Hundreds of people attended Dunwoody's seventh annual State of the City event where Mayor Denis Shortal spoke. In his speech, the Mayor discussed maintaining fiscal responsibility, increasing funding for road paving projects, preparing for an upcoming major highway construction project, supporting renovations to the Brook Run Theater, and the city's growing commercial occupancy. He closed by asking residents to contribute to their community. The well-attended event was hosted by the city and local Rotary Club.
The nation’s mayors are increasingly turning to national service as a costeffective strategy to address city challenges. By unleashing the power of citizens, AmeriCorps and Senior Corps programs have a positive and lasting impact – making our cities better places to live. To spotlight the impact of national service and thank those who serve, mayors across the country will participate in the second-annual Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service on April 1, 2014. On this day, mayors will hold public events and use traditional and social media to highlight the value and impact of national service to the nation’s cities. Last year, 832 Mayors representing nearly 100 million citizens participated in the inaugural Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service. The initiative is being led by the Corporation for National and Community Service; Cities of Service; the National League of Cities; the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
In April 2013, nine months prior to the transition to a council by district system, Councilmember James Tate created the District 1 Community Leadership Committee. The objective was to unite community groups and residents throughout the District into a cohesive collective focused on community building. For the first six months the meetings were limited to community group leaders and key members who met in order to develop the meeting’s framework and overall direction. Afterward the community at large was invited and the District 1, or D1 as we affectionately call it, movement was underway.
The District 1 Monthly Meetings continue to bring together individuals representing a cross section of the community groups and the 105,000 residents spread across the 18.83 square mile span that is District 1. These booklets contain the names of D1 community groups, a break down of the speakers and subject matter for each monthly meeting and a listing of District 1 specific community events, making it a record of the collaborative efforts and dedication of District 1 residents, community organizations, businesses and the Office of Councilman James Tate.
Presentation to the AIAS Grassroots conference, Washington, DC, July 2015 covering global issues, the designer democracy challenge, and inspiring community case studies that demonstrate the collective impact of community collaboration.
Workshop presentation to the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) annual conference in Montreal framing a discussion about how to spread good P2 practice.
The estimated contribution of urban area to India’s GDP is approximately 70-75%. Despite the enormous economic contribution, the current state of urban infrastructure is in poor condition. It is estimated that by 2030, an additional $1.2 trillion would be required to provide basic urban services. In this presentation, an attempt has been made to find out the ways to mobilize such a huge financial requirement. The target audience of this presentation includes inter alia urban development and finance professionals, city managers and the general public.
The nation’s mayors are increasingly turning to national service as a costeffective strategy to address city challenges. By unleashing the power of citizens, AmeriCorps and Senior Corps programs have a positive and lasting impact – making our cities better places to live. To spotlight the impact of national service and thank those who serve, mayors across the country will participate in the second-annual Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service on April 1, 2014. On this day, mayors will hold public events and use traditional and social media to highlight the value and impact of national service to the nation’s cities. Last year, 832 Mayors representing nearly 100 million citizens participated in the inaugural Mayors Day of Recognition for National Service. The initiative is being led by the Corporation for National and Community Service; Cities of Service; the National League of Cities; the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
In April 2013, nine months prior to the transition to a council by district system, Councilmember James Tate created the District 1 Community Leadership Committee. The objective was to unite community groups and residents throughout the District into a cohesive collective focused on community building. For the first six months the meetings were limited to community group leaders and key members who met in order to develop the meeting’s framework and overall direction. Afterward the community at large was invited and the District 1, or D1 as we affectionately call it, movement was underway.
The District 1 Monthly Meetings continue to bring together individuals representing a cross section of the community groups and the 105,000 residents spread across the 18.83 square mile span that is District 1. These booklets contain the names of D1 community groups, a break down of the speakers and subject matter for each monthly meeting and a listing of District 1 specific community events, making it a record of the collaborative efforts and dedication of District 1 residents, community organizations, businesses and the Office of Councilman James Tate.
Presentation to the AIAS Grassroots conference, Washington, DC, July 2015 covering global issues, the designer democracy challenge, and inspiring community case studies that demonstrate the collective impact of community collaboration.
Workshop presentation to the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) annual conference in Montreal framing a discussion about how to spread good P2 practice.
The estimated contribution of urban area to India’s GDP is approximately 70-75%. Despite the enormous economic contribution, the current state of urban infrastructure is in poor condition. It is estimated that by 2030, an additional $1.2 trillion would be required to provide basic urban services. In this presentation, an attempt has been made to find out the ways to mobilize such a huge financial requirement. The target audience of this presentation includes inter alia urban development and finance professionals, city managers and the general public.
1. Photos]DunwoodyStateofCityeveningattractshundreds
Dunwoody Mayor Denis Shortal addresses a packed crowd at the State of the City event Feb. 25. (Photos
Dyana Bagby)
Hundreds of people packed the Crowne Plaza Ravinia Hotel for the seventh annual Dunwoody State
of the City, this year given by Mayor Denis Shortal.
“We’re a family,” Shortal said of Dunwoody’s residents, adding that he is here to serve the residents
and not himself.
Some key points from Shortal’s speech:
• The city has 82 volunteers serving on boards and committees. “You can’t talk about our city without
talking about our volunteers. That’s what makes our city special,” Shortal said.
• “We have to make sure we are fiscally prudent … to ensure long-term financial stability for our
city,” Shortal said.
• The city’s 2016 paving budget is essentially the same as 2010, Shortal said. “On March 14 I’m going
to ask the council to add an additional quarter million dollars for our paving budget,” he said. The
city is also receiving another $100,000 in state and federal funding to go toward paving, he added.
Ten miles of sidewalks have also been paved since the city was founded.
• The I-285/400 project by the Georgia Department of Transportation and State Road and Tollway
Authority is expected to break ground in late 2016 or perhaps early 2017, Shortal said. The 48- to 51-
month project will cause traffic inconvenience, Shortal said, but will ease congestion in the long
term.
• On the controversial Brook Run Theater proposal, Shortal said he supported renovating the building in
the park now for a community theater and meeting space and his statement was greeted with
2. applause. Shortal added that the perhaps $20 million project would need to be funded by a “massive
amount of private funding” — perhaps up to 90 percent. “We’ll see what happens with that.”
• The city’s commercial occupancy is now 87 percent when just five years ago it was approximately
60 percent. “We need to protect our residential area with buffering. We continue to say we are a
residential community that is business friendly.”
• Shortal closed with by recalling John F. Kennedy, saying, “Tonight, my fellow citizens of
Dunwoody, ask not what your city can do for you, but what you can do for your city.”
The event was hosted by the city of Dunwoody and the Rotary Club of Dunwoody. A cocktail hour
with heavy hors d’oeuvre preceded the mayor’s address.
Rotary Club President Lorri Christopher welcomed residents and dignitaries to the event.
Norlaundra Huntington
City Manager Eric Linton honored Municipal Court Clerk Norlaundra Huntington for her hard work
and contributions as a city employee.
Tina Wilkinson
Sustainability Committee member Kevin Sok presented Tina Wilkinson with the City of Dunwoody’s
Sustainable Hero Award for 2015.