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Three weeks later, the Troup County Board of Commissioners has approved an agreement that will allow Lovejoy Capital to take the next steps toward developing portions of Pyne Road Park.

On April 15,  the commissioners tabled discussion on the agreement to allow the developer Lovejoy Capital to seek approval from the Army Corps of Engineers to develop portions of the park with cabins and other commercial amenities. Because the county only leases the park owned by the Corps, Lovejoy needs permission from the Corps before the county can finalize any potential plans.

The county still hasn’t fully agreed to allow the development.

Discussion on the potential development began in September 2025 when the county received an unsolicited proposal for a public-private partnership to develop parts of the park. Lovejoy Capital proposed a deal where it would invest upwards of $46 million to build cabins and other camping-style rental units within the park, along with other attractions to bring people to the park.  

The proposed attractions include a hedge maze, a canopy walk, an inclusive playground, and expanded bike and hiking trails. Lovejoy believes the Corps will sign off on the proposed amenities because they align with the park’s master plan to bring people closer to nature.

In the partnership, Lovejoy would fully fund the developments at the park. They would then be allowed to operate and receive revenue from cabin rentals and other amenities in the park. The county would receive a percentage of those revenues along with increased hotel-motel and sales taxes, as well as other benefits from increased tourism for Troup County.

The agreement to allow Lovejoy to seek approval from the Corps was tabled for three weeks due to concerns about a last-minute change to the agreement. The change removed a claw-back clause that would have required the county to pay $500,000 if it were to back out in bad faith.

After realizing that the clause caused some concern from commissioners, Lovejoy agreed to remove it just before the April board meeting. County Attorney Mark Degennaro recommended tabling consideration of the agreement so that he could fully review any impact it could have on the contract.

On Tuesday, the discussion was continued on the agreement, including some pushback from Commissioner Jamie Thrailkill.

Thrallkill asked Murphy Talmadge, Managing Partner at Lovejoy Capital, if they would consider scaling back the plans.

“My concern is, I don’t mind … I would like to see cabins or playgrounds or something like that going out there, but I am very concerned about the size of projects you want to do and what traffic it would bring,” Thrallkill said.

Talmadge said that the ultimate scope of the project will depend on the financing and what the feasibility study concludes but that is further down the road in planning. He said the final plans for the park would need to be economically feasible and approved by both the county and the Corps.

But this is just an agreement needed to move forward with determining that, he said.

Talmadge added that he believes the development could also potentially improve traffic in the area because more visitors would be staying in the park overnight rather than driving back into town.

Ultimately, the commissioners approved the agreement pending a review from the county attorney with a 3-1 vote, with Thrailkill voting against the measure. Final approval of the park plans will, if at all, come at a later date.