South Gwinnett's 'Grand Experiment' is Underway
by Ken Shiver, Chairman, Evermore Community Improvement District

Can a highway safety project of the kind that usually hurts business be used as a catalyst for improving business, increasing property values, enhancing the quality of life and generally revitalizing an entire community?

Historically, the answer would be "No," but the members of the Evermore Community Improvement District are betting that they can beat the odds.

Four years ago, the stretch of Hwy. 78 that runs from Snellville to the DeKalb County line was watching a migration of retail and commercial interests to the shiny, new developments of northern Gwinnett. Crime was increasing, and area household incomes were not. Infrastructure was lacking, and the county did not seemed to be focused on stopping the erosion. Worse, the Georgia Dept. of Transportation was preparing to remove the hated reversible lane system, which was a threat to motorists, and replace it with a median, which was equally a threat to area businesses, which live or die on accessibility,

That's when several of the area's property owners decided that if they did nothing, the future was pretty predictable, and the picture was anything but pretty. They launched a strong recruiting campaign, made their case successfully, and in May, 2003 the Highway 78 CID (since re-christened the Evermore CID) was a reality, with its members voluntarily increasing their property taxes by 5 mils to fund the CID's efforts.

With last Friday's official ceremony "cutting the cord" to drop the reversible lane system, we are at the start of construction. But what makes us think anything will be different from what we were facing four years ago?

Because our CID has been very successful in garnering support for change, and finding the funding to help make those changes happen.

Almost from the outset, we have funded increased police patrols in the corridor and contracted to have the shoulders cleaned of litter and mowed regularly. The positive effects were noticed immediately.

Another factor is that the highway project is much different now than originally planned. With GDOT's cooperation, many revisions to preserve access have been made. With funding from a variety of sources, the CID is working to provide inter-parcel access and even parallel access roads, preserving mobility for businesses and residents alike.

And this will be no typical median. Where wide enough, it will be planted. Both shoulders will be landscaped, with extra attention paid to key "node" intersections. Add sidewalks, street furniture, decorative mast arms for traffic signals and street lights and internally lit street signs, and you get a very appealing picture. Add a state-of-the-art Intelligent Traffic System to keep traffic moving in a coordinated fashion, and the picture is nicer still.

Given that our CID is not limited to influencing highway projects, but can continue to work in the areas of public safety, economic development and community involvement, among others, and you can see why we feel we have a good chance to "beat the odds" and have this highway project become simply the first step in a string of positive developments for our part of Gwinnett.

Time will tell, but our bets are on the table, and we don't intend to fold.

Ken Shiver, an Atlanta native, moved to Gwinnett in 1981. He is the owner of Millennium Kawasaki and Yamaha, and is currently Chairman of the Evermore CID.

The Evermore Community Improvement District (CID) is an association of commercial property owners along the U.S. 78 corridor from Stone Mountain to Snellville that is reinvesting in the community to build a vibrant, attractive future for business and resident. The Evermore CID represents approximately 469 properties; 16,913 jobs; 1,585 businesses; $485 million in property value; $1 billion in annual sales and we’re just getting started.