Progress 2016

progress 2016

gwinnettdailypost.com

SECTION C • SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016

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ENVISION Jimmy Carter Boulevard at Brook Hollow Parkway is the epicenter of industry...”

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PICTURE Downtown Lilburn has never looked better or busier... Highway 29 is a major Main Street...”

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INVENT Satellite at Sugarloaf is where Gwinnett comes to be entertained...”

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VISUALIZE Lawrenceville is a college town where Georgia Gwinnett and downtown are woven together...”

A dispatch from Gwinnett’s projected future

By Joshua Sharpe

joshua.sharpe@gwinnettdailypost.com

Today, we look back on the challenges and trials of one bustling street to the next, when one new family moved in after the other and knotted rounds of road work to let the lumbering mass travel gave way to the beginnings of public rail and “walkability.” Gwinnett County is not so much a shadow of its former self now, in the year 2040, as it is an offspring — maybe a set of twins.

As predicted, it’s Georgia’s most populous county, with some 1.5 million people crammed into the same 437 acres that held fewer than 900,000 in 2016. The buildings are taller, the scene more lively and the profile higher. Not too long ago this land was mostly wild forest, then it was quaint suburbia, then miles of sprawl — then this.

Before we go over exactly what this looks like it’s helpful to go back to when the predictions that preceded it came.

On Jan. 30, 2016, politicians, community leaders and others filed into the 1818 Club at the Gwinnett Chamber building in Duluth. They crowded at round tables and shared a meal as Atlanta Regional Commission board Chairman Kerry

Armstrong gave his State of the Region address.

Armstrong, bespectacled, in a red and white tie, stood behind a podium washed in daylight from a window at the center, near the intersection of Sugarloaf Parkway and Satellite Boulevard. There, he let slip the projection that Gwinnett would surpass mighty Fulton for the state population title by 2040.

“The growth is exciting,” then-Gwinnett County Administrator Glenn Stephens remarked afterward.

Looking back now that 2040 has arrived, the location of Armstrong’s speech was interesting.

At the corner of Sugarloaf Parkway and Satellite Boulevard, now stands a busy entertainment district crowded with intentionally dense housing, shops, comedy clubs and restaurants. Concertgoers come to take in shows at the Infinite Energy Center and mill about before and after, maybe take a break for a what we’ve taken to calling a “virtual-reality adventure.”

Planners had foreseen a demand for such development and paved the way.

They also thought to add new seats to the See FUTURE, Page 2C

IMAGINE GWINNETT 2040

2C • SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016

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progress 2016

Need for new fire stations, firefighters Training is among the ways the Gwinnett County fire department plans to be ready for the county’s growth. Here, firefighters are shown during rappelling training in 2015. (Special Photo)

By Joshua Sharpe

joshua.sharpe @gwinnettdailypost.com

The idea of growth isn’t news to Gwinnett County Department of Fire and Emergency Services.

The agency was swelling for years and years before the Atlanta Regional Commission projected the county would become Georgia’s largest in the next quarter of a century.

Since 1997, 10 new fire stations have graced Gwinnett streets; eight others have been relocated. This is thanks, officials will tell you, to special sales tax revenues that have allowed those pulling the purse strings to focus fire-district tax revenues

on hiring and training new firefighters.

But leaders know there is more work to be done, said Capt. Tommy Rutledge.

“With the anticipated growth of the county over the next two decades and beyond, there will no doubt

be a need for well-equipped fire stations and superbly trained fire and emergency medical services response personnel,” the department spokesman said.

A new station, the 31st, opens this year on Collins Hill Road, near Georgia

Gwinnett is growing to be the largest county in the state... and so is the population of

our Boomers and Seniors!

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

to exhibit or attend Gwinnett Daily Post presents

Saturday, June 4 | Infinite Energy Forum www.GenerationsExpo.com Contact Generations@scompapers.com 402995-

Gwinnett College. Station 10 is meanwhile being moved to an expanded location on Rock Spring Road. The county also has a three-bay building that can be used as a fire station when needed.

As personnel goes, the agency has an “authorized strength” of 898. Only 835 firefighter positions are filled.

More than half of them are also paramedics, the others EMTs. Medical services are a big part of the agency’s duties. In 2015, for instance, the department responded to 74,497 emergency incidents, with 75 percent being medical related.

With “the future in mind,” officials have bet on training, building a fire academy complex. It allows personnel to practice in a “real-world environment,” complete with medical labs for perfecting techniques, and interactive props.

But how many firefighters will pass through in coming years?

The answer, according to Rutledge, is hard to say, as are other stats on how the department will meet the challenges of 2040. There are many factors to consider.

“The exact number of personnel and facilities will have to be determined over time,” he said.

Future •From Page 1C center’s arena and space for exhibits and meetings.

They dreamed to make a “town center” at the heart of Gwinnett, where folks could “come early and stay late.”

The visitors arrive to the district on steady streams of public buses, or by self-driving cars, or by bicycles, and they travel on foot through the district.

The county has, after decade upon decade of debate, the beginnings of rail transit into the Norcross area.

As University of Georgia professor Jack Crowley noted in 2016, Gwinnett faced a choice.

“Gwinnett will have some form of fixed” rail transportation “or it will congestion like it never believed,” said the urban planning and design professor, a former developer who had already been watching the situation for 20 years. “You can have one or the other.”

“I’m not a gambler,” Georgia State University professor Joseph Hacker said in 2016.

But he felt it a safe bet Gwinnett County would at least have rail coming up from Doraville, though he knew there could be challenges, primarily funding, and he knew such projects always take a very long time.

Charlotte Nash, who was the county commission chairwoman in 2016, focused on other things as she foretold the county’s future in her State of the County address that year.

Close your eyes, she said to the crowd, and many did. ”In your mind,” said Nash, speaking at the Infinite Energy Center, “move 24 years into the future.

Gwinnett’s population will

exceed 1.5 million people.

Technology has advanced and business and society have adjusted. Today’s infant is a young professional.”

She sent the attendees down to Norcross, where the old OFS plant off Jimmy Carter Boulevard is the Atlanta Media Campus, the anchor to something of a new little “Hollywood.”

They make movies there, and people come to visit the redeveloped area to catch a glimpse of stars in town.

She predicted the bustle of the revamped downtown Lilburn, the international business hub in the Gwinnett Place area and the “college town” around Lawrenceville’s Georgia Gwinnett College. She also expected the biomedical industry that’s grown along U.S. Highway 78 as firms seek cheaper land still near Emory University and the Centers for Disease Control.

Gwinnett County’s services, naturally, has expanded.

The school district has added new schools to bring extra students in the system, which had already for decades been Georgia’s largest.

There also are new police and fire stations.

The expansions were planned years ago.

Many spoke of the needs and of how the county could be in trouble if it didn’t pay attention to the tide.

“The decisions we make today affect tomorrow’s Gwinnett,” Nash said back in that 2016 speech. “We have to continue dreaming dreams about tomorrow and what can be accomplished.”

Staff writers Curt Yeomans and Katie Morris contributed reporting.

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016 • 3C

progress 2016 Police, sheriff’s office prepare for Gwinnett growth

By Joshua Sharpe

joshua.sharpe @gwinnettdailypost.com

Law enforcement in Gwinnett County is trying to keep a finger on the pulse of the community to see what the future might hold. There is much uncertainty on that front, but what’s clear is that both the county police department and sheriff’s office are preparing for inevitable expansion.

By 2040, the year the Atlanta Regional Commission reckons Gwinnett will become Georgia’s most populous county, these agencies doubtlessly will need more personnel.

“Law enforcement is very manpower driven,” observed Deputy Shannon Volkodav, spokeswoman for the sheriff’s office.

And, as Gwinnett Police Chief Butch Ayers notes, “More officers mean additional vehicles and equipment.” It also means larger, or at least more, facilities.

The next project on Gwinnett PD’s list is to build and staff a sixth precinct, which will be located

next to Bay Creek Park near Grayson. Leadership of the force, which soon will be authorized to have nearly 800 officers, also is considering future plans for a Special Operations Precinct and “potential headquarters,” Ayers said.

The chief said, “Gwinnett County citizens’ support of SPLOST has been critical, and will continue to be so, to the ability of GCPD to provide effective services to

our citizens.” He’s referring to voter-approved special sales tax.

Over at the sheriff’s office, leaders are evaluating an increase in personnel due to an expansion of the Gwinnett County Justice and Administration Center, which is adding more courtrooms. The sheriff’s office is in charge of security at the Lawrenceville facility, as well as the jail.

There aren’t any plans in

Gwinnett politicians expected to be Democrats in the future

John Butler pulls a WinnDixie shopping cart out of Jackson Creek near Lucky Shoals Park during the 2014 Great Days of Service on Saturday in Norcross.

Butler was the team leader for the group cleaning around the creek, which included high school students and members of a rotary club.

(File Photo)

By Curt Yeomans

curt.yeomans @gwinnettdailypost.com

Collaboration, engagement vital for nonprofits in county’s growth

By Katie Morris katie.morris @gwinnettdailypost.com

When it comes to helping members of the Gwinnett community who are in need, collaboration is key.

“One thing that Gwinnett is outstandingly known for is its ability to collaborate not just with nonprofits but with corporations and with organizations,” said Regina Miller, associate director of Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services. “Do we all see eye to eye all the time? No, but is there that sense of community that’s broader than what you would see in other places? Oh, yeah.”

In light of Atlanta Regional Commission’s projection that the county’s population will reach 1.5 million people by 2040, that village mentality becomes even more vital, Miller said.

“I think as we see the collaboration and the growth, the two are going to continue to go hand in hand,” she said.

Another important strategy moving forward is for members of the community and organizations to work together to make a collective impact, according to Miller.

“I think we’re going to see more people react and get involved,” she said, “I think you’re going to start to see people have more of a long-term outreach effort because I think everyone is realizing that as government services change and medical services change, it is going to go back to that village concept of you have to help your neighbor.”

Miller said the county’s senior population, which has been growing steadily, could see an explosion over

the works to expand the jail at the moment.

But Volkodav figures the sheriff’s office could realistically end up with about 1,000 sworn and civilian positions, if a jail expansion and other factors called for more resources. It now has 744.

“While technology can help with efficient operations,” she said, “law enforcement officers will always be needed to investi-

Cities here do enjoy growing, other than selfloathing Rest Haven, which There are no will probably be a distant, crumpled memory long plans at the moment to since rolled into the proud expand the city of Buford by 2040. county jail The city of Snellville, as Gwinfor one, has recently been nett grows, kicking around the idea of but there adding more area for develcould be by opment. The city has its own the time the police force. county is projected to That notwithstanding, be Georgia’s projections call for a masmost popusive increase in population lous county for all the areas GCPD by 2040. (File serves, which includes all Photo) unincorporated land and every city expect for Snellville, Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Suwanee and Norcross. gate, make arrests, supervise Ayers acknowledged the inmates, serve civil sumgrowth would bring difficulmons, transport inmates ties, but he remains optiand provide security, for mistic that the department instance.” can continue its mission of For Ayers, it’s too soon “community policing” even to say how many officers with more residents. the police force could have Technology might help, when Gwinnett overtakes he said. long-mighty Fulton County “As we move into the in population. There are future, we will continually many things to consider, assess our growth needs to he said, including potential ensure that we can continue changes in the boundaries of to provide quality law encities in Gwinnett. forcement services.”

the next few years as baby boomers begin to reach that 60-plus age mark. According to data collected by the coalition, Gwinnett’s senior population could exceed the county’s school age, 5 to 19, population.

However, this up-andcoming population will be composed of active seniors looking to become more involved in bettering their community.

“We have already seen an increase in our leadership program. We’ve seen an increase in (senior) volunteers who have approached us.

These are seniors who want to do something,” Miller said. “I think what you’re going to see is that basis of education, intellect and wisdom compact in a different mindset of giving.”

Channeling this eagerness to be involved will grow more and more important in caring for the expanding, and aging, population. Miller predicts this will inspire new initiatives driven towards engaging the average member of the community, who are eager to not just volunteer but are also “engaged in giving the ideas.”

That includes the millennial generation which is beginning to make its own impact on service by incorporating technology and social media.

“I think typically they get stereotyped as being kind of aloof and indifferent, but I don’t think that’s the case. I think instead you’re seeing a different kind of engagement from them,” Miller said. “What’s exciting about these population increases is that you have the millennials who are going to be big, and you have the seniors, too.

“You have two very different kind of volunteers and efforts, and I think somehow those two are going to marry the generational gap and have more engagement.”

As Gwinnett’s population grows, Miller predicts that persisting issues surrounding poverty, food scarcity and housing could grow.

The number of students receiving free and reduced lunch in Gwinnett grew by 10 percent from 2008 to 2014, according to coalition data, and that trend could continue.

Another ongoing struggle is the fact that there were 1,483 people who were found to be homeless or precariously housed in Gwinnett as of last October. Many of them live in extended stay motels or with friends and family, Miller said. Since the issue has been identified, research is being done to better understand the homelessness situation and eventually develop a plan.

“I do think people realize that this number will start to rise if it is not addressed,” Miller said.

Community leaders will also be keeping an eye on the number of seniors living in poverty and growing population of veterans, many of which are in need of assistance with health care, employment and housing.

Over the next several years, nonprofits will begin to emerge in response to the larger population and potentially higher number of issues needing to be addressed.

“I see growth there and I see the current nonprofits doing what they can to expand,” Miller said.

Imagine a Gwinnett County where Democrats hold virtually every seat on the County Commission, and many, if not all, of its legislative seats.

That will likely be the political reality in the county by 2040.

Gwinnett County has traditionally been a Republican stronghold, but it is shifting toward the Democrats, said Charles Bullock, the Richard B. Russell Chair in Political Science at University of Georgia.

Bullock, a noted expert in Georgia politics, said it is part of a shift that is also going on across the rest of metro Atlanta.

“Fulton County, DeKalb County and Clayton County have been the traditional Democratic base (in metro Atlanta), but then Rockdale, Newton and Douglas flipped to the Democrats and Henry County recently switched as well,” Bullock said. “Cobb County will also go that way eventually, but Gwinnett will get there first.”

Bullock predicted Gwinnett would flip to being a “Blue County” sometime around the early to mid2020s. Under a scenario he laid out, few Republicans may still be in office by 2030, which is around the time when Gwinnett is expected to surpass Fulton County to become the most populated county in metro Atlanta.

“Some of the incumbent Republicans will keep getting elected, mainly based on name recognition, but as seats become open, they will likely be won by Democrats,” Bullock said.

In other words, a Republican officeholder in Gwinnett County could be a rare occurrence in 2040.

So far, any signs at the voting box that a switch in the county’s predominant political party might be coming has been limited to the denser, more urban and diverse areas in southwestern Gwinnett. That is where Democrats have already won some legislative seats in the Norcross, Peachtree Corners and Tucker area, and upward toward Duluth and Lawrenceville.

Republicans still heavily outweigh Democrats in the Gwinnett Legislative Delegation, but Gwinnett

County Democratic Party Chairman Jim Shealey sees it a sign that politics in the county is becoming more even between the major parties.

“We’re starting to get a balance between Republicans and Democrats right now,” he said.

Gwinnett Democrats are keeping their focus on local seats, though, as Shealey said getting a balance between the parties in the county is a key goal at this point. From there, they can focus on getting Gwinnettians to support Democrats for the bigger seats, such as governor or president.

“If we can grow our numbers, we should start to be able to compete in all races in the future,” Shealey said. “Right now, we’re working hard to get the Democratic base built up.”

There are some offices, such as sheriff, where a Republican incumbent has regularly won re-election without opposition from a Democrat.

In 2012, County Commission Chairwoman Charlotte Nash won her first full term to her office without a Democratic challenger, despite the fact that she’d been in office for only a year. That won’t be the case this year, however, as one Democrat, Jack Snyder, already has announced plans to challenge Nash in the November general election.

Time will tell if other Democrats decide to jump into the chairman’s race, but that question will be answered when candidate qualifying is held the week of March 7.

“If we can get some balance and some representation, that would be tremendous,” Shealey said.

Don’t count the Republicans out just yet, though.

Shealey’s counterpart in the Gwinnett County Republican Party, Richard Carithers, has said in the past that, despite the belief that a shift is taking place, his party is still a force to be reckoned with locally with a “huge voting block” that comes out for elections.

Carithers could not be reached for comment for this article.

A switch to “Blue County” status could mean a few things for Gwinnett County. First, although officeholders from both

parties agree transportation is an issue, Democratic officeholders, as well as Snyder as a candidate, have been vocal about the transit issue, and particularly MARTA. State Rep. Pedro Marin, D-Duluth, has introduced a bill calling on county commissioners to hold a community dialog on MARTA and to set a referendum if the feedback they receive supports the county joining the metro area transit system. His fellow Gwinnett Democrats in the House have signed on as co-sponsors of the bill, but it lacks local Republican support.

Secondly, as the Democratic base grows in metro Atlanta, it increases the chances of a Democrat from the area getting elected as governor.

Third, Democrats will likely still be a minority in both chambers of the General Assembly when the switch finally happens in the county. That will mean the loss of some influence for the county in the General Assembly at first, but as Democrats gain more and more metro area districts, they could come back into power.

The Republicans’ current domination of state politics is still far less than a quarter of a century old, after all.

A takeover of one or both houses of the state legislature would put Gwinnett in a prime position to regain some leadership positions and clout under the Gold Dome.

“If these Democrats continue to get elected, they will be given seniority, and then they would be given committee chairmanships (when Democrats control the legislature), and that would give you some influence,” Bullock said.

Bullock said it is possible for new Republican candidates could get elected after the switch happens, but he added that it would require some changes in thinking on some issues to appeal to a broader, more diverse audience.

“Gwinnett’s population is also become more diverse, and Republicans in Georgia have not had great success in the past at getting votes from anyone other than whites,” Bullock said. “Republicans will need to come up with ways to reach out to minority groups.”

4C • SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016

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progress 2016

Growing infinity

Gwinnett leaders planning expansion, redevelopment of Infinite Energy Center

By Katie Morris

katie.morris @gwinnettdailypost.com

Imagine coming to the Infinite Energy Arena to see your favorite musician and arriving early so you can tailgate alongside other fans on a large green space.

Or maybe you’d rather walk to the entertainment district situated across from the Infinite Energy Forum to eat at one of the restaurants or browse through the shops before the show. Perhaps you’d rather stay late after the show and eat a late evening meal then walk over to your room at the highrise Marriott hotel that’s attached to the Forum.

By the year 2040, when Gwinnett’s population is projected to exceed 1.5 million people, these fantasies could be realities.

Explore Gwinnett leaders have been working on a long-term master plan that calls for the Infinite Energy Center and the surrounding area to be redeveloped. The 30-year plan was created 20 years ago and has been evolving ever since, according to Explore Gwinnett Executive Director Lisa Anders.

While there are key components to the plan, nothing is set in stone and proposed ideas could be reimaged in the years to come.

The master plan includes a four-star, fullservice Marriott hotel that’s set to be built at the convention center and will bridge the center’s

This overview rendering shows proposed ideas that are part of a long-term master plan for the expansion and redevelopment of the Infinite Energy Center and surrounding area. (Special Photo)

conference and event spaces. Other proposed ideas include residential housing, a green space with an amphitheater, expanding the conference center and adding concert seating to the Arena, increasing its capacity to between 14,000 and 15,000.

The proposals also include expanding the Arena’s lobby club space and including a waiting area as well as expanding club-level spaces.

One of the master plan’s key components is to create a walkable entertainment district across from the Infinite Energy Forum that offers eateries and shops, said Anders.

The idea is to create a

place where residents can “Come Early and Stay Late.” Currently, concertgoers drive to the Arena, park and attend the show.

If you want to eat at a restaurant before the show, typically you have to drive to one of the nearby establishments.

“Our vision is if there’s a Carrie Underwood concert, you can come early and walk down and have food or a drink and lengthen the experience,” Anders said.

Another important element is the proposed parking decks with ground level shops and restaurants that will replace the current parking lots.

“In order to accomplish

the vision of the master plan; in order to utilize what’s currently parking space, surface parking, to either build the residential component or have amphitheater space, we’re essentially going to take from what is now surface parking and repurpose it,” Anders said. “So we’re going to have to replace it because we can’t afford to lose any parking.”

The source of funding for the redevelopment and expansion is still under discussion, but Anders said there are private and public components to the overall project.

She said the next step in the process is to put out a request for qualifications to private

developers. Once interested developers respond, leaders will then narrow the number down and move on to the proposal process.

“We think it’s a pretty big step and we do think there’s a lot of interest in it,” Anders said.

“It’s prime real estate and there’s a great opportunity for someone.

There is already a built-in audience locally. There’s an even bigger audience built in from a visitation perspective. The complex had over a million people go through it last year, so that’s a pretty strong base to start off with.”

The center’s expansion and redevelopment is timely for Gwinnett’s ex-

pected growth and should help to accommodate that larger population, creating a town center in the heart of the county that offers residential housing alongside entertainment and pushes walkability in the area.

Anders said a ways down there road there’s even the possibility of connected the Infinite Energy Center with nearby destinations like Sugarloaf Mills and the 75,000-square-foot Sugarloaf Market project that’s under development.

The Infinite Energy Center is a major economic generator for the county, Anders said, and at its current size the exhibit hall and meeting space competes for 20 percent of the meetings market because that’s what the space will accommodate.

If the space is expanded from 50,000 square feet to 125,000 square feet, it will allow the center to compete for 80 percent of the meetings market, she said.

According to Anders, a recent economic impact study for the convention center conducted

by Georgia Tech showed that at its current size its impact was around $173 million a year.

“If you double that, the possibilities are so strong,” Anders said. “For its size it’s a very, very successful convention center, and we just know that we have so much more opportunity.”

County, region planning now for future transportation needs

By Curt Yeomans

curt.yeomans @gwinnettdailypost.com

Gwinnett County is at a crossroads as far as transportation is concerned.

Does it build more roads to accommodate the growth that is expected to come over the next 24 years? Is an expansion of transit, and possibly joining MARTA, a better way to go? Are more bike paths and pedestrian walkways, such as sidewalks, needed?

All of that remains to be seen, but one thing Gwinnett County officials universally agree on is that transportation will need to be addressed by 2040.

That’s because, as county Director of Transportation Alan Chapman put it during a recent meeting with commissioners to discuss the plan, “transportation really is about quality of life.”

“A lot has happened in the last seven or eight years (since the last update to the plan) and we’ve got to get that baseline for where we are now so we can project into the future,” Chapman told the commissioners.

How to address this issue is a question county officials are trying to find answers to in the present as they work on a major update to their Comprehensive Transportation Plan.

The theme of that update is Destination 2040, looking forward to a time when the county’s population will be nearly twice what it now is.

The plan will map out how the county’s transportation system may develop over the next 24 years. That includes roads, traffic signals, bridges, transit, Briscoe Field airport, pedestrian pathways, railroads and bike trails.

“Right now, transportation is the issue that we’re at a point of inflection in terms of how we grapple with how we deal with transportation going forward, and that’s one of the reasons

Cars cross the busy intersection of Hurricane Shoals Road and Duluth Highway in this 2015 file photo. County officials are in the middle of planning how Gwinnett’s transportation network will evolve over the next 24 years. (File Photo)

why the Comprehensive Transportation Plan update is so critical,” Gwinnett Commission Chairwoman Charlotte Nash told the Daily Post staff during a meeting in January.

The update transportation plan isn’t expected to be ready until next year, but it’s not stopping some officials and residents from thinking about the future, particularly where transit will fit in.

A series of public meetings to gather public input for the county’s transportation plan is expected to begin at 6 p.m. March 15, at the Bogan Park Community Recreation Center.

“Getting input from the public is so important to us with this plan, in terms of getting the right goals and then moving into investments that we may want to fund in the future,” Chapman said. “We need to understand what the community wants.”

Nash said major changes have traditionally come from the creation of a major plan, whether it’s the transportation plan, the county’s overall comprehensive plan or other documents, such as the land-use plan.

She added that not every plan update brings big changes. This is bigger than the typical update, however,

and so major changes could be possible result.

“It would not surprise me if that were the case, but I’m going to wait and hear what comes out of this,” Nash said earlier this month. “I think we’ve got a good process laid out and obviously a very robust public participation on a number of different levels. It’s going to be up to the folks across the community to make sure they take advantage of those opportunities to provide input.”

Nash also told the Daily Post in January that the county will look at several sets of numbers, including high, median and low estimates, while developing the plan.

There are some plans in the works already though for how some of Gwinnett’s transportation network will evolve in the near future.

The Atlanta Regional Commission board approved it’s new Atlanta Region’s Plan for the area on Wednesday. Although the ARC is mainly a 10-county group, it’s transportation planning area includes nearly twice as many counties.

That plan looks out to 2040, but includes several short-term projects, such as an extension of the toll lanes on Interstate 85 from Old

Peachtree Road to Hamilton Mill Road, and the addition of two lanes in each direction on Buford Highway, from Thompson Mill Road to Friendship Road.

It also includes upgrading the intersection of U.S. Highway 29 and Ga. Highway 316 from a traffic signal crossing to an interchange that has an overpass bridge and exit ramps. This is one of six interchange conversions planned for Ga. Highway 316 in Gwinnett and Barrow counties that the ARC says will result in nearly all of the highway being controlled access through eastern Barrow.

Plans are already in place to convert the McGinnis Ferry Road at I-85 crossing to an interchange in the near future, and Ga. Highway 316, from I-85 to Ga. Highway 120, was identified in the ARC plan as a potential target for future toll lane expansion.

But there is also transit to consider, and that’s been a topic of discussion in the last year. In the last 12 months, the Gr8 Exchange on Transportation results showed participants want a multi-modal transportation network, and a Gwinnett Chamber survey released last spring showed support for the county joining

MARTA. Even Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle told the chamber in December that transportation and transit, are major issues that Gwinnett, the rest of metro Atlanta and the state as a whole needs to deal with.

The county is already taking steps to expand Gwinnett County Transit by including funding in this year’s budget to add three bus routes to the system.

Those routes will be studied this year and then rollout will begin.

A key question is where rail transit will fit into Gwinnett’s transportation future. Nash has said she believes rail was a factor in why many people said they support MARTA coming to Gwinnett.

It is certainly one reason why State Rep. Pedro Marin, D-Duluth, has introduced legislation that asks county leaders to have community meetings to see if Gwinnett residents want to join MARTA, and to schedule a referendum.

“I see MARTA’s Doraville rail coming to Norcross, from Norcross going to Gwinnett Place Mall that you know needs that injection of economic development,” he said.

“From there, I see Gwinnett Arena also as a stop — an incredible venue of entertainment and activities — and from there, who knows, (maybe) Gwinnett Technical College (and) Georgia Gwinnett College.”

Other members of the Gwinnett Legislative Delegation are also looking at commuter rail.

Rep. Buzz Brockway, R-Lawrenceville, recently introduced legislation to create a commission that would handle transit rail expansion. Under this proposal, however, commuter rail would be handled through the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority, also known as GRTA, instead of MARTA.

The proposed commission would oversee transit rail expansion districts, which would be property located within a quarter-mile of a rail transit station.

During his visit to the chamber in December, Cagle didn’t pick which agency would be better fit to run commuter rail in the area, but he didn’t rule out incorporating MARTA either.

“We really do need a commuter rail option within our state and I think MARTA, with the existing infrastructure that’s there, may be able to be retooled and looked at to create a value added for the citizens,” he said. “The existing model needs to be changed.

A lot of people don’t see value in stopping every five minutes.

“You show value by people being able to guarantee people delivery times and being a transit option where there’s limited stops.

That kind of infrastructure is very, very needed.”

But rail-based transit is not easy to implement. With a bus system, the county can buy a bus and use the existing road network.

Commuter rail, on the other hand, not only needs trains, but also rail lines to run on.

“I think there’s a common thought that we can just put passenger trains on the existing railroads and that’s a whole lot harder than just saying it,” she said.

“The railroads have to agree to that, which means they have to see it as a good deal for them.

But, the county leaders will have to sort that out in the coming months. To realize a plan for where the county wants and should be in 2040, they’ll need the help of key community stakeholder groups and all of Gwinnett’s residents.

“I think people will look back at some point in the future and see that as an important point in the history of Gwinnett,” Nash said.

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016 • 5C

6C • SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016

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progress 2016 County’s specialized, themed education formats to continue

By Keith Farner keith.farner @gwinnettdailypost.com

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www.gwinnettdailypost.com

The future has arrived, and more is on the way in Gwinnett County Public Schools in the form of specialized education formats, themed schools and career path introductions.

When the school district introduced academy high schools two years ago, it signaled a new direction in education that district leaders expect to continue in the coming decades. While the district expects growth of 2,500 to 3,000 students to continue in the next five years, officials also expect that education will be presented to students in much of the same way it’s been presented starting with changes that began two years ago.

At the Junior Achievement Discovery Center at Discovery High School, which opened last fall, middle school students learn about personal finance and entrepreneurial concepts through two areas called BizTown and Finance Park.

At the Discovery Center and at academy high schools, local businesses partner to buy a storefront or offer employees to interact with students about their career to give students a realworld application.

At seven academy high schools across Gwinnett, students gain work-based experience in some cases, college credit or professional certification and a plan for postsecondary education and a career. The idea is to give students a voice in how they demonstrate education and develop skills to use in the workforce after graduation.

“Really it’s about keeping students engaged and excited about their life,” said Steve Flynt, the district’s chief strategy and performance officer. “… Any time we can link real world to a student’s

In this file photo from earlier this school year, Twin Rivers Middle School students Jonathan Fortt, left, and Isaac Philogene discuss a banking transaction in the Wells Fargo location inside BizTown at the Junior Achievement Center at Discovery High School. Every middle school student in Gwinnett County Public Schools will learn personal finance and entrepreneurial principles there during the school year. (File Photo)

education, that’s what we’re after. So that may happen in the way we’re looking forward.”

Future long-term plans include a variety of options including themed schools that are geared toward a specific area such as health sciences and medicine or international business, finance and law. Those high schools are expected to be in the Norcross and Meadowcreek clusters.

“We know that through other school systems who’ve done this,” Flynt said, “the students not only moved into good-paying jobs, but they typically will move back to the same location where they started learning that, especially from the partnerships.”

Coleman Middle School in Duluth, expected to open in August, will be the district’s first STEAM school, which means it adds arts to the science, technology, engineering and math acronym.

While some of these programs involve an entire school, other project-based learning activities further the real world application model that CEO/Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks discussed last year as ways to help students get and stay engaged.

“Technology helps make possible some more personalized instruction,” Wilbanks said. “A lot of these things

may seem insignificant, but they aren’t insignificant when it comes to engaging students.”

Four new schools opened in August and some of them offered programs tailored for their students.

At Graves Elementary, there’s a program called “G-DART” which integrates dance, art, rhythm and theatre. At Jordan Middle, the curriculum is deployed using a “gradual release” format where a teacher performs a given topic, and then moves into guided instruction. The school also has a music technology component.

An old school in a new location, Summerour Middle, has an environmental center that allows students to explore outdoor classrooms within a community-managed agriculture program.

At the high school level, GCPS’ size helps the district roll out new or specialized programs because it has enough students to fill a classroom or program.

“We can offer a whole lot other opportunities for students where if you have a smaller school you just couldn’t,” Flynt said.

“Whether it’s (Advanced Placement), dual enrollment with colleges, electives, all those other classes or even higher level classes are very difficult to separate if you don’t have enough students to fill a classroom.”

GCPS plans follow job, population trends

concentrated in the central and western parts of Gwinnett, but overall, the district in recent years has grown by The post-Recession the size that’s equivalent to a growth in Gwinnett County high school.

Public Schools remains “We see it in different nearly 3,000 students per areas of the county and that’s year, but that’s less than why we aren’t building a half of the peak in the early high school every year be1990s that ushered in the cause we’re able to fill high cluster concept. schools we have,” Flynt said.

The school district has The district follows consistently measured general population projecgrowth, while at the height tions made by Gwinnett of the Great Recession County and the Atlanta enrollment growth was less Regional Commission, and than it is now or pre-2008.

Flynt said they’re each valid.

The early ’90s growth was But that doesn’t necessarily 7,000 to 8,000 students per help when building schools. year, and that caused district Instead, district officials look leaders to put out a bond at areas where new jobs may referendum that initially arrive. failed in February 1990, but While recent population later passed that fall, district growth has been on the south spokeswoman Sloan Roach side of the Interstate 85 corsaid. ridor, “areas of innovation” “We were having rediscould move to U.S. Highway tricting almost every year 78 and the Ga. Highway 316 to manage the growth,” she corridor where biomedical said. “So what we decided companies are looking to was, we developed the clus- move. ter concept, it would give Zoning, types of housing parents a little of stability and transportation all play in terms of they would stay factors into where people with their cluster. For the live, and therefore where most part, we would try to their children attend school keep you in that cluster.” and where the district makes While the school district plans to build new schools. doesn’t project specific “That has a direct impact enrollment numbers beyond on people moving to the five years, but Steve Flynt, area because of jobs, and the district’s chief strategy it will have in turn a direct and performance officer, said impact on schools,” Flynt by 2030, enrollment is exsaid. “So depending on how pected to be at least 200,000 quickly those areas develop, students. It’s about 176,000 that real has an impact on this school year. where the students will be Recent growth has been going.”

By Keith Farner

keith.farner @gwinnettdailypost.com

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016 • 7C

progress 2016

Class actions

New reclassification, new challenges for Gwinnett schools’ sports teams

new regions).”

Those changes won’t be limited to Gwinnett schools in the state’s Over the past few largest classification, decades, the population with Lanier, Buford and explosion that Gwinnett Greater Atlanta Christian County and other counties all moving up one class, around metro Atlanta have while Dacula (into a experienced has forced new region that includes several local and stateLanier) and Wesleyan wide organizations to each move down a class. make some adjustments to All of the new region keep up. and classification shifting, That phenomenon has along with the fact that extended to high school most regions will conathletics, with the Georgia sist of fewer teams, will High School Associabring a variety of changes tion expanding from four and adjustments for each different classifications a school to make. mere 16 years ago to seven “No. 1 going forward, when the 2016-17 school football coaches are now year begins in the fall. having to scramble to As Gwinnett County find enough (non-region) Public Schools athletgames to fill their schedics director John Weyher ules,” Weyher said. “And recently pointed out, the we want to make sure that most recent GHSA expanall our other sports can get sion will require some adthe games they need, and justments on the part of its make sure the communiGCPS members, as well as cation with other schools Buford High School and is good. We all have to the county’s GHSA private start preparing (for game schools, moving forward. days) differently — difAmong the biggest ferent (pre-game) meal Buford running back Christian Turner reaches for the goal line during the Wolves’ victory over North Oconee in a times, different leave of those adjustments is finding a balance between 2015 game. Buford and several other Gwinnett schools move to new classifications in 2016 and could face more times, different transportacompeting in the GHSA’s such shifts as the county grows. (Photo: David McGregor) tion issues.” new, revamped region How well schools from alignments and maintainwith competitive athletother.” two different regions con- regions will include some throughout Georgia adjust ing longtime local neighics in Gwinnett County.

True, the new regions, sisting either entirely or foes that have a history to the new alignments will borhood rivalries.

We want to maintain our which were finalized and nearly entirely of Gwinwith county schools, albeit also determine the length With the added new rivalries for a couple of released last month, innett schools in the highest not for a very long time. of times between realignclassification and correreasons. No. 1, they’re clude a major break-up of classification since 2000.

“We’ve been fortunate ments, as well. sponding smaller regions, healthy (rivalries). No. an alignment pattern that Beginning this fall, in past years that (the two “It’s a four-year deal,” Weyher admits doing so 2, they bring economic had kept many Gwinnett there will be three difregions) have mostly been Weyher said. “But after will be a bit of a challenge impact for the schools. schools — particularly ferent regions in the new Gwinnett vs. Gwinnett,” two years, we’ll be able for some schools.

(School administrators those in the GHSA’s larg- Class AAAAAAA with Weyher said. “But now, to look and see if any “We’re really heading and athletics directors) are est classification — close county teams in it, only we’re adding schools like changes need to be made. into a lot of uncharted trying to find ways to do to home throughout the one of which will be allLakeside (DeKalb), New- If (the system) works, it’ll waters right now,” Weyher that, and I think the ADs regular season in many Gwinnett. ton County and Rockdale be four years (before the said. “As athletic departare doing a good job of different sports.

However, the newCounty. It’s going to have next reclassification).” ments, we pride ourselves communicating with each That alignment included comers in the other two a different flavor to (the

By David Friedlander david.friedlander @gwinnettdailypost.com

8C • SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2016

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your community: city by city

City by City is a weekly look at the happenings in the places you call home MORE FROM DULUTH

AUBURN City preparing for annual Easter Egg Hunt Auburn officials are reminding residents that with Easter on the horizon, it’s almost time for an annual right of passage: The Easter egg hunt.

The city has announced it will partner with the Auburn Public Library and the Friends of the Library group to hold the Eggcellent Egg Hunt at 2:30 p.m. on March 12, at Whistlestop Park, next to City Hall, 1361 Fourth Ave. Children ranging from newborns to 10-year-olds are welcome to participate in the hunt.

The event will also include craft sessions where kids can create an Easter bracelet, a scratch art egg or a fuzzy magnet that can be placed on their refrigerators at home. Other parts of the event will include music, lemonade and live bunnies.

BARROW COUNTY Winder Fire Department ribbon cutting set for March 13th The Winder Fire Department will have a ribbon cutting and open house from 2 to 4 p.m. on March 13th to showcase the new remodel of Station No. 1 on North Broad Street in downtown Winder.

The event is open to the public and city officials encourage people to check out the renovations.

BERKELEY LAKE Mayor cautions against bow hunting deer Mayor Lois Salter recently wrote in the city’s newsletter to caution residents against bow hunting within the city limits of Berkeley Lake that she said is against city ordinances as well as the laws of other jurisdictions.

A resident recently told police that an arrow protruded from her chimney and police concluded it most likely was shot from across the lake, Salter wrote. She also worried about deer being wounded and eventually found dead around the city.

“There are plenty of places to hunt, but our city is not one of them.

BRASELTON Lunch and Learn event planned On March 9 at 11:30 a.m., a Lunch and Learn event is planned in Braselton in the town Community Room at 5040 Ga. Highway 53.

The Friends of the Braselton West-Jackson Library present guest Lisa Stephens, executive director for Lindsay’s Legacy Mentoring.

Homemade soup and salad lunch will be served, according to the Downtown Braselton organization.

The cost is $6 per person.

To RSVP call 706-9214113 or email lhannah97@ msn.com.

BUFORD Library celebrates Read Across America The Buford-Sugar Hill branch of the public library is inviting residents to celebrate the annual Read Across America campaign on March 2.

The special guest reader will be Sugar Hill Elementary media specialist Tammy Smith.

“A special truffula tree craft will be included in honor of Dr. Seuss’s birthday,” a statement from the library noted.

This program is open to kids of all ages. The library is at 2100 Buford Highway, Buford.

DACULA Library celebrating Read Across America Day on Wednesday Break out the red and white striped top hats, and red bow ties, because National Read Across America Day will be observed at places like the Dacula

on their website as “noted for innovative arrangements and unusual expressive power.”

The free concert is from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Norcross Community Center, located at 10 College St.

The addition of the new Community Center and Early Childhood Development Center to the Rainbow Village campus will serve homeless children through after and before school programs, tutoring, and other enrichment opportunities. (Special Photos)

Rainbow Village opens new Community Center

By Polly Ouellette Staff Intern

DULUTH — According to the American Institutes for Research, one in 45 American children experience homelessness each year.

Rainbow Village is working to take care of these children and to break the cycle of homelessness, poverty and domestic violence.

The organization is now better able to do so through the recent addition of a Community Center to its campus.

Rainbow Village provides a transitional housing community for homeless families in North Metro Atlanta. Over the last 25 years, over 300 families have been helped to get back on their feet. They were provided with safe homes and essential support services.

The average age of homeless children in the Rainbow Village program is only 9 years old, so the new community center features many programs for these young children. The space will serve as a place for before and after school programs, tutoring, character building classes, enrichment programs and the Early Childhood Development Center.

These opportunities have already helped the youth of Rainbow Village. Students have experienced improved academic and study skills, higher test scores and library branch on Wednesday.

The annual celebration is held to observe Dr. Seuss’ birthday, and the Dacula library plans to throw a party for kids ages 3-10. The event will take place at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, at the library, 265 Dacula Road.

Library staff will read Dr. Seuss stories, and there will be a craft activity related to Read Across America Day. DULUTH 22nd annual Easter Egg Hunt The city of Duluth’s Parks and Recreation department will put on the 22nd annual Easter Egg Hunt on March 19 at Scott Hudgens Park at 4545 Rivergreen Parkway.

The kid-friendly event is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m., while the all-ages egg hunt is set for 2 p.m.

The rain date is March 26 at the same time and location.

Attendees are encouraged to bring a basket.

Eggs are supplied by the city.

For more information, call 770-814-6981.

GRAYSON Library hosting Read Across America crafts all

The new Community Center and Early Childhood Development Center to the Rainbow Village campus has indoor and outdoor play areas to serve homeless children in Gwinnett County.

increased school attendance and graduation rates. Leaders have also seen that children have a better understanding of proper behavior, social skills and family responsibilities.

As part of the Community Center, the Early Childhood Development Center serves children up to age four in families living at or below the poverty level. It provides programming during the hours before traditional day care begins.

The Center received a license from Bright From the Start Licensing agency, which allows them to run a

day on Wednesday Kids wanting to make something to observe the birthday of Dr. Seuss, a day more well-known as “Read Across America Day,” will be in luck on Wednesday.

The Grayson library is inviting children under 7 to visit the branch “throughout the day to do crafts,” and then again at 6 p.m. for a special story time that will honor Dr. Seuss.

The branch is located at 700 Grayson Parkway.

LAWRENCEVILLE City seeking bids for LMIG resurfacing project Lawrenceville officials are seeking bids from contractors interested in resurfacing 2.4 miles of roads in the city. the resurfacing is being down as a Local Maintenance and Improvement Grant, or LMIG, project.

The Georgia Department of Transportation issues the grants to help local governments, like Lawrenceville, pay for improvement to their roads.

The contract work includes asphalt paving, milling, patching, striping and associated work on various streets around the city.

A pre-bid conference has been scheduled for 10 a.m. on March 7 at Lawrenceville City Hall, 70 S. Clayton

child care and learning program.

Rainbow Village is a registered nonprofit organization that was founded in 1991. In addition to the programs for children, they also offer life skills training for adults in order to increase self-sufficiency.

The construction of the Community Center is in the second phase of developments that result from a $7.7 million capital campaign which began in 2011.

The Rainbow Village campus is located at 3427 Duluth Highway 120 in Duluth. For more information, visit rainbowvillage.org.

St. The deadline to submit bids to the city’s purchasing department is 3 p.m. on March 21. The full, 120page bid advertisement is available on the city’s website, www.lawrencevillega.org.

very active and treasure the Camp Creek Greenway Trail as the city’s most prized amenity,” Mayor Johnny Crist said. “The city of Lilburn will continue to invest in the health of the greenway.”

LILBURN Greenway bridge opens On Feb. 19, the city of Lilburn completed upgrades to its Camp Creek Greenway Trail, including a bridge design that is new to the state of Georgia.

The greenway stretches 4.2 miles between Killian Hill Road and Rockbridge Road. Because the greenway was built in floodplain, seven boardwalks elevate walkers, runners, and cyclists above marshy areas and streams.

The ongoing cost of maintaining the wooden boardwalks sparked the city’s interest in maintenance-free precast concrete boardwalk product, called PermaTrak, the city said.

Future boardwalk upgrades are being planned to take place over the next five years. The city said it will add drainage improvements to the trail, as well, and will ramp up day-to-day efforts to clear the trail of mud and debris after heavy rainfall.

“Lilburn residents are

LOGANVILLE Local artist releases debut single Loganville native Jordan Rager, 21, has released his debut single, “Southern Boy,” a country-rock track that features guest vocals from Jason Aldean. Rager is set to release a debut album on Broken Bow records, which Southern Boy will be featured on. According to billboard.com, the song recently jumped from No. 56 to No. 46 on the Country Airplay chart.

“The breezy song mixes modern lyrical staples (“Keep stealin’ those kisses from your Southern belle …

Keep rollin’ with your buddies, raise a little hell”) with Aldean and Rager’s soulful vocals,” Billboard wrote.

NORCROSS Folk duo coming for First Friday concert Out of the Rain, a folk duo made up of Ron Hipp and Carol Statella, is set to play the Norcross First Friday concert on March 4.

The performers are billed

PEACHTREE CORNERS Plans moving ahead on city veterans monument Nearly a year ago the Peachtree Corners Veterans Monument Association was formed, its purpose to create a way to recognize the city’s residents who have served or are serving in the armed forces.

Within a few months, a committee formed, plans began to develop for the monument itself and a new website (www.ptsvets. net) was launched. And, recently, board members were informed that it had been granted 501©(3) tax exempt status, according to a news release from the city.

Committee chairman Bob Ballagh said more than 200 veterans have already contacted the association to provide their service information for the monument.

The monument will be located on the town green of the city’s new town center, which is due to open in fall 2017. Renderings of the monument are available on the PCVMA’s website.

SNELLVILLE Development issues pass council The Snellville mayor and council on Monday approved measures making way for several developments.

The Golden Krust Caribbean restaurant is to move from Scenic Highway and Oak Road to 2358 East Main St., the former Huddle House.

Approval was also given for a conditional use permit and request for variances which will allow for the re-opening of a gas station and convenience store at 1103 Athens Highway. The plans are at the intersection of Cooper Road.

The council also approved 12Stone Church’s plans to open a new church in the old Best Buy on Scenic Highway.

SUGAR HILL Changes coming to The Bowl Concert-goers this year in Sugar Hill will notice additional sidewalks and turfed areas on the common area around The Bowl. A splash pad and party suite are among the changes to the area. It’s all designed to offer a better setup for events and festivals.

Suites can be rented for individual concerts for the summer concert series, depending on availability.

For more information or to rent a suite, contact Scott Andrews at sandrews@cityofsugarhill.com

SUWANEE Beer Fest set for March 19 For the sixth year, the Suwanee American Craft Beer Fest is returning to Suwanee, this time to sample more than 300 craft beers on March 19 at Town Center Park.

“Although the event continues to grow in size each year, we do not want the overall experience to be compromised. A lot of work has gone into developing a new layout for the event and we’re confident that it will improve the flow of the festival, while allowing for shorter lines and additional restrooms,” said Michelle Fasig, Suwanee Beer Festival Event Manager.

Many participating breweries use the experience as an opportunity to debut new or rare seasonal beers at the festival, as well as brewing some specifically for the annual Brew Battle.

The festival features activities such as cornhole and beer pong, as well as the largest home brew competition in the area.