3 Questions with Mayor: Simpsonwood, Road Maintenance and Town Center

Peachtree Corners’ first e-newsletter — named Inside Peachtree Corners — hit subscriber inboxes this week with news and updates from around town.

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In the Three Questions with the Mayor, Mike Mason addresses Simpsonwood, road maintenance and Town Center plans.

What’s going to happen to Simpsonwood?

“I remain hopeful that the Church and the County will reach agreement soon for this to remain green space. However, I have been informed that the Church is now evaluating commercial development opportunities in addition to green space proposals, which was disappointing news. The City’s Comprehensive Plan, which was developed from community input, identifies that area as green space and I have encouraged the Church and the County to work towards a solution consistent with the community’s wishes.”

Why is the City taking over road maintenance?

“After the legislature approved our charter, but before our date of incorporation, the County and the existing Cities in Gwinnett County settled some protracted litigation (service delivery strategy aka SDS) over the delivery of basic services, i.e. police, public works, parks and recreation, etc. The agreement reached on public works identified State roads, County roads, and City roads.

“Rather than risk reopening the litigation, the County decided to treat us like they treat all other cities. That means we are now responsible for the City streets in Peachtree Corners. Our charter allows us to provide this service through an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with another governmental entity just as we provide police services through an IGA with the County. As a result, we currently have an IGA with the County to provide road maintenance for our streets.”

When will we have some Town Center plans to look at?

“Soon, we hope! Our visioning sessions with Fuqua development have been very productive, and we are near agreement on a joint vision. This effort is not something we intend to rush. The Town Center is a key element in our downtown and will provide a “sense of place” for the entire community.”