, so competition usually picks up a little bit there. And for your seller tip this week, make your home stand out with professional staging and smart marketing to attract top offers. Be proactive and leverage local expertise to navigate this dynamic market with confidence. The south side suburbs of Atlanta has a hot market with high demand and a seller's advantage. Home values have jumped and while list prices have cooled recently, the market remains pretty competitive. If you're a buyer, be ready to act fast. And sellers, you've got the upper hand. But keep an eye on those listing prices. It's still a wild ride in Fayette county and the surrounding areas, folks, so keep your seatbelts fastened and your offers ready. Of course we can get you on the right path and set you up with expert advice.
[00:12:46] Speaker C: All you have to do is visit.
[00:12:47] Speaker B: Petricityradio.Com we're putting together some pretty amazing resources for you there.
[00:12:52] Speaker C: All right, let's head over to the.
[00:12:53] Speaker B: Peach Pit where we take a look inside our community and chat with the people who make it thrive. I'm about to play for you a recent interview with the mayor of Peachtree City, the honorable Kim Lernerd. I have to confess though, this interview was intended to be published as a standalone video about two weeks ago. But soon after the recording, I knew this interview with the mayor of Peachtree City was the start of something even bigger. That means there was a slight delay in getting it out to you. I needed just a little more time to take Peachtree City radio from concept to reality.
So without any more delays, let's bring on the mayor.
Today I have a really super special treat.
[00:13:35] Speaker C: I am interviewing the honorable mayor of Petrie City, Kim Lernerd. And I'm really excited. This is this. I confess to you, to mayor that this was the first city official that I've, I've ever interviewed. So thank you so much for your time. Today.
[00:13:50] Speaker A: Thank you, T.J. i'm glad to be here. And I promise there's nothing scary about city officials. We're your neighbors. We're not Congress. We're your neighbors.
[00:13:58] Speaker C: I like that.
[00:13:59] Speaker B: That's true.
[00:14:00] Speaker C: And it is.
[00:14:00] Speaker B: And I. And I. I saw.
[00:14:02] Speaker C: I'll just give a little history how you ended up here on the show. I were both members of the Peachtree City Running Club, which is an excellent organization. We'll talk about that on another show. But you spoke at the last meeting, the Glass Club meeting, and that's where I met you. And you agreed to come on the show, which was. I was ecstatic about. I called my wife right away after the meeting. I'm like, the mayor's gonna be on the show. So I'm really excited to have you.
[00:14:26] Speaker B: I guess let's.
[00:14:27] Speaker C: Let's start off because people that are listening to this might be just learning about Peachtree City.
Of course, some live here and some that live here might not know exactly the whole history of Peachtree City. So give us like a brief history of Peachtree City.
[00:14:41] Speaker A: Sure. I could talk about Peachtree City all day. So I'll just focus a little bit on how we got started. Peachtree City is unique in so many ways, but one of the ways is that we have always been a master planned community. Last year we celebrated 65 years. That means Peachtree City was chartered in 1959. And it was originated as a vision, a concept by a then 22 year old Georgia Tech student named Joel Cowan, who. Who is still here in Peachtree City, still contributing to Peachtree City, and a friend of mine. But he conceptualized a city way down south of Atlanta where nobody goes right. So he pulled together some investors, bought the land, and then laid out a master plan for a community. And I think what has made Peachtree City so successful is that plan and our fidelity over the many years, over the 65 years to that plan. For example, we have five different areas we designate, and they are called villages. Every village has a central hub for shopping and entertainment and dining. And in each hub, near that center is the highest residential density. And as you move away from the city center, the village center, you have lower and lower residential density. And then what was really pivotal and very visionary was to also plan for an industrial park and an airport to support it. So when you factor all those things in together, we're a very successful planned community. Sometimes I have to remind people that doesn't mean gated. We are not a gated community. We're all in this together, but it is very, very well planned.
[00:16:34] Speaker C: Yeah, that's. I did not know that he was 22 when he conceptualize the city. That's. That's pretty cool. That's amazing.
[00:16:42] Speaker A: Imagine that, not only conceptualizing a city, but then being the first mayor.
[00:16:46] Speaker C: Yeah, being the first mayor. Just putting it together. That's great.
[00:16:49] Speaker A: Nothing wrong with that.
[00:16:50] Speaker B: No, not at all.
[00:16:51] Speaker C: And I'm glad you brought up the airport, because I don't think a lot of people know that Falcon Field is. Is here in Peachtree City.
[00:16:58] Speaker A: And I know, and on any given day, we are most likely either the third or fourth busiest airport in the state of Georgia. We're called Atlanta Regional Airport, Falcon Field. On most days, we have more than 300 touchdowns.
We have pilot services, we have a lot of celebrities, and certainly a lot of industry leaders who fly in and out of Peachtree City. So it's been tremendously beneficial to support our industries.
[00:17:29] Speaker C: Yeah, that's excellent. I didn't know it was that busy. Wow, that's. I knew it was busy. I didn't know it was that busy. That's amazing.
[00:17:34] Speaker A: Yeah, it is very. There's a lot happening down there.
[00:17:37] Speaker C: Awesome. Well, you. You've been. You've been mayor for three years now.
What. A lot of cool things are happening in Peachtree City.
[00:17:45] Speaker B: A lot of.
[00:17:46] Speaker C: A lot of the.
[00:17:47] Speaker B: The highlight and.
[00:17:48] Speaker C: And stuff has come to the north side, the northern suburbs of Atlanta.
But we've been kind of a hidden gem down on the south side. I. I think. And a lot of cool things are happening. What are some of the things that have.
[00:18:01] Speaker B: Have happened, like, since.
[00:18:02] Speaker C: Since you've been mayor?
That for improvements or to kind of better the city or make the city kind of a really neater place.
[00:18:10] Speaker B: Neater.
[00:18:11] Speaker C: Is that a word? More neat place to live, exciting place to work.
[00:18:14] Speaker B: Exactly.
[00:18:15] Speaker A: Well, first of all, I was on city council as a council member for eight years. That doesn't come up very often, but in my eight years, I got a pretty good look at where we've been and where we're headed. And I like momentum. So now, as mayor, I've been able to carry forward some of the things we've had on our minds in Peachtree City for a long time. When I first became mayor in 2022, I conducted two town hall meetings right off the bat to hear from our citizens. The first was on the topic of city communications, because on the mayoral campaign trail, I kept hearing from people, we don't know what's going on. So what we've done in the last three years is very exciting. We've completely revamped our website. We've started an online once a week e newsletter called the Slice and that has all the notifications, events, emergency information. It's very valuable. In those Slice communications, we include my twice monthly Mondays with the Mayor videos. I always recapture what we decided on in our city council meetings and keep people posted on what we're talking about, what we're deciding and what our plans are. We've started a quarterly e newsletter called the Compass for all of our businesses. And now we're starting even more citizen engagement with a new class called PTC 101. And we held our first PTC 101 class last year. Our second is coming up and we're taking applications right now. 25 students get to come in for a period of eight weeks and learn about the details of every single department. And it was extremely well received and a lot of fun. And in addition to all that, we continue with our police courses. We have a citizens police academy and we have a community emergency response team training that are classes that we fill just year after year. We have a very engaged citizenry, so we've really advanced our communications.
The second town hall I had was on the topic of recreation. TJ Every different administration has different priorities. But as you already mentioned, I'm a lifelong runner. These paths are unique in the world and we're fortunate to be able to have such a safe venue for running, walking, biking, walking our dogs. Great for seniors, great for families.
So we've beefed up our support of recreation venues, the conditions of all our facilities, and redoubled our support for the programs on those facilities.
Another thing that I've been able to champion over the last really 10 years is we now have colleges in Peachtree City. We have Southern Crescent Technical College. My background is very technical. I worked at West Georgia Technical College for four years and I know the benefits of having a technical college in our community, especially to support our industries. They provide custom technical training for our industries and they offer support with classes for the community like English as a Second Language GED degree completion programs not only at Southern Crescent Technical College here, but also Clayton State University. So those have been some of the innovations we've brought in in the last three years.
[00:21:40] Speaker C: Yeah, and you, you answered some questions that I had coming up. You were, you're very on the ball with that. The communication stuff is, is pretty big. And from a, from a citizen standpoint, someone who, who lives in the city, it's, it's it's really nice to know that our leadership is committed to getting, communicating with us and having a dialogue with this residents, which is kind of unique, unfortunately. It is unique and it's not. We wish it was everywhere. But I think Peachtree City has done a really good job.
[00:22:14] Speaker A: Thank you. What a nice thing to say. Yeah, that's a priority for us. I mentioned the recreation priority and we have adopted. Well, hopefully this week we'll be adopting in our next council meeting our new recreation master plan. That was about a year in the works. We contracted with a consultant who does this, who can assess all of your current assets and make recommendations. So this new recreation master plan is a big effort. We're about to adopt it. It has a lot of exciting developments going forward for things we don't already have, like municipal pickleball courts. Of course, municipal cricket field turned out to be a very high popularity item. We have probably going to be making plans for a new free of charge splash pad for the youngsters. So the recreation master plan is a big deal. And with it we're engaging more citizens in a new volunteer board called the recreation Advisory group. So they will help us prioritize all that is in this voluminous plan. We've also started a new transportation advisory group, another citizen volunteer board that is examining how we can implement new federal ADA requirements into our path system and just generally take citizen input on all things related to roads and paths and safety. So the citizen engagement has been an absolute priority for us.
[00:23:40] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, it is commendable how you include the community in the decision making process.
[00:23:46] Speaker B: Really.
[00:23:47] Speaker A: Thank you.
[00:23:47] Speaker B: Tell, tell.
[00:23:48] Speaker C: Now it's, it's clear the commitment to recreation and that side of things for the city of Peachtree City.
I'm. I'm curious about pickleball though. That is like a hot sport for sure. So, so I'm gonna dig. I'm gonna dig into the pickleball course a little bit more. Tell me, tell me more about that stuff. What's the plan for that?
[00:24:08] Speaker A: So we have some courts. We did build six new courts in Peachtree City. But we also learned a hard lesson about proximity to residential. And we now know that we need to keep about 500ft between any pickleball courts and residential. Pickleball is kind of a noisy sport. Who knew, right? It's got a noisy ball, it's got a raucous group. And where we used to have, say, two tennis courts would involve four people hitting a softball. Well, now two tennis courts are converted to six pickleball courts. That means 24 people, every point is about six seconds long. Then there's a lot of, you know, laughing and bad words. So we're. We're paying more attention going forward, and I think everyone is paying more attention going forward to. To that distance. That's a critical point. We've also focused in the last couple years on filling some of our empty storefronts. And I'm very happy to point out that we have two private indoor facilities coming to Peachtree City. One is on the south side of town. Um, it's a new freestanding structure that'll be called let's Go Pickleball. And in addition, we've had an empty Kmart storefront for about, gosh, six years. And now we've just approved a special use permit, so they can put ace pickleball in that space in half the space. So that's two new local, indoor, private pickleball facilities. And the new recreation master plan has directed that we need 24 free. Free to use municipal courts. And they even identified a location on the south side of Peachtree City. So as the minute we get this recreation master plan adopted and get our recreation advisory group in place in the next couple of weeks, we're going to be off and running, and pickleball will certainly be a priority.
[00:25:56] Speaker C: That's awesome. Yeah, And I love that. I love taking the old Kmart. That has just been. It has been empty, and it hasn't been an eyesore, but it's been an empty box store.
[00:26:07] Speaker A: You know, it's not good for anyone. So we're very excited.
[00:26:10] Speaker C: I love it. It's.
[00:26:10] Speaker B: It's.
[00:26:11] Speaker C: What a great idea and what a.
[00:26:12] Speaker B: Great out of the box kind of.
[00:26:13] Speaker C: Thinking, you know, when to use that space, especially with the, you know, box stores and larger store department stores are kind of, I guess, on their way out because of the Internet and all the other shopping options you have. So what an amazing way to use that space, for sure. I have to ask this question. Is there. Do you want to call somebody out and challenge them in a pickleball match? You know, on the. On the. On the show here?
[00:26:39] Speaker A: One of the things I've worked on is better relationships between Peachtree City and our other communities, you know, our sister cities. We now have a mayor's group. We get together for breakfast. The five cities in Fayette County. Do you know what they are? TJ Absolutely. Peachtree City, Brooks, Woolsey, Fayetteville and Tyrone. And the mayors and I are very tight. We get together from time to time for breakfast monthly. I Would love to call the mayors out for a pickleball tournament of some kind or a challenge among cities. I think that would be a lot of fun.
[00:27:13] Speaker C: I like that. Yeah. Not just one mayor. All the mayors of Fayette County.
We're gonna make it happen.
I'll be there for that for sure. And yeah, Woolsey.
[00:27:22] Speaker B: Woolsey is.
[00:27:22] Speaker C: I know this is about Peachtree City, but Woolsey is the fifth town in Fayette county that's off. If you blink, you kind of miss it.
[00:27:29] Speaker A: Not everybody knows about Woolsey, but it's. It's a darling small city and they have a wonderful mayor and wonderful leadership.
[00:27:37] Speaker C: Absolutely. Yeah, most definitely. So I know we could talk about recreation all day with the. I mean, the mixed use paths alone are amazing. Such a unique thing. I don't think there's any other suburb, especially in the Atlanta area, that has such an amenity.
So we could. Like I said, we could talk about recreation all day, and I think it's amazing. I'll probably do another. Another video, another show on. On just the recreation side. But we talked about a lot of the exciting things that are coming to Peachtree City and, and what you've seen while you've.
[00:28:07] Speaker B: While you've been mayor.
[00:28:08] Speaker C: I do want to point out, though, like, what a great job our first responders do in the city.
[00:28:14] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:28:14] Speaker C: And they.
[00:28:15] Speaker B: They've gotten some accolades this, this past year. Is that.
[00:28:17] Speaker C: Is that correct?
[00:28:18] Speaker A: Absolutely. Peachtree City remains one of the safest cities in Georgia. Our police department is second to none. They continue to maintain what's called a calea. It's a council for Accreditation of law enforcement agencies CALEA meritorious award status over the years.
Our fire department maintains what's called an ISO 1 class 1 certification, which keeps our homeowners insurance rates as low as possible.
We have added dogs with the last sploss that our voters passed in Fayette County. Thank you one and all. We've been able to add two more canines, police canines to our force.
Our fire department this year has celebrated two cardiac saves. That's amazing. They also continue a redoubled community outreach with a designated community outreach director named Josh Teal. And we. For what this is worth, we hit 6 million views on TikTok.
[00:29:21] Speaker C: I was about to say that the police department does a pretty. They have some funny videos on. On TikTok. I like that they've embraced that.
[00:29:28] Speaker A: And they do police and fire both. I think our police department has more than 27,000 followers on their Facebook page.
[00:29:36] Speaker C: Yeah, it's pretty neat. It definitely Shows the human side of, of you know, they're. And they are, they live and work in the community. So it's, it's a, it's just a nice, nice to see that side of, you know, the lighter side of, of that.
[00:29:47] Speaker A: And not every community supports their police department and their fire department like we do. But our police and fire know that they are very well supported.
[00:29:57] Speaker C: Yeah, it's really good. It's, it's really great. It works very well.
[00:30:00] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:30:01] Speaker C: For sure. Yes.
And the one other thing too I did, did. I'm not, I might be speaking out of turn here. Did the millage rate lower?
[00:30:10] Speaker B: Was that.
[00:30:11] Speaker A: Yes, we're focused on tax relief for our citizens. In this year's budget, fiscal year 2025, we reduced the millage rate from 6.043 to 5.5.983. Hey, every little bit helps. Right? Also as a community wide effort, the five mayors that I mentioned and together with the county, we're going to opt in to the new property tax exemption law called HB581. And as part of that new law, it's a complex law, but we're sorting through it together and figuring out what's best for our citizens here. And as part of that law, we have the option to put a new penny sales tax on the ballot for our citizens. I am advocating against that new 1 penny sales tax. It's called a floss, a flexible local option sales tax. I do not think it is best for our citizens at this time. So I'm advocating against it. It seems like, you know, as citizens we're all doing more with less these days and are government needs to do the same.
[00:31:17] Speaker C: Yeah, that's, that's great to hear you say. And that was kind of hidden in that, in that question on the ballot for sure.
[00:31:23] Speaker A: Yes. Another community outreach thing we did in December is to have a town hall meeting just to hear from our citizens on the topic of HB581 and make sure we shared all the information that we had. It was very, very productive and we found our way forward.
[00:31:38] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:31:39] Speaker B: And it's.
[00:31:39] Speaker C: And we're getting kind of, you know, HP and like the titles of, of things and all that. So, so to kind of get off that. The point is, is that you and the city are definitely focused on making it affordable, making it a great place overall to live. And oftentimes as a real estate agent, I hear, oh, Peachtree City. The taxes in Peachtree City are too high. Right. So this is great that to know that you're you're focused on that and you, and you understand that, like, that's kind of.
[00:32:08] Speaker A: We are. I am very, very conservative when it comes to budgeting. And I do believe that Peachtree residents just want to know they're getting good bang for their buck. We love our recreation, we love our amenities, but we expect our elected leaders to, you know, to be responsible about the money we spend and about the budget that we craft year after year.
[00:32:30] Speaker C: Absolutely. And I got one more question about the city and the infrastructure before we kind of shift gears.
The. More than.
[00:32:39] Speaker B: More than taxes.
[00:32:40] Speaker C: And it's not really that bad. I mean, I said that people complain about the taxes in Petro City. They're comparatively to the rest of the areas in the United States, not that bad at all. No. However, the, the. I think the, the bigger thing, the more obvious thing is the traffic in Petrie City, especially around the, the center of the city. And if you're not familiar with the city, There's State Road 54 and State Road 74 intersect, and they're definitely the busiest roads in the county. I, I would assume. I don't have data on that, but so what I know there's plans to, to, to correct that. And it's been a topic of conversation for, yes, as long as I can remember, but now the action's being taken. You can see action being taken as well when you drive through there.
[00:33:22] Speaker A: Yeah, I think it's the number one concern of our citizens.
Highways 54 and 74 intersect right in the heart of our town. And one of the harsh realities is regional growth in the Atlanta region is moving south. We've been the best kept secret for a long time, and the cat's out of the bag. So we're seeing increased traffic. Coweta county is directly to our west. They are developing commercial residential.
Fayetteville to our east, is developing. So we're having to deal with some harsh realities even as city council members are. Are working to fiercely protect what we love about Peachtree City. We love our green spaces. We love the serenity, we love the parks and the paths. But I am grateful that the Georgia Department of Transportation, as you say, these are state roads and the state funds the improvements. So we're fortunate that GDOT is funding this intersection improvement. It's called a displace left turn intersection improvement. And what it means is that the State is spending $18 million on the construction and another $3 million on right of way acquisition to create a new intersection design that will allow more phase time for the east west on Highway 54, where traffic is so heavy coming in from Coweta and then heading west toward Coweta. So we've been in cooperation with the Georgia Department of Transportation. They're great. I'm on a first name basis with the district engineers as of yesterday. They told me we expect the project to be done and open to traffic by summer of 2026. So obviously it can't come soon enough. We look forward to a completed project, but I fought hard to secure splossed dollars for upgraded signage so that we could end up with a product that is up to Peachtree City standards. So we're going through some inconvenience and some pain right now, but I think ultimately we're going to be glad that the state has helped us out with this terrific project. And it is the largest transportation improvement project in Fayette county history.
[00:35:38] Speaker C: Yeah, it's definitely for those of you who aren't familiar with the area, it's a huge project for sure. And all the work is happening at night, right?
[00:35:47] Speaker A: Overnight. That's right.
I can tell you it's a well run project. The work is being done at night with no lane closures during the day. There might be one technicality the utilities have to relocate as a precursor to a lot of the construction work. One of the utility companies may need a lane closure for some limited hours that they would schedule during the weekend mornings to try to minimize impact. But overall it's a very good project. I'm glad G DOT is here and we're fortunate that they're investing in our community.
[00:36:21] Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. It's, it's. I mean, as you. I'm not telling you anything that you don't know and I'm sure you've get this question a lot about the traffic there, but it's definitely a needed, a needed thing for the city. And what, you know, what an improvement.
[00:36:32] Speaker A: That's, that's the primary concern. The. There are other smaller areas where we're starting to see traffic buildup. Over the recent years, we City council has approved 100% funding for 100% design of a new roundabout at the corner of Peachtree Parkway and Crosstown Road, which is in our Brayland Village. We're also going to see two left turn lanes off of Huddleston Road onto Highway 54 to minimize backups on Huddleston Road. So we have some other projects going as well. We'll keep our eye on the ball there.
[00:37:08] Speaker C: Awesome. Yeah. All right, let's. Let's shift gears a little bit. Let's get a little lighter off this kind of infrastructure and, and bills and laws and, and ballots and stuff like that.
What, you're a resident of Peachtree City, obviously, 25 years. Yeah. So. So take your mayor hat off for this question, the answer to this question, and tell me, what is your favorite thing about living in Peachtree City?
[00:37:33] Speaker A: Oh, my goodness.
I don't want to choose one thing. But of course, running on the paths is my solitude, my solace, my recharge, my batteries. It's right outside my door. It's safe, it's clean, it's unique. In addition to providing paths, we also provide beautiful green corridors for the path to run through. So I get to run past, you know, nature areas and lakes and woods. And I just love everything about it. I love everything about our path system and all that. We use it for, you know, not just recreation and peace of mind, but connectivity and, and then, and it's very social. You know, if you're out on a golf cart or if you're running on a path and you see a neighbor, you're going to stop. You, you will stop and chat. It's good for tourism, recreation, special events. I think our past system is really the most important priority for me. My most enjoyable aspect. But I can't have just one. Right.
I gotta say, I have to give a plug for our July 4th festivities. Peachtree City does 4th of July like nobody else I've ever seen. And of course, our day always starts with a morning parade that is your US police and fire and, and music. But we also have a lot of golf carts involved in golf cart floats. And then at night we enjoy the best fireworks show anywhere. So 4th of July is a really big deal. And I think as another little aside, we have a 2200 seat outdoor amphitheater. It's the Frederick Brown Amphitheater. We call it the Fred. Everybody knows the Fred. If I can take my family, my cooler on the golf cart, and 10 minutes later I'm in a wonderful outdoor live music venue. That's a lot of quality of life right there. I love it.
[00:39:36] Speaker C: Yeah, I agree with, with all of that for sure. And I'm glad you mentioned the, like seeing your neighbors on the path. And that's one thing that's very unique about Peachtree City is the golf cart community. Because you can pretty much get anywhere in the city without a car if you have a golf cart or if you, or if you walk or run on a bike.
[00:39:54] Speaker B: So it's true.
[00:39:55] Speaker A: We're always making improvements. Right now we have a big project going on On Robinson Road to improve access to the middle school.
The last SPLOST included $4 million for some kind of split grade crossing to get from booth middle school to McIntosh High School. Whether that will be a bridge or a tunnel, we have engineers evaluating that right now.
Yeah, we just. Having a golf cart lifestyle is what it's all about in Peachtree city.
[00:40:24] Speaker C: Absolutely. And it's. And it's interesting that it gets. We just talk about traffic and being in your car. It gets you out of that kind of bubble of your automobile and get you back out in the community. So it's definitely. Peachtree city has a. Has a tight knit community. And I think a lot of it has to do with the mixed use paths and people running and biking and golf carting and. And all of the things in the city that are so accessible by the.
[00:40:51] Speaker A: That's right. You know, and that can take a number of forms. It might mean high schoolers going to, you know, McIntosh High School and of course, 300 parking spaces for golf carts there. And it might mean seniors who have given up the car keys, who still have mobility and independence and can still get around on a golf cart. And of course, families. You know, I think the idyllic Peachtree city lifestyle involves taking the family out on the golf cart on a Friday night for an ice cream cone.
[00:41:18] Speaker C: Yes.
[00:41:19] Speaker A: It's quality, quality of life.
[00:41:21] Speaker C: And I can tell you when I, when I have buyers from out of town, if they drive past McIntosh during the school year, they. The. The true magnitude of it being a golf cart community is very obvious because.
[00:41:34] Speaker A: It'S always a good surprise, isn't it?
[00:41:36] Speaker B: It is, yeah.
[00:41:36] Speaker C: Most definitely.
[00:41:38] Speaker B: So great.
[00:41:38] Speaker C: You did put your mare hat back on there for a little bit, but that's okay.
[00:41:42] Speaker A: Couldn't help myself.
[00:41:43] Speaker C: Yeah. So what would you say is to obviously people moving to Petrie city and people want to learn about the area is what this show is really all about. What would you say to somebody that really doesn't know too. Too much about the area? They might know it's that. Well, now they know it's a planned community. We got great mixed youth paths, golf carts.
What else would you say to somebody that's. That's thinking about moving to the area?
[00:42:08] Speaker A: I think the important thing might be we truly have something for everyone.
We are so focused on amenities, recreation facilities, programs and quality of life that we, we have quality programs for everything from tots to seniors. In the past three years, we've also improved. We've added to our family and community events. We have Drake Field, which is located adjacent to City hall, of course, and Drake Field. We have Night Market now. We have Sunset Sounds, free concerts.
We usher in heritage festivals. We have Hispanic Heritage Festival, Italian Heritage Festival, Magnolia Arts Festival. We have an air show. We have something for all interests, and I think everyone is welcome here. We have a very warm welcome community and. And something for everybody.
[00:43:06] Speaker C: Yeah, I agree 100%. It is such a great place to live. We're biased, obviously, because we live here, but it is. It is pretty awesome.
[00:43:14] Speaker A: After 25 years. My husband and I raised our three kids here through elementary schools, middle school, high school. I. I'm never leaving.
[00:43:23] Speaker C: Yeah, that's awesome. That's great to know for sure.
[00:43:26] Speaker B: So what.
[00:43:29] Speaker C: People considering moving? I mean, it's. If you. If you're not convinced this is a great place to live by now, if you're listening or watching the show, then I'm not. I'm not sure how to help.
[00:43:37] Speaker A: All you can do, all you can do after that is come see us.
[00:43:40] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. So what.
[00:43:44] Speaker C: Let me ask you this, because this is your last, your last year of your term.
Will you be running again?
Will you be on the ballot in November?
[00:43:54] Speaker A: So that's a fair question. I love this city and I love this job. I enjoy believing that I'm a positive voice for Peachtree City. I've established good relationships with our fellow sister cities, with our county, with our school system, with the Southern Conservation Trust, with nonprofits. I like momentum. And we have a lot of exciting things on the horizon.
I will make an announcement in February.
[00:44:25] Speaker C: All right. I was hoping you'd get the announcement here on the show, but I understand.
[00:44:30] Speaker A: Stay tuned.
[00:44:32] Speaker C: I'm going to predict. Yes, that's my prediction, but we'll stay tuned to find out for sure. Officially. Well, this has been amazing. Is there anything that I didn't ask you that I should have about Petrie City or anything?
[00:44:45] Speaker A: I just want to thank you for having me today. I really appreciate another opportunity to get the word out, but we have a quality community where the citizens matter. We're working on all kinds of ways to increase citizen voices. All of our meetings are public.
We've even moved one of our two monthly city council meetings to the morning so that maybe we can engage more of our parents or people who can't make it at night. So we have an engaged community, a great staff, great leadership. We have all that we need for the next 65 years.
[00:45:21] Speaker C: I love it. I love it. And I'm going to put links in the show notes for anybody listening or watching the Slice. Definitely subscribe to the Slice, the newsletter from Petrie city.
Look into PTC101, which is a great.
[00:45:36] Speaker A: Now right now we're taking applications.
[00:45:38] Speaker C: And what was the There was one.
[00:45:40] Speaker A: Other there was one other an E newsletter for our business, which is quarterly. But we also always invite and want to hear from our citizens in our city council meetings. And, of course, we have boards, commissions and authorities all all staffed by members of the community on a volunteer basis. So there are lots of ways to get involved. And we want to hear from everyone.
[00:46:04] Speaker C: There is. Absolutely.
Well, Mayor, thank you so much for sharing with us today. And I really, truly appreciate it. And I think you've given some insight to people.
[00:46:16] Speaker D: Thank you for joining us today on Peachtree City Radio.
