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July 21 - 27, 2016 » Page 14A
Green space requested in Decatur
by Horace Holloman
horace@dekalbchamp.com
n the past decade, Decatur has
developed at a rapid pace. From 2005
to 2010 there were 113 multi-housing
units built in the city. Since 2013, the
number has increased dramatically to
625.
the pool is fenced off and closed for nine
months out of the year and the athletic
field is fenced off from regular public
access.
Sixty percent of Scott Park is
occupied by the recreation center
building and the fire department building,
he said.
With all the new units going up, one
Decatur resident said the city needs to
plan for green space before there’s none
left.
Park activist and member of the
Downtown Decatur Neighborhood
Association George Dusenbury said
the city should consider adding a park to
the downtown area before adding more
buildings.
Dusenbury moved to Decatur nearly
four years ago and was a former Atlanta
parks and recreation commissioner.
“There are a lot of great things in
Decatur. I love its walkability and the
places to shop. There’s great education
here,” Dusenbury said. “But Decatur is
one of the densest cities in Georgia and it
doesn’t have enough park land.”
According to zipatlas.com, Decatur
has the fifth highest population density in
the state, just behind Avondale Estates.
In April, Dusenbury spoke in front
of Decatur city commissioners about a
potential park in the downtown area.
During his presentation, Dusenbury
noted that adding a park could improve
residential property value. According to
data compiled by Megan Lewis with the
American Institute of Certified Planners
(AICP), properties next to a park can
directly impact property value.
As an example, she cites the benefits
of Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta
stating, “After Centennial Olympic Park
was built, adjacent condominium prices
rose from $115 to $250 a square foot.”
“A park has intangible benefits and
the hard part is how do we go about
doing this. There’s a lack in a sense of
urgency [from the city] and we believe
the city has the tools to make this
happen,” Dusenbury said.
In his report, Dusenbury said the
city should develop a park between
Clairemont Avenue and Church Street.
He said the location would allow for
residents to have a park in “reasonable”
walking distance from Downtown.
Assistant City Manager Lyn Menne
said the city is not opposed to adding
a park in downtown Decatur, but said
space may be an issue.
“I think as we explained before, land
in downtown Decatur is scarce and
expensive. I wouldn’t say it won’t happen,
we’re always looking for opportunities,”
Menne said.
Currently, Decatur has two recreation
centers located in the downtown area.
“If we found an opportunity we would
certainly move forward. It’s a balancing
act and I know the city commission has
taken his request seriously,” Menne said.
In a PowerPoint presentation,
Dusenbury said Ebster Park isn’t the
best viable option for residents because
See Green Space on Page 15A
A picture of the proposed location for a new park in the downtown
Decatur area.
No DeKalb County
agreement in Dunwoody
City council defers
participating in SPLOST,
E-HOST agreement with
DeKalb commission
by R. Scott Belzer
sbelzer@dekalbchamp.com
A potential one percent additional sales tax in
Dunwoody was deferred by city council on July 11
The vote follows an intergovernmental
agreement (IGA) being shopped around by DeKalb
County asking for support in placing a special local
option sales tax (SPLOST) and homestead option
sales tax (HOST) on the November ballot.
At the moment, DeKalb County Commission
is split 3-3 on placing the referendum on the
November ballot and has until July 28 to do so.
A ‘yes’ vote in November would increase
DeKalb County’s sales tax from seven to eight
percent. The HOST would convert from sales tax to
100 percent property tax relief. At the moment, 80
percent of HOST goes to property tax relief while
20 percent goes toward infrastructure.
The referendum would also increase SPLOST
from five years to six years.
Nancy Jester, Dunwoody’s representative on
the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners who
has openly opposed the IGA, spoke at the July 11
meeting to provide perspective on the IGA.
Jester’s disapproval, according to her blog,
stems from a redirection of tax dollars from
public safety and infrastructure improvements
to “pet projects and monuments to government
bureaucracy.”
“We have more than 420 miles worth of roads
that desperately, desperately need to be repaved,”
Jester said. “Public safety infrastructure is a
big need in the county... This is for pet projects
throughout the county. Less than half the money
the county would collect goes toward roads. Public
safety is shortchanged, particularly fire stations.”
Linder the SPLOST proposal, 40 percent of
public safety will receive funds. DeKalb County has
also proposed the building of a new government
center, more parks and libraries.
Jester said considering the IGA was “putting
the cart before the horse” and “leverage to shade
the agreement as support.”
Dunwoody Mayor Denis Shortal said passing
Nancy Jester spoke to Dunwoody city council July 11 to
warn against signing an intergovernmental agreement with
DeKalb County and a pending SPLOST ballot vote.
on the referendum would mean passing up $1.5
million dollars over a five-year period. Shortal also
said by not signing the IGA, the city would miss the
opportunity to outline its own financial expectations
from DeKalb County.
“That’s money the citizens will not get, that’s
money the citizens are already putting in,” Shortal
said. “We would be fiscally prudent if we went
ahead and did it.”
Shortal said Dunwoody would be setting itself
up to not receive the most amount of money.
Councilman John Heneghan voiced his
opposition in stating he does not favor extra taxes,
let alone taxes he views as “wasted.” Heneghan
summarized his stance on his blog, writing
“Dunwoody will not take a stand on such items until
DeKalb County makes the first move.”
“If the deadlocked county commission actually
passes a referendum question that makes sense
by the end of the month, we always have an open
door to discuss things further,” Heneghan wrote.
Shortal moved the council approve the IGA as
published but Heneghan moved to defer the project
list until a later date. The latter was supported by
fellow council members.
“I’m with [the mayor] in wanting to make sure,
if passed, we adopt a plan that provides the most
dollars to Dunwoody,” said Councilman Doug
Thompson. “I want to make sure Dunwoody is
getting our fair share, but I see no reason to move
first. I don’t want to insinuate to our citizens we
would vote in favor of this - I want to look out for
the citizens of Dunwoody’s best interest.”