Sandy Springs, Georgia
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Sandy Springs (once known as Hammond) is a newly-incorporated city (as of December 2005) located in Fulton County, Georgia, north of Atlanta and south of Roswell. It is named for the sandy spring which still exists in the city today, protected by a park.
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History
In 1851, Wilson Spruill donated five acres (two hectares) of land for the founding of the Sandy Springs United Methodist Church near the sandy spring for which the city is named. Later, in 1905 the Hammond School was built at Johnson Ferry Road and Mt. Vernon Highway, across the street from the church.
After World War II, Sandy Springs experienced a housing boom, bringing new residents and major land development. In the 1960s and 1970s Georgia 400 and Interstate 285 connected Sandy Springs to metro Atlanta.
Incorporation
Debate over incorporation began in the 1970s when the city of Atlanta attempted to use a state law to force annexation of Sandy Springs. (Buckhead had joined in 1952.) The attempt failed when the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that the law was unconstitutional. In response, the Committee for Sandy Springs was formed in 1975. Since 1989 the Committee for Sandy Springs has introduced a bill into the Georgia General Assembly (the state legislature) to authorize a referendum on incorporation. Legislators representing the city of Atlanta and southwestern Fulton County, which feared for the tax revenue that would be lost, used the legislative requirement that all local legislation be approved first by a delegation of representatives from the affected area to block the bills.
When the Republican Party took control of both houses of the general assembly in early 2005, the Democratic Party rules were thrown out. The referendum initiative was approved by the Georgia General Assembly and signed by the governor. The assembly also temporarily repealed the 1995 law that all Georgia cities must provide at least three municipal services on their own or have their cityhood revoked, because the new city will need time to start up and will be contracting most of its services from the county through the end of 2006. The assembly also repealed the requirement that new cities must be at least three miles (4.8km) from existing cities, because the new city limit borders both Roswell and Atlanta.
The referendum was held in June 2005, and residents voted overwhelmingly (94%) for incorporation on June 21. Locals expressed displeasure with county services, claiming that the county was distributing services to poorer areas, ignoring local opposition to rezoning, and allowing excessive development. Many residents of unincorporated and less-developed south Fulton County strongly opposed incorporation, fearing the loss of tax revenues which run county services. County residents outside Sandy Springs were not allowed to vote on the matter. Efforts such as requesting the U.S. Justice Department to reject the plan were unsuccessful.
As provided for by law, Governor Sonny Perdue named five citizens to an interim government committee for the city, called the Governor's Commission On Sandy Springs. In five years (2010), the charter drawn up by the legislature will have to be reviewed for any proposed or necessary changes.
A mayor and six city council members were elected in early November 2005, and formal incorporation occurred on December 1, making it the third-largest city ever to incorporate in the U.S. (Centennial, Colorado, Miami Gardens, Florida, and Spokane Valley, Washington did the same in 2001, February 2003, and March 2003 respectively, making them first, second, and fourth). The six districts will be roughly northwest (along the river), northeast (north of Dunwoody), southwest, southeast, east (along Georgia 400), and central.
The legislation and which allowed the referendum on incorporation also created three separate tax districts in unincorporated Fulton County. This will block any tax money from one district from being spent in the other, effectivly cutting off lower-income south Fulton County from its upper-income north. This is threatening to severely limit emergency services and other critical needs in southwest Fulton.
Timeline
- In 1950, the state's legislature blocked Atlanta from annexing the area.
- In 1952, the Buckhead area north of Atlanta and south of Sandy Springs in annexed.
- In 1959, mayor of Atlanta William Hartsfield urged residents to support annexation after a fire at Hammond Elementary School, so that it would have better firefighting protection.
- In 1966, annexation was defeated by two-thirds in a referendum.
- In 1975 and 1976, the Committee For Sandy Springs was created and efforts in the legislature began.
- In 1989, a new push was made, this time to join neighboring Chattahoochee Plantation in Cobb County. It was blocked by Tom Murphy, who was the powerful speaker of the house at the time.
- In 2005, Sandy Springs residents vote 94% for incorporation in a referendum.
- In 2005, Sandy Springs residents elected the city's first mayor and city council. Eva Galambos (who had initiated and led the charge for incorporation) won the mayor's office with a landslide vote.
- All city officials took office when the city was incorporated on December 1st.
Population history
Geography
The boundaries of Sandy Springs are: Atlanta to the south, Cobb County (at the Chattahoochee River) to the west and north, Roswell (also at the river) to the north, and unincorporated Dunwoody (at the DeKalb County line) to the east. A small panhandle in the northeast extends between the Chattahoochee River to the north and Dunwoody to the south, ending in a very small border with Gwinnett County. (This panhandle was part of DeKalb, later ceded to the former Milton County.)
If Milton County were to be created again (as some have been advocating recently), the city has not yet taken any position on whether it would join or even support such a move.
Transportation
Roads
Sandy Springs is served by two major limited-access highways, Georgia 400 (which runs north-south) and I-285 (which runs east-west). The major surface streets are Roswell Road (U.S. 19/S.R. 9), Johnson Ferry Road, Abernathy Road, Glenridge Drive, and Dunwoody Club Drive.
The GDOT is currently planning to widen Abernathy between Johnson Ferry and Roswell Roads, from two lanes to four plus a road median, which will destroy all of several homes and landscaping along the residential road. The western intersection will be reconfigured so that traffic, to and from Johnson Ferry Road (which now carries heavy loads of Cobb County commuters across the Chattahoochee River at rush hour), will flow directly with Abernathy.
Mass transportation
The major provider of mass transit is MARTA, which operates a subway line and several bus lines through Sandy Springs. Sandy Springs is served by the Medical Center, Sandy Springs and North Springs stations. The Georgia Regional Transportation Authority also operates express buses from the North Springs station to other counties.
Government
Leaders
- Mayor: Eva Galambos
- District 1: Dave Greenspan
- District 2: Dianne Fries
- District 3: Rusty Paul
- District 4: Ashley Jenkins
- District 5: Tiberio “Tibby” DeJulio
- District 6: Karen Meinzen McEnerny
Services
The new city is an experiment in privatization. Most services are being handled by consulting firm CH2M Hill-OMI. Some are temporarily being continued by the county.
Economy
The largest business districts are the Roswell Road corridor and Perimeter Center (although the Perimeter Mall itself resides in adjacent DeKalb County). Perimter Center includes many high-rise buildings (including the tallest suburban buildings in the U.S., the 570-foot Concourse Towers). Just south of this business district, across I-285, is a major medical center, anchored by Northside Hospital and Saint Joseph's Hospital.
Schools
Public schools continue to be operated by the Fulton County School System, which groups schools into clusters.
North Springs cluster:
- North Springs High School
- Sandy Springs Middle School
- Woodland Charter Elementary School
- Dunwoody Springs Charter Elementary School
- Spalding Drive Charter Elementary School
Riverwood cluster:
- Riverwood High School
- High Point Elementary School
- Ridgeview Middle School
- Heards Ferry Elementary School
Demographics
(NOTE: The 2000 census numbers are for Sandy Springs prior to incorporation.)
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 85,781 people, 39,288 households, and 19,683 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 878.1/km² (2,274.1/mi²). There were 42,794 housing units at an average density of 438.0/km² (1,134.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 77.55% White, 12.04% African American, 0.18% Native American, 3.29% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 4.94% from other races, and 1.95% from two or more races. 9.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 39,288 households out of which 21.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 49.9% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 17.8% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 40.3% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $60,428, and the median income for a family was $85,146. Males had a median income of $51,002 versus $36,493 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $45,494. 6.5% of the population and 3.9% of families were below the poverty line. 6.6% of those under the age of 18 and 6.9% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Attractions
The Atlanta Georgia Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was dedicated in 1983, and attracts a large number of visitors each year.