Community Corner

City Of Tucker Declared Viable

The announcement was made at an event on Main Street Saturday morning.

A feasibility study has concluded that the proposed City of Tucker is "financially feasible, completely viable, and absolutely sustainable," according to cityhood officials.

The announcement was made at an event on Main Street Saturday morning attended by dozens of supporters. An emotional Michelle Penkava of Tucker 2014 said "you guys are amazing. You took the time to come out on a rainy Saturday just before Christmas. There's a long road ahead, but we'll work on this together."  

Penkava's colleague Frank Auman quoted Winston Churchill, saying, "this is the end of the beginning," and added that the study estimates an annual surplus of $3.3 million, with $16.6 million in revenue and expenses of $13.3. million.   

"We're winning on the merits of the argument," Auman told Patch. 

The study was conducted by the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University. Services proposed initially for the new city are Parks and Recreation, Planning and Zoning, and Code Enforcement.

"We're not around for 121 years for nothing," said resident Kathy Powell. "We already have all the components of a great city, and great people."   

David Cox, who has lived here since 2006, admitted to Patch, "I thought Tucker already was a city!" He said the main benefit of cityhood would be more local control of issues. 

Herman Lorenz, Patch blogger and committee member of the City of Briarcliff Initiative (COBI), said his organization is in talks with Tucker officials on a regular basis. "We're in this together," he said, adding that overlapping borders are not a big deal and can be sorted out through negotiations. 

"We agree on practically everything," said Allen Venet, COBI president, but talks with another cityhood movement, Lakeside, have not materialised. "We would like to sit down with them, but they haven't responded to us."

Honey Van De Kreke of the new Community Improvement District told Patch firmly that of all the cityhood initiatives in DeKalb County, "Tucker is the only viable city." 




 


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here