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As we start a new year --- in fact, a new decade --- how we perceive government is a question of utmost importance. To some, government is just background noise. To others, it’s all consuming. To most, it’s something we count on to work well. When it doesn’t, we’re quick to express our disappointment in the return on investment we get for our tax dollars.

Government is imperfect --- at all levels. It’s run by and for people who don’t always see the world in the same way. Much of this first newsletter of 2020 is devoted to goals I hope match yours for the city of Atlanta. If I’ve overlooked something, please let me and our staff know. You’ll find our contact information at the bottom of the newsletter. 

As we head into 2020, we wish you and all the citizens of Atlanta a happy and prosperous New Year. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Foresight is 2020
One thing I learned early on is that you have to count to 9 to get anything done. You need at least seven more votes from other City Council members--plus the Mayor--to pass and successfully implement legislation. Ideas, influence, and consensus are our currency. And those are the tools I will continue to use on your behalf in 2020.

From potholes to party houses, from tree protection to trash collection, the needs of the 40,000 plus residents of District 8 remain the highest priority for me and my staff. And if the city’s 311 service doesn’t solve your problem, we want to know.

But our focus also extends to all of Atlanta’s citizens. What Atlanta does city-wide echoes back through our tree-lined streets of District 8.

That’s why I’ve set five overarching goals as we start a new year. I also have separate city-wide and District 8 goals, as well as three goals that involve working with entities outside Atlanta.

Top 5 priorities for 2020:
1. Implement the new Inspector General’s office. Restoring trust in city government is the biggest issue facing Atlanta in 2020. Trust is the foundation upon which everything rests. Citizens deserve to know their government is honest, open, and worthy of their confidence. People must believe in their government.
 
2. Hold property taxes flat. City of Atlanta represents about 25% of your tax bill (Atlanta Public Schools and Fulton County are about 50% and 25%, respectively), and I remain committed to keeping the City’s 10-year string of NO tax increases, even as property values rise.

3. Update impact fees. Our city has thrived, but the infrastructure to support that prosperity has not kept pace. The city’s impact fees have not changed. As Atlanta feels the strain on transportation, police resources, and parks --- where impact fees go --- and as it fights to keep its share of property taxes flat, an increase in these fees will go a long way toward loosening our fiscal knot.

4. Update the tree ordinance. Atlanta’s tree canopy may be its most distinctive feature. It’s disappearing at an alarming rate. Citizens on both sides of the issue are locked in a standoff between preservation and development. Finding a reasonable compromise is essential.

5. Complete the Northwest Atlanta Traffic Study. We must complete this study in 2020 and develop workable solutions that can be implemented by the city’s new Department of Transportation. We are choking on our own traffic and must take action, but we need to know the causes and what actions to take first.  

City-Wide Goals
Public Safety  
 
As we did for our police force, we need to implement an announced pay raise for fire-fighters in and effort to increase their ranks by 75.

We saw a net increase of 125 police in 2019. We need the same gain in 2020 as we march to within 150 of our 2,000 officer goal. And Zone 2, which includes District 8, must get its fair share of these new personnel.

We need plans for a new Fire Station 26, a new station near Peachtree Road and Peachtree Battle Avenue, and a new public safety training center.
 
Transportation
 
In addition to the Northwest Traffic Study, we need to develop a long-term plan to improve the condition of District 8 streets. This includes annually setting and measuring the traffic capacity of those streets. This must be a priority for the city’s new Department of Transportation.

I will also work toward automated speed-enforcement cameras in school zones. Too many drivers are going too fast, endangering our little ones.
 
Good Government and Fiscal Responsibility

As previously mentioned, implementing the office of the Inspector General, holding city property taxes steady, and updating impact fees will be a focus in 2020. But I also want to ensure that solid-waste (garbage and recycling) rates match the services delivered and that the services are running a balanced budget.

We need a medical plan for City of Atlanta retirees that adequately provides health insurance in a financially sustainable way. I’m worried our current plan doesn’t. This is an area where my private-sector background will prove helpful.

How the city bids on and purchases goods and services has been the target of scrutiny in recent years. Work has already been done to improve the process, but more is needed.

We must determine the best use of the underutilized city jail and ensure we operate it in a cost-effective way. We need a facility to house inmates who commit city offenses. Should we look at offering the county additional space for inmates? Should the jail be repurposed to provide services aimed at the root causes of crime? Are there other solutions?
 
Quality of Life  
 
A new, stronger tree ordinance is priority #1, but there are other issues impacting the peaceful neighborhoods in which we live.

I will continue to push legislation to limit development of land-locked lots and fight subdivisions that are inconsistent with a neighborhood’s character.

Even though we believe we have put the 4499 Garmon Road party house matter behind us, I want to finalize legislation introduced in 2019 to prevent unlawful commercial use of residential property.  

District 8 Goals
Public Safety
 
We have nearly 100 license plate readers and approximately 120 security cameras in District 8. These devices help deter crime and catch criminals. We want 25 more.
 
Transportation
 
This is the year the Georgia Department of Transportation is scheduled to replace the Northside Drive bridge next to Bobby Jones Golf Course. We will work with GDOT and Atlanta’s Department of Transportation to minimize the disruption to our neighborhoods as traffic is re-routed.

Slowing traffic and ensuring pedestrian safety depend upon working with each of our 27 neighborhoods. Having a plan and sharing best practices is key to getting things done. 

Potholes, especially at winter’s end, must be filled. We rely on you to report them. In turn, we will follow through to ensure the work gets done.

RENEW/TSPLOST
 
We paved 12 miles of neighborhood streets in 2019. We’ll pave more and birddog sidewalk and intersection improvements, such as the street-scape project for Chastain Avenue in Chastain Park.

We also will ensure the completion of renovations to Fire Station 26 (Moores Mill and Howell Mill), driveway and bay work on Fire Station 27 (West Conway and Northside), and bathroom and ADA improvements at the Chastain Arts Center.

Quality of Life
 
NYO has high hopes for a gym expansion and parking deck in the ‘gulch’ between the existing gym and the golf course pro shop. We will do all we can to make that dream come true.

Communications
 
We have our first 2020 meeting set for the end of January with the presidents of the 27 neighborhood associations in District 8.  We plan more.

We are in Year 3 of this monthly newsletter. We want even more readers and more subscribers. One-thousand subscribers is our goal.  

Beyond City of Atlanta
Photo Credit: Ken Lund, Creative Commons License
Commuter bus service to Buckhead would go a long way toward easing congestion. This will involve working with several governmental entities. We are on it and pushing hard.

Commercial property taxes are often not appropriately charged to all properties, putting more burden on what homeowners pay. This is not right. Addressing this issue is a big hill to climb, but I’ve begun the ascent.

I will maintain my position on the Repeat Offender Commission. Its purpose is to provide greater public scrutiny on the release of repeat offenders by the courts, an issue that spiked a year ago with a rash of car break-ins and thefts.

Our plate overflows as 2020 begins. Some of these issues will rise in priority as others recede. And we can only guess at whatever surprises await. The year ahead will be a full one. Together, we’ll work to make sure District 8 and Atlanta are better places a year from now.

A Postscript on the Party House
Here is the note JP sent to neighborhood association presidents the day the operator of the 4499 Garmon Road residence was sentenced to 30 days in jail. Earlier in the week, a Fulton Superior Court judge imposed a permanent restraining order preventing commercial use of the property:

Olutosin (Tosin) Oduwole, operator of the 4499 Garmon Road party house, pleaded guilty this morning (December 13) in Atlanta Municipal Court to multiple charges and was sentenced to 30 days in jail, fined $7,000, lost his certificate of occupancy and was served with the permanent injunction issued earlier this week against operating a commercial business in a residential neighborhood.
 
Oduwole, who is to begin serving his sentence at 5:30 p.m. today (excluding Christmas Eve and Christmas), will be on probation for 12 months while he pays the fines. Judge Christopher T. Portis accepted the plea deal with Oduwole, who expressed regret and apologized for his actions. The city's charges against him included fire code and noise ordinance violations, a zoning violation for operating a commercial business in a residential area, operating a business without a license,obstruction of justice, and disorderly conduct.
 
Earlier this week, Fulton Superior Court Judge Kevin Farmer made permanent a temporary restraining order forbidding the use of the residence as a party house. Present and prepared to testify this morning were neighbors and officials from several city of Atlanta departments: Police, Fire, Watershed Maintenance, Planning and the Solicitor's office.   
 
'Justice was served twice this week,' Atlanta District 8 Council Member JP Matzigkeit said.  'It's been a long, frustrating process, but the legal system works.' He thanked neighbors for their forbearance and gave special credit to the Mt. Paran-Northside Citizens Association and its president Sally Riker. Judge Portis took special note of the resources the city had to commit to address this nuisance.  
 
'I am especially grateful to the dozens of city personnel who played a role in restoring peace and order to our neighborhood,' JP said.

District 8 Contacts

 

J.P. Matzigkeit    

jpmatzigkeit@atlantaga.gov

404.330.6051

 

Katie Howard

jpmatzigkeit@atlantaga.gov

404.330.6051

 

Jim Elgar

jqelgar@atlantaga.gov

404.546.4911
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