For the first time ever, the Atlanta Regional Commission will convene the mayors, city council representatives and county commissioners from the 11-county region.
The all-day Regional Assembly of Public Officials will be held June 26 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Cobb County. The event will bring together elected leaders from 76 cities and 11 counties for “a day of collaboration, learning and regional problem-solving,” according to the organizers of the assembly.
“The Regional Assembly offers a unique opportunity for elected officials in our region to build connections with their peers, exchange best practices and explore solutions to shared challenges,” said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, ARC’s chair, in a statement.
Anna Roach, ARC’s executive director and CEO, said two factors led to the metropolitan planning commission’s decision to hold the event.
“We realized we were very connected to the representatives of the region who sit on our board,” Roach said during a Zoom call. “But the piece we felt was missing was a connection to other elected officials in the region. We did not know to what degree they were aware of the resources that exist at the Atlanta Regional Commission.”
The ARC board is composed of 41 members. There are 11 county commission chairs, 12 mayors, the mayor of the City of Atlanta, a member of the Atlanta City Council, 15 citizen members and a representative from the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.
Roach said the second reason was when she learned that other regions had successfully convened all their elected leaders, including the Southern California Association of Governments. Michigan also holds a similar event, the Mackinac Policy Conference.
ARC leaders then worked on ideas for the best program for the Atlanta region.
“Many of the biggest challenges we face are regional in scope,” Roach said. “Things like traffic, housing costs and air quality don’t stop at the city or county line. They affect all of us.”
The event will start with a welcome from Cobb County Commission Chair Lisa Cupid. Then Dickens will talk about the power of regional collaboration. Roach will then make remarks on how to advance the region into the future.
Mike Alexander, ARC’s chief operating officer, will make a presentation about the region’s demographics and share data on our current state of affairs.
The luncheon keynote address will be delivered by former State Rep. Calvin Smyre (D-Columbus), who served in the Georgia General Assembly for 48 years.
Although Smyre comes from outside the Atlanta region, Roach said he is widely respected on both sides of the aisle for his work around transportation legislation. “He has the ability to bring people together from different areas,” she said.
After lunch, there will be three break-out sessions, which will be repeated after a break, enabling attendees to attend two of them. The three sessions will focus on housing affordability, climate resilience and freight and logistics.
One of the big reasons for holding the regional assembly is to give elected officials a better understanding of all the resources ARC can provide to local governments.
“There’s going to be an exhibit hall of sorts featuring the different ARC programs,” Roach said.
The exhibits include:
- About ARC
- Aging and Independence Services
- Mobility Services
- Protecting Our Resources
- Bike-Ped, Trails, & Safety
- Transportation Innovation
- Climate & Resilience
- Transportation Investments
- Community Development
- Workforce Development
- Data Centers
- Research & Analytics
- Economic Development, Leadership & Outreach
The invitee list went out to nearly 400 local elected officials throughout the 11-county region. So far, ARC has received responses from 150 who are planning to attend.
“It’s going to be a rich program,” said Roach, adding that most of the ARC board members will attend.
When asked whether the regional assembly will be an annual event, Roach said it likely will be held every other year during the second year of the ARC Chair’s two-year term.
This is the second year of Dickens’ term as chair. Nominations for ARC chair will be made in either October or early November. The board will then hold the election for a chair in either November or December. It is not known whether Dickens, who is running for his second term as mayor, will be running for re-election to be chair of the ARC for another two years.
ARC’s 11-county region includes Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale counties as well as the City of Atlanta and 75 other cities.
Great article! The inaugural ARC Regional Assembly is an important step for collaboration among local leaders, tackling shared challenges, and building a stronger Atlanta metro region.