Legislators may change city of Stonecrest before it starts
As the new city of Stonecrest holds its first election Tuesday, state lawmakers are moving forward with a bill that redraws districts and institutes term limits for the mayor.
The legislation, House Bill 600, was approved by DeKalb County representatives Wednesday and is pending in the Georgia House of Representatives.
The proposal comes as voters in Stonecrest, a city of 50,000 people in southeast DeKalb, are choosing Tuesday from 20 candidates running for mayor and City Council.
HB600 would change Stonecrest’s five City Council districts so they’re less divided by I-20, said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Doreen Carter, D-Lithonia. She said it will make district boundaries more closely reflect existing communities.
The legislation also limits the mayor to serving two consecutive four-year terms.
Current Stonecrest districts:
Proposed Stonecrest districts:
About the Author
Mark Niesse is an enterprise reporter and covers elections and Georgia government for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and is considered an expert on elections and voting. Before joining the AJC, he worked for The Associated Press in Atlanta, Honolulu and Montgomery, Alabama. He also reported for The Daily Report and The Santiago Times in Chile.
