A new chairman has been appointed to a key Fulton County agency

Kwanza Hall will succeed Brandon Beach as chairman of Development Authority of Fulton County board
Kwanza Hall, a former Atlanta City Council member who also served the final month of U.S. Rep. John Lewis' term in Georgia's 5th Congressional District, has been named the incoming chairman of the Development Authority of Fulton County

Credit: Handout

Credit: Handout

Kwanza Hall, a former Atlanta City Council member who also served the final month of U.S. Rep. John Lewis' term in Georgia's 5th Congressional District, has been named the incoming chairman of the Development Authority of Fulton County

A small Fulton County agency that has substantial power to grant property tax breaks to developers and companies elected a new slate of officers on Thursday.

Kwanza Hall, a former Atlanta City Council member who also briefly served in Congress, was unanimously selected to be the next chairman of the Development Authority of Fulton County. He will succeed state Sen. Brandon Beach, who announced he will resign effective Oct. 1 to focus on campaign efforts and his role with the True North 400 community improvement district.

“I think we’ve done good work for Fulton County,” said Beach, an Alpharetta Republican. “... We all want to do the best thing for economic development and job creation in Fulton County.”

Following a special election in December 2020, Hall was chosen to serve out the remaining month of John Lewis’ term following the longtime congressman’s death in July 2020. Hall also ran unsuccessfully two years ago as a Democrat for lieutenant governor. He said Thursday he was honored to pick up the baton as DAFC’s next chairman and would keep the authority focused on creating jobs.

Kyle Lamont was selected as the board’s next vice chairman, Mike Bodker will remain its treasurer and Laura Kurlander-Nagel will become the board’s next secretary. All were unanimously appointed.

The board’s next meeting is Sept. 24.