Dunwoody First Mayor Won’t Seek Second Term

 Ken Wright, the first mayor of Dunwoody, announced this week that he won’t be seeking re-election.

Wright, 42, was one of the key organizers in founding the city.

“For me this isn’t the third year, it’s the tenth year of non-stop work,” he said. “This is a good place to end it.”

He said that one term was always the target in his mind.

“I’d been thinking about it for quite some time,” Wright said. “I fully suspected that if everything went well and I could get it running, I could exit stage left.”

Wright’s seat, along with three council seats – currently held by John Heneghan, Robert Wittenstein and Danny Ross – will be up for election this fall.

Wright, an entrepreneur and founder and current president of eHealthcare IT, said he hadn't intended to run for mayor, just help to establish a city.

“Once we finished, we got the referendum with citizens for Dunwoody, I was like ‘I’m done,’” he said. “That was a ton of work. Then I changed my mind.”

Wright was elected the first mayor in the city’s first election. 

He said the key for the council was building the city's strength, putting it on a solid foundation.

Even after establishing a city, “You can still go wrong operational wise,” he said. “For us, there was seriously no latitude for mistakes. If you make any misstep you don’t really have any cushion.”

He said the council’s accomplishments since the city started have been really getting the city fully functional, he said.

“As far as accomplishments, you can’t overlook the obvious,” he said of getting the city up and running.

He said he has no real personal agenda for the city in moving toward the end of his term this fall.

Still, he’d be happy to see the Dunwoody Village Parkway be redeveloped into a walkable, bikeable streetscape, a project that had been discussed 10 years ago.

The city has since drawn up concepts and found grant money to help pay for the project.

“It’s moving along,” he said. “It’s just something that takes a long time. I would love if that thing breaks ground before the end of the year.”

Wright said he’s looking forward to a little bit more time for his personal life.

“There are so many things that are pulling you in different directions,” he said. “So much vying for your time. I definitely want to spend more time with my family, spend a little more time on my career.”

After he finishes his term as the mayor of Dunwoody, Wright said he’ll turn his ambition to the skies for his next item on his bucket list.

“A pilot’s license is something I’ve wanted to get since I was 14-years-old," he said.

Wright said as a child he'd dreamed of being a pilot, and he hopes to get his license at the DeKalb Peacthree Airport in the next few years.

Wright lives in the Wyntercreek neighborhood with his wife Terri and their children Cassidy and Clayton.