We attended our first Commission meeting last night. What a YAWN!! It was very educational, however, to evaluate how the commissioners vote on issues and what types of themes keep coming up. Naturally, the rep for our district (4 for those who keep up), Larry Johnson, is black and appears to be a hindrance to growth in Dekalb. I don’t want rampant growth by any stretch of the imagination, however, I feel that growth should be carefully encouraged in a way that will boost our property values and improve our overall area.
Like the WalMart project. Screw WalMart. I do NOT want that in my back yard. If I wanted to live next door to Wally World, I’d move to the ‘burbs. I am dead set against that crap in my neighborhood. It will NOT help my property value and it will stifle growth of new small businesses, which is what the Memorial Drive revitalization project is supposed to encourage fer chrissakes! Johnson supposedly sponsored a mixed use project for the Avondale Mall site, but it never got anywhere. Well, where is he now? Now, it’s almost a done deal that the Commission will allow WalMart to do its thing and we’ll get screwed.
Everything in this county is about race. EVERYTHING. DeKalb county is the welfare state of metro Atlanta. Apparently we are all supposed to be against any and all new developments because that will raise property taxes and “the poor black citizens” can’t pay. Apparently we are supposed to be FOR WalMart coming in here making an eyesore and killing off any dream of a better Memorial Drive so we can keep the ‘hood just as it is and provide low paying dead end jobs to encourage low rent, low value properties just like they are now. It’s moronic!
That’s the problem with this area, DeKalb in particular. Having better neighborhoods is NOT a racial issue, it’s common sense. If you want a better neighborhood, you have to discourage rental property, encourage property ownership and most of all, ENCOURAGE DEVELOPMENT TO IMPROVE YOUR PROPERTY VALUES! Yes, this means higher taxes. Yes you have to PAY for better neighborhoods! Do the black people in this town think that the rules of the economy don’t apply to them or what? I don’t mind my property taxes going up because that means so is my VALUE. Duh. Black people have a knee jerk reaction to any sort of development, assuming it’s just another plot to “keep the poor people down.” I heard vehement arguments against a development near my friend’s house that will benefit the neighborhood and raise property values at the same time. It’s not an apt complex or a strip mall, either, it’s was a mixed use townhome community with values of $170k+! They say this will “increase the crime.” Riiiiiight. Seems to me that high priced condos and some small businesses will bring more police presence and less crime!
Larry Johnson, our district commissioner, seems to be unable to understand basic economics. He is the first one to pipe up and say such nuggets as “Well, I think that the developer should rethink his plan and have single family homes for $60-75k.” What the hell is he smoking? You can’t buy property for $60k inside the perimeter!! And I certainly don’t want a $60k shack in MY neighborhood! What is he thinking?? He leads the pack in knee jerk reactions to any sort of change. He says the word “gentrification” like it’s something BAD! It’s not a bad thing to revitalize a run down ghetto area. EVER.
I look forward to participating in my local government. I know it sounds dorky, but it’s really true: change begins in your local government. Anyone who owns property really should be aware of what the Commission is up to. These are the people who control zoning and land use, you know. You may end up just like us with a WalMart up your ass because you weren’t paying attention. So get out there and participate in your local government. Guard your property values! Keep the greenspace! Stop rampant big box retailers from ruining our local businesses! Be an active citizen!
The Avondale Mall property was zoned mixed-use well before Wal Mart even eyed it for development. The previous owners of the mall, Thomas Enterprises, wanted mixed-use, but backed off because they didn’t want to deal with the opposition from the community.
They sold to Wal-Mart instead. Wal-Mart couldn’t develop their Supercenter at the mall, so they went to Avondale Estates for annexation. They lost. While they own the property, there is no guarantee that they will ever build their Supercenter. The zoning doesn’t allow for it. They are sitting on a pricey piece of real estate that they should use for mixed-use. I agree with you that DeKalb County is in a stalemate over revitilizing Memorial Drive. I welcome gentrification and smart growth. Sadly, the interface of government and the private sector is a problematic one. I wish that area of Memorial would start to develop a la downtown Decatur, or like what’s happening at Glenwood Park that’s being developed by Greenstreet Properties. This area deserves better.