East Cobb News

The East Cobb Cityhood group held a virtual information session in mid-November about the results of a financial feasibility study, which is required by state law for cityhood legislation to be considered.

That session, which included questions about the decision to add police and fire services that were not originally proposed, is the last of calendar year 2021.

Cindy Cooperman, a spokeswoman for the group, told East Cobb News that more sessions for people living in the proposed city boundaries will be taking place starting in January.

She said those events will cater to neighborhoods and community groups interested in learning more.

“We are available upon request if your neighborhood is interested in having us speak to the group. We can be contacted at info@eastcobbcityhood.com or connect directly with any of the committee members listed on our website.”

January marks the start of the 2022 Georgia General Assembly, when the East Cobb Cityhood legislation, House Bill 841, will be taken up (you can read it here).

Sponsored by East Cobb Republican House members Matt Dollar and Sharon Cooper, the bill is one of four cityhood initiatives in Cobb County, along with Lost Mountain, Vinings and Mableton.

Unlike the 2019 East Cobb cityhood campaign, none of the current effort’s events have been in-person, due to COVID-19 concerns.

Those 2019 town halls turned out large, sometimes hostile crowds at churches and schools, and in a November 2019 forum before the East Cobb Business Association between the cityhood group and opponents from the East Cobb Alliance, a citizens group formed to fight the initiative.

There also was a lack of support from Cobb elected officials about cityhood, including State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick of East Cobb, who said she received negative feedback.

The East Cobb Alliance has posted updates about the 2021 effort (including links to some of our posts), but has been otherwise quiet.

Mindy Seger, an Alliance member who participated in the ECBA forum in 2019, told East Cobb News Monday that “a new cityhood is not any better poised to provide the same level of service for police and fire than the last effort.”

She noted that proposed fire services include two fire stations. “It’s a very small department of only two stations with the reduced footprint,” she said. “I’m not convinced my out of pocket costs at the end of the day won’t be higher.”

The financial feasibility study released earlier this month and conducted by Georgia State University researchers concludes a City of East Cobb, even with police and fire services, would run a $3 million annual surplus.

The other proposed services are planning and zoning and code enforcement.

The revived Committee for East Cobb Cityhood has been conducting a straw poll since the new effort was lanched in March, indicating incrementally growing support for the idea of cityhood.

“The results show growing support for cityhood and a large group of undecided residents,” Cooperman said in response to our questions, some coming from readers, about who was polled.

“Many questions submitted by residents indicate an interest to learn more about how the new city would operate, the map boundaries and financial impact. The committee is committed to answering questions and providing the detail residents need to make an informed decision.”

We also asked how the survey was conducted, and she said that participants in virtual town halls submitted questions in advance.

The number of respondents during the surveys (conducted during those virtual town halls on April 14, May 20 and Nov. 17), ranged from 96, to 169, according to Cooperman.

When asked whether they were in favor of “East Cobb becoming a city with local representation and local control?” the respondents were asked to indicate whether they “Strongly Support, Somewhat Support, Neither Support nor Oppose, Somewhat Oppose, Strongly Oppose” incorporation.

Related Stories

• East Cobb Cityhood leaders explain public safety services
• East Cobb Cityhood study declares financial viability
• East Cobb News Cityhood Page

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