Time to Move On and Unite as One City

By Eric Tanenblatt, Chairman of the Buckhead Coalition

The years-long cityhood debate made it possible—perhaps even easy—to view each other as adversaries with distinct and opposing visions for our community’s future.

But we’re not rivals, and we never were; we’re neighbors, now and always.

By now, you’ve heard that the Georgia Senate considered legislation that would have allowed for the fragmentation of Atlanta.

A different path was chosen, and it’s time to move forward together to build the safest, most prosperous and best-run city possible.

Buckhead is a unique economic engine—the sort of rising tide that lifts all boats, as President Ronald Reagan said.

Considering its significant contributions to the local tax base, it’s not too much for Buckhead to expect that its trash be picked up, its sewers don’t overrun and giant potholes don’t persist.

After years of feeling ignored and undervalued, city hall’s new leadership is finally taking Buckhead’s concerns seriously. 

The city’s recent and ongoing public services and safety initiatives, including a new police precinct and remote security infrastructure, show it understands the imperative to deliver for taxpayers.

Thanks to the activism and engagement of residents and civic groups, Buckhead now leads the City of Atlanta in crime reduction, with crime falling by 14 percent year-over-year. That progress represents a decent down payment, but a great debt is still owed. And you better believe we’re going to collect.

As Chair of the Buckhead Coalition, our priorities for the next year will include a continued focus on public safety. We will champion improvements to city services, transportation and infrastructure needs and zoning regulations through new and stronger partnerships with local and state officials and community organizations. The Coalition will continue implementing the Buckhead Security Plan, including placing more security cameras to complement the new police precinct in the Buckhead Village through a collaborative effort of the Coalition, Buckhead Community Improvement District and the Atlanta Police Department. 

The Buckhead model of civic and public-private cooperation is often imitated but never duplicated, because it’s taken decades of work to get us here. Today, Buckhead is as much a home to big businesses as small families. That these stark incongruencies exist simultaneously is a testament to the founding vision of the Buckhead Coalition and helps explain why our community is and will remain the jewel of Atlanta.

But as we hold the city accountable to its most basic commitments of quality municipal services and public safety, it’s equally important that Buckhead neighbors tear down the artificial fences that the cityhood debate constructed between us.

We may have favored different paths at one time, but now we’re walking the same one. As the old proverb says, go alone if you want to go fast but go together if you want to go far. Me, I hope we go far.

This is sponsored content.