Since its inception in 2010, the Fulton Industrial Boulevard Community Improvement District (CID) has been laser focused on public-safety initiatives aimed at reducing crime. In an area that was notorious for having one of the highest crime rates in the metro Atlanta area, rates have steadily declined each year, and over the past decade have dropped by 81% as a result of a number of CID initiatives aimed at improving the district.

“One of the driving reasons for the formation of the CID was to improve crime,” said Gil Prado, executive director of the Fulton Industrial Boulevard CID. “The Fulton Industrial area has been a major industrial hub for the metro Atlanta area since the 1960s. However, the area began to decline in the 1990s and by 2010, property owners were ready to change the direction of the industrial district. Through the hiring of a full-time public safety manager in 2013 and by forging robust partnerships to combat crime with the cities of Atlanta and South Fulton, Fulton County, and departments within the state of Georgia, the tide began to change.”

To further discourage criminal activity, the CID adheres to the “broken-windows theory” of fighting crime which indicates that visible signs of crime attract more crime. Thus, the CID keeps the area well maintained by overseeing a number of beautification efforts that include both litter removal and landscaping along with the removal of encampments that pop up near interstate ramps. The CID also funds extra police patrols throughout the district which amounted to 6,300 patrol hours in 2024. The past decade has seen the elimination of numerous problematic businesses that negatively impacted the district with crime, in particular the dilapidated and non-compliant motels.

“Along with traditional methods, the CID employs technology to fight crime in the district. In 2017, we introduced surveillance camera technology to improve our public-safety efforts. In addition, there are 34 license plate readers throughout the district, 22 of which were installed in 2023,” said Frank Mazzilli, public safety manager for the CID. Other helpful tools are the trespass affidavit program that gives police the authority to enforce no trespassing for privately owned properties, and in the past the CID introduced drug-free commercial zone legislation in the northern part of the district which added an additional felony for trafficking illegal drugs. The CID’s public-safety program also guided low-level, drug-dependent offenders to receive assistance for drug addiction through the former Fulton County district attorney’s community court. 

“The CID’s sustained focus on reducing crime has been instrumental in the revitalization of the district,” said Prado. “With more than 1,000 businesses and more than 26,000 jobs, the Fulton Industrial area is the largest industrial corridor in the eastern United States. The public-safety efforts are part of a larger effort to improve the district and maintain commercial vitality and economic competitiveness. Today, property in the area is in demand and businesses are able to offer a safe environment for their employees. The CID will continue to make public safety a priority to ensure the district is a desirable place to conduct business.