Gwinnett County and its cities are locked in a two-year battle that has cost them more than good will.
The governments have spent a half-million public dollars on lawyers, and the legal tab is running. And now their clash over county services threatens everything from commercial development in Gwinnett to federal stimulus money for the county.
Under a state law that was designed to eliminate duplication of services, counties and their cities must draw up an agreement that spells out which government services, such as police or public health, a county delivers to each city within its borders. The state law, of course, envisioned a savings of taxpayer dollars, not an extravaganza of legal fees.
"A lot of people are confused about it," said Sabrina Smith, chairwoman for the Gwinnett Citizens for Responsible Government. "What I hear more than anything else is they're concerned the city and county are battling it out with taxpayer dollars."
These disagreements aren't limited to Gwinnett. Fulton County remains without a formal document -- it's called a Service Delivery Strategy -- and DeKalb County just signed an agreement Friday with its 10 cities after more than a year of negotiations.
The cities argue that their residents are being taxed for services they are not getting. The county maintains that city residents aren't paying their fair share to the county to begin with.
Because the two sides couldn't come to terms, the state in March declared the county and the cities ineligible for Georgia grants and permits, a move that could cost both sides millions of dollars and stifle development and road work. Last year, Gwinnett County received $24.7 million in state grants.
"It's neither's fault, and it's both of their fault," said Mike Gleaton, director of planning for the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. "They need to work through these things before it gets to be such a monumental problem as to having themselves being sanctioned."
Sanctions have far-reaching implications for residents and businesses. They mean, for example, no driveways for new businesses on state or federal routes such as Buford Highway, parts of Jimmy Carter Boulevard, Ga. 316 and U.S. highways. Sanctions also prohibit relocation of utilities, or extensions of water and sewer lines near those roads.
The Department of Community Affairs will not feed any federal money into Gwinnett as long as the county and cities are on probation, Gleaton said, including stimulus funds.
Gwinnett's last service agreement expired more than a year ago. Since then, court-ordered mediation has proved fruitless, and both sides have retained private attorneys and filed lawsuits. If they can't resolve the matter, a judge will this August. But tensions already have tested tempers.
“It’s just unfortunate that we serve the same citizens, yet can’t find some common ground,” said Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson, chairman of the Gwinnett Municipal Association, which has represented the cities in negotiations. “I think [county leaders have] positioned themselves in such a way, they’ve caused some long-term relationship damage.”
So far, the cities have run up about $350,000 in legal fees; the county, $200,000.
Why Gwinnett struggles
Part of the issue is the county's unusual geography: Gwinnett has more cities -- 15 -- than any other county in Georgia. Put all those mayors and council members and county commissioners in a room, and you're likely to get a municipal United Nations in which the delegates don't even speak the same language.
But even with all those cities, the vast majority of Gwinnett's residents live in unincorporated parts of the county. So the county finds itself in the nearly impossible position of trying to satisfy both its city residents and the folks who live in unincorporated areas.
Dacula Mayor Jimmy Wilbanks said the real problem started in the 1970s, when the county took on municipal powers.
"It started going south because of the attitude," Wilbanks said. "The attitude by politicians at the county level that cities cost them money rather than add value to the county, add character to the county, add ambiance to the county."
The cities had put up a united front, negotiating as a bloc with the county.
"When the law was written, I was in the Legislature," said County Commission Chairman Charles Bannister of the 1997 law establishing the Service Delivery Strategy. "I don't think anybody had any idea that the cities would bond themselves against the county. Working with an association, a unionized organization, makes it much more difficult."
But even the cities are feeling a rift. Last month, Lilburn dropped out of the alliance and plans to strike its own deal with the county.
First signs of trouble
Discord over the Service Delivery Strategy in Gwinnett became obvious April 22, 2009, the first day of court-ordered mediation.
“The cities have clearly told us they don’t even want to talk with us about our ideas and proposals,” then-County Administrator Jock Connell told more than 50 municipal leaders at the county courthouse. “Well, we hear you.”
From here on, he said, the county would no longer negotiate to tailor services to individual cities. Instead, it would be one size fits all, and all residents would be taxed the same.
Attorney Buddy Welch, representing the municipalities, said the county had been overcharging city residents for years.
“You were took!” he declared.
The county has since relaxed its stance, but relations have gone downhill.
"We got along just fine, as far as I could tell, until this whole SDS issue," County Commissioner Mike Beaudreau said. "The bottom line is we have to represent everybody. Eighty-three percent of the population is outside of the city limits."
County Commissioner Shirley Lasseter has the perspective of both sides, having served 14 years as Duluth's mayor.
"This is the worst time in the world to go kill each other over getting money," Lasseter said. "Everybody is suffering, and arguing over the amount of money you need to get is, in my estimation, unbelievably thoughtless."
Lawrenceville Mayor Rex Millsaps sees things differently. "Tax our citizens for the services you provide," he said. "If you don't provide them, don't tax us. It's the right thing to do."
Other county-city qualms
Gwinnett isn't the only county feuding with its cities.
DeKalb has waged a 10-year battle with four of its cities over distribution of homestead option sales tax funds. The outcome of that litigation, expected later this year, could mean a windfall for the cities and another financial blow to the county.
North Fulton residents established cities in Sandy Springs, Johns Creek and Milton, claiming they were being overtaxed and undermined by county government. Five years after the first new city emerged, anger and distrust still resonate. The newest northside cities even threatened to secede, taking Roswell, Alpharetta and Mountain Park with them and reforming Milton County.
"There is going to be conflict sometimes between cities and county government, and it happens all over the state for a variety of reasons," Georgia Municipal Association spokeswoman Amy Henderson said. "Most times they are able to work it out before they get to the level that Gwinnett and its cities are with the Service Delivery Strategy."
Patti-Jo Shapiro, a 35-year Gwinnett resident who regularly attends city and county meetings, said she just wants the bickering to stop.
"You kids are fighting, and it's costing me money," said Shapiro, a real estate agent. "Grow up."
Other county-city spats in Gwinnett
- Since December, when talks began over airport privatization, Lawrenceville leaders say the county has offered the city no input. The expansion of Briscoe Field, they say, would increase noise and air traffic while reducing quality of life and property values. The county says nothing will happen at the airport until residents and property owners have a chance to weigh in.
- For the past three years, Berkeley Lake has blasted the county for permitting a giant pile of dirt that has emptied silt into the city's 88-acre lake. The county said it responded at the "appropriate time," issuing three citations against the company responsible for the mound. But Mayor Lois Salter said what the county has offered amounts to "words and polite attention."
- Last year, Dacula fought Gwinnett over the county's future land-use plan, which ran afoul of the city's own plan and curtailed Dacula's commercial growth along the Ga. 316 corridor. The two sides entered into mediation last March, resolving little after three meetings.
About the Author
