Rockdale residents will have a final chance to add their voice to a regional plan for growth over the next 30 years at a series of upcoming community forums.
The Civic League for Regional Atlanta and Atlanta Regional Commission will be at the J.R. Carr Community Center on Tuesday, March 22, 6:45 p.m. - 9 p.m.
The forum is part of a series of community forums for PLAN 2040, a state- and federally-mandated blueprint for land development and transportation needs that will guide growth in 18 metro Atlanta counties. Carried out by the ARC, the PLAN 2040 looks at land use, transit, housing, economics, human services, greenspace, and water and air quality.
According to the ARC, by 2040, the region will:
• Grow by about 3 million more people – to 8 million in just 10 of the region’s central counties, with big shifts in race and ethnicity and dramatic increases in the population of children and those over age 65.
• Slowly recover from current economic troubles to add nearly 1.8 million jobs, for a total of 4.5 million. Most of those new jobs are expected to be in healthcare and social services, followed by professional/technical services and real estate.
How does metro Atlanta deal with issues of traffic congestion, an aging population, a changing workforce and shifting growth patterns across communities and political boundaries?
The Civic League for Regional Atlanta and the ARC went across the region this past year to hear what residents had to say and create a draft of Plan 2040. Now, the groups are back on the road to preview that draft created with help from metro residents – and to give one last chance for public comment.
In addition to the city of Atlanta, the final plan will influence growth in these counties: Barrow, Bartow, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Newton, Paulding, Rockdale, Spalding and Walton.
Plan 2040 Neighborhood Forums will be held at the following dates and locations:
March 10 – Wendell Coffee Golf & Events Center, 1963 Hwy. 74 N, Fayetteville, 30214
March 22 – J.P. Carr Services Center, 1090 Hardin Street SW, Conyers, 30012
March 31 – Manuel Maloof Auditorium, 1300 Commerce Dr, Decatur, 30030
April 14 – Suwanee City Hall, 330 Town Center Avenue, Suwanee, 30024
April 19 – Mansour Center, 995 Roswell St NE, Marietta, 30060
All Neighborhood Forums are from 6:45 p.m. to 9 p.m. and are free and open to the public, though reservations are requested to ensure enough materials for all participants. Reservations can be made at www.civicleagueatlanta.org.
To read more about Plan 2040, visit www.atlantaregional.com/transportation/plan-2040.
The Civic League for Regional Atlanta is an independent nonprofit engaging everyday people in issues such as transportation, ethics and sustainability through education and consensus-building; and it conveys their insights, preferences and priorities to elected officials and policy makers.
