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Health & Fitness

Briarcliff Group Issues Statement on Cityhood Studies

The City of Briarcliff Initiative provided Patch with a statement Monday night in response to last week's release of the feasibility study requested by the Lakeside City Alliance for a proposed city of Lakeside.

COBI's statement:

"The City of Briarcliff Initiative [COBI] commends the Lakeside City Alliance for the public release of the UGA study analyzing their proposed city’s financial feasibility. The supporters of Briarcliff are pleased to see confirmation that cities can improve the lives of their residents by performing services more efficiently than the County. 

"The legislative process for creating a new city in Georgia requires an economic feasibility study, and COBI anticipates the completion and public release of the City of Briarcliff financial study in early December. The Briarcliff study is also being prepared by the University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government; and advocates for Briarcliff are eager to compare the study results. 

"The completion of these studies will be an opportunity to reconcile the issues and divisions among the competing proposals. The members of COBI are anxious to work with DeKalb County officials, and with the supporters of other proposed cities, in an open, constructive and mutually respectful way to improve government for all. Supporters of Briarcliff, like the supporters of Lakeside, Tucker and Stonecrest, raised $30,000 to pay for each of the feasibility studies, and each study deserves careful consideration. 

"Allen Venet, President of COBI, stated: 'The residents of each area that actively raised thousands of dollars for these studies deserve a chance to vote on whether they want to incorporate as new cities— not just Lakeside but Briarcliff, Tucker, and Stonecrest. We hope that the Legislature will give everyone in the area the right to choose the style of government that they prefer. The people of central DeKalb County and their civic associations want a voice in creating their futures. Completion of the feasibility studies is important, but it is just one part of a process that should end by allowing everyone the opportunity to vote. We trust that the General Assembly will use all four of the studies to arrive at fair solutions for all.'

"The City of Briarcliff Initiative is a group of DeKalb County residents working to create a new city with logical, inclusive, boundaries inside the perimeter, between I-85 and the City of Decatur. More information is available at briarcliffga.org, or at a public discussion scheduled for Monday, Dec. 9."

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