« Its Official! We Have a City Manager! | Main | County Chairman Candidates propose new tax initiatives, Citizens Beware! »
What’s going on in Snellville? Nothing.
By Jerry | June 18, 2008
As Mayor, people are always asking me what new and exciting projects we have in the works to make the city a better, more vibrant place to live and play. I can answer that we’re working toward a new building a new public safety building and that we are getting ready to renovate Briscoe Park.
But when compared to other cities in Gwinnett, Snellville just can’t compete. It’s unfortunate that the AJC and Gwinnett Daily Post continue to publish articles about Norcross, Lilburn, Duluth, and Suwanee’s efforts to re-invent themselves, while all anyone ever hears about Snellville is council in-fighting and lack of progress.
Just this morning, the Gwinnett Daily Post published an article about Norcross and their city council’s effort to enhance their community.
Refusing to let their city be pigeon-holed as suburbia, (Mayor Bucky) Johnson and Skip Nau, the chairman of the DDA, are creating an urban persona for Norcross through tangible development in the town. From quaint antique shops to brand-new Cuban and Italian restaurants, downtown Norcross is teeming with variety, mixing the new and the old. According to Nau, the $4 million renovation of Lillian Webb Field will get the ball rolling. The new park will have two fountains, a waterfall, an elaborate bandstand and the Gateway Plaza at the entrance.”
The DDA will also build new residences surrounding the park. According to Nau, two residential buildings will flank the entrance to the park on Jones Street, and 10 live-work condos will line College Street. Nau said the condos and flats will overlook the park so residents can experience the soul of small town life without having to live in a traditional subdivision.”
- Gwinnett Daily Post article by Shalini Ramachandran on June 18th, 2008
With the groundbreaking for their new park this morning, Norcross is joining the ranks of Duluth and Suwanee as cities that have taken the initiative to create something special, something beyond the normal lines of suburbia.
Folks in Norcross are not just happy to see their town grow positively, they are genuinely excited and involved in the process. As more and more cities take the initiative to redevelop their main corridors, it strengthens my case that same thing can happen here in Snellville. But for that to happen, it takes leadership and commitment.
A few months ago I asked the Snellville City Council to come up with ideas to help fuel redevelopment of our downtown.
I received nothing.
In fact, the only thing anyone on council has proposed is to provide free advertising on the city web site for their favored business!
- No new development initiatives.
- No collaboration with the Downtown Development Authority.
- No tax incentives for redevelopment.
- No commitment to transportation improvements for our existing businesses.
- No commitment to revamp our antiquated Sunday sales laws.
These things have all been addressed and committed to by all of the other cities mentioned in this article.
But not Snellville.
It’s unfortunate that it feels as if sometimes members of the city council would rather halt positive progress for political gain. It’s time we get past that. Russell Treadway, our new city manager, is on board and it should be seen as opportunity to get beyond the past arguments and truly do something substantial to brighten our city’s future.
I know that it seems as if some on council will never come to the table and work things out, but I cannot go on and let the future of our city die while others in Gwinnett are getting brighter and brighter.
It’s time for the council to step up to the plate and show some leadership, and to show the rest of Gwinnett we mean business!
Topics: Thoughts, Newspaper Articles |
June 19th, 2008 at 7:01 am
I would love to see the section of Oak Road from Scenic Hwy to Main Stret turned into an artist’s row someday - perhaps now is not the time for that - but as the buildings become older and the businesses that are in them relocate and we are left with a lot of old buildings that just sit with “For Rent” signs on them, some sort of incentive program to bring artists to Snellville to live and work in the area would probably be a good idea. (See Bradenton Florida’s Village of the Arts for one example)
http://www.squidoo.com/bradentonvillageofthearts
I didn’t think the Sunday liquor sales was a big deal, but it seems more and more apparent that it IS. Snellville isn’t getting the nice developments that surrounding areas are. What many don’t realize that The Avenue Shops at Webb Gin is actually within Lawrenceville City limits. Businesses are going to look at all the local laws, taxes, and incentives before they decide to build. If Snellville wants to attract the nicest businesses, we should work to be the very best choice hand-down, all the time.