Love Where You Live - Strong Communities

As the new City Hall opened in 2013, 2014 would prove to be a pivotal year for the city: downtown planning, a major project downtown, the formation of new community groups, a growing focus on the arts, and the addition of a massive amount of greenspace.

Analyzing Productivity of Land

While the City celebrated its 75th anniversary, major planning efforts were underway to update the master plan for downtown as the effects of the Great Recession were finally in the rearview mirror.

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Part of that included participation by the City in the Gwinnett Chamber’s Redevelopment Forum at the end of 2013. At that Redevelopment Forum, a highly informative and thought provoking report was presented. “The Dollars and Cents of Smart Redevelopment” by Joe Minicozzi was presented. The City highlighted the report in the December 2013 issue of the Sugar Hill Sentinel.

While the story in the Sugar Hill Sentinel indicated a future report on the final results, that didn’t happen. Minicozzi’s report itself opened a lot of eyes to the cost, perhaps better said the lack of productive value, of traditional, auto-oriented suburban development. The entire report is linked below and worth the read.

The main point in the report is how a community looks at assessed value of property on a per acre basis, allowing for an apples to apples comparison of the productivity of developed land. A portion of it specifically focused on Suwanee and the productivity of Town Center against the rest of the city.

The success of the then only 8-year old Town Center (which only included the mixed-use development around Town Center Park and the neighboring townhomes and single-family subdivision at that time) was specifically highlighted.

To make the financial productivity of downtowns crystal clear, this comparison was made regarding the parcel that includes the old “Bank of Buford” building in historic downtown Buford to the then relatively new “Sugarloaf Mills Mall” near Georgia Hwy 120 and I-85.

Remember, this is based on 2013 valuations.

Curious what that comparison would be in 2026 valuations? Sugarloaf Mills Mall is currently valued at $796,460/acre. The Bank of Buford parcel (which is now a salon) is currently valued at $20,833,333 per acre. Yes - you’ve read that correctly. In 13 years, the Sugarloaf Mills Mall property value has increased at total of 10%. Meanwhile, the Bank of Buford property value has increased 268%. Inflation over that time period from 2013-2026 was 44%. (Valuations based on Gwinnett County Tax Assessor “total appraised” values in 2013 and 2026.)

In 2013 you needed just 10.5 acres of Bank of Buford Development to equal the value of the 113 acres at Sugarloaf Mills Mall. By 2026, the number had fallen to a mere 4.3 acres of Bank of Buford development to equal the entire value of the 113 acres at Sugarloaf Mills Mall.

The chart below gives a visual comparison.

In a future article, we’ll use this equation to compare downtown developments and parcel values to places like malls, Wal-Marts, other big box retail developments and traditional suburban garden style apartments.

This very straightforward math in 2013 led many to one obvious conclusion - the analysis suggested that fiscally productive downtown development would play an increasingly important role in the long-term financial health of local governments. Focusing on walkable, mixed-use and people-oriented development like the towns of old over the traditional suburban automobile dependent development was the future. And real numbers 13 years later show that this conclusion would be strongly supported by the available evidence.

Plan Updates and Void Analysis

The first planning effort the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) in 2014 was to engage a consultant to prepare a void analysis and master plan update - the first major downtown planning focus since 2005. A void analysis is a report of the missing type of development in the community - in other words, what was the market demanding but not supplying? The DDA and City Council wanted to ensure that plans were based in market reality - not pie in the sky aspirations. It also was pursuing a master plan update. The Request for Qualification (RFQ) was published in February 2014.

The selected consultant was Bleakley Advisory Group. They would go on to do the analysis and prepare the master plan update. The update would be an incredible look into the possibilities of downtown and lay the groundwork for the next decade of growth in downtown.

In March, the City hosted a joint training workshop of Mayor and Council, the DDA, Planning Commission and City staff workshopping on downtown development - what community initiated development would look like. It was highlighted in the April Sugar Hill Sentinel.

Most importantly, it led to elected officials, planners, downtown leaders, and staff all operating from the same playbook as major redevelopment decisions approached. It was a seminal moment for the future of the City.

Downtown’s First Redevelopment: Old City Hall to Business Incubator

In April, the DDA would announce one of its most ambitious plans to date - the conversion of old city hall into The Suite Spot - a business incubator. The Suite Spot would become a welcome new home for dozens of small businesses over the next decade.

Sugar Hill’s First Downtown Manager

April would also welcome the highly energetic Scott Andrews to the City of Sugar Hill. Scott would become a staff force during the next three and a half years for moving projects forward through his energy and drive to make Sugar Hill successful.

GA Highway 20 Widening

Meanwhile, one of the most impactful projects in Sugar Hill’s history was getting underway - the widening of Georgia Hwy 20 by the Georgia Department of Transportation and Gwinnett County. It would widen the existing two lanes to four lanes between Peachtree Industrial Boulevard and the Chattahoochee River. Clearing of the right-of-way had started in 2013 and the evidence of the widening became much more of a reality in 2014.

The City’s Transformative Project: The E Center

Just prior to the final release of the Master Plan Update, in June, the City would make the announcement of the transformative E Center (initially called EpiCenter) project in downtown. The E Center would be the catalyst project for the future of downtown, combining a theatre, gymnasium and private commercial space into one footprint. The E Center wouldn’t open for another 4 years, but the announcement set the stage and provided the momentum for downtown’s future growth.

This was announced after a special called meeting of Mayor and Council on the same day in which the adjoining 1.8 acres next to City Hall was formally voted on for purchase.

Master Plan Update Complete

Meanwhile, the final version of the void analysis and updated downtown master plan was released in August. This plan pulled together a tremendous amount of market data to inform the plan for downtown, including a “bubble plan” to show potential development throughout the Central Business District (CBD).

The void analysis showed a potential demand at the time for up to 64,000 square feet of commercial demand.

The void analysis also showed strong demand for housing - despite there still being a backlog of available homes from the Great Recession.

The void analysis also included a chart showing how the E Center would meet some of the demand.

The “bubble plan” gave a general framework for what downtown could be within the CBD.

Finally, the updated Master Plan included more detail within the City Hall block - including the development of the surface parking lot into a retail/office building which was approved earlier this year.

The 2014 Master Plan would be updated again in 2017 with even more detail, but the 2014 plan would be the bones that would propel downtown even further into reality.

Other Important 2014 Additions and Changes

2014 wasn’t just about downtown - it was also about massive increases in community involvement, the arts and green space initiatives.

* The Players Guild is started and presents its first live show “And Then There Were None” by Agatha Christie in September.

* The Arts Commission is formed.

* The Broad Street Band is formed.

* The Youth Council is formed.

* The Ice Rink makes its first appearance.

* The Bowl hosts its first major, ticketed concert for the 75th anniversary celebration on August 2nd. The headliner was The Bacon Brothers. Can you name the other two acts that performed at that event? (It was Haley & Alexis and Andy Velo.)

* EE Robinson Park was sold to Gwinnett County in November for continued use as a park for $10 million. The money from the sale of the park would be used for other city related assets, including land for new parks, greenspace (for example, see the next bullet point) and the E Center. Critically, the park continued to function as it always had with the maintenance of the park more equitably spread across City and unincorporated users. A huge financial win for the City while maintaining the use as a park as it had been.

* In December, the City purchased the 71-acres bordering the National Park Service’s property along the Chattahoochee River for $1.5 million. Those 71-acres would become the south property under the umbrella of the Riverlands Authority that would be created 8 years later.

A Year for The History Books

What makes 2014 remarkable is not simply the number of projects launched, but how many proved successful. The underlying belief that walkable mixed-use development would create stronger fiscal outcomes than conventional suburban growth has been validated by the numbers. At the same time, investments in arts, recreation, community organizations, and greenspace helped ensure that downtown would become more than an economic center. It would become the community’s gathering place.

Some may not necessarily have shared the City’s optimism in 2014. The E Center, downtown redevelopment strategy, land acquisitions, and broader investments represented significant commitments of public resources. Reasonable residents could disagree about the risks, costs, and proper role of local government in pursuing such an ambitious vision. What makes 2014 noteworthy is that many of the assumptions underlying those decisions can now be evaluated against the results that followed.

Looking back, the significance of 2014 was not simply that plans were prepared or projects announced. Communities across the country produced similar studies and visions following the Great Recession. What makes 2014, the City’s 75th anniversary, noteworthy is how much of that vision was ultimately implemented. The plans developed that year became actions, and the actions produced measurable changes that continue to shape Sugar Hill today. It matched the new Mayor’s “Go Big or Go Home” vision that he would push for the next eight years.

The City made a massive, strategic bet in 2014, and twelve years later we enjoy the successes of planning and executing on a Strong Community.

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

Ladies and gentlemen, hello, and welcome to Sugar Hill’s third State of the City Address and the first delivered by podcast. It has been a great year, and I am excited to say that the state of our city continues to be STRONG.

Before I start, I want to say thank you to my wife – Tara. She makes a great First Lady. When we married nearly eighteen years ago, she joined me in Sugar Hill. This community is a place that we have grown to love deeply and are proud to call home. In many ways, it has become our hometown.

In addition, I want to thank City Council Member Taylor Anderson. He has made the decision to retire from public service. I am thankful for his many years of service to the community and the opportunity to do this podcast with his help.

I would also like to acknowledge and thank our community groups like the Black Women’s Association of Sugar Hill, the Historic Preservation Society, the Arts Commission, the Downtown Development Authority, the Planning and Zoning Commission, the Riverlands Authority, the Youth Council, the Sugar Hill Community Garden, the Running Club, the Theo Hutchins Inclusive Task Force, and the Friends of the Sugar Hill Greenway.

I know that all of you work quietly and without fanfare to make our lives richer. The projects that each of you has been involved in, and the improvements you have helped make have forever changed Sugar Hill for the better.

The success of our team would not be possible without the support of over 137 dedicated full-time and part-time city employees that support us and our community’s 28,000 plus residents.

Our City Manager, Paul Radford, leads a great team. I cannot thank him enough for his STRONG and steady stewardship over the last twelve years. In the past year, Paul has been recognized with two very prestigious awards. The Georgia Municipal Association Hall of Fame and the Starr Award are the highest acknowledgements that can be achieved in municipal government. The first award recognized him for his leadership as the city manager for Sugar Hill, and the second award highlights his efforts towards creating Sugar Hill’s downtown area. We have the very best person for the job and are lucky to have Paul serving our community.

Paul would also want me to recognize our very talented Assistant City Manager, Troy Besseche. Troy is Paul’s right-hand man and manages some very important services for the city, including our natural gas utility, public works, and construction project management.

Paul has assembled a great team of professionals that serve our community with pride, integrity, and professionalism.

Our City Clerk, Jane Whittington, also leads well. I cannot thank her enough for her many years of service to our community. She is responsible for records management, customer service, human resources, and many other critical activities for residents and employees. Jane helps contribute to the positive culture we have within and outside City Hall.

It is important to recognize that our city's leadership has played a big role in maintaining our financial health. I am proud to tell you that our financial health as a city continues to be STRONG and most importantly, sustainable.

As of this address, the city has nearly $39 million cash-on-hand, nearly $10 million in unrestricted reserves, and over $300 million in city owned capital assets. City financial policies only require that 20 percent of our annual General Fund operating budget, as a city, be set aside in reserves. For Fiscal Year 2024, the reserves were 100 percent of our operating budget. This is STRONG!

Regarding eliminating our mortgage, the city’s bonds for the E-Center were scheduled to be paid off by 2035 when they were issued by City Council in 2016. The city’s bonds for the Lyric parking deck and commercial space were scheduled to be paid off in 2033 when they were issued by City Council in 2021. The city established a sound and sustainable plan to eliminate the mortgage when each of the bonds was issued. That has not changed and won’t change. No citizen property taxes are used to pay off the mortgage, only revenue from programming and leases.

The E-Center’s commercial space is home to numerous restaurants and businesses. The E-Center Gym is busy seven days a week. It now has over 24,000 unique members. In August, over 3,100 members checked into the gym and fitness area. These figures do not include basketball leagues, meetings and classes, life-line screening and blood drives and similar type events. The E-Center meeting rooms, 39th Street Station and Waterfall Rooms, are also routinely full, serving our community, schools, recreation groups and businesses. The Eagle Theatre is booked 350 days of the year for a wide variety of users. It hosts the Broad Street Concert Band, the Players Guild, On the Stage Children’s Theatre, movies, concerts, comedy, and various arts academies and recitals. Sugar Hill is considered a fine arts hub because of The Bowl, The Eagle Theatre and other downtown venues. The various users of the Eagle bring thousands of people to our downtown area yearly, many who have never been to our downtown. This intentionally compliments our local schools that have one of the highest fine arts participation rates in the Gwinnett County School System. The city owns 250 dedicated parking spaces in the Lyric development as well all 12,000 square feet of commercial space along Temple. We have Starbucks, Playa Bowls, Kilwins and soon August Swine occupying these spaces with two more retail bays in leasing discussions. These investments have helped bring over one million visitors a year to our downtown last year. The city, through its efforts, has created nearly 750 new jobs downtown and attracted nearly $750 million in private sector investment. A downtown gathering space for our community would not exist if these investments had not been made, and I am thankful to all the City Council Members that unanimously supported these investment decisions in 2016 and 2021.

Our Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Financial Report was completed and adopted in August. Completed by a third-party auditor, this audit is required by state law. I am excited to say that, once again, the city has received a completely clean audit with no findings.

Our financial health has enabled us to make ongoing investments at Pirkle Park, at Ridge Lake Park, the Sugar Hill Greenway, and other assets in our community.

This past year, we completed a very important stream bank restoration project at Pirkle Park. The restoration ensures that thousands of families can continue to utilize the park for recreational activities, like soccer and football. This past year, we also opened disc golf and fishing at Ridge Lake Park. Stocked through a unique partnership with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, families in our community can catch bream, bass, and even catfish. Future phases are planned at Ridge Lake Park, including a new playground. Investments in the Sugar Hill Greenway also continue, with an additional mile completed north of Nelson Brogdon Boulevard that will be connected to the rest of the greenway with a pedestrian bridge that is in the beginning stages of construction. The city, in mid-2025, began community input for two new pocket parks near the downtown area. One of the new pocket parks is proposed to be an inclusive playground for children and adults with diverse abilities.

Our vision for future investments in parks, recreation, and green space, has also inspired our closest neighbor and partner along the Chattahoochee River. The National Park Service and the Chattachoochee River National Recreation Area, earlier this year, announced a new park on both sides of the Georgia Highway 20 Bridge that will encompass the restored Crayfish Creek. The proposal includes opportunities for hiking, birding, fishing, and learning. For several years, White Oak Elementary School, in partnership with the Mayor’s Office, has conducted learning days at Crayfish Creek. The added amenities by the National Park Service, like restrooms, will open opportunities for additional schools and grade levels to learn about the ecology of Crayfish Creek and the importance of conservation of our natural resources.

The National Park Service announcement coincides with our own completion of a Riverlands Master Plan. Published in early 2025, the master plan was designed with input from the community, market data, and programming analyses to ensure it meets the needs and desires of the citizens of Sugar Hill. The goal of the planning effort is to create a vibrant community space that offers both economic opportunities and recreational amenities. Highlights of the master plan and community input include mountain biking and cross-country trails, enhanced access to the Chattahoochee River, an educational center for our local schools, and picnic areas. I am thankful to the members of the Board of Directors for the Riverlands Authority and their efforts to be good stewards of this important green space along the Chattahoochee River.

New parks, new recreational opportunities, and new green space will continue to be a top priority for Sugar Hill.

In addition, this past year, nearly five miles of repaving has taken place in Sugar Hill’s neighborhoods. Significant upgrades, the first improvements since 1967, were also made to the city’s gas utility infrastructure that will ensure safe and reliable natural gas services for all our residents and customers. Nearly three thousand linear feet of new sidewalk installations have taken place along First Avenue, Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, and Spring Hill Drive. These are just several examples of the day-to-day activities and investments of our city employees and partners that work every day to maintain and improve our city’s infrastructure.

Because of our investments towards making Sugar Hill a desirable place to live, work, and play, our economic health as a city is also STRONG.

Over the past year, we have continued to improve our residential to commercial mix to a healthier and sustainable 73 percent to 27 percent. The ultimate benefit of this more balanced tax base is reducing the property tax burden on residential property as we add quality commercial development to our Sweet City. We are working every day to make this mix even better.

In 2025, we welcomed 128 new businesses to Sugar Hill, which brings our total to 1,045 active businesses. While we are a community of mostly small and home-based businesses, our local economy grows stronger each day.

We continue to see improvements in all the metrics of a strong local economy.

Sugar Hill’s average household income is $121,910, median household income is $99,479, and median income for married families is $123,221. These numbers are substantially higher than Gwinnett County, metro Atlanta and the State of Georgia.

A look at the city’s successes for this past year is only part of the story that I want to share tonight. We must also be focused on the future, and that future includes our most important residents. Our youth deserve our full attention as a community.

Sugar Hill is blessed to have two amazing school clusters serving our most important residents. The Lanier Cluster and the North Gwinnett Cluster are the very best in the Gwinnett County Public School System. Every school in the Lanier Cluster - Lanier High School, Lanier Middle School, Sycamore Elementary School, White Oak Elementary School, and Sugar Hill Elementary School – is within the city limits of Sugar Hill. This provides us with a unique opportunity to co-brand and celebrate our community together. Many of our long-time residents graduated from North Gwinnett High School, and the North Gwinnett Cluster provides a tradition and history that is unparalleled in comparison to other communities.

I would like to talk about just some of the ways we are partnering with our local schools to serve both students and parents.

First, I would like to highlight that under the leadership of Principal Stacey Pickett at White Oak Elementary, the Mayor’s Office, over the last two years, has partnered with all elementary schools in the Lanier Cluster to design and host Explore Sugar Hill Field Trips for all students in 1st through 5th grade. Designed around school curriculum requirements, students have had the opportunity to visit the Sugar Hill Community Garden, Crayfish Creek, Ridge Lake Park, City Hall, Downtown Sugar Hill, Gold Mine Park, the Sugar Hill History Museum, and many other locations in our community. Curriculum during field trips focuses on history, civics, science, and other areas that help students better understand the world we all share as humans. Participants, like members of City Council, local businesses, and volunteers from the Sugar Hill Historic Preservation Society, help model to our youth the relationships and activities that make a community function well.

Second, I want you to know that because of venues like The Bowl at Sugar Hill and the Eagle Theatre, our community has a growing reputation for the performing arts. There is no better example of this than the annual North Gwinnett Jazz Festival. Led by Brandon Soloff, this year’s festival brought fifteen middle school and high school jazz bands to Downtown Sugar Hill. The festival has created an amazing opportunity for our youth to showcase their musical talent, as well as discover the power of performing arts to bring a community together.

Third, I want to talk about something that is difficult to discuss because of continued stigmatisms around mental health in our modern-day society. Over the last several years, tragically, the Sugar Hill community has experienced multiple deaths by suicide. While not isolated to any age group, student health data in both the North Gwinnett Cluster and Lanier Cluster indicate a growing trend of thoughts about suicide. Lending Hope is a partnership between Sugar Hill Church, our local schools, and the Mayor’s Office. Through Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), Bobby Gueh and Diane Andree are training laypeople in suicide awareness and prevention. To date, they have trained nearly ninety people in our community. Future training will include peer leaders at both Lanier High School and North Gwinnett High School. I personally took the two-day training in early Summer and feel better able to lend a helping hand to our parents and school counselors in identifying youth in our community that are struggling mentally. Other individuals like Shamika Battle with Just Heal Counseling and Sharon Wiley with Impact Christian Counseling are coming alongside Lending Hope, to help in this very important effort. By battling the stigmatism associated with suicide and creating hope through awareness and prevention, we are taking steps forward to stop these tragic losses to our community.

Fourth, I am excited to let you know that out of a continued desire to develop leaders at Lanier Middle School, the BMM Enrichment Academy just began its second cohort of students. I first highlighted this amazing organization during my 2023 State of the City Address. In partnership with Lanier Middle School, Lanier High School, Sugar Hill Church, and the Mayor’s Office, BMM is a program developed by Bobby Gueh that focuses on enrichment opportunities for 7th and 8th graders. Chosen by school counselors, these young men spend two years with teachers and mentors like Joy Crowe, Leslie Adames, Alvin Hicks, Barton Robinson, Lamont McLeod, and many other inviduals that come alongside the participants and provide academic and life support. Parents, through Shamika Battle, are also offered coaching and life skill development. The first cohort of students recently started at Lanier High School, and many have joined an extension of the program called Distinguished Gentlemen. I am a mentor for this program and have personally seen lives changed as these young men make lifelong friendships and discover their path in life.

Fifth, it is no secret that I talk a lot about the fact that all the Lanier Cluster Schools are within the city limits of Sugar Hill. Through a partnership with all five of the Lanier Cluster Principals and by hosting annual events like “We Are Lanier”, “Meet the Player”, and the “Lanier Homecoming Parade”, the city is working hard to created traditions and model the importance of community to our youth. This past year’s homecoming parade brought several thousand residents to Downtown Sugar Hill and helped highlight several hundred student athletes from the Lanier Athletic Foundation, Lanier Middle School, and Lanier High School. Youth athletics play a big role in building a sense of community. I am thankful for Principals Christopher Martin, Bryce Fulcher, Stacey Pickett, Nick Boyers, and Kelly Scarbrough for their continued partnership and focus on building community. The Gwinnett County Public School System, recognizing this uniquely important partnership, has produced a video to highlight the Lanier Cluster’s relationship with the city and Sugar Hill Church.

Sixth, I am proud to let you know some details about The Theo Hutchins Inclusive Task Force. It is a great example of the impact of community champions that volunteer their time towards a passion that stirs their hearts. Begun in 2024 and led by Chelsea Hutchins and Samanth Piovesan, this task force is focused on building community awareness and programming for children and adults with diverse abilities. Even though their focus is broad in scope, they are assisting to plan for and eventually construct an inclusive park that will provide an opportunity for us to partner with Sugar Hill Church on a future special needs ministry and bring our community together around a common goal of inclusivity.

Last and certainly not least, beginning on September 22nd, and under the leadership of Leslie Adames from Sycamore Elementary School, all three elementary schools in the Lanier Cluster began participating in a community-wide reading challenge. Sweet Reads is in partnership with the Mayor's Office and part of a statewide effort called Georgia Reads that was started to improve literacy rates among third graders. This challenge will culminate on November 4th with our traditional "Story Walk and Bookmobile" in Downtown Sugar Hill.

As a city and community, we will continue to make our youngest and most important residents a top priority. When our youth have a strong connection to their community, it provides them with a sense of place and makes them more likely to come back to Sugar Hill to live and invest, when they graduate from college or a technical school.

In closing……

It is my honor to serve you and our sweet city, as Mayor. I speak to you today with immense gratitude and pride for the incredible journey we have embarked upon as a community. Our city has had a remarkable transformation over the last several years, and this past year was no different. It is all thanks to the dedication and collaborative spirit of our volunteers, residents, businesses, city staff, and city officials.

Thank you for your trust, your support, and your dedication to making Sugar Hill such a sweet city to live in, work, play, and serve.

May God continue to bless this sweet city and each of you!

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

Even though the 1998 Comprehensive Plan for Sugar Hill was replaced in 2005 there are a few nuggets in it that are worth pointing out. First, it was amended in 2002 with some additional maps and data and re-approved by Mayor and Council (of which two members currently serve on city council).

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Under the question of “What do you like least about the City of Sugar Hill, Ga?”, coming in at number 3 was the “new garbage program, bags and recycling”. Sounds familiar, right?

However, there are some wild charts and data in the plan that are worth sharing, particularly where the city would be in 2020.

On page 55, Table 40 indicates that the city would be completely developed by 2020. In fact, it would have zero (yes, zero, 0, zilch, nada) undeveloped acres in 2020. More than 880 acres of new residential development would be added, an additional 450 acres of commercial would be added and an incredible 640 acres of industrial would be added.

Meanwhile, apparently, no public or institutional land use would be added. By the way, public/institutional includes local government uses, libraries, schools and churches. And apparently all this growth would happen and only 30 acres of transportation and utilities would need to be added.

Well, you might be curious, if such an aggressive use of land was actually realized, what would that mean for the city itself from a population standpoint? Table 5 has that answer.

You read that right - the population of the city in 2020 would be 55,000 strong. With an astounding 23,913 households.

What was the actual population of Sugar Hill in 2020? According to the Census Bureau it was 25,076. The 1998 Comp Plan anticipated the city hitting the actual 2020 number around 2007. This plan anticipated the city doubling in size in 7 (!!) years.

According to Envision 100, the city’s most recent comprehensive plan, the total housing units in 2020 was around 8,000. This plan expected to hit the total number of households we have today before 2005. Wild.

You might wonder what the composition of those nearly 24,000 units would be. Well, Table 38 lays it out.

Keep in mind that the city currently has 8,000 households (of all types). In 2020, the Comp Plan anticipated over 18,000 single family homes alone and more than 5,000 multi-family units. Remember, the plan only anticipated a total of 30 acres of transportation and utilities to accommodate this growth. In fact, the city was projected to add 6,400 units between 2015 and 2020, including 5,000 single family homes. That’s an average of almost 3 new homes per day, every single day, for 5 years.

If you think that’s crazy, let’s do some density math. Remember the anticipated new residential acreage from Table 40 is 880 acres between 1996 and 2020. The projected household increase between the same period is 20,920 units from Table 38. Divide the two to get the density: 20,920 units/880 acres = 23.8 units per acre. For reference, the maximum density allowed in townhome developments is 8 units/acre. And that’s rarely achieved.

Below is a link to download this document in its entirety. Safe to say, we’re glad that the city turned away from this document in 2005.

At the same time, it’s fair to ask: Was anyone paying attention to this document before it was passed - twice?

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

In part 1 of looking at Sugar Hill’s current growth, we looked at how the population growth rate is at the slowest in history by a large margin and what is happening to local school enrollment.

This article will look closer at data centered around land development. Envision100, the city’s most current comprehensive plan contains a lot of information on development.

The one particular chart related to Sugar Hill’s growth slowing significantly is the total number of housing units built, regardless of type.

Of the approximately 9,500 total housing units built in Sugar Hill since 1970 (55 years), more than half were built in the 1990s and 2000s. And, in reality due to the great recession, the vast majority were built in a 15-year period from 1991-2006. As covered in Part 1 of this article, it was also when the city’s population was increasing 15% each year! There was no bigger boom time or time of change than that period in the city’s history. We added exclusively single family detached lots in auto dependent neighborhoods with virtually zero commercial growth. This led to the congestion that we’re dealing with today on our roads. That’s not a value judgement - I live in one of those houses built in that period - it’s just the nature of that development pattern.

Single Family Permits

Looking at permits issued for single family construction of all types tells a similar story. Here it is presented by year.

The trend line has been a fairly sharp decline for some time now, despite highs of over 230 permits in 2014, 2017 and 2024. The average number of building permits from 1991-2006 (prior to the great recession) was 232 permits per year. From 2012 (the end of the great recession) to 2024, the last year for complete data, the average is 144 permits per year.

Keep in mind that the population of the city in 1990 was 11,399 and 218 permits were issued. That’s 19.1 single family permits per 1,000 residents. In 2000, when 360 permits were issued, the population was 18,522. That’s 19.4 single family permits per 1,000 residents. If we assume a population of 25,889 (last population count from the census through July 2023) in 2024, that translates to just 9.5 single family permits (again of all types) per 1,000 residents. Or less than half the number of permits issued per resident in 1990 and 2000 in 2024. And 2024 was a relatively strong year for permits at 100 more than the 2012-2024 average.

The 53 permits issued in 2025 is through the end of February.

Rezonings

The one item that usually draws the most attention are rezonings. Below is a graph of rezonings over the years - this is inclusive of all rezonings in the city regardless of it being commercial, residential or industrial and regardless of it being approved or denied. The way rezonings were calculated from 2000 to present is if the city issued a rezoning number. Prior to 2000, the data was taken from a data table the city maintains. There are some instances in which a rezoning number (i.e. RZ-24-001) was issued but it was actually a change in conditions for a prior rezoning. That was still counted in the rezoning totals.

Again, the trend line is down for rezonings. Looking at the boom period of 1991-2006, there was an average of 7.3 rezonings per year. From 2012-2024 the average has been 5.7 rezonings per year.

Annexations

An annexation is when property in unincorporated Gwinnett County is brought into the City of Sugar Hill city limits. Below is a graph of annexations over the years - this is inclusive of all annexations regardless of them being approved or denied. The way annexations were calculated from 2000 to present is if the city issued an annexation number. Prior to 2000, the data was taken from a data table the city maintains.

Like building permits and rezonings, the trend line is down. The average number of annexations during the boom of 1991-2006 was 7.1 annexations per year. From 2012 to 2024, the average was 2.4 annexations.

In a separate article devoted to housing in Sugar Hill, which is a different all be it connected issue to Sugar Hill’s slowing of growth, we’ll cover the different types and number of housing types built in the city.

Land Disturbance Authorizations

Perhaps the most visibly obvious signs of growth is earth moving - land disturbance authorizations. There are typically what generates the “what’s being built there?” question.

The city’s available records go back to 1993, which is a couple of years short of the 15-year boom period. During the 1993-2006 boom, the city average 21.6 land disturbance authorizations per year. During the period of 2012-2024, the average has been 11.8 land disturbance authorizations per year. The trend line clearly down.

What Does This Mean?

There is no “good or bad” to what this means. Some will find it good, others will find it concerning. Growth in a city is important to long term financial success. A city can certainly grow too fast to keep up with infrastructure.

There is no “status quo” option.

Why is that? Why can’t things “stay the same”? As humans, we’re constantly changing ourselves. At the most fundamental level, you age. As you age, your needs change so you modify your environment around you to accommodate your stage in life. As a young adult setting out on life, you likely need a small place like an apartment or starter home. As middle age approaches, you may start a family so a larger home may be necessary to accommodate children, pets and all the modern “stuff” of family life. As empty nesters, you may return to a smaller home but maybe nicer than a small starter home or apartment. As seniors, independent living or age restricted single story homes may become attractive. At advanced age, you may require assisted living accommodations. This is the circle of life and important to an age in place community. If things are “status quo”, many of those housing options may not be available - either they don’t exist at all or are in limited supply such that they’re not available or cost prohibitive due to demand. And this only covers the most basic fundamental of the human life - aging. Providing those basic housing types at a quantity sufficient for you to age in place requires growth - assuming you want to sell that starter home for the larger home and so on.

The leaves another option - a dying city in which the population is declining. It doesn’t take much imagination to understand what that means to a city.

While Sugar Hill’s growth has dramatically slowed over the boom of 1991-2006, we continue to grow, all be it at a much, much slower pace. The growth we’ve seen in the last decade has been to add those housing types that allowed many in our community to age in place along with new commercial growth. That’s important to becoming a strong community.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

A common refrain we hear is Sugar Hill is experiencing explosive growth. While that was absolutely true 20-30 years ago, the previous decade (2010s) was the third slowest growth year over year in the city’s history.

The slowest year over year growth decade? The one we’re currently living in - and it’s not particularly close.

Population Change

The City of Sugar Hill was chartered in 1939 which means there’s 9 decades of census data to view to see how the city has grown over its 85 years of existence.

Here’s how the city has grown through the decades:

That’s likely a shocking truth to most - that Sugar Hill is growing so slow. The headlines would have you believe that Sugar Hill is actually in its largest growth period in history. In fact, if Sugar Hill continues to grow at 1.1% through the 20s, in the decade the city will add just around 3,000 new residents. The lowest number since the 80s.

What about our surrounding neighbors since 2020 - reminder that Sugar Hill grew at 3%? Suwanee grew at 12%. Buford - notable for extremely limiting residential growth because of its school system - grew at nearly 9%. Cumming grew at an astonishing 38%. Flowery Branch grew at 29%. Our nearest neighbors grew on the low side 3 times the rate that Sugar Hill and over 12 times on the high side.

School Enrollment

One of the common stated concerns is school overcrowding. Sugar Hill is made up primarily of the Lanier Cluster of Gwinnett County Public Schools. The other cluster that serves the city is the North Gwinnett Cluster. Since all of the Lanier Cluster schools are within the city limits of Sugar Hill, they’re the best barometer for us even though a significant portion of the enrolled students at each school live in unincorporated Gwinnett County. School enrollment data taken from this source.

Lanier High School

Lanier High School opened in 2008, having been split from North Gwinnett High School due to the explosive growth of not just Sugar Hill but of the entire county during the 1980s and 1990s. Student enrollment peaked in 2021 but has remained largely steady since 2019. The school has an entire fourth floor that has been unfinished since its opening in 2008 in anticipation of growth.

Sugar Hill Elementary

Sugar Hill Elementary, perhaps more than any other school, would be impacted by the growth in Sugar Hill since the primary location of growth in the city has been in its district over the last several years as it serves our downtown residents. Below is a map of the area Sugar Hill Elementary serves.

And here is its enrollment data going back to 1987. This shows a fairly consistent enrollment of around 1,100 students for about the last 15 years with a fairly consistent downward trend since 2015.

Sycamore Elementary

The other school that would be impacted by the growth in downtown on the north side of Highway 20 would be Sycamore Elementary.

The enrollment data for Sycamore goes back to 2005. Sycamore reached a peak in 2009, which was the time that White Oak Elementary opened and many students were redistricted from Sycamore to White Oak. Since that time, Sycamore saw steady but slow growth to a new peak in 2019 and has been on a minor downward trend, mostly holding around 750 students.

White Oak Elementary

White Oak Elementary opened for the 2008-2009 school year to relieve the pressure of the growth to Sycamore Elementary that occurred during the 1990s and 2000s. White Oak Elementary serves the far northwest corner of Gwinnett County.

Enrollment peaked at White Oak in 2015 at around 850 students and has been on a steady decline since.

Lanier Middle School

The opening of Lanier Middle School coincided with the opening of Lanier High School. All three elementary schools in the Lanier Cluster feed into Lanier Middle School. Like the rest of the Lanier Cluster, Lanier Middle School’s enrollment has been steady to a slight downward trend in the last decade.

The North Gwinnett Cluster serves small portions of the City of Sugar Hill, mostly on its western and southern extremes.

Riverside Elementary

Riverside Elementary is located in unincorporated Suwanee near Settles Bridge Park off Johnson Road. The much of its northern half of its district is in the city.

Enrollment at Riverside Elementary peaked in 2009 and has been on a steady decline since.

The other elementary schools in the North Gwinnett cluster are Roberts, which serves primarily the City of Suwanee with just a sliver of the southern side of Sugar Hill, Level Creek which serves primarily unincorporated Suwanee and the Moore Road area of Suwanee, and Suwanee Elementary which serves the western half of Suwanee.

North Gwinnett Middle School

North Gwinnett Middle School is the sole school from the North Gwinnett Cluster that sits within the city limits of Sugar Hill, but primarily serves the Suwanee area.

Peak enrollment for North Gwinnett Middle School occurred around 2017 and has slightly declined to hold steady at around 2,300 students.

North Gwinnett High School

North Gwinnett High School is located in the City of Suwanee and has the same service area as North Gwinnett Middle School. North Gwinnett High School has a long history dating back more than a century when it was known as Suwanee School in the 1890s. Enrollment had been on a steady increase almost reaching its pre-Lanier peak in 2019. After a huge runup in student enrollment from 1995 through 2009, enrollment has held steady at around 3,000 students for nearly a decade.

What does this mean for our schools? We meet regularly with our Lanier Cluster principals. I can say, without a doubt, that these folks are amazing educators and love both their students and our community. They also, of course, have concerns over growth - both positive and negative growth. Positive growth comes with challenges of classroom space and hiring teachers, something that hasn’t faced our schools in a decade. Negative growth comes with the challenges of loss of staff and resources for the students that remain.

What attracted many families in the 1990s and 2000s to the North Gwinnett area was the stellar reputation of the school system. While the school system maintains that reputation, as growth slows, the school system will have to adjust to a declining enrollment likely for the foreseeable future.

In the next article we’ll examine the city’s growth via housing stock and development, including rezonings, annexations and permits going back to the 1980s.

Part of being a Strong Community is having a diverse number of reasons for people to both locate and stay within the community. Schools attracted families to this area. As the population ages and the general trend towards less children amongst millennials and zoomers than prior generations, our community will have to adapt to remain strong and find more reasons to love where you live.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

Hey everyone. I hope you are well and enjoying a new year.

As we are starting a new year, I would like to take several minutes to provide you with a finance update for the City of Sugar Hill. I just finished my third year as Mayor, and our finances continue to be strong and healthy.

We ended 2024 strongly, with nearly $37.8 million cash-on-hand and a fund balance of $24 million. I am most proud of the fact that we currently have $14.5 million in unrestricted reserves. Our reserve fund is our city’s rainy-day fund and savings account, which we have continued to grow each year due to our fiscally conservative budgeting habits. In 2004, the city adopted a policy stating it was the city’s goal to maintain an amount of at least 20% of the annual budget, with a recommended level of 30%, for unbudgeted reserves for contingencies, Capital Improvement Projects, and undefined projects. We have actually set aside, in reserves, nearly 100 percent of our annual operating budget. The city also ends 2024 with over $300 million in city-owned assets, which includes the E-Center, the Eagle Theatre, and other past and recent community investments.

In December 2024, the City Council approved, and I signed a 2025 General Fund Budget that totals just over $16 million. This is $2.3 million less than the 2024 General Fund Budget. The overall budget also includes additional funds from SPLOST and other revenue sources in the amount of approximately $34.4 million to make a total budget of $50.6 million. It includes community investments, in a five-year capital plan, for new parks and other amenities that help us continue to move forward as a live, work, and play community.

As a city, we will soon begin working on our annually required financial audit for 2024. This annual audit is completed by a third-party auditing firm, and I am confident that, as in the past several years, we will achieve an unqualified result. An unqualified audit is great, because the auditor is stating that they have reviewed and analyzed the books of account of the city and can say, without qualification, that they are accurate, sound, and meet all legally required standards.

As 2025 begins, we continue to make progress paying down our mortgage on the E-Center, Solis Parking Deck, and Solis Commercial Spaces. Looking back on the decision made by the City Council to first issue municipal bonds in 2016, had we waited, the E Center, Gym, the Eagle Theatre, and nearly all our Downtown Sugar Hill commercial, retail, and restaurant activity would still be a dream and an aspiration because the cost to build would have outpaced any pay-as-you-go savings plan. As of the end of 2024, the city has paid nearly $41.1 million in principal and has only $30.1 million left on the mortgage. A portion of the mortgage will be paid off in 2033 and completely paid off in 2035.

This financial success also includes savings for the residents of Sugar Hill. In 2023, the City Council approved, and I signed a cut from 3.80 mils to 3.69 mils. In addition, in 2024, the City Council approved, and I signed a cut from 3.69 mils to 3.50 mils. This is in addition to homestead exemptions approved in 2023 that increase the city’s general homestead exemption and senior homestead exemption from $2,000 to $10,000. Prior to these last two reductions, the millage rate remained level at 3.80 mils for nineteen consecutive years. I am proud to say that these last two years of millage rate reductions coupled with homestead exemption changes are the only, much less largest tax reductions in nearly 20 years, providing much-needed relief to the pressures of economic growth in Gwinnett County.

I am excited about our financial strength and health as a city. Our financial successes would not be possible without a dedicated team of elected officials, as well as city employees led by our City Manager and executive team. Please reach out to me if I can answer any questions, and I look forward to an amazing 2025 for the City of Sugar Hill.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

The Riverlands Authority was founded in late 2022 with the goal of activating and providing public access to city owned property near the Chattahoochee River adjacent to the National Park Service’s Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area. This unique opportunity was made possible by land acquisitions made in 1988 for a close to 268-acre tract north of Highway 20 and an approximately 70-acre tract acquired in 2015 south of Highway 20.

The focus of this article is the north tract.

The purpose of this article is to focus on what the city had contracted to build on the property in 2007 (and renewed the contract in 2009 and 2011) that would have been FAR different than what is envisioned for the property today. It was only through the inability to finance the project as a result of the Great Recession that the property isn’t a giant parking field, big box retail, hotel and soccer fields - completely devoid of the special character of the property as it sits today.

Of the 268-acre total north tract, close to 170 acres were developed into the Sugar Hill golf course in 1992 and used as a greywater spray field for a number of years. In fact, much of the remaining north tracts also was used as a spray field and is littered to this day with abandoned spray field equipment. Greywater is partially treated sanitary sewer wastewater that is fit for irrigation but not potable water for consumption or bathing. Where the current American Legion Post 127 stands previously was the location for a water treatment facility for much of the city.

The city sold its sewer system several years ago to Gwinnett County and the water treatment plant was shuttered. The golf course and woodlands remained a spray field for partially treated water for many years afterwards until Gwinnett County rerouted all of its greywater to the F. Wayne Hill Water Treatment Plant a few years ago as part of the “Water Wars” lawsuit with Florida and Alabama.

While the golf course still operates today, a nearly 100-acre tract remains.

Over the years, a number of potential uses for the property have been considered. The most consequential and only real proposal for the property happened in 2007 when the city approved a contract without any public input with Global Sports for the development of a “downtown” (Global Sports term used in their presentation - see later in the article) that would have been a massive development of commercial, housing and recreation fields that would have completely cleared and graded the property.

At the time, the city was attempting to brand itself “The Recreation City” from a 2010 AJC article regarding the opening of Gary Pirkle Park:

Nearly a year ago, the Gwinnett enclave of 17,000 started marketing itself as "The Recreation City."

"We didn't just pick something out of the air and make that our slogan and try to become that," said Mayor Gary Pirkle, whose name graces the entrance to the park. "It became very obvious to us that this is what we are ... . The park is an extension of that."

The idea of Sugar Hill marketing itself as “The Recreation City” began back at least in 2007 when Gary Pirkle Park, then referred to as “Austin Garner Road Park” was named after then Mayor Gary Pirkle. There was no plan or any explanation where the idea for marketing the city as “The Recreation City” came from or what the plan was to move forward on expanding recreation assets in the city would be or what the purpose of marketing itself this way would be. For example, was it to draw tourists to the city? If so, the city didn’t contain any hotels for them to stay at. There wasn’t a clear plan or desired outcome of this marketing effort as it pertains to recreation.

From the minutes from May 14, 2007:

As an apparent part of the expansion of the city as “The Recreation City”, in November 2007 the city voted to enter a 50-year lease at $1 per year ($50 total) with Global Sports for the north tract to be developed into 8 soccer fields, a 10-12,000 seat stadium, family athletic and wellness center as well as walking trails. This was done without public input or public comment. (Note that the city would have received 1% of the gross revenues after the 3rd year had the project actually been realized but had turned over the control of the property for $1 a year to Global Sports.)

The city began to really move forward on the marketing of the city as “The Recreation City” in 2009, with the city newsletter “Sugar Hill Sentinel” headlining the branding efforts in April 2009.

Importantly just a month prior to this article, in March 2009 the city extended the contract with Global Sports for the development of the property.

Following this, in June 2009, then Mayor Gary Pirkle discussed the marketing efforts in his monthly report.

The city had apparently gone all in with “The Recreation City” and the development of north tract was a key component to realizing that effort.

So, what, exactly, was Global Sports vision for the property? We saw bits and pieces of what that would be through the minutes and contracts but nothing that gave an overall scope of the project.

The answer to that question was provided in a presentation that Global Sports made to Mayor and Council at the time. Below is a selection of the more relevant slides from the presentation. The entire presentation is included at the end of the selection of slides included in this article.

In the “aerial close up” slide, Global Sports was looking to develop not just the 90 acres owned by the city, but an additional 84 acres adjacent to the city owned property along Highway 20.

In totality, Global Sports proposed to clear the entire property. They proposed to build, using their description, a “downtown lifestyle center” on the property. Shown below is their version of the master plan in context with nearby city owned recreational assets, expanding the city’s vision of “The Recreation City”.

Global Sports provided a rendering of the “downtown lifestyle center” - Chattahoochee Station.

Their closing slide indicated the partnership that would achieve the city’s vision for “The Recreation City”.

Despite Global Sports failing to deliver anything over the four and half years since the original contract in May 2007, the city’s commitment to the partnership was again renewed in December 2011.

Ultimately, Global Sports would fail, fortunately, to deliver on anything related to the project despite the city’s apparent faith in them. The most troubling part is the contract actually shows that the original proposed mixed-use lifestyle center was nothing more than a pretty picture to tie up the property for 50 years, allowing the developer to control what would be built on the property.

The actual site plan in the executed contract was, in reality, mostly a giant parking field surrounded by big box retail and a hotel with soccer fields shown closer to the river. If the contract had been fulfilled, nearly 1/3 of the property would have been parking, with the only preserved area being a small stream buffer through the middle of the property between the front development and the rear parking field.

The apparent marketing efforts of the city being “The Recreation City” ended sometime shortly after 2009 as it was really never mentioned again, certainly not in any detail or real effort expended, despite the city’s official flag being changed to contain the term “The Recreation City” in August 2012. That flag would later be changed to match the city’s new logo that would be adopted a couple of years later with the term “The Recreation City” being removed.

Other projects would be proposed for the property over the years, however, nothing of any consequence would materialize due to a number of factors. Importantly, none of the proposed projects since Global Sports were approved by City Council or contracts entered into for the property.

That was then.

This is now.

As previously stated, the Riverlands Authority was formed in late 2022 with the directive to provide community access to the property with the primary goals of preservation and recreation with limited commercial development closer to Highway 20 that would support the preserved and recreational components of the property. Certainly, unlike what the city had approved in 2007, 2009 and 2011, clear cutting the entire property and developing it into big box retail and parking is not in any way being considered for the project.

Rather, unlike the original Global Sports project that was awarded without benefit of any public input, the Riverlands Authority has been intentional, open and transparent in the process, inviting the community to provide feedback and input into the property.

Currently, the Riverlands Authority is going through a master planning process using the Envision 100 Comprehensive Plan, which featured incredible public input and was adopted by City Council in February of this year.

It will also incorporate the Parks, Recreation and Greenspace Master Plan which included a tremendous amount of public input into a comprehensive and city-wide assessment and plan. This document is expected to be on the August 2024 City Council Agenda.

Below are some highlights that pertain to the Riverlands.

The Riverlands Authority hosted two open houses in June to solicit public input on the master planning process. The Riverlands Authority then proceeded to start the master planning process with Thomas and Hutton as the consultant assisting them in the process.

As has been stated by the Riverlands Authority chairman, approximately 90% of the property with be either preserved or utilized for recreation. The remaining 10% is proposed for supporting commercial uses. No residential housing is being considered for the property.

The master planning process has been and will continue to be intentional and careful. With no predetermined outcomes, the Authority is utilizing prior planning efforts and the tremendous public input that informed those efforts like the aforementioned Envision100 and Parks, Recreation and Greenspace Master Plan. The Authority will offer additional public input opportunities, utilize a market analysis by KB Advisory Group and coordinate with the adjoining public entities and stakeholders such as the National Park Service, the Chattahoochee Riverlands and others identified through the master planning process.

Additional public input opportunities will be announced as the master planning process moves forward and, of course, the public can always attend the Riverlands Authority meetings as well as email Authority members with questions, comments and concerns at any time.

What I can say is that I’m confident that the outcome will be another reason we’re a Strong Community and why you Love Where You Live.

We’ll be doing a number of articles on the Riverlands, including discussion of the KB Advisory Group market analysis, the south tract and much more.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

The Alton Tucker Boulevard extension project in downtown Sugar Hill is just about complete. As final paving has been completed, the final piece - the traffic light at Highway 20, is being installed this week. Let’s take a look at how a traffic light comes to be and why one is being installed at this location.

As is usual with Strong Communities, let’s go back to the beginning.

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This is downtown Sugar Hill circa 1938 - a year before the city would be chartered. This probably goes back a bit too far. However, interesting to see none the less. Not much here - some terrace farming. Not much in the way of trees… Although, if you’re an eagle eye, you can just make out the much younger version of the champion oak tree just to the west of West Broad Street and Whitehead Road.

Let’s jump ahead to a document we reference often - the 2005 Town Center Master Plan. All of the concept downtown iterations anticipated both the widening of Highway 20 from a then two-lane road to a four-lane divided highway and an intersection at Stanley Street and Level Creek Road extended.

Even though the widening of Highway 20 was more than a decade from starting construction, the 2005 plan contemplated the intersection more or less as it now exists today.

In many of the city’s planning documents, a constant theme is the lack of a road network, alternative routes, as well as the congestion and volume of traffic on Highway 20. Here are a few examples of that.

The planning documents that showed this intersection in addition to the 2005 Town Center Master Plan are shown next.

The need for the traffic signal and intersection goes back almost 20 years across three mayors and two city managers and has been well documented.

However, the identified need is only one item in the list that will result in a traffic signal at an intersection. Highway 20 is owned and controlled by the Georgia Department of Transportation, so ultimately it is their decision as to what is done within their right-of-way, including traffic signals. The next step after determining the need for the signal is the determination of what’s called a “warrant analysis”.

The warrant analysis is an engineering examination of several different reasons (called “warrants”) that would allow for the installation of a traffic signal.

A warrant analysis examines nine possible reasons for a traffic signal. Those include traffic volumes over a period of time, peak (aka “rush”) hour volume, pedestrians, schools, signal system, crashes, road network and proximity to a grade crossing (i.e. railroad crossing). A detailed explanation of those warrants is available on the Federal Highway Administration’s website.

As a result of this new intersection, and through conditions placed on a zoning for the property along Stanley Street, a signal warrant analysis was done by the developer of the property. A condition in the rezoning of the property required the developer to pay $250,000 for the capital costs of the traffic light at the intersection if the warrant analysis proved the need for the signal.

The result of that analysis was that a signal was warranted at the intersection. The entire 168-page document can be downloaded below.

Some criticism includes that the light “will make traffic worse”. That question is answered in the warrant analysis in Table 6 in the study.

The city has undertaken a number of studies and planning documents with regard to mobility as well. The most recent was the 2021 Downtown Mobility Study Update whose stated purpose is here.

The full document can be downloaded below.

Once an intersection is determined to warrant a traffic signal, the Georgia Department of Transportation must still accept the findings and issue a permit for the signal. As a result of the findings from the warrant analysis, Gwinnett County Department of Transportation made a request for a traffic signal in July 2023.

As a result of all of this planning information, studies and documented need along with the requirement for the developer to contribute $250,000 to the traffic signal (the city’s contribution for the construction of the traffic signal was approximately $21,000), city council awarded the contract in 2023 to construct the Alton Tucker Boulevard extension and traffic signal.

Personally, as I’ve stated many times, my priority has been and always will be for the citizens of Sugar Hill and the businesses in our city to have safe access to Highway 20. The vast majority of vehicles on Highway 20 in Sugar Hill are commuters who do not originate nor will they destinate in Sugar Hill. I have no interest in putting the priority on those who commute through our city over our own citizens and businesses which is why I’ve been a steadfast supporter of traffic signals along Highway 20 at any and every intersection that warrants a signal.

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net

As 2010 and 2011 rolled in, the effects of the Great Recession continued to ripple through the community. However, that didn’t stop Sugar Hill from progressing on its vision for downtown.

In October 2010, the city broke ground for “a New Sugar Hill” as heralded in the October 2010 edition of Sugar Hill Sentinel. The city began construction on what is now referred to as “The Bowl at Sugar Hill” - the amphitheater and amenity pond that was designed to serve as stormwater management for the future development of the eastern half of West Broad Street/Hillcrest Drive area of downtown.

Sugar Hill’s growth rate from 2000-2010 continued at a staggering rate growing from 11,399 residents in 2000 to 18,522 residents in 2010, a 62.5% increase. This was the third largest increase in population in a decade trailing the 80s, when the population increased 84.3% and the 90s, when the population increased 250.1%. The city declared the news in its May 2011 edition of the Sugar Hill Sentinel noting the city had become the third largest city in Gwinnett - trailing just Lawrenceville and Duluth and eclipsing Snellville in size.

The news included a forward look to the new downtown, celebrating the re-construction of West Broad Street in preparation for the coming developments.

As 2011 continued, the city completed a minor update to its Livable Centers Initiative (LCI) plan for downtown. The update was not particularly groundbreaking like the 2005 initial plan and is just 12 pages in length. However, we see the first introduction of a term that is used often to describe the purpose of the development of downtown and additional housing types and options - an “aging in place community”. Aging in place community simply means that there are housing types that if a resident desires to live their entire life in the same community, there are housing types and options that will accommodate the seasons of life of that resident.

In that context, the city adopted new zoning classifications to encourage senior living in downtown along with a zoning classification for “mixed use development through more urban use provisions and design standards.”

The city also noted the improvements to realign Church Street with Level Creek Road to, “improve safety and visibility for drivers and pedestrians”, an upgraded crosswalk at the Community Center and streetscape improvements to West Broad Street. These changes mirroring closely with the improvements currently under construction on the realignment of Alton Tucker Boulevard, Level Creek Road and West Broad Street as well as the plan for West Broad Street 2.0.

The city also indicated an unfortunate deletion from the 2005 project list - the removal of the pedestrian tunnel under Highway 20.

Of other note, the plan also discussed the need for public art as well.

The removal of the tunnel was a huge mistake. Highway 20 had not yet been widened and the time to plan for the construction of the facility to grade separate pedestrians from cars going 45+ MPH was prior to its construction. The city doesn’t give any reasons on why the “element is no longer viable” - it was simply a statement. The cost for the tunnel in the 2005 plan was estimated at $1 million - something that could have been easily accommodated through SPLOST funding or grants.

Grade separation to connect the north and south sides of the city across what is a river of fast-moving vehicles is of critical importance. So much so, that a pedestrian bridge to connect those two sides is under design now with plans for the bridge to be put out for request for proposals (RFP) from construction companies expected to happen later this year.

That grade separation will accomplish two important goals, along with a host of others. First, the safety of the large number of people who desire to access downtown by walking or biking for those in the northern portion of the city will be accommodated. The southern portion of the city will be connected to the north for the future commercial development that was required with the rezoning of the property along Stanley Street. Second, it will improve the flow of vehicles on Highway 20 as pedestrians and bicyclists won’t have to cross Highway 20 on foot. The activation of the pedestrian button at intersections causes the light cycle to last 2-3 times longer than it otherwise would.

Other goals of grade separation provide a continuous safe loop for the future extensions of the Sugar Hill Greenway. The mixed-use developments to the north of Highway 20 were required to construct the greenway through their developments which will add some 3/4 of a mile of new greenway to the already existing 5 miles.

It’s unfortunate that the tunnel was removed from the plan, however, the new pedestrian bridge will still accomplish the goal of grade separation and allowing safe, easy access across Highway 20 - improving the continued expressed goals of a walkable community and decreasing vehicular delays on Highway 20.

The curious thing about this LCI update is that it didn’t apparently include any public input - which is unusual. And there was no action taken on it by Mayor and Council or even discussion indicated in a review of minutes from Mayor and Council meetings from 2011 into early 2012. The date on the LCI update is September 2011. Why these weren’t discussed, and the public was not invited to provide feedback on it is curious.

The only public action taken in 2011 related to this occurred in December 2011 when Mayor and Council adopted the zoning overlays for downtown unanimously.

The entire 2011 LCI update can be downloaded below.

The 2010-2011 updates and investments show that Sugar Hill was continuing on its journey to become a Strong Community with the investments giving residents even more reasons to Love Where They Live.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.strongcommunities.net