Milton Mayor Elected As Regional GA Municipal President

MILTON, GA — Milton Mayor Joe Lockwood recently has been elected as a regional president with the Georgia Municipal Association, a role in which he'll serve as a key liaison between that organization and 11 North Georgia cities.

Lockwood will represent the North Region of District 3, which encompasses metro Atlanta, for the Georgia Municipal Association. GMA, as it is commonly called, is the non-profit organization representing all 538 of Georgia's municipal governments through legislative advocacy, educational opportunities, employee benefits to its members and more. Elected officials from these cities, such as Lockwood, often play key roles at the GMA.

"It's an honor to represent our region as part of the Georgia Municipal Association," Lockwood said. "It's valuable, too, for the City of Milton to have a seat at the table, especially in these unique and challenging times."

GMA divides the state into 12 districts. One of the most prominent is District 3, which itself consists of seven sub-regions (North, Northeast, East, Central, South, West and Southwest) around metro Atlanta. Lockwood is the new president of District 3's North Region, which includes Sandy Springs, Roswell, Johns Creek, Alpharetta, Mountain Park, Woodstock, Holly Springs, Canton, Ball Ground, Waleska, as well as Milton.

In this role, Lockwood will attend GMA-sponsored events, push for common legislative priorities, promote GMA programs, as well as communicate with and advocate for the region's cities. The mayor will also serve on the Association's 66-member Board of Directors.

He assumed this position on July 2 upon being chosen at the Georgia Municipal Association's virtual convention; at the same event, Union City Mayor Vince Williams was elected as GMA President, replacing Dublin Mayor Phil Best.

Lockwood will serve for up to two years or through the remainder of his time in office as the regional president. His current term as Milton's mayor - his fourth - ends in January 2022, and he cannot run again for the same office due to term limits.