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Town Hall Meeting Minutes
<br />Recreation
<br />Saturday, February 5, 2022
<br />9 a.m.
<br />Mayor Kim Learnard thanked everyone for attending. She thanked Recreation and Special Events
<br />Director Quinn Bledsoe, City Manager Jon Rorie, City Clerk Yasmin Julio, and IT Specialist Stephen
<br />Shelton for coming in on a Saturday morning. Council members Frank Destadio, Mike King, and Phil
<br />Prebor were also present.
<br />The Mayor recalled that during her eight years as a Council member, they disbanded the Recreation
<br />Commission, which she felt was the right thing to do, but now seemed to be a good time to assess the
<br />current situation in recreation. The parks and recreational amenities were what made Peachtree City a
<br />standout. They wouldn't solve anything today, Learnard continued, but Council needed to be good
<br />listeners, and this input from citizens would help them decide what steps to take going forward.
<br />Council had control over the annual budget, and there was a committee meeting now that would
<br />propose projects to be funded through the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST). In
<br />November, potentially, voters would see the countywide SPLOST on the ballot. If the majority of
<br />Peachtree City voters approved it, it would probably pass, and they would have that sales tax money
<br />to spend on local projects.
<br />Learnard said she looked forward to hearing what the citizens had to say and hoped this meeting
<br />would be constructive and positive.
<br />BMX Track Director Shayne Robinson said she served on the Peachtree City Recreation Board for 10
<br />years, and had also served on the Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) Board, and the Fayette
<br />County Transportation Board for five years. BMX was where her heart was, though, she said. They
<br />started racing at the track six weeks ago, and numbers were up. They averaged 100 to 1 10 riders every
<br />weekend, with about 500 people at the track. Two big events were coming up this year. Regional
<br />Qualifiers were March 25-26, and they were working with a hotel on that. State Qualifiers would also be
<br />here. She said she worked closely with Bledsoe and her staff and thanked them.
<br />Lights were a concern for some people there, but Robinson said the lights were the best thing that had
<br />ever happened for BMX. Because it was pay as you go, a lot of local parents who did not get off work
<br />early could bring their kids at night. The lights were 42 years old, so the price was just $2 an hour, she
<br />remarked. It also meant less vandalism. They had had nothing but positive feedback. There were times
<br />when they worked through the night to slurry the track. If she needed lights, she reached out to the
<br />City for extra time, Robinson related. They had invested in their own security cameras and had five. This
<br />contributed to the decrease in vandalism and also could monitor the dog park.
<br />Robert Sanford said he was president of both AFC Soccer and Lazer Soccer. They were bouncing back
<br />from the pandemic, and he expected about 3,500 players from youth, travel, and adult for spring and
<br />fall and a smaller group for summer. He explained that they shared organization with Fayette County
<br />for the travel side of youth soccer.
<br />He said he had been doing this for about 15 years. The fields were in great shape, and the facilities
<br />looked the best they had ever looked, but there were still drainage problems at the Peachtree City
<br />Athletic Complex (PAC) and Glenloch. After heavy rains, those fields could take weeks to dry. Their
<br />dream was to one day get some kind of turf option in Peachtree City to bring them in line with nearby
<br />communities.
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