Gwinnett County locals might soon have a say in carving out their slice of suburbia—with bills on the table to establish the new city of Mulberry in northern Gwinnett County. Legislators are tuning into the chorus of concerns from residents eager to address zoning issues fueling discontent within their communities.
With an outcry from constituents as their impetus, House Majority Leader Chuck Efstration and Sen. Clint Dixon, placed bills in motion, aware that the people they serve are craving more control over the future growth sprouting around them. "We've got some zoning issues that are going on in that area that residents aren't happy about," Sen. Dixon told FOX 5 Atlanta, detailing the motivations behind the legislative push.
Amid the bustle of city-making efforts that have dotted the metro Atlanta landscape, Mulberry is proposed to mirror Peachtree Corners in size—with the added cherry on top of no new city property tax. "Only existing taxes and fees that are already paid would be received by the city and then would be used to pay for the city services which would be offered," Efstration clarified, in a nod to fiscal prudence as conveyed to a local Fox affiliate.
While the path to cityhood has proved thorny for some—take "The City of Buckhead City," whose aspirations were quashed by a Senate vote—Mulberry's prospects look rosier. A feasibility study noted by James Magazine Georgia confirms the proposed city can stand on its financial feet without shaking down residents for more property taxes. Should lawmakers give the green light, Gwinnett County voters could have their say on Mulberry's future later this year.
The wave of cityhood efforts across the metro area, kicked off by Sandy Springs back in 2006, has seen a boom with eleven new cities springing up—Mableton being the latest to join the ranks. Mulberry aims to continue this trend, riding on broad support and legislative backing that suggests a community eager to take the reins on its destiny. "There's real interest in the district I represent for this measure to be passed," Efstration exclaimed, according to reports, showing a confident front as the debate awaits at the Capitol.
