A Q&A With Mayoral Candidates Crist and Preston

In the run-up to the Nov. 8 elections, Lilburn mayoral candidates Johnny Crist and Diana Preston (incumbent) recently responded to a set of questions from Patch. Here's what they said.

Question: Why do you feel you are the best candidate for mayor of Lilburn?

Crist: Leadership matters! We can wait no longer to have a restored downtown area where friends can gather for coffee, shopping or have a late night dinner. I have spent my career listening to people, dreaming and formulating plans to execute ideas into reality.  We need a vision-driven leader in the mayor’s office.

Preston: I have been involved in Lilburn on Citizens Planning /Zoning and Merit Boards in addition to 18 years serving as a council member and four years as mayor. My background in Gwinnett as a teacher, administrator and the system’s ESOL and Foreign Language coordinator have given me experience in budgeting, grant writing and an affinity for understanding the diverse cultures that make up Lilburn. I have made strong relationships with county leaders over the years through my involvement as a Board Member of Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful and an active Leadership Gwinnett alumna. I have served on several County committees: led the effort promoting the first County SPLOST referendum to build public libraries, Gwinnett Relay for Life Co-Chair, 2004 Citizens Task Force for SPLOST Recommendations, Gwinnett Chamber Board of Directors in 1998 and President of Gwinnett Municipal Association in 1998. The relationships I have built over the years have been valuable as I seek to promote our redevelopment efforts in Lilburn.

Question: What is your vision for Lilburn in the next five years?

Crist: Like most people in our city I dream of a lovely community with restaurants, flourishing businesses, boutiques, coffee shops, cultural arts events in the park and trails for walking and biking and a presentable Highway 29. In our present condition we cannot achieve all those lofty ideals in only five years. The process must begin with a thoughtful vision statement, a strategic plan and the funding to move the city forward. Without these three significant building blocks we will only achieve hodge-podge building projects here and there. Leadership matters!

Preston: I see a vibrant redeveloped Lilburn with a Town Center that includes housing for seniors and young professionals, pedestrian/bicycle trails connecting parks, the new library /city hall complex completed, aged shopping centers being transformed into walkable, village style mixed- use complexes with outdoor patio seating in park-like settings. I visualize a destination attraction with hotels, shops and restaurants nearby. I see safe, well maintained neighborhoods with a strong sense of community resulting from an active Neighborhood Watch program which is coordinated citywide through Safety Smart Lilburn. City Park is booked with festivals and concerts on a regular basis in the spring, summer and fall attracting people from all over Metro Atlanta. Downtown Lilburn is alive with shops and a homestyle restaurant. I see Lilburn residents who reflect our city’s demographics volunteering and serving on committees and running for elective office. We have a Trade and Tourism Board which is funded by the Hotel/Motel tax to promote events and economic development in Lilburn. The tax digest is strong, property values for commercial and residential are on the upswing and revenues exceed expenses. Our police department continues to keep our city safe for our many visitors through its high visibility.  I see a fully staffed city administration with a public relations and event planning staff. Our staff including police reflect our community’s diversity.

Question: What is the biggest problem facing Lilburn?

Preston: Loss of value in the tax digest. We saw this trend coming several years ago and began the process to put in place tools that will make redevelopment attractive to private investors without creating a tax burden on our citizens. We started with a Livable Centers Initiative Study which qualified us for grants that we used for Main St. streetscaping and the Greenway Trail. We also formed a Downtown Development Authority that could act in concert with City vision in attracting the kind of development and investors that our community desires. Our citizens passed the Redevelopment Powers Act which allows the City to create a Tax Allocation District to pay for improvements without the citizens paying for it through their property taxes. Three years ago we helped start the Lilburn Community Improvement District which is aggressively seeking funds to improve our commercial corridors and attract redevelopment investors.  We also acquire a AA Moody’s bond rating which will help us secure a good interest rate when needed. We hired a City Manager whose focus is redevelopment and he has in turned retooled staff positions to have the same focus.

Crist: It puzzles me how we can make decisions in the city government of Lilburn when we have no clear vision/mission statement, no strategic plan, little communication between the DDA, CID and the City Council, no regular weekly updates between city council members and the mayor and little input from the residents of this city. As mayor I will immediately prioritize fixing these infrastructure issues in our city. We need a fresh start in our city’s highest office. Leadership matters!

Question: What is the priority in Lilburn’s tax dollar use (construction, business, traffic, education, arts, parks)?

Crist: Without a plan our tax dollars are presently spent at the whim of whatever comes our way. My first priority will be to invest time with the council, city leaders and business community to develop a “road map” of where we want to go. With a plan in place, we will know what priorities will attract our tax dollars. Personally I will prioritize those activities that attract and secure new businesses for Lilburn and renovate downtown.

Preston: Providing police services, plan review, permitting, economic development, road and right of way maintenance, solid waste removal, code compliance, human resource management, financial management and records management.

Question: How do you feel about Sunday alcohol sales in Lilburn?

Preston: The voters will decide.

Crist: This is a decision that will be voted on by our residents. My opinion on this matter only equals one vote. 

Question: If you could go back in time, would you have handled the mosque/zoning issue differently? 

Crist: Yes, I would have pressed the council to “communicate, communicate, communicate”. One of the leadership lessons I’ve learned is that in difficult times communication must be prioritized in order to avoid misunderstandings.  We could have sent mass emails to our residents or press releases from our city manager, mayor or city attorneys. Even though these issues were sensitive issues we could have hosted a Town Hall meeting during that time.  Without clear and consistent communication rumors will fly – and they did!

Preston: Until August 16, I was recused from commenting on matters regarding the mosque zoning issue. It was frustrating to read emails going around that had so much misinformation. Now that I am no longer recused, I am trying to set the record straight on a number of issues: During the litigation, the Mosque and the City made numerous concessions to allow for a strong rezoning application that addressed the neighborhood’s concerns as well as the Mosque’s need to expand in order to accommodate their worship needs. The City removed the 5 acre minimum for location of a worship center in the Hwy 29 Commercial Overlay district, and because there was a desire to have new cemeteries located adjacent or across from existing cemeteries, the City instituted a new zoning classification for locating new cemeteries. When these two zoning resolutions were adopted, the Mosque no longer needed my property for its expansion and they then revised the application to include their worship center and parking lot only on my neighbor’s property. They planned to use the building on my neighbor’s property as a residence. They removed the cemetery and activity center from the plan.  In December, the Planning Commission did not object to the rezoning, but had concerns with the buffers, worship building footprint and traffic on Hood Rd. The application failed to get approval with a council vote of 2-2. There was no motion for denial. On August 16, the Council reheard the application and this time, the problems with the buffers, square footage of the building and traffic concerns on Hood Rd. had been addressed. The expansion plan was totally within the Highway 29 Overlay Commercial District and compliant with the 2030 Lilburn Comprehensive Land Use Plan. There was no legal reason to deny the application and it passed with 3 votes for and 1 vote against. Had the vote resulted in a denial after all these concessions had been made, there City attorney and the insurance attorney are of the opinion that the Mosque would have prevailed and could have asked the Judge to rule on the original application which would have resulted in the Mosque, the Activity Building and Cemetery all included. In addition to the ongoing litigation with the Dar-e-abbas zoning application, there was also a suit initiated in January, 2011 by the Department of Justice alleging religious discrimination by the City staff and elected officials. In spite of the August 16 approval of the zoning application, the Department of Justice decided to impose sanctions on the City of Lilburn for five years. The sanctions include training for board members, elected officials and staff. While we do not feel we could have prevailed in the suit with Dar-e-abbas, we feel very strongly that we could have won the suit with the Department of Justice. However, instead of our insurance company paying legal fees, the City would have had to use its operating funds and the suit no doubt would have taken two years to settle.  Therefore, the Council voted to accept the consent decree and not continue litigation.

Question: How do you plan to improve Lilburn’s community involvement?  

Preston: We already have a number of volunteers who help put on some of our events and many who turn out for Community Clean-up programs. I plan to work through the Neighborhood Watch, Homeowner Associations and Safety Smart Lilburn to solicit residents to invest time in their city and neighborhoods.  Coordinating volunteers requires staff time to train, supervise and schedule. Right now we are very lean in regard to staff and as revenues increase, we may be able to work that in as an additional responsibility for a staff position. 

Crist: We’ll begin with new events in the park. For the past 3 1/2 years while I have chaired the park committee we created the Lilburn Farmer’s Market, the annual Kid’s Bike Parade and safety rodeo and other events.  In addition I created the whole concept of our “Town Hall Meetings”. These events were launched with almost no budget. As mayor I will help create a budget for our coming annual events such as Taste of Lilburn, Lilburn Jazz Festival, Concourse Auto show on Festival Field and local High School Battle of the Bands.

Question: What else would you like Lilburn residents to know? 

Preston: Being Mayor in these tough economic times is challenging and requires a commitment of time. We are a small city competing with other cities in the Atlanta area for resources and investment. I try to support the city manager and staff by going to meetings, events and representing Lilburn whenever possible. Also, when I plan personal trips, I always have Lilburn in mind as I see what works in other communities. Lastly, I am retired and have the flexible time to promote Lilburn and serve its citizens. I hope people will see me more as a servant leader than a politician.

Crist: We are all eager to see significant positive change come to Lilburn.  With a fresh vision for the city, with clear communication and by working together, we can save Lilburn from the plague of mediocrity. Leadership matters!