Last week: Should DeKalb County change its CEO form of government?
Last week the AJC reported on the myriad of problems facing DeKalb County. From accusations of high-level corruption from elected officials, to mismanagement of public funds, to nepotism, to falsifying requests for federal grant funds — the list seems to grow daily.
But it appears residents have given this a lot of thought. Here are some of the responses from ajc.com, Facebook and e-mail:
Local government should consist of an elected board, who hires an executive who is accountable to the board and responsible for the day to day operations of the entity.
— Robert Dennis
I have felt for a long time that the position of CEO of Dekalb County should be abolished. Other counties don’t have CEOs and they do fine. Ever since the days of Vernon Jones there have been dishonest people in that office. I really don’t understand why he county continues to struggle with this problem when it could so easily be done away with.
— Gayle Atkinson
The structure of DeKalb government, CEO or otherwise, is not the problem. Any form of government can be corrupted. The problem is the character — a lack of integrity in all too many instances — of the people who inhabit the offices.
— Edna Kopetz
If the CEO didn’t have to run for election there would be no accusations of strong-arming people for campaign contributions.
— IJS
In 1980 a unique politician, Manuel Maloof, was elected Chair of the DeKalb County Commission, and on a wave of popularity the county changed its form of government, with Maloof becoming the first ever CEO. He was gruff, honest to a fault, and served with distinction until 1992, retiring due to health problems. There was only one Manuel Maloof, as we have since learned, and the power struggles ultimately created a situation of imbalance and unaccountability for both the CEO and the county commissioners. Today’s mess resulted. It is time to go back to the pre-Maloof form of government and abolish the position of CEO. It won’t be an instant fix, but it’s a start.
— Political Wonk
The apparent abuses of the previous Dekalb County CEOs have demonstrated it is time to change the structure of the Dekalb form of government. There is an urgent need for checks and balances to prevent the appearance or abuse of power by county officials.
An independent ethics office, staffed by contract auditors, is needed to review county transactions for compliance with regulatory requirements. To do otherwise is to encourage the same abuses in the future.
— Guadalupe A. Reyes
I believe one of the reasons that cities are being created inside the perimeter within Dekalb County is due to the corruption and incompetence of Dekalb County. It is time to make the county irrelevant by creating cities and allowing the County to provide trash, library, water and court services only.
— jeanopro
Many DeKalb residents have been wanting DeKalb Government to be changed or get its act together now for quite some time. There are too many important political egos and not enough clean services in DeKalb County government. The issues mentioned in the article are only a few of the other issues at hand. ALL the departments need a good cleaning up including DeKalb Courts.
— gdfo
I’ve been opposed to the DeKalb County CEO position for years and think it should be dissolved and replaced by a different structure. Perhaps a city manager-type position.
— Barb Curzon
You don’t want to run a county government based on politics and ineptitude. You want the County to operate on solid, ethical business principles administered by an experienced, professional manager. The County Manager person must have the authority and autonomy to hire a competent staff; install and maintain solid policies, procedures, systems and controls for all accounting, budget, spending and reporting functions; and then have the staff to audit these functions to see that they are operating properly. This County Manager reports to the County Commission just like it does in ALL Georgia counties other than DeKalb. This would eliminate the CEO position.
— Taylor Carlson
Dionne Kinch, for the AJC
Construction will soon begin on new reversible managed toll lanes along Interstate 75 through Henry County, stretching from the Interstate 675/Highway 138 exits in Stockbridge south to Highway 155 in McDonough – a distance of about 12 miles.
According to the Georgia Department of Transportation, studies have shown that managed toll lanes are “a viable way accommodate growing traffic on this roadway.”
The proposed design includes reversible express lanes built between the existing northbound and southbound lanes that can handle extra traffic into Atlanta during the morning rush hour and away from the city in the evening. The southernmost section of the project will contain one reversible lane while there are two such lanes the rest of the way. The cost of the toll will depend upon demand at any given time, and the Peach Pass will be used for payment.
In addition to access at both ends of the express lanes, motorists will also be able to utilize slip lanes at certain points and an on-ramp constructed especially for the project.
The construction process will include lane closures at various times and locations, and DOT officials have pledged to keep the public updated on how they will affect ongoing traffic. The new express lanes are expected to be open in early 2017.
Is this the solution to the traffic problem or just a Band Aid? Will the construction process itself cause even more problems over the next few years? Should more consideration be given to other transportation options, like expanding the GRTA Xpress bus service? Is commuter rail a practical alternative?
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