Those of us who call Tucker home know what a special place it is. We have close-knit neighborhoods, innovative schools, rich history, thriving businesses and an active faith community. Every once in a while, our feeling is reaffirmed when some of our neighbors from outside of Tucker ask to come in and be a part of the City.
It’s a process called “annexation” and it’s something that recently folks seem to be talking a lot about. To our original 2016 cityhood map, we have added residential properties (Westwood and Wanda Woods), churches (Pleasant Hill Baptist), hotels (Masters Inn) and commercial parcels from north, south, east and west.
There are a variety of ways a property or neighborhood can be annexed into a city. Some of them can be controversial, especially when a city initiates the process and everyone in the area to be annexed isn’t necessarily enthusiastic about it. All of these Tucker annexations happened because property owners came to us saying, “We’ve always thought of ourselves as Tucker, so let’s make it official.”
Over the next month, we expect to officially welcome some new neighbors on opposite sides of the city: the Briarcliff Village Shopping Center across the street from Northlake Mall (March 1), and several prominent businesses along E. Ponce de Leon, including Eagle Rock Studios and Graphic Packaging International (April 1). They are going to be great additions for our city, adding important elements to our goal of being a place where a person can live, work, play and pray, all in their hometown. Extending our mix of restaurants and retail, as well as good jobs in the film industry and manufacturing, is right on target for us. And Tucker is right on target for them, as indicated by the fact that they petitioned us, rather than us going out and trying to force them in.
In the coming days, please make Briarcliff Village, its shops and property owners feel welcome, and take pride in being the home of some great employers. And if you know anyone who has questions about annexing into the City of Tucker, we’re always here to help.
