Upcoming Peachtree Corners Referendum Vote a Contentious Issue

There has been a flurry of activity in Peachtree Corners surrounding the upcoming referendum vote on Nov. 8. Signs are posted and meetings are being held throughout the community.

The , (UPCCA), the organization spearheading the campaign for the community to become the county's 16th city has made a push to get the information out by holding neighborhood meetings to explain the referendum, its impact and to answer questions.

Mike Mason, UPCCA president, has been spending the past several months explaining to voters the impact their vote will have. Just last week he held two back-to-back meetings to explain the issues involved and what it means for the citizens of this community of some 38,000 people.

The city would provide three services:

• planning and zoning
• code enforcement
• solid waste removal

"Cityhood means having legal boundaries," explained Mason "With planning and zoning, we'll have control of what comes in," said Mason who pointed out that the only large tract of undeveloped land was the property across from The Forum and that as a city the citizens would have a say in how that property is developed. Currently the property is slated for an apartment complex.

Code enforcement would ensure property owners maintained their property, and solid waste would be in the control of the city which would likely be able to negotiate a better rate than the current Gwinnett County plan.

Despite these assurances there were some skeptics at one of last week's meetings who expressed concern about the additional bureaucracy that a city would bring.

Bruce Barrett, a resident of the Timbers subdivision who attended the Tuesday night meeting, had a question about the provision in the charter that would provide a retirement plan for the city's officers and employees.

"I'm a little concerned about the dryconian conditions of some of the provisions," said Barrett after the meeting who was holding a copy of the charter in his hands. "The charter allows for blanket pensions, what sort of pensions?"

Mason pointed out that the current forecast indicates that there would be two to three employees and a city manager needed to see that the city operates smoothly with a likelyhood that at least some of the personnel would be hired on a contract basis which would eliminate pension plans for those individuals.

Others are concerned that it's just a matter of time before the city's three services be expanded into a full-service city.

Jimmy Neese, an outspoken opponnet said to the crowd, "Things are going to get out of control, it will grow and snowball."

Mason pointed to the provision in the charter that limits the city's growth. "If you want to add services to the city, it has to be approved by a referendum vote. It must go through the state legislature to add services," explained Mason.

Long-time Peachtree Station resident Richard Chambers, said he's supporting the efforts and will vote yes on Nov. 8. "I've got a sign in my front yard. I think the closer we can be to overseeing who governs us the better we'll be."

State Rep. Tom Rice (R-Dist 52) who helped write the charter and saw it through the General Assembly for passage in May of this year pointed out that cityhood will provide citizens more oversight in their community.

"If you want control of what's going on in your neighborhoods then here's your chance to elect local leaders," said Rice.

The charter calls for a mayor and six council members to oversee what would become Gwinnett County's largest city.