DeKalb District 7 Commissioner to Host Community Forum

MEDIA CONTACT:
Allison M. Slocum
District Manager
404.371.3681

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 19, 2019

DeKalb District 7 Commissioner to Host Community Forum
Gentrification, crime, property taxes and infrastructure among topics to be discussed

DECATUR, Ga. – DeKalb County Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson will hold a community forum to candidly discuss the county’s changing communities and address pressing concerns in the district.

The meeting will be held Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019, at 6 p.m. at the Lou Walker Senior Center, 2538 Panola Rd., Lithonia, GA 30058.

“Many of the residents in District 7 have shared with me their concerns regarding the changing landscape of their neighborhoods,” said Commissioner Cochran-Johnson. “As a fellow resident of the district, I understand their apprehensions and believe we have taken great care to select an agenda that will not only answer their questions but provide courses of action and valuable insight into the changing landscape of our communities.”

The forum will focus on various issues including gentrification and displacement, property taxes and home values, affordable and senior housing, crime and justice reform, small business survival, traffic, infrastructure, and the future of DeKalb County.

“Because we will be concentrating on robust topics,” said Commissioner Cochran-Johnson. “It is imperative to have experts present whose professional experience is rooted in DeKalb County and can speak to the dynamics of each issue.

Representatives from various DeKalb County departments and community agencies will include Peggy Allen (associate director, Roads and Drainage), Andrew Baker (director, Planning and Sustainability), Larita Ellis (property tax director, DeKalb County Tax Commissioner), Allen Mitchell (director, Community Development), Reginald D. Wells (director, Watershed Management), Edward Patton (president, DeKalb Board of Realtors), A.B. Catlin (assistant chief, DeKalb County Police Department), G.A. Padrick (assistant chief and uniform division commander, DeKalb County Police Department) and Pete Walker, Jr. (president & CEO, Housing Authority of DeKalb).

Additional scholars and experts in attendance will include James D. Cromarti (special initiatives senior manager, Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership, Inc.), Paul Denard (assistant district engineer, GDOT), Michael J. Rich (professor of political science and environmental sciences, Emory University) and Michael German (Georgia Field Office director, HUD).

The DeKalb Community Forum is free and open to the public. For more information, visit http://bit.ly/2PfuBwD or call 404-371-3681.

To schedule an interview with Commissioner Cochran-Johnson or request media credentials, email [email protected] or call 404-371-3681. Constituents and interested parties are encouraged to register for community updates and event notifications at www.CommissionerLorraineCochranJohnson.com.

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