Calls To Split From Atlanta Considered At Buckhead Town Hall

ATLANTA, GA — The call to split from Atlanta was among the themes addressed during a streaming town hall meeting for a nonprofit Buckhead study group.

The first public meeting of the Buckhead Exploratory Committee on Wednesday night asked for volunteers and donations that would total up to between $10,000 and $15,000 to meet the group’s aims which include determining if, among other things, cityhood was an option.

The online meeting was led by the nonprofit group's leaders Sam Lenaeus, Ryan Mantheus and Cynthia Laniado, and they suggested that Buckhead has not received its fair share of attention and investment from city leaders.

“Atlanta’s tax base has expanded over the decade via annexation, but Buckhead taxes have not been adjusted,” said real estate broker Lenaeus, identified by the Georgia Secretary of State’s Corporations Division as the CEO. “We want better paid teachers, and we definitely want better streets.”

He pointed to new developments in East Atlanta and West Midtown as examples, and said, “They continue to invest in those areas. We deserve equal investment.”

There were 182 people logged onto the streaming online meeting, and commenters asked about a number of issues, from solutions for street racing and noise complaints to the committee’s possible link to an ongoing plan by city officials and business and community organizations like the Buckhead Coalition to improve security.

“Are we supporting the new security patrol program proposed by Buckhead’s leaders?” commenter Martha LaTour asked during the meeting.

Buckhead Coalition President Jim Durrett clarified in the comments that “we are not ‘behind it,’” referring to the Buckhead Exploratory Committee.

Buckhead Exploratory Committee was formed last summer by a number of “concerned Buckhead citizens” outside of politics with the shared goal of improving public safety, building infrastructure, getting services commensurate with tax investment, and maintaining the community’s “parklike setting,” according to its web site.

But the group faced criticism from the Mayor’s office as divisive and from other officials connected to Buckhead as impractical.

The Committee plans to do polling to get community feedback on how to improve. Based upon assessments made from that polling, a decision would be made, Lenaeus said during the meeting. But the first step is where the request for funding comes in.

“Polling does cost money,” he said. “That is our biggest hurdle.”

But if Buckhead chooses secession, a roadmap already exists.

“If cityhood is determined to be the best path forward, legislative steps have been pre-established in cities in the metro area such as Sandy Springs, Brookhaven, Dunwoody,” Lenaeus said. “Other paths include legal action or just garnering a stronger voice with elected officials and having more voice with the city of Atlanta. In short, all options are on the table.”

For more information, go to www.becnow.com.