There is ample historical precedent for DeKalb County to reinvent itself. The county government changed in 1902, 1904, 1906 and 1912.
In more contemporary times, at least six study commissions or task forces have been formed to figure out how best to run DeKalb.
Having operated under a chief executive officer form of government since the days of Manuel Maloof, a new task force of county leaders is talking (again) about whether to abolish the CEO's office. They group is also discussing whether more cities should incorporate, as Dunwoody and then Brookhaven did. Maybe several more cities should form, or maybe there ought to be a City of DeKalb, in which the county absorbs whatever unincoporated space is left.
Meanwhile, perhaps the citizenry can be forgiven if it's a bit skeptical.
“The overall problem is the ineffectiveness of government,” said Joel Edwards, a retired MARTA bus driver long active in neighborhood associations. "But the problem is not its set-up; it’s the people who are in it. How can they sit at a table and solve the problem? They are the problem.”
Subscribers may read today's complete Bill Torpy at Large at myajc.com.
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