Duluth appears to be pulling ahead of neighboring rivals Berkeley Lake and Peachtree Corners in a race to annex properties at Blue Ridge Industrial Park.
City Administrator Phil McLemore said four property owners at Blue Ridge recently confirmed their desire to be annexed by Duluth.
"It’s important to us because we’ve always viewed Blue Ridge as part of the city," McLemore said. "And, of course, there's benefits to the people and business owners coming into the city."
In recent months, Duluth, Berkeley Lake and the unincorporated area of Peachtree Corners have vied to annex parts of the nearly 50-acre industrial park near Buford Highway and North Berkeley Lake Road.
If the incorporated cities fail to make a convincing case and Peachtree Corners voters approve a proposed city charter in November, the park will be included within the boundaries of Gwinnett County's newest city.
That gives officials in Berkeley Lake and Duluth about two months to make their pitch to business owners in the industrial park, who must agree to be annexed. At stake is tens of thousands of dollars in potential tax revenue, an attractive bounty in a difficult economic climate.
"We're just trying to pay attention to what's going on around us," Berkeley Lake Mayor Lois Salter said.
As of Wednesday, Marmon Keystone, Nazdar Inks and Coatings, Sonoco and WM Orr had already told Duluth to prepare their annexation paperwork. McLemore said he is waiting to hear from the owners of Orton Holdings and Diamond Crystal.
Some of those companies indicated to Duluth that they were impressed with the city's presentation, police presence -- a service Berkeley Lake and Peachtree Corners would not provide as "city lights" -- and proposal to add security cameras in the future.
"I got the sense that that was the direction some of the other [property] managers would go," said Mike Menard, president of Blue Ridge's business association and regional operations manager for Nazdar.
Duluth officials have estimated annexing the entire industrial park would bring in about $87,000 in annual tax revenue. It wasn't immediately clear what that figure might be for the other areas. Duluth has a millage rate of 5.991. Peachtree Cornerswould have a rate of 1.0, and Berkeley Lake's rate is currently 4.9.
If Duluth manages to corral the entire industrial park, it would be a particularly auspicious start to the city's ambitious plan for growth. At a recent City Council meeting, city staff presented a long-term plan for annexation that targets 13 contiguous areas including Gwinnett Place Mall and Sugarloaf Country Club.
Meanwhile, Peachtree Corners leaders were surprised to learn some property owners had chosen to go with Duluth. They have been selling businesses on a limited government and its millage of 1.0 that can only be changed by a referendum.
"The math speaks for itself," said Mike Mason, president of United Peachtree Corners Civic Association. "But I would assume those business people made a good rational business decision. Good luck to them."
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