Smyrna City Council Approves RaceTrac

The proposed RaceTrac is on its way in while a pair of Smyrna city councilmen are on their way out.

Such as it was on a busy Monday evening at a crowded City Hall where councilmen Pete Wood, Ward 7, and Jimmy Smith, Ward 5, announced they would not be seeking reelection in the fall.

“Everybody in Smyrna is going to miss you because of the contributions you’ve made,’’ Mayor Max Bacon told Wood. “Thank you so much for all you’ve done.’’

Wood has served on the city council since 1991 and prior to that was a member of the Downtown Smyrna Development Authority. Smith served six years on the Smyrna Planning and Zoning Board before his election to the city council in 2003. “I appreciate the help from the staff and all the citizens from Ward 5,’’ the Smyrna native remarked.

When it came to the business at hand Monday, the Smyrna City Council voted 7-0 to approve RaceTrac’s plan to build a nearly 6,000-square-foot station near the intersection of Spring Road and Bell Drive.

Before the RaceTrac public hearing began, it was standing room only to begin the meeting as Smyrna Fire Chief Jason Lanyon prevented as many as 30 people from entering due to fire code restrictions.

But once the Smyrna Sharks dive team, who won the Greater Atlanta Dive League Division B Championship were honored by the council, they and their parents cleared out to allow everyone in.

Many were there for the public hearing to discuss a proposed Urban Redevelopment Plan. Patch will have more on this coming Tuesday as the council plans to vote on the Urban Redevelopment Plan at its next meeting scheduled on August 1.

And just as they were at last week’s Smyrna Planning and Zoning Board meeting when rezoning measures for RaceTrac’s flagship convenience store were approved by a 5-1 vote, citizens both for and against the gas station came Monday to express their opinion.

Said Lori Pavlick, who lives across the street from the proposed station, “What I’m concerned about is the amount of garbage, the noise, the traffic and the crime; these are legitimate concerns.’’

But unlike last week’s meeting, more citizens during the input portion of the hearing were for the station than against. Said Councilwoman Teri Anulewicz, “One of my questions is what RaceTrac is doing to ensure that this station will look good throughout next two decades, and my concerns have been addressed.

“I understand that opposition to this rezoning request ranges from residents with valid concerns about traffic and construction, to people who own competing service stations on Spring Road. The concerns of the former are, I feel, valid and worthy of consideration, and I have taken them into account. As I believe in a free market, the concerns of the latter are far less compelling. At the end of the day, this is a permitted use. I expect RaceTrac to be a good neighbor, and a good citizen.’’

Patch will provide additional coverage of the RaceTrac public hearing and other city council meeting issues including the Urban Redevelopment Plan public hearing on Tuesday.