Remembering The Efforts of 20 Years Ago To Save The Rural Character of The Area

Twenty years ago we were in the middle of the public process that would lead to the formation of the Fulton County zoning overlay for the most southern 40,000 acre tip of Fulton County and the branding of the 60,000 acre Chattahoochee Hill Country.  This lead to Serenbe and later the formation of the city of Chattahoochee Hills,  The years have dashed by in a flash and the decades are starting to flip by which is evidenced by our young daughters who now have children of their own playing in the woods of their childhood. When I glance in the mirror the lines in my face are a non deniable stamp that time is indeed passing. 

During my seven years of retirement in the 1990s, I spent time with our neighbors and heard the stories of the open vistas of rolling agricultural land in this area.  In the early nineteen hundreds the only trees in the area were around the houses and everything else was fields or pastures.  There is a long history about our area that stretches back decades and centuries that needs to be researched and documented.  We have some of the stories but I fear others have been lost as some of the old-timers have passed on. 

Accepting the fact that I am stepping into elder-hood, it was suggested that I share the evolution of the last 30 years since we bought the farm on a whim during an afternoon drive back in 1991.   We were charmed by the rolling countryside, the people who lived here and Palmetto which seemed frozen in time.  We got our gas at Pulliam’s services station where Supermercado La Bendician now operates the restaurant and store.  Mr. Huffmaster would pump our gas, wash the windshield and give the girls each a Double Bubble gum.  One of the best cat fish restaurants was down the street where 613 Main Restaurant is today.  Lambert’s Pharmacy was on Main street and although the soda fountain was no longer operating it remained in the front corner of the store as a reminder of another era.  

Main Street Palmetto remains physically unchanged to the eye but the Northern edge has dramatically changed.  Where the Chevron and strip mall sits was a historic home and grounds lost to development.  The rural roads are nearly unchanged which is a result of the 2002 overlay.  The overlay was the largest zoning change in recent history for metro Atlanta and unique for the United States as a whole, balancing development with agriculture preservation.  The passage of this zoning overlay lead to editorials, local and national stories,  local awards and a National Planning Association award for Fulton County. 

I have had a front row seat to the last 20 years and feel the responsibility to share the history with the many people who have joined us in the the last few year.  Over the course of the next few months leading to the  20th anniversary of the the 40,000 acre Chattahoochee Hill Country Overlay adoption in August of 2002, I will attempt to remember and share those recollections with you.