The state Senate passed bills today calling for a referendum on the creation of the cities of LaVista Hills and Tucker.

These measures already passed the state House earlier this month, but a Senate committee changed their shared borders, shifting about 2,000 residents from Tucker to LaVista Hills.

That move could jeopardize both potential cities’ chances of becoming a reality because the House could disagree to new boundaries, forcing the dispute to be worked out in a conference committee with an uncertain outcome.

If LaVista Hills and Tucker are ultimately approved by the Georgia General Assembly, residents would vote on incorporation in a November referendum.

The LaVista Hills measure, House Bill 520, passed on a 38-5 vote, and Tucker's legislation, House Bill 515, was approved 41-1.

A city of LaVista Hills would stretch from an area outside Emory University to the eastern perimeter of I-285 and include roughly 67,000 residents.

A city of Tucker would be home to about 33,000 residents, mostly located to the east of the interstate.

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