City manager who built a better Chamblee to step down

Chamblee stopped churning out tractors, potato chips and cleaning supplies from dozens of factories at about the same time Kathy Brannon hired on as the city bookkeeper in 1982.

Today, she can walk to those same spots from her office as city manager and find new lofts, shops and small businesses.

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AJC file

Kathy Brannon, city manager of Chamblee, will step down after giving the city a face-lift and resume her job as city clerk on Thursday.

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Brannon helped direct the north DeKalb County city’s upgrade from decaying small town to innovator in redevelopment in those intervening years — more than a quarter of its 100-year history. When she steps down on Jan. 1, it will be a far different place than when she took over the top job in 1994.

“Chamblee wasn’t a very attractive place to manage back then. Really, it was a mess,” Brannon said. “I credit the people here with changing that, for embracing change and just using common sense to make things better.”

Brannon, 54, grew up just outside the city limits during Chamblee’s heyday as an industrial outpost. Her father worked at a finance company, but it seemed everyone else worked at the factories running around the clock.

That all changed in the 1980s. The plants shut down. The population dipped with the job losses. Crime jumped. At the same time, Brannon worked her way up to city clerk in 1985.

Despite the decline, Brannon saw a promising future. She watched as refugees and immigrants — first from Asia, then Latin America — flocked to the city for its affordable housing. When a MARTA station opened in 1987, it planted a germ of an idea.

“We were a small town, with the draw of a large metro area to build on,” Brannon said. “The opportunity was there, but first, of course, were the challenges.”

The biggest challenge showed up in 1990, when a a census tract now known as International Village popped up as one of the most diverse in the Southeast. At the time, the city had about 6,000 residents, about a third of whom were Hispanic and another 17 percent who were Asian.

That melting pot boiled over in 1992. White residents complained about Hispanic day laborers in a racially charged City Council meeting.

The resulting outcry prompted city leaders to hire Chamblee’s first city manager, believing only professional help could restore the city’s reputation. George Rodriguez served six months before being fired for insubordination.

Staffers and city leaders pleaded with Brannon, then city clerk, to take over. She relented in June 1994, eight months after working as both interim manager as well as city clerk.

“I just got tired doing two jobs, so I said I’d do it,” Brannon said.

There was no time for rest. Records show that Brannon quickly began meeting with department heads and the police chief, determined to clean up the city.

On Brannon’s recommendation, the city went after landlords who let apartment buildings fall into disrepair. Wattage on city streets was upped and the city police made it clear that, while it would not seek out illegal immigrants, it would be strict to enforce local laws such as littering and loitering.

In 1995, the city hired its first community development director and laid plans to remake the heavily immigrant area next to the railroad tracks. Brannon coordinated outreach to the community, demolition of dilapidated buildings and the zoning change that allowed retail and apartments in the same area.

In 1999, International Village was born. Within a year, more than 700 people would live in the area that allowed for apartments above shops, a child care center next to a new city park was opened, and new sidewalks and paths were constructed to link the village with the rest of the city.

“That was the very first large step for paving the way for a new urban design,” said Mayor Eric Clarkson, who ran for office in 2001 after seeing the changes. “People saw what was going on and wanted to be a part of it.”

Now known as mixed-use design, International Village became the groundwork for a full rezoning of Chamblee. The city encourages mixed-use development on Buford Highway and lured people back to a tiny downtown as designed for walking as much as it was for working.

With the new zoning and belated embrace of the immigrant community, the city just eight miles north of Atlanta is in the midst of a rebirth.

More than 50 types of ethnic restaurants operate along Buford Highway and within a 4-mile radius of the city. More than 100 dealers sell antiques downtown.

Crews are expected to finish work next spring on a new bike and walking path that will link International Village and the MARTA station with Keswick Village and park. To do so, the path will run on an old rail spur beneath the now six-lane Peachtree International Boulevard.

But city leaders renamed the roadway Peachtree Boulevard this summer. It was time to shed the industrial past and look forward, officials said.

That future still includes Brannon. She will walk back into her old job as city clerk until at least June, when she will be eligible for retirement.

“To have her down the hall from me, it will make a huge difference in being able to continue the vision of what this city wants to be,” said incoming manager Jim Gleason. “It’s a rare treat to have that history at your fingertips.”