Thursday, February 9, 2012
It's down to paperwork before police can begin using radar to track speeders.
It took three years for Gwinnett County and its 15 cities to reach an agreement on a Service Delivery Strategy (SDS). Once they did, the presiding judge took just two days to approve it. Gwinnett officials announced Thursday evening that Judge David Barrett of Blairsville has approved the agreement that was reached Tuesday between Gwinnett County and cities in the Gwinnett Municipal Association (GwMA). “I am pleased that we were finally able to come to an agreement among ourselves rather than have to either abide by the trial court’s ruling or continue the lengthy and uncertain appeal process,” said Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash in a news release. “The settlement is much preferable to the trial court ruling.” The deal announced …
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Loganville city residents in Gwinnett County will receive a total of $1,278,336 in tax rollbacks over the next 55 years to compensate for the county's double taxation since 2005.
After more than three years, Loganville signed a Resolution at a Special Called meeting Tuesday accepting a settlement from Gwinnett County on the Service Delivery Strategy Agreement. Each city in the county, except for Lilburn, was expected to do the same. Earlier in the day the Gwinnett County Board Of Commissioners approved the deal essentially bringing to a close the multimillion-dollar dispute. "The county has been double charging our Gwinnett County taxpayers for fire and police services as well as other things such as roads, planning and development and EMS services," said Loganville Mayor Ray Nunley. “An agreement has been reached,” said Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson in a released statement. “The parties have worked continuously …
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Negotiations with county also are continuing, GwMA member says.
The unresolved Service Delivery Strategy (SDS) situation between the Gwinnett Municipal Association and the county is still under discussion. The executive committee of the Gwinnett Municipal Association held a conference call this week on the matter. Suwanee Mayor Jimmy Burnette, a member of that committee, referred to the call as "business as usual," but had no further details. A similar call was held in December. Burnette also told Suwanee City Council members at a recent work session that negotiations with the Gwinnett Board of Commissioners are continuing. "Hopefully, something will happen soon," he said. The court ruling last year, which strongly favored cities in the GwMA, is under appeal, so the status quo prevails. Cities are …
Monday, December 19, 2011
Conference call Monday is the latest development in the continuing legal dispute.
The lingering Service Delivery Strategy (SDS) situation between Gwinnett County and many of its cities continues, with cities in the Gwinnett Municipal Association holding a conference call Monday on the matter. Randy Meacham, executive director of the Gwinnett Municipal Association, said Monday afternoon that cities in the GwMA held a conference call earlier in the day about the SDS issue. Gwinnett County officials were not involved in the call, Meacham said. However, settlement talks between the GwMA and Gwinnett County have continued since a court ruling in September was issued strongly favoring the cities. A settlement offer apparently is not on the table, as Meacham said Monday's conference call concerned what the cities might be …
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
The recent Service Delivery Strategy court ruling has some interesting statistics.
It's not hard to find a Top 10 list, but the recent Service Delivery Strategy court ruling for Gwinnett County provides some interesting material for one. Judge David Barrett of Blairsville included much numerical research in his ruling; the matter had been in his hands since August 2010. So let's take a look at some of what the judge included:
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
A Gwinnett Municipal Association meeting will be the first time the new commissioner and cities will put heads together about a long-standing dispute.
A July 7 meeting will be the first time that the Gwinnett cities meet with new County Commission Chair Charlotte Nash as a group about the unresolved Service Delivery Strategy dispute. The topic is on the executive session agenda at the Intergovernmental Meeting of the Gwinnett Municipal Association. “I think there’s a new tone,” said Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson, who has been the lead in negotiations with the county about the dispute, which has gotten more attention since municipalities were unable to renew some contracts at the beginning of the year. “There was, to some degree, a distrust before,” he added. The dispute stems from the roughly 150,000 city residents who pay for county services that they do not receive. The Service …
Bob Williams
10:26 pm on Monday, December 19, 2011
As both a county and city tax payer I'd like to see this issue resolved in 2012. We are not the only place in the state (and country) where local cities operate inside counties. Systems for agreements and cooperation are setup in other places and they work. Why is so difficult in Gwinnett? more ›