When Sandy Springs became the first of metro Atlanta’s new cities, it pioneered a novel way to run local government, with services delivered by companies and just a handful of public employees.

The outsourced model of government soon became the template for each city that followed. Those new communities sought professional management of parks, business licensing, courts and more.

But 12 years into the cityhood movement, these young municipalities are straying from their original, rigid reliance on privatized government.

“It wasn’t all that it promised to be,” former Brookhaven Mayor Rebecca Chase Williams said.

To read more about the privatization model, and what cities are doing, read the full story only at myAJC.com.

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A view of First Liberty Building & Loan in downtown Newnan on Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com

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The city of Brookhaven's mayor and City Council last week decided to remove the colored panes of glass from the dome of Brookhaven's new City Centre after residents objected to the brightness of the colors, seen here Friday, June 27, 2025. (Reed Williams/AJC)

Credit: Reed Williams/AJC