Outgoing commissioner: Keep fighting for Gwinnett

Gwinnett County Commissioner Lorraine Green is leaving public office after four years representing District 1. She relinquished the seat to run for Commission Chairman, narrowly losing to incumbent Charles Bannister in the Republican primary runoff. She sat down with staff writer Patrick Fox to discuss her experience as a public official.

Q: What are you the most proud of having accomplished in your time as a public official?

A: “Personally, it’s got to be getting the Quality of Life Unit established within the Gwinnett County Police Department, and bringing to the forefront those issues that had not been dealt with for so long. I felt it was time that we took a hold of them and really tried to turn the ship around. I got the idea from reading Dr. George Kelling’s book, “Fixing Broken Windows.” Everyone we talked to about the program was very enthusiastic and supportive, and the citizens seemed to love it and really understand what we were trying to do. I think that is going to have one of the longest impact of anything I’ve done in four years.”

Q: What’s one thing that you wanted to get done that you didn’t get accomplished?

A: “One of the items was getting an improved rental housing ordinance. It’s something that we’ve talked about for a while but needs help from the state Legislature in order to change the state law. Right now, under state law, no local government can have any type of ordinance dealing with rental housing. All we wanted to do was to register single-family homes, so that if there was a violation we’d have somebody to call. If the grass is 12 inches high, all we can do is look at mortgage records and things like that, and it [may be] some mortgage company out in California. It may take them six months to react. All we wanted was a local contact.”

Q: What will you be doing when you leave office?

A: “Paying the bills. Going back to work. Being a mom and an engineer, and getting back to having a life. I enjoyed my time in office immensely. I met so many wonderful people. Unfortunately, my own career and my own family suffered a little bit, and it’s time to tend to them for a while.”

Q: What advice would you give your successor (Shirley Lasseter)?

A: Have patience. Understand that government does not move as quickly as those of us in the private sector are used to moving. I would also advise her to rely and trust on the staff. Gwinnett County has got incredible staff.”

Q: You came to office as an outspoken activist. What adjustments did you have to make?

A: That’s a good question. I think there are some who would say I’m still a bit of an activist. But, you have to be able to compromise sometimes in order to get things done. Some people view that as a negative, that you’re selling out, so to speak. But, I view it as positive because you’ve got to able to work with other people. You’ve got to see all sides of a question in order to govern and legislate and provide good solutions. When you’re in this seat, it’s not just about what I want, it’s what’s best for the community, and sometimes the two are not the same.

Q: What about any future political plans?

A: I get asked that question all the time. It’s very humbling, and I appreciate people’s sentiment very much in suggesting I need to continue. I don’t know. I never intended to get into politics in the first place. I’m an engineer from Georgia Tech. I’m a nerd. But we’ll see. If the opportunity presents itself, I may very well do that.

Q: Any final words as commissioner?

A: “We’ve got some incredible people here, people who believe like I do that Gwinnett County is worth fighting for and worthy of giving your time to improve. If I had anything I’d really like to ask the citizens, it would be to continue believing in Gwinnett and continue to push to make it better, because it can be.”