City Government
Community Comes Together to Address Public Safety
City and county officials point out ways they are working to increase residents’ safety.
Some unfortunate incidents this year have Peachtree Corners residents, government officials, visitors, business owners and other stakeholders wondering what needs to be done to decrease crime and keep people safe.
Several people are asking if it’s time for Peachtree Corners to follow the example of nearby cities such as Dunwoody and Johns Creek and create its own police force. Currently, police services for the city are outsourced to Gwinnett County Police.
In reaction, City Councilman Eric Christ presented facts to residents through his newsletter and asked for their input about improving safety measures in the city.
“In my opinion, public safety is the most important responsibility of any elected official and particularly for local government officials. I’ve been focusing on this issue and want to sure with you some of my findings and next steps,” Christ wrote.
Contrary to popular opinion, crime isn’t at its highest level right now, according to data provided by Gwinnett County Police.
“Prior to the pandemic, we were averaging about 100 serious crime incidents per month in Peachtree Corners. Since July 2020, that has dropped to 60 incidents on average. There was a rise in 2021 to about 75 per month but it returned to that 60 average rate by mid-2022,” Christ wrote.
And although the homicide at the QT on Peachtree Industry and the one near Norcross High were perceived as part of a trend, there hadn’t been a murder in Peachtree Corners since May 2021.
The data Christ obtained from police show that the total murders since 2017 is 14, with none in 2018 and highs of four each in 2019 and 2021. Of course, one violent death is one too many. Although police forces across the country are all dealing with the same staffing and resource issues, citizens don’t want to hear excuses.
Typically, we have to respond after these events happen, but what we’re seeing is more and more students, parents and community members are reporting these things to us before they happen, which is allowing us to deal with them.
BERNARD WATSON
Technology extends the long arm of the law
As a main branch of Silicon Orchard, Peachtree Corners is looking to technology to help make the most of the manpower it has. License plate reader cameras have been online for a while now and have assisted police with street takeovers, stolen vehicles and other crimes.
In the spring, an effort among several Gwinnett County agencies thwarted a large takeover which resulted in 88 arrests. Responding to the intersection of Peachtree Corners Circle and Spalding Drive on May 1, officers blocked 26 vehicles. Gwinnett County Police and officers from nearby Norcross and Lilburn, as well as off-duty officers from surrounding areas, were on hand to lend assistance.
When the smoke cleared, 68 adults and 20 juveniles were taken into custody. The cars were impounded, and five handguns were found. Nobody was hurt, but a pizza delivery driver who got caught in the middle of the madness had his car’s windows broken.
The combination of technology and good policing is further enhanced with a system to allow police to access businesses’ security cameras to catch wrong doers in real time. Cameras at The Forum, Town Center and other major commercial areas are allowing Gwinnett Police to keep up with potential criminal activity.
Soon, private citizens will have the opportunity to register their security cameras with police to access video after the fact to help solve crimes. In that sense, it really does take a village to keep us all safe.
Schools take safety seriously
The school district also embraces the concept of one for all and all for one in its approach to safety.
“It is unfortunate that a young man lost his life in a senseless example of violence,” said
Bernard Watson, a spokesman for Gwinnett County Public Schools. “Our superintendent, Dr. Watts, has been very clear about this, from the very beginning. School districts around the country, not just ours, are seeing an uptick in violence and fights and weapons being brought into school.”
After the year and half of virtual learning that many students experienced during the pandemic, it’s not too surprising that social interaction has taken a negative turn.
“When we don’t have that connection with one another, when we’re separated, we have problems. And we’re seeing the effects of the pandemic in our students,” said Watson. “It’s also very clear that these problems are starting in the community and they’re spilling into our schools.”
That’s why GCPS actively works with Gwinnett Police and the other local municipal law enforcement agencies to keep student safety at the forefront. Budget allocations for more mental health professionals and social workers in schools will also help turn the tide.
School officials and law enforcement rely on everyone to make it work. Gwinnett Schools has a hotline that allows anyone to alert officials about mischief or out-and-out mayhem in the works. Of course, the public never knows about the incidents that don’t happen, but officials don’t mind that.
“Although these acts of violence and these threats have been disruptive, …it’s also been positive that we’ve been alerted to these threats …by students and people in the community,” said Watson. “They’re our best resource when it comes to preventing incidents of violence in our schools.”
He added that students, families and the community are strongly encouraged to say something if they see something. “Typically, we have to respond after these events happen, but what we’re seeing is more and more students, parents and community members are reporting these things to us before they happen, which is allowing us to deal with them,” he continued. “But we still need more help. We need additional help from the community.”
City officials agree. With the county expected to double in population in the next 20 years, every security measure is constantly being evaluated.
In his newsletter, Christ pointed out that the city has been looking at ways to incentivize police officers to live in Peachtree Corners with rent subsidies. He also is talking to legislators about ways to keep guns out of the hands of criminals.
Like all elected officials he’s also asking constituents for their opinions.
In what has now become tradition, the Southwest Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce hosted mayors from Berkeley Lake, Norcross and Peachtree Corners at a panel discussion on July 12 at the Hilton Atlanta Northeast.
The conversation centered around strategies for revitalizing and expanding metro Atlanta cities, with a focus on redevelopment, zoning ordinance reform, pedestrian and bicycle safety and investing in local schools and affordable housing initiatives.
Zoning changes
“We are beginning a really big project in our city. We have had ordinances that we’ve been working on ever since the city was incorporated in the 1950s,” said Berkeley Lake Mayor Lois Salter.
“We feel that we need to overhaul the whole zoning ordinance system and hire a consultant to come and elicit understanding and opinions from our citizens. We want them to be a part of that. We have some folks that resist any kind of regulation. They just want us to regulate their neighbors,” she added.
Norcross Mayor Craig Newton agreed that evolving needs are an important reason to change the zoning, and planning for what lies ahead is paramount. He pointed out that all Georgia cities must implement a comprehensive plan to maintain their qualified local government certifications and remain eligible for selected state funding.
Land development
“We intend to focus on improving pedestrian bicycle safety downtown and establish a sidewalk activity improvement,” he said. “We’re also looking at approving parking in our town center and constructing the Norcross Greenway, which will bring a much-welcomed park, green space and a trail,” he added.
The county announced earlier this year that the project involves redeveloping the existing property into a park that will span almost two acres. It will offer various community spaces, including a multi-use trail, playground, covered picnic area, restroom building and a 41-space parking lot.
In addition to its amenities, a 12-foot-wide concrete trail segment will wind through the park and utility corridor, connecting Singleton Road to Dickens Road.
The trail is part of the 2018 Gwinnett Trails Countywide Trails Master Plan‘s Norcross to Lilburn Trail with an internal loop trail connecting to the neighborhood.
Commercial use
Peachtree Corners has had several “community-friendly” projects come online in the past year, but the effects of the pandemic continue to linger.
“When you think about the future, you’re thinking about the landmass and buildings and commerce. Probably the most significant issue facing a lot of us in the near term is modern office space,” said Peachtree Corners Mayor Mike Mason. “There’s a lot of space. The question is, are people going to come back?”
He said that the central retail area has shifted with the revitalization of The Forum and that’s making city leaders rethink city planning.
“We’re having a look at our code and things like that. But from another point of view that will drive the decision about what communities are going to look like,” he said. “For example, there are people coming into the city that say some buildings are technologically obsolete.”
Public safety
Even though Berkeley Lake is the smallest of the three cities and has the highest average home values, all the mayors agreed that public safety is a growing concern.
“Living in Norcross offers residents a dense suburban feel that’s somewhat rural compared to the city of Atlanta,” said Newton. “But some of our public safety initiatives are increasing police presence in high crime areas.”
As the only one of the three cities with a full police department, Norcross is seeking creative ways to implement effective community policing strategies to build trust and communication between law enforcement and the residents.
Newton mentioned programs such as Neighborhood Watch, youth outreach programs and educational initiatives along with enhancing emergency response capabilities with training for the local fire department and EMS services.
“Our response time goal is for an officer to be on-site in an emergency within 30 minutes,” he said. “But that doesn’t happen.”
Extended-stay hotels tend to attract crime, so Newton said the city has worked with owners to improve lighting in the public spaces to deter criminal activity.
“We’ve partnered with nonprofit businesses and local stakeholders to support social services employment opportunities for at-risk individuals,” he said. “By working together with various organizations and entities were able to address the complex challenge of public safety.”
Community accountability
With no police force, Berkeley Lake relies heavily on cameras and old-fashioned “knowing your neighbors,” said Salter.
“Some of our individual HOAs are buying and furnishing and paying for cameras to safeguard their neighborhoods,” she said.
Although there may be pockets of criminal behavior around the city, Salter said a police officer once described Berkeley Lake as a “black hole” of crime because there’s so little crime data.
“One of the reasons for that we feel is that historically we’ve been a very neighborly people,” she said. “There is an amazing system of community cohesiveness.”
Peachtree Corners is taking its own approach.
“We’ve recently added a Marshal Service and as Lois mentioned we’re also leaning on technology,” said Mason.
The marshal department doesn’t take the place of the services provided by Gwinnett County Police, it primarily enforces city code and aids Gwinnett PD when necessary.
“We’re utilizing as much technology as we can,” said Mason.
Gwinnett PD is instructing where to locate cameras and the city keeps adding them. There have been several instances in the last year or so where coordination among agencies and the use of technology have thwarted or caught criminals.
At the end of the day, the three mayors said the cities all rely on each other. Being so close means that economic development, enhanced entertainment and other desirable amenities are boons for them all.
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