« Peachtree Corners to vote on cityhood »

Next week, Peachtree Corners will go to the polls and decide the question of whether their community should become a city.  The Gwinnett Buzz strongly endorses opposition to this ballot issue.  As I have written previously, there are far more potential negatives to cityhood than benefits.  

The most obvious is yet another layer of government that duplicates services already provided by another entity.  Redundant and unnecessary government imposes unnecessary costs for taxpayers, businesses, and visitors.  Granted, Peachtree Corners says it will limit it's government powers to code enforcement, solid waste and planning and zoning.  However, we all know the penchant of government to grow.  You can almost be guaranteed that a police department will soon follow that will, as do so many municipal departments, turn Peachtree Corner into a speedtrap cash register in order to raise revenue for the growing government.

The local planning and zoning is a major negative as well.  While many will tout "local control," area residents stand to lose more than they would gain.  It's not like the Gwinnett County Commission is developer-friendly.  Most planning and zoning rulings by municipalities serve to negatively impact property rights and make it more difficult for businesses to conduct business in the city.  Over time this can result in fewer shopping and entertainment options as new retail centers are denied or impaired wireless coverage as wireless communication companies struggle to add the towers needed to serve growing wireless demand.  Financial woes for the city are not even out of the question as businesses and the taxes they pay are denied access to the community.  The latter concern may be muted because of the existing business base in Peachtree Corners, but the possible negatives are still substantial.

The vote will be a crucial turning point for Peachtree Corners.  Local voters would be advised not to try to fix that which is not broken.