Nathan Deal’s Plan B: Governor intends to step into transportation vacuum
On Tuesday morning, as metro Atlanta voters hurled an $8 million sales tax campaign into the trash, Gov. Nathan Deal held what aides called his first session with top transportation officials to discuss Plan B.
What voters dismissed was a bottom-up list of $8 billion in road and rail projects created by local elected leaders. (Read the main AJC piece on the TSPLOST vote here.)
The Plan B that staggered out of the governor’s office will be its polar opposite: Dramatically smaller, paid for with shrinking funds, and highly centralized. Projects will be hand-picked by a governor who intends to squeeze every penny available.
And no matter what others might say today, don’t look for a sequel to the TSPLOST referendum. A second vote has no place in the governor’s Plan B.
Instead, Chris Riley, the governor’s chief of staff, said traffic planners in regions across the state will be quickly asked to resubmit lists of road and rail proposals that require state and federal funding – figuring in an 8 percent decrease in federal funding. The governor has veto power over each list.
Riley said that Deal intends to use that authority to direct cash to absolutely essential projects in metro Atlanta and elsewhere. “The state’s top transportation priority is the Ga. 400 and I-285 interchange,” Riley said. But metro Atlanta residents could also find themselves enduring pot holes and worse for the sake of better roads around the Port of Savannah, he added.
That’s another priority.
The governor’s top aide said Deal had been hesitant to speak of alternatives before TSPLOST balloting ended. ”We didn’t want anyone to think that it would fail. But you can’t be a governor and not look at both options,” Riley said.
The governor is likely to express his disappointment today over the outcome of Tuesday’s vote. Certainly he will focus on the price of austerity, as chosen by voters. “Will we be able to compete in the global market with Plan B? Yes. Will every company look at us? No,” said Brian Robinson, Deal’s director of communications.
But in a way, defeat clears the way for Deal to assume full responsibility for the mess that is Georgia’s system of planning and paying for moving goods and people. The TSPLOST referendum, with its awkward system of roundtables to settle on project lists and a vote conducted in the heat of a GOP primary, was the handiwork of Gov. Sonny Perdue.
But, however liberated he may feel, Deal has few options. The most direct route – asking a Republican-led Legislature for a tax increase, whether on gasoline or anything else, is off the table. Some opponents of the TSPLOST, including Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers of Woodstock, have said they’ll push for a second TSPLOST referendum with a more road-friendly list.
But that would require a Legislature willing to debate it, a business community willing to pony up millions for another campaign, and Republican leadership in suburban Atlanta that will speak up for when the time for voting comes. Let’s ask Tim Lee, the chairman of the Cobb County Commission, how that worked out for him.
Any attempt at a second vote will move without the governor’s backing. “We haven’t given any thought of presenting it to the General Assembly,” Riley said.
That leaves the big decisions on what will be built, and with what funds, largely in the hands of the governor, the state Department of Transportation, and planning agencies like the Atlanta Regional Commission. But mostly in the hands of the governor.
“The governor will not move forward without the consent GDOT,” Riley said – very carefully. Deal will court approval from the DOT board, but he intends to keep the initiative. The governor recently appointed a trusted aide, Toby Carr, as the DOT’s planning director, giving him another layer of control over what transportation projects are funded.
So the Atlanta Regional Commission will soon have to clear its wish lists with the governor. ARC Chairman Tad Leithead said he’ll be happy to do so. “I think the entire state would welcome anything the governor does to keep transportation moving,” he said.
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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424 comments Add your comment
Wutehvah
August 1st, 2012
10:16 am
Bryan — MARTA supporter…
So, don’t trust the gov’ment, gotcha!! I can’t send you the $100 without your address.
aggravated commuter
August 1st, 2012
10:17 am
@Hayek
IIRC 1 new house has been built on that road that I am aware of. One in the past year. Have you been down that road lately?
Average Citizen
August 1st, 2012
10:17 am
If there arn’t enough roads or lanes in Metro Atlanta for some folks, then those folks are free to move to another metro area.
I certainly hope that the media are watching to ensure that Deal doesn’t direct road construction projects to his financial supporters or that he receives any type of consideration from the companies that profit from the improvements.
The projects that are bid need to be bid openly and the lowest bidder that meets the specs awarded the project.
And that is without regard to race, color or creed – right NAACP?
Middle of the Road
August 1st, 2012
10:19 am
“@middle of the road. You just named 3 things that cost money without solving anything. Brilliant.”
I named three things that would go a LONG way toward re-establishing a faith in government. The fact that they cost money is because they were done improperly in the first place. Admitting your errors, and paying the price, is the first strp to regaining trust.
S12C4131
August 1st, 2012
10:19 am
Bryan – You’re speaking my language. But you have to consider how Atlanta voters think… “If I personally am not going to use rapid transit, then why should I pay taxes to fund it?”
I’m also getting the feeling that suburban Atlantans aren’t really grasping some of the abstract concepts of a mass transit system. For example: ‘Hmmm, if this tax will fund an upgrade of MARTA’s electrical system; that may provide an opportunity to expand capital assets in the future…hmmmmm….’
Also Atlanta, take a lesson from other world cities with well developed (albeit irresponsibly funded) mass transit systems – If you expand your transit system (gasp), more people will use it.
willie lynch
August 1st, 2012
10:19 am
Rail needs to be extended N,S,E, and W, with increased bus service to go along with it. Expanding roads is not the answer.
Bryan -- MARTA supporter
August 1st, 2012
10:22 am
@ Chasbo August 1st, 2012 7:19 am
You actually made the point for transit support. In San Fransico the ACTUALLY SUPPORT TRANSIT and as you said even the police work to make transit better. How can you expect something like that when at every other corner you here people bad mouthing transit but then don’t support it to make it better? Dr. Scott has actually done a wonderful job with MARTA with limited assistance.
Not So Casual Observer
August 1st, 2012
10:22 am
The usual “Big Government Liberals” are crying and blaming the uneducated for the defeat of the TSPLOST. BULL!
1. “others would pay for this” – the “standard tax the visitors” ploy failed and rightfully so. Government has lived beyond its means solely to line the pockets of their buds.
2. The Progressives (insert sarcastic smile here) are the ignorant losers. Raise taxes on the rich, raise taxes on the OTP crowd, raise taxes on corporations, raise taxes on any soul as long as government grows – these “progressive” buffoons have only one cry – BIGGER GOVERNMENT!
3. City of Atlanta driving is more like a war zone every day. Pot holes and more pot holes. Why? Because the corrupt administrations of Massell, Jackson, Young, Campbell, Franklin and Reed have ignored the infrastructure and lined their own, and their buds, pockets. As presented in court, Bill Campbell hired 125 “discretionary employees” who had no regular duties, no job description and no skills. The expressed duty of City Government was to be a jobs program for young Blacks. The theft of tax dollars by these Mayors has COME HOME TO ROOST.
4. The only means to kill a tumor (Government) is to eliminate the blood supply (Tax Dollars) and this TSPLOST was nothing but a slush fund for government. Why not build a couple of more $100 million plus street car lines to nowhere?
5. Perhaps this will close the ignorant mouths of Jeff Dickerson and Alexis Scott who praised the leadership of Kasim Reed and his push to pass TSPLOST. Of course Dickerson will ALWAYS support bigger government – his entire means of income is tied to government and its various entities.
6. The Mayor of Atlanta was desperate to have TSPLOST pass in order to maintain the current voting demographics in Atlanta. The re-gentrification over the past several years has the current power structure quaking for fear of losing control of the cash cow that is the Atlanta voter and the Atlanta Airport. Traffic was forcing those working in Atlanta to move closer to their job and this was very bad for the current power structure.
7. The TSPLOST was such a poor program Mayor Reed could not deliver the support of Black politicians, much less the Black voter.
VOTERS have finally realized government (as currently constituted) is not here to help but to destroy the very fiber of this nation. The move to smaller, less intrusive government starts with a $7+ Billion boondoggle in Georgia thrown back in the faces of the politicians and others who conceived this slush fund proposal.
Now the job of “throwing out the trash” must continue in November with a clear vote in opposition to bigger government and the moronic “progressives” (on either side of the aisle) who support higher taxes and bigger government.
Return the federal government to the original plan outlined in the Constitution, eliminate most of the federal departments and return governing to those closest to the people.
Truth B-Told
August 1st, 2012
10:23 am
With the nation trying to heal from one of the WORST economic downturns in US history gov’t officials decided to ask GA voters to pay MORE in taxes.
T-SPLOST was a poor attempt to solve the city’s transportation needs – supports talked about businesses that would leave the state but did not address the issues for those everyday folks.
How does an air traffic control tower at an under-used airport in Cobb, unexplained roadway “improvements” in Canton, or floor repairs to a MARTA station in Doraville benefit motorists?
I agree something needs to be done to improve traffic in metro ATL (can you say MASS TRANSIT), but more roads is NOT the answer – we need more MASS TRANSIT!! BTW, using scare tactics on voters is not the best way to get us to pay MORE in taxes.
T-SPLOST was DOOMED from the start – at least in the metro. How could we be certain that this tax would have ended in 10-YEARS? Isn’t that what they said about the GA-400 toll road?
Maybe those who supported this TAX should think about that the next time they drive from Alpharetta to Midtown.
Middle of the Road
August 1st, 2012
10:24 am
“Atlanta, Fulton and Dekalb, let’s build our own streetcars and bike trails.”
Chris – please do. That is exactly what you should do. You wanted MARTA, so pay for it. You want the Beltline, so pay for it. If you want streetcars, then tax YOURSELF and pay for it.
And if Atlanta businesses are getting tired of employees coming in late with the same old excuse ” I was tied up in traffic”, then either tell your employees to leave earlier or relocate your business up to the suburbs WHERE PEOPLE ACTUALLY WANT TO LIVE.
Road Scholar
August 1st, 2012
10:27 am
Frankie: “the IMPROVEMENTS the GDOT has made over the last 18 years I have been here have not been enough and they knew it…piss poor planning, ”
No, they spent the money on good projects..that were approved (GDOT staff selected) by the Board which is elected by the legislators! The revenue stream is less based on inflation and rising costs. All design, a lot of planning, maintenance and construction have been outsourced. GDOT personnel has been reduced…For the record, Perdue funded the GRIP system (4laning 2 lane rural state routes w/o traffic demand) by selling bonds and strapping GDOT with $400M of yearly debt for the next 15 years…1/5 of the GDOT yearly revenue!
Take 20% of your income and throw it away: we’ll see how you address your needs!
Janet Honesty
August 1st, 2012
10:28 am
Fulton and DeKalb residents already pay a 1 cent TAX for MARTA… with T-SPLOST we’d pay 2 cents while everyone else pays 1-cent.
Now was that really fair???? The TEA Party had nothing to do with the the defeat of this TAX – it was the SMART party of all GA voters.
Please!
Middle of the Road
August 1st, 2012
10:30 am
“And now to celebrate the results of this referendum, I’m going to upgrade from a SUV to a F-250. Yep, I know I’ll use it primarily for commuting; but once in a blue moon I’ll need it for haulin’ stuff! I’ve got the space for it because I live 30 miles out of the city in a 4-bedroom house worth $130,000. And let’s face it, with the F-250 I’ll look cooler to my garishly conservative friends!!”
We appreciate it. The extra gas tax you will be paying can now be used for some REAL projects.
Agree with "No New Taxes"
August 1st, 2012
10:30 am
To: “No New Taxes” – right on. If our elected officials, big business and the CHAMBER heads would put as much energy into truly thinking of our future versus today and the big $$$ they all can get we would be much better off. For instance: All companies that have “customer service phones – call centers – IT reps for troubleshooting over the phone, or benefit reps that answer phones for questions” – and they are indeed plentiful and a huge majority of our workforce – if all businesses allowed them to work from home – that alone would resolve a huge part of our transportation issues. They encompass at least 25% + of our workforce. Now why are these entities not thinking along these lines? This is the 21st century and this should be considered a no brainer. Until our elected officials can truly start “partnering” with the CHAMBERS/COMPANIES in our state encouraging such to alleviate traffic – we stand no chance. And until our corporations/companies can “come into the 21st century” then these issues shall remain. While they are some companies that do this, the majority do not. But then, that would mean “confronting the very people whose funds supplied them with support of T-SPLAT and other ventures throughout the years.” Don’t go to the public asking for more money when you are not getting creative with resolutions……
S12C4131
August 1st, 2012
10:33 am
Janet – You’re breakdown of the sales taxes is incorrect, you said it yourself.
Fulton and DeKalb residents pay a 1 cent tax for MARTA. The additional 1 cent would fund the transportation referendum projects. Fulton and DeKalb would still be the only counties to implement MARTA.
So, you would not be paying 2 cents while everyone else pays 1 cent. You would pay 1 cent for TSPLOST, and if you live in a county with MARTA, you would pay 1 cent for that.
Middle of the Road
August 1st, 2012
10:34 am
What I want to know is – Now that TSPLOST has gone T-splat, will Governor Deal keep his promise to remove the Ga 400 Tolls next year? I never believed him and I didn’t believe that the TSPLOST would go away in ten years. Oh yes, TSPLOST I would go away, just like Sonny removed the tolls on 400 for one day, just to claim he kept his promise. But we citizens aren’t stupid. TSPLOST I will be followed by TSPLOST II – “just remember, folks, you are already paying 8 cents sales tax, so you won’t feel any more pain, and traffic is still bad, so we need MORE money to REALLY get us a good transportation system (by the way, thanks to TSPLOST I, we reduced our MARTA fares to $1 for our poor friends)”
AtlantaCommute
August 1st, 2012
10:36 am
I believe everyone who voted against this in Atlanta should be required to use the entire length of both 14th and 10th streets as a part of their commute every day (except Wednesday, when they should be limited to using MARTA). Since they obviously don’t believe we have a problem than needs addressing, they won’t mind, will they? Of course they won’t.
sully
August 1st, 2012
10:36 am
where is the government prudence in an empty new international airport terminal?
where is the government prudence in an empty new streetcar?
where is the government prudence in a new control tower thats essentially for private and privileged use?
where is the prudence in subsidising sonny’s port?
and yet we taxpayers are left to sit in a traffic jam day after day.
us cash cows are getting sooooooooooooooooooooooo tired of this….
itsme
August 1st, 2012
10:37 am
I hope that the Powers That Be realize that this defeat has a three-fold cause: 1. Now is not the time to ask struggling people to pay more taxes, especially on food. 2. People don’t trust government to spend the money wisely (see #3) 3. So many of the proposed projects had nothing to do with improving traffic (the main stated purpose of the tax).
Bryan -- MARTA supporter
August 1st, 2012
10:39 am
@ Ga Values
“1. Focus completely on reducing congestion, no beltline or airport improvements”
Lets see: widen roads, build new ones, improved pedestrian network, improved transit options… all things incorporated in the T-SPLOST that failed. I would love to hear how you would reducing congestion!
No Beltline. You mean don’t give people options to commute around the core of the city without a car, meaning now these people will be back in there cars just to clog the inner streets.
No airport. You mean don’t help the busiest airport in the world stay as such. One of the Atlanta regions major claims to fame.
Real Smart Ga Values
woodrow
August 1st, 2012
10:44 am
I think Atlanta is big enough. We just need to fix MARTA. We don’t want bigger roads and more cars. People need to park those ugly, noisy, smog belching SUV’s at home and take a bus. But first we need to fix the rail and bus system in Atlanta. We need to clean up the city. Badly.
Georgia on my mind....
August 1st, 2012
10:50 am
Janet Honesty
August 1st, 2012
10:28 am
Well said!! The Tea Party can NOT take the credit for the defeat fo the TSPLOST! People are becoming wiser and paying attention to the corruption that occurs in this state! How many citizens can actually trust an all Republican legislature to not be bias? We are STILL at WAR in Georgia and President Obama WILL WIN this state in November!! This will be an upset for the history books!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kH_EZF0XqM&ob=av2e
Bryan -- MARTA supporter
August 1st, 2012
10:52 am
@ Wutehvah August 1st, 2012 10:16 am
LOL… don’t worry I can’t even send anymore. I’m saving it for the toll roads and HOT lanes that will be coming soon with the “Plan B.”
And yeah don’t trust the idiot repubs and tea partiers. Lets vote some people in that will actually do something for ATL and our transportation issues.
S12C4131
August 1st, 2012
10:53 am
Has anyone ever heard the phrase ‘Queue Jumper’?? It’s a magical lane that busses and carpools can use to bypass on-ramp signal lights. So if you commute via bus or carpool (something that will label you as a hippie to many of your ATL co-workers), you don’t have to spend 15 minutes just waiting to get on the interstate (the current state of ATL’s pretend Bus Rapid Transit).
Hmmmm…I wonder if the TSPLOST projects included the construction of Queue Jumper lanes?
Not So Casual Observer
August 1st, 2012
10:53 am
Dallas, Texas has been cited as an example of a city addressing the traffic problems created by growth.
The freeway system in Dallas is the central solution and all of the primary arteries utilize more lanes as well as access roads the length of the highway to distribute traffic, yet there are still slow areas and rush hour madness.
Growth begets traffic and the only solution to the traffic is short commutes.
ed
August 1st, 2012
10:54 am
We constantly hear the drumbeat for GROWTH. Growth is the lst thing we need. What is long overdue is PLANNING and DECENTRALIZING. There is no excuse for attempts to lure every new business to the counties immediately surrounding the City of Atlanta. Georgia is the largest state east of the Mississippi. Locate new businesses throughout the state and the worker pool will follow. Then you will have resolved the congested traffic in and around Atlanta…at no cost of billions. That may not suit the power happy officials like Mayor Reed, and his metro counterparts who can think only of increasing tax digests. But it is the new direction in which we must go.
Hayek
August 1st, 2012
10:55 am
S12C4131 wrote:
“…I’m also getting the feeling that suburban Atlantans aren’t really grasping some of the abstract concepts of a mass transit system. For example: ‘Hmmm, if this tax will fund an upgrade of MARTA’s electrical system; that may provide an opportunity to expand capital assets in the future…hmmmmm….’
Also Atlanta, take a lesson from other world cities with well developed (albeit irresponsibly funded) mass transit systems – If you expand your transit system (gasp), more people will use it…”
Acutually the suburbanites are thinking “I live in Douglas Count, and work @ The Perimeter” or “I live in Gwinnett and work in Cobb”. They’re correctly questioning how is mass transit will help them?. Metro Atlanta is decentralized with no real geographic restrictions to growth. There is no proof that mass transit works in this type of urban center of this size. Especially with the low cost of housing in the suburbs and the average household income.
Tech
August 1st, 2012
10:55 am
Atlanta: Welcome to the new home of the flip-phone wielding ignoramus…knows how to save money, but not time….But wait, isn’t time – money? Oh yeah, forget it…
Not So Casual Observer
August 1st, 2012
10:56 am
Bryan,
The Democrats in Georgia have always been, and always will be, the most corrupt. “Progressives” are losers – just like TSPLOST.
Vesaversa
August 1st, 2012
10:58 am
Metro Atlanta will pay a huge price for not doing anything to curve it’s crumbling infrastructure and we will also lose jobs to other states because of it .
John
August 1st, 2012
11:00 am
Hopefully the politicians got the message. You collect enough of our hard earned money. You need to be fiscally responsible with what you have because we can’t and give any more!
S12C4131
August 1st, 2012
11:01 am
Woah, woah, woah ed…..
“Georgia is the largest state east of the Mississippi…” ????????
If you mean population, I don’t even need to cite examples of how wrong you are. I’ll give you a hint – Ummmmmm, I know – There is a state that borders Georgia that has a much larger population. Let me know if that makes sense.
And if you’re talking size as in area – (cough cough) Michigan, Wisconsin, (cough cough) Florida… well, you get the point.
AtlantaW
August 1st, 2012
11:02 am
All you have to say about TSPLOST is that the people spoke. One thing the vote said more than people not wanting to pass a 1 percent tax is that they have no confidence in government. We constantly get articles about waste of tax payers dollars. When they can get with the program and show value to the people then maybe we will give them money. People are fed up! Also they need to get with todays thinking ideas not the old man thinking of way back to raise money. Taxes taxes dont work. Build casinos and gain the revenue there. For those who say that will create hardship for those that have a addiction to gambling they need to get go away. If you have an addiction to gambling you need to get help and get some will power. We will be hearing the we dont have the money for years to come in GA gov if we dont get some creative thinking. Enough said!
Bryan -- MARTA supporter
August 1st, 2012
11:02 am
@ Middle of the Road August 1st, 2012 10:24 am
I complete agree with Chris! How about the burbs stop living and eating off Atlanta. Stop taking the money our taxes generate to widen your roads. Stop trying to get business to move to the burbs off the strength of ATL’s name. You don’t hear companies saying they want to move to the metro Marietta area, or the metro Lawrenceville area, or the metro Jonesboro area. The want to move to the metro ATLANTA area! Always remember the burbs you stay in with your nice sprawling subdivisions and strip malls wouldn’t be there if there wasn’t a major city close by, which in this case is Atlanta!
S12C4131
August 1st, 2012
11:05 am
AtlantaW, you’re right… The people of Atlanta spoke.
Unfortunately, the people of Atlanta also think that Georgia is the largest state east of the Mississippi.
Joe
August 1st, 2012
11:10 am
Atlanta, the new Birmingham of the south.
changeforgood
August 1st, 2012
11:10 am
Fix the school systems in Atlanta and DeKalb county! Maybe people wouldn’t move to the exurbs to provide a decent education to their children, and less commuting into the city.
Charlotte Yuppy
August 1st, 2012
11:11 am
In Charlotte, Raleigh, and Nashville, we all cheer, “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”
What’s next after the Coastal Region defeats T-SPLOST? | Savannah Unplugged
August 1st, 2012
11:14 am
[...] Galloway at the AJC gives a hint at what the rest of the state can expect in terms of transportation funding going forward. It [...]
Not So Casual Observer
August 1st, 2012
11:14 am
S12C4131,
Georgia has the largest land area of any state east of the Mississippi.
Wutehvah
August 1st, 2012
11:14 am
Bryan — MARTA supporter…Please explain how the burbs are living and eating off Atlanta?
ATL would be an even greater shiothole without Alpharetta, Milton, etc. – where HUGE tax dollares are collected. Big business has come into the downtown area because of HUGE tax breaks. Proximity to the airport is a bonus.
I live in the burbs and rarely go to ATL. Why? Because I don’t need to. I work on the Northside, family/friends are up here, etc. Someone else has already mentioned that proposed Marta improvements do little/nothing to help Gwinnett workers into downtown – or East Cobb / Alpharetta workers to Duluth or other areas outside of downtown.
If TSPLAT targeted Marta expansion in a major way alone, then I might have been on-board. I no longer attend Braves games (which I love) because I can’t reasonably get there.
Tplan
August 1st, 2012
11:16 am
why didn’t they build a marta line to the baseball park or locate the park near a marta line??? Hello??? anyone out there??? hello?????
CobbVoter
August 1st, 2012
11:19 am
I want nothing to do with the corrupt and poorly run marta system in cobb county. This tplost was just a money grab by connected members of government and their “friends” in business to get billions in taxpayer $$$ to hand out and get rich. Stop the fraud, stop the waste in this crooked metro area.
T.A
August 1st, 2012
11:21 am
Actually, Georgia has more land square miles than any state east of the Mississippi River. See that here: http://www.netstate.com/states/tables/st_size.htm
Know your facts. Get it correct.
Bryan -- MARTA supporter
August 1st, 2012
11:22 am
Chris August 1st, 2012 10:16 am
I completely agree. I would even support a MARTA tax increase, even up to 3 cent! But the other 2 would have to allow MARTA to control it fully, not that stupid 50/50 mess. We could do 1 1/2 on operations, 1 on maintainence, and 1/2 on just reserves and should be allowed to shift it when needed.
There will be years where MARTA doesn’t expand and others when it does. Years where the reserves don’t need as much and other when it will. MARTA should control that.
Let’s build our I-20 line, our Emory line, our Beltline, a new NW line to Cumberland (yeah I know it’s in Cobb but it’s a major CBD), a new northern I-285 line, extend the Red line up 400, extend the Blue line west to Six Flags (again yes I know it’s in Cobb but that is a major destination and will be a great commuter station).
Lets beef up our bus system with more BRT services and expanded local service. More frequent bus and rail service; No BREEZE system for free transfers to MARTA. Make them pay 2 fares or join MARTA. Clayton has already showed support and Gwinnett is about 50/50. Obviously there is a need for transit or CCT, GCT, C-Tran (when it was here), and Xpress wouldn’t exist!
No free parking at stations for other counties. Let them pay! And ITP needs tolls at all major highway crossing with I-285 for those coming into the perimeter ONLY. No tolls for going out. This way those who drive on Atlanta streets from the burbs will pay for wear and tear. If you want the burb life fine! But you will pay to play in the city or stay where you are!
Not So Casual Observer
August 1st, 2012
11:23 am
The City of Atlanta is not the draw. The Metro area and the airport draw businesses to this area.
Atlanta has to bribe the major sports teams to have them play inside the city limits, that alone should tell you somehing about Atlanta.
Atlanta and DeKalb schools spend more per student than any other system in Georgia and yet the only means to demonstrate educational success was to cheat on standardized tests. The Mayor and government in Atlanta are a mess and this is exemplified by the school system.
Businesses locate in the ‘burbs so their employees will have access to better schools, their work force will draw from a better pool and the quality of life exceeds that inside the perimeter. The crime rate in Atlanta is another consideration.
T.A
August 1st, 2012
11:25 am
The City of Atlanta always attracts tourists and people to work. It’s one of the highest tourist attractions in the country. There’s many attractions here and there is more office space in the entire city (Downtown, Midtown and Buckhead) than any of the suburban office districts (Cumberland, Perimeter, Gwinnett office markets.)
Status Quo
August 1st, 2012
11:25 am
Don’t expect real change in your lifetime. Anyone reading this list. From 7 to 70 years old. What you see, is what you get. Small changes will happen, like the new 400/285 interchange. That’s it. As a region, we will continue to waste away our lives in our cars, on roads that cannot handle even the current volume. In reality, Atlanta will be stagnant for at least the next 30 years as it chokes on itself. The home values, that were never on par with the rest of the country to begin with, will suffer as well. No investment in the future means no return on what you have now. Those few lucky enough to own in the hot spots, will continue to win, the rest, will continue to lose. Status Quo.
bigD
August 1st, 2012
11:26 am
My brother in-law retired from the fire dept at age 52. It’s been 10 years he doesn’t work he just sits back and rakes in his pension which he says is just a little less than what he was making plus he and his never worked wife have complete medical care. This is only one reason why our tax dollars don’t get us much anymore. And don’t give the bleeding heart crap about hero that’s all nonsense.
claytonco
August 1st, 2012
11:26 am
the clayton county bus system is terrible, but white racists keep voting down all these projects to get millions to buy new buses—I’m tired of this and may move back to new jersey next year if the economy gets better