Lakeside and Briarcliff Submit Map For New City, LaVista Hills

After more than six months of work, cityhood groups LakesideYES and the City of Briarcliff Initiative have submitted a proposal to state legislators to unify the two communities under the name LaVista Hills.

The new city found its namesake in LaVista Road, which runs throughout the area, and in the region’s hilly landscape, former Lakeside Yes organizer Mary Kay Woodworth told Neighborhood Newspapers.

If approved, LaVista Hills will become the county’s largest city, encompassing neighborhoods in north and central DeKalb County that are home to about 72,000 residents.

Originally included in plans to reconfigure city boundaries, the city of Tucker was unable to reach an agreement with representatives of Lakeside and Briarcliff regarding the new city’s eastern border by Nov. 15, a deadline imposed by the Georgia House of Representatives Governmental Affairs Committee.

“We are disappointed that we were not able to reach agreement with Tucker, despite our best efforts,” Woodworth said in a press release. “Tucker’s claim they are remaining ‘consistent with [their] borders’ reflects an unwillingness on their part to compromise, and more importantly, a refusal to acknowledge the desires of both residents and the business community.”

Representatives from Tucker 2015, a grassroots organization fighting to preserve community interests during this year’s State Legislative Session, disagreed.

“Many of [Tucker’s] citizens have already expressed their concerns that their desire for local control, and smaller closer government would likely vanish as a result of being included in what would be the largest city in DeKalb County,” Tucker 2015 member Michelle Penkava told the Brookhaven Post.

Should the three townships continue to disagree on proposed boundaries for the new city, House Governmental Affairs Committee Chair Amy Carter plans to appoint five panelists to redraw the boundary lines and produce a finalized map by Dec. 31.

Photo of the proposed map for LaVista Hills courtesy of LaVista Hills YES

Related links:

Lakeside and Briarcliff Seek Public Input for New Name

Time Running Out on Efforts to Create 3 Cities in DeKalb County

Briarcliff Statement on Cityhood Progress

COBI Calls Lakeside a ‘Redundant, Unnecessary City’

Rumor: Tucker & Lakeside to Combine?

Lakeside City Alliance Co-Chair Blasts Briarcliff Plan

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