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TODAY'S ISSUE
County Commission ignores effects
of zoning on school population
By Allan Hytowitz
Norcross
Special to GwinnettForum.com

NOV. 22, 2002 -- I have long suspected that the Gwinnett County Commissioners have ignored the effect of zoning of houses and apartments on our school systems.

Near the intersection of Singleton Road and Jimmy Carter Boulevard is the highest concentration of apartments per acre in the County. This area may also have the highest concentration of crime in Gwinnett County. Many of the nearby apartment complexes are over 25 years old and have deteriorated, both physically and economically. Over the years these apartments have become "lower income" residences and have had a negative affect on the value of nearby businesses and homes. What used to be a major growth area has begun to look like a suburban slum.

The "problem," however, is not apartments, per se. The problem is the concentration and maintenance of those apartments. Regardless of lower income housing being "politically correct," apartments ARE needed. The backbone (literally) of Gwinnett County's growth has been the availability of labor for construction and other services. Low-income workers move to Gwinnett for the same reason as high-income residents: relatively inexpensive housing, better schools, convenient shopping, and more honest local governments. That doesn't mean that there isn't room for improvement.

There are economic and cultural benefits to a mixed community. When nearby
businesses find labor for construction and competent employees, and are able
to offer necessary services, they are more likely to succeed. The
availability of those businesses and services usually increases the property value of nearby homes. While mixed school systems may have increased student turnover and lower academic scores, they also reduce the egotistical feelings of superiority that occur in "social pressure-cooker" homogeneous high schools (e.g. Columbine, Colo.), offer a greater diversity of experiences for successful students, and offer positive role models for disadvantaged students.

If Kroger or Publix can build a store expecting that nearby housing will grow to support it, why aren't schools built in anticipation that there will be students to fill the available seating rather than bringing in trailers to hide the oversight? Somewhere there is an optimum between the extremes of the Meadowcreek Cluster (with about half of the students living in apartments) and the Dacula Cluster (with no apartments).

It may be that distributing apartments throughout the County (with perhaps a maximum of 20 percent of available housing as apartments in each High School Cluster) would create maximum property values for the entire County by balancing the privacy of suburbia with the availability of service workers. It also might be possible to UNZONE older apartments as commercial (or mixed residential) through tax incentives to encourage rebuilding on the site and increase property values. The challenge is to find that optimum mix between apartments and houses.

County Officials supposedly get paid to know these things. They need to know that there IS a correlation between the number of students and the number of houses and apartments in each school area or cluster, that the type of housing has an effect on the economic makeup of that school, and that the lack of adequate classroom space has a negative impact on property values. Or is the seeming lack of understanding the beginning of the 2004 electoral campaign?

ELLIOTT BRACK
Dacula cluster protesters fail to realize
new area schools already going up faster
By Elliott Brack
editor and publisher
GwinnettForum.com

NOV. 22, 2002 - - Dacula is the focus these days of people upset with Gwinnett schools because of the fast growth in the county. Parents in the Dacula cluster are concerned over school overcrowding, and wanting to see even faster action in building schools.

Interestingly enough, up until just a few years ago, the Dacula area was one of the slowest in growth in Gwinnett. Schools in the Dacula area were semi-rural, compared to the rest of built-up Gwinnett.

Now with the onslaught of many families moving into the Dacula area quite quickly, there is over-crowding. While these parents won't admit it, the very act of so many of them moving to the Dacula cluster in a short time have caused the problem they are protesting.

It's not that Gwinnett County is a laggard when it comes to building schools. In fact, Gwinnett may build schools faster, and at a lower cost, than any school system in Georgia. As an example, the new Norcross High came in a year early at a cost of $63 a square foot, compared to a new Fulton County high school, which cost $105 a square foot.

Gwinnett certainly has the experience in building schools, erecting a total of 27 new schools in the last 10 years. In every instance, Gwinnett has built the schools on time, and under budget. In reality, Gwinnett wrings more classrooms out of money allocated for building than budgeted. In the last five-year sales tax funding, Gwinnett promised to build 814 classrooms, but through efficiencies, built 947 classrooms, and all on time.

Dacula parents recently asked for "fast-tracking" the reliever Dacula cluster middle and high schools, being built at Hamilton Mill. Many of them did not realize that these schools are already being built at a faster rate. Here's how.

The planning, design and site work for these two schools were done even before the contract for the schools were bid. That sped up the process so that the contractor could begin his work immediately after the bids were approved, resulting in anticipated completion of the two new schools a year before normal.

We understand the concern of Dacula parents, as well as that of parents throughout Gwinnett, when it comes to school overcrowding. Yet the continuing movement of people into Gwinnett---at a faster rate than anyone has predicted----serves to create this additional need for temporary classrooms in trailers.

The amazing aspect is that Gwinnett students, no matter where they get their
education, continue to succeed in their classroom endeavors, whether in a conventional school classroom, or in a doublewide trailer converted to classroom purposes. You can see this from test scores in Gwinnett, constantly in the higher reaches of achievement for our state, and even in our nation.

These high scores come from exceptional students, motivated teachers, persistent parents, and a good system organization. Why else would so many parents move their students into the Gwinnett system?

We regret having to ask Dacula parents for patience, for we understand their frustrations. Super achieving students belie the inadequate facilities, and make us all proud of our schools, its students, and Gwinnett County.

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FEEDBACK:
11/22: They do a good job and even clean up, too

Editor, the Forum:

Nice comments about Nils Stein and Frontera Restaurants! (Forum, Nov. 19.)

He has catered several Mexican Fiestas at our home and is doing so again in December, but not Mexican. That is yet another plus, as he caters for German, Italian or whatever you like!

He and his staff do a wonderful job. They are organized and have everything down to a science. But the best part is the food.....delicious! And they leave your house clean as a whistle. Can't ask for more than that! I highly recommend them!

-- Kathy Gestar, Snellville

SPECIAL NOTICE
Concert for lovers at Arts Center on Sunday afternoon

Enjoy a Sunday afternoon concert of favorite Broadway melodies sung by Amber Brook, soprano and Charles Baugh, tenor of the West Side Stories Light Opera Company. The date is Sunday, November 24, at 3 p.m. in the Grand Hall of the Jacqueline Casey Hudgens Center for the Arts in Duluth.

This 1:15 hour long pleasure cruise down "Lover's Lane" will delight everyone who has ever been in love-or wanted to be! Enjoy the story of two young people who meet, fall in love, and perhaps live happily ever after, all through the melodic, familiar tunes of Broadway's greatest love songs.

Light refreshments will be available. Tickets are $15 at the door, and $7 for ages 12 and under. Children's attendance is encouraged!

Call 770-623-6002 for more information. The Hudgens Center is located at 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Building 300, in Duluth.

RUNOFF ELECTION
Norcross runoff election set for next Tuesday

The City of Norcross run-off election for one council seat will be held Tuesday, Nov. 29, from 7 am to 7 pm at the City Hall. Incumbent Faye McFarland is being challenged by David McLeroy.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
Sometimes, it's just difficult to live, Democrats may find

"It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong."

-- Voltaire

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