Sandy Spring cautious about economic initiative with Dunwoody

By Bob Pepalis and Cathy Cobbs

Sandy Springs City Council members expressed skepticism about a joint Dunwoody-Sandy Springs economic development strategy, saying that it may be duplicating existing efforts in the Metro Atlanta area.

The discussion came during a presentation by Economic Development Manager Caroline Davis and City Manager Eden Freeman on the Perimeter Cities Entrepreneurship & Innovation Strategic Plan initiative at the Jan. 17 Sandy Springs City Council work session.

“The overall purpose of this strategic plan is to identify programs that over time will nurture and grow the entrepreneurial base in Sandy Springs and the Perimeter and hopefully work with our corporate community to do so,” Davis said.

The Dunwoody City Council had discussed the program and its potential benefits to its economic growth at a meeting last August. The council had earlier appropriated $250,000 to support the development of a strategic plan and early implementation using American Rescue Plan funding.

At the meeting, Dunwoody Economic Director Michael Starling said the city’s Development Authority and the Economic Recovery Advisory Committee had identified entrepreneurship as its top priority for the past few years, seeing it as a gateway to economic recovery after the pandemic.

“We realized that we not only needed to focus on programs, but we also needed to focus on the whole ecosystem and characteristics of what communities who are really successful at entrepreneurship focus on,” Starling said. “And a lot of it doesn’t have to do with training or mentoring – it’s about placemaking.”

Dunwoody engaged Boyette Strategic

Advisors to identify goals to help foster a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem. Since that presentation, Starling said it became clear that the two cities “share a common vision of focusing more resources on supporting entrepreneurs,” and offered Sandy Springs the opportunity to partner on the strategy.

Dunwoody staff members are now determining next steps for the initiative, Starling said, and will present their ideas at a future council meeting

“Many technology projects have located in Dunwoody and Sandy Springs in the past few years, as I’m sure you’re aware, this obviously creates an opportunity for Dunwoody and Sandy Springs to focus on these innovation technology entrepreneurs even more,” Boyette Chief Operating Office Tracy Sharp told Sandy Springs City Council on Jan. 17.

Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul asked if staff took into consideration the bandwidth and resources both cities have to execute the strategy.

Economic development staff would take the lead, but other staff and corporate partners would be engaged, Davis said.

She said a draft of the plan would be submitted on Feb. 7, but would not include funding requests. Those would come through the normal budget cycle, with the strategy implemented in stages over several years.

Councilmember John Paulson said the accelerator is something that the chamber of commerce should be either initiating or partnering with other entities, rather than having Dunwoody and Sandy Springs telling businesses what to do.

Davis said the Dunwoody and Sandy Springs chambers were listed as partners in the implementation plan.

“If we can kickstart something, then maybe that’s worthwhile,” Paulson said.