Politics & Government

City of Briarcliff Group: We've Raised $16,000

The majority of that money is from local civic associations, the group said.

The City of Briarcliff Initiative has raised $16,000 to study the creation of a new city around the North Druid Hills-Briarcliff area – and the majority of the cash came from local civic associations, one of the group's organizers said Tuesday.

The group, formerly known as The North Druid Hills Study Group, declined to name which organizations donated the money beyond the Medlock Area Neighborhood Association, which announced its $1,000 donation to the group last week.

"It's in the bank," said Don Broussard, a local resident and former member of the DeKalb County Planning Commission who has been the group's most public representative.

Broussard said he wasn't sure if he had the permission from the neighborhood associations to announce the donations but acknowledged that information was likely to go public soon.

The money will go toward a state-mandated city feasibility study by either the University of Georgia or Georgia State University that costs around $30,000. Another group seeking to create a city in the area, the Lakeside City Alliance, has very nearly (or already) raised that amount. The alliance's map excludes the Medlock community – and most points south of North Druid Hills Road – and includes a chunk of northern Tucker.

The City of Briarcliff map would exclude any parts of Tucker and stretch farther south to include much of the Emory University area, Druid Hills and Scottdale – all the way to the borders of Atlanta and the city of Decatur.

Both groups have attached themselves to "placeholder" cityhood bills filed with the General Assembly in the spring. Neither bill could be considered for passage until next year. Until then, the Lakeside alliance and the City of Briarcliff Initiative can continue to debate the merits of cityhood to see if they want to move forward with a cityhood vote. Both maps could also continue to be edited and changed.

Members of both groups have acknowledged the necessity of Republican support. Dunwoody state Rep. Tom Taylor said no cityhood bill would be approved without it at a Lakeside alliance meeting last month. The Lakeside alliance's bill was submitted by Dunwoody state Sen. Fran Millar. The City of Briarcliff group has been working with Decatur-area Democratic legislators, including Jason Carter, whose public support for cityhood initiatives has been less than tepid.

But Broussard said he thinks his group will get a "fair hearing" before the General Assemby – particularly after Tuesday's news of county CEO Burrell Ellis' indictment on charges that he illegally pressured contractors into giving him campaign contributions.

“We believe we will get a fair hearing from the General Assembly, from the Republican majority," he said. "Democrats, independents and Republicans will see after today there’s some fundamental issues with DeKalb government.”


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