Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul addressed over 200 Sandy Springs-Perimeter Chamber of Commerce members, local government officials, business leaders and guests at the Chamber’s annual “State of the City” breakfast Feb. 23, at the Westin Atlanta Perimeter North.  The event is a highly anticipated opportunity for business people to hear the mayor’s goals for the upcoming year and celebrate highlights of the previous year.  Among the attendees were the City Manager, City Council members, the Sandy Springs Police Chief and Deputy Chief, the Sandy Springs Fire Chief and Chamber Board members.

“Giving the State of the City keynote address at the annual Chamber of Commerce breakfast is always a highlight of my mayoralty,” said Mayor Paul.  “Normally, this speech is wide-ranging, but today I want to focus on the most important subject the Sandy Spring Council and I will tackle this year: transportation.  Whenever we make a new business announcement, the first question I hear is ‘Where are we going to put all the traffic’?  It’s a legitimate concern, and one we must resolve as we plan our city’s ongoing growth and development.”

Mayor Paul told the audience the issue is a regional one, since vehicles flow into, out of and through Sandy Springs daily.  “There are 102,000 people who come into Sandy Springs and another 84,000 who leave Sandy Springs every day.  Only 7,000 currently live and work within the city.  We’re all using a road network that – with the exception of the construction of I-285 and Georgia 400 – hasn’t been substantially updated since the 1940’s.  Think about it.  The roads we all travel on daily were originally designed for the transport of agricultural products to market.  The truth is, we simply cannot successfully manage more vehicles on our existing infrastructure.”

Mayor Paul has been working with 13 other Fulton County mayors and the Fulton County Commission to identify and implement alternative transportation options for the region, particularly the expansion of the MARTA system.  He told the audience that last week, 13 of the 14 mayors, along with the Fulton County Commission, voted to support a MARTA extension if it included options in addition to heavy rail.  A funding bill is pending in the State Senate, and if it is passed, Mayor Paul strongly urged the audience to vote in favor of a ½ to ¾ cent sales tax for MARTA expansion.

“We have a narrow window of opportunity to make the changes we need, and I believe the stars are aligning.  The Fulton County mayors are working together for the greater good, as are other organizations such as the Perimeter Community Improvement District.  We’re not only looking at MARTA, but we need regional road improvements, too, especially East-West connectors and high-occupancy traffic lanes.  I am grateful to Governor Deal for using House Bill 170 to allocate funds for the re-configuration of the Georgia 400 and I-285 interchange and managed lanes.”

With the good humor for which he is known, Mayor Paul reminded the audience that MARTA was built decades ago when many people lived in the suburbs, but worked and shopped downtown.  “People say that the current MARTA system doesn’t take them where they need to go.  Back when MARTA was built, the center of the universe was Five Points.  Today, it’s Sandy Springs.  Even the daily newspaper has relocated from downtown Atlanta to Sandy Springs.  We need to look at expanding MARTA, but also at out-of-the-box ideas like monorails and gondolas.  Let’s think big and make transportation fun.”

“I didn’t come into this job to think small,” concluded the Mayor.  “Here in Sandy Springs we think big.  We’ve achieved greatness by thinking big and that’s what will help us continue to improve the quality of life for everyone.”