County approves guidelines for Pyne Road Park public-private partnerships

Published 11:08 am Saturday, December 7, 2024

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Troup County has approved a resolution that could lead to a partnership to develop portions of Pyne Road Park.

On Tuesday, the Troup County Board of Commissioners approved a resolution to establish guidelines for the county to participate in public-private partnerships.

The move was necessitated to move forward with the proposed partnership with Lovejoy Capital, which would develop a portion of Pyne Road Park.

Lovejoy proposed a public-private partnership where they would invest upwards of $46 million to build 30-plus cabins and other camping-style rental units within Pyne Road Park, along with a plethora of attractions to bring people to the park.

Proposed attractions include a hedge maze, a canopy walk, an inclusive playground and expanded bike and hiking trails. The amenity concepts aim to go along with the goals of the park’s master plan to bring people closer to nature.

Under the proposed partnership agreement, Lovejoy would provide the funding for the improvements at the park and, for their part, would operate and receive revenue from cabin rentals and other amenities in the park. For its part, the county would receive a percentage of those revenues along with increased hotel-motel and sales taxes as well as other benefits to increased tourism for Troup County.

County Attorney Jerry Willis explained that the resolution creates guidelines for public-private partnerships and sets what the county is going to be able to do at the park. It also says what they’re not going to be able to do, such as have their own water or electricity out there.

“We have to have those regulations in place so that they can be looked at so that any project offer or proposal has to comply with those regulations,” Willis said.

The resolution was unanimously approved by the Board of Commissioners.

Commission Chairman Patrick Crews said the board is expected to consider the proposed Pyne Road Park partnership at a subsequent commissioners meeting.