Visionary Cities in Georgia

This is the sixth time the GMA and Georgia Trend have teamed up to honor communities with Visionary City Awards for various projects that benefit their region. This year’s projects include helping at-risk youth through sports and workforce training, running a camp to inspire girls to become firefighters, promoting public service, boosting agriculture jobs, encouraging health and fitness, renovating a classic theater and bridging divides, literally and figuratively.

“This year’s Visionary City Award winners remind us how local leaders can drive progress and inspire transformation,” says Larry Hanson, CEO and executive director of GMA. “Through their initiatives, these nine cities demonstrate that meaningful change happens when collaboration and innovation take center stage. Their dedication enhances the quality-of-life for their residents and sets a powerful example for communities across Georgia. GMA is honored to partner with Georgia Trend in celebrating their outstanding contributions to building a brighter future for our state.”

The Visionary Cities are grouped by population: small (fewer than 4,999), medium (5,000 to 24,999) and large (more than 25,000). This year’s honorees join past award-winning communities across the state whose projects continue to make a positive impact.

– Kathleen Conway

Game Changers

By Sara Haynes

City of South Fulton

When South Fulton’s Parks and Recreation department realized how popular its youth basketball program was, city officials looked for unique ways to use the sport to enhance personal and professional development for other residents.

Winning Combination: The city of South Fulton’s Parks and Recreation Department received the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association’s 2024 Most Outstanding Program award for the Balling with a Purpose Workforce Academy. Photo: Contributed

Enter the Balling with a Purpose Workforce Academy, which combines a community basketball league with a course on learning electrical skills.

Parks and Recreation Director Ternard Turner designed the program to target underrepresented groups, including low-income residents, new parolees, people with disabilities and former gang members. Basketball not only gives participants a physical outlet, it also teaches teamwork, discipline and personal growth – valuable skills on and off the court.

Local vendor It’s Electric, the program training partner, leads the 12-week electrical skills course that helps participants become more independent and self-sufficient, whether their new skills are used for personal home repairs or to jumpstart a career in the electrical field.

“We have received numerous accounts of our students using their newfound skill to improve their livelihood. We are changing lives,” says Henry Borom, training director of It’s Electric.

Winning Combination: Program participants learn electrical skills. Photo: Contributed

Balling with a Purpose Workforce Academy began in 2023 and has served more than 150 residents. In 2024, the program expanded to include women’s and teen basketball leagues. The program is free to participants and, since the partners donate the training, is virtually cost-free to the city. Plans are underway to add HVAC and carpentry training in 2025.

“Our mission is to enhance the quality of life for all our residents, and this program validates our efforts and fuels our passion to make a positive impact for the city of South Fulton,” says Turner.

Duluth

What do you do when a historic, century-old bridge that connects two cities and two counties is in such disrepair that it is closed to the public? The city of Duluth found a creative way to replace it, despite a number of challenges.

The Rogers Bridge was built in the early 1900s, making it possible for farmers to cross the Chattahoochee River and sell their goods in Duluth. The bridge was closed due to safety concerns in the 1970s. And there it sat for nearly 50 years.

In 2015, Duluth received a grant from the Atlanta Regional Commission to replace the bridge. It reopened in July 2023.

Successful Endeavor: Elected leaders from Gwinnett and Fulton counties and Duluth and Johns Creek celebrate the Rogers Bridge reopening. Former Duluth Mayor Nancy Harris and Johns Creek Mayor John Bradberry hold scissors to cut the ribbon. Photo: Contributed

The first challenge in replacing the bridge was facilitating a successful collaboration across federal and state partners, the cities of Duluth and Johns Creek, and Gwinnett and Fulton counties. Each city and county contributed equal financial support to the project, spreading responsibility for the bridge across the communities. Many stakeholders provided input that shaped the project. Ultimately, residents from both cities voted to keep the original bridge design and to make the new version for pedestrians and bikes only.

“I’ve never worked on a project that so many people were so excited about,” says Margie Pozin, director of community development and engineering for Duluth.

The second challenge came from keeping bridge construction on budget despite COVID-related shortages of labor and materials. Bridge engineers and contractors found creative ways to cut costs, including using a crane to move the old bridge in one piece instead of paying for it to be disassembled by hand.

Duluth and Johns Creek used the Rogers Bridge project to get support to improve the parks on either side, creating more reasons for the communities to come together for exercise and commuting alternatives. Pieces of the historic bridge were even used to create art installations in each park.

“The bridge doesn’t just connect to parks. It connects a whole system of trails on both sides. It’s such a good feeling to know you’re giving value to someone,” says Pozin.

Union City

Encouraging Fitness: The Eagles Nest Sports Complex, formerly known as Highway 29 Ballfields. Photo: Contributed

When residents said they wanted safe places to walk and bike, Union City started planning. And as part of its multiyear 10.2-mile Greenline Parkway project, the city has made quality improvements to the Eagles Nest Sports Complex (formerly Highway 29 Ballfields).

In the past four years, Union City has completely renovated the 17-acre sports complex with additions and updates that transform it from a place where kids play baseball and football to a space where a multigenerational community can gather for outdoor fitness and fun. New amenities include a skate park, volleyball court, ping-pong table, fitness stations, cornhole boards and even a giant chess set. Safety concerns were addressed with new lighting, restrooms and benches, and needed updates to the irrigation system and drainage were completed.

Encouraging Fitness: Lonnie Ferguson, Union City’s public services director. Photo: Contributed

“[The Eagles Nest Sports Complex] is located in a residential area, which is important because it encourages people to be healthier – whether it is [through] walking, running or biking. It also reduces traffic and pollution,” says Lonnie Ferguson, Union City’s public services director.

Since January 2025, a new .6-mile rubberized trail has helped residents navigate the complex’s amenities and connect it to other community hubs, including The Gathering Place Community Center, Etris-Darnell Community Center/Senior Facility and Ronald Bridges Park. Dovetailing with the city’s ADA updates, the path is wide, flat and wheelchair accessible.

“We’re excited about how the trail will link this complex to other parts of Union City, especially since it will offer us a beautiful, traffic-free route to nearby parks and community centers,” says Union City resident Julissa Ruth.

“It’s a game changer for Union City,” says Ferguson. “It helps people be active, engage in the city and have pride of place for their home.”

Practical Solutions

By K.K. Snyder

Forest Park

Fire Chief Latosha Clemons didn’t have to wait until she became chief to recognize that women are drastically underrepresented as firefighters. But as head of the Forest Park Fire Department, she took the initiative to do something about it. The first in her own family to enter fire service, Clemons knows that, nationwide, only 4% of career firefighters are women and very few of those are in leadership positions. To encourage more women to consider fire service, Clemons launched Camp Believe, an all girls camp in Clayton County in 2023, offering young women insight into the world of fire science with the hope of inspiring them to serve.

Empowering Women: Dozens of young women participated in the inaugural Camp Believe to learn about firefighting careers. Photo: Contributed

“We want all girls to see something that they can aspire to be. There’s a saying out there, ‘If you can see it, you can be it,’ and that’s true,” says Clemons.

Response has been promising, with nearly 50 registrants and 40 participants for the inaugural camp. Eleven women firefighters in the Forest Park Fire Department served as instructors for the free day-and-a-half camp that also provides lunch and a T-shirt. Organizers limited the 2024 camp to 16 participants for a more manageable experience, she adds. “It was just such a wonderful time sharing and showing the young ladies what we do here in the fire service and inspiring them. I hope that maybe some of our departments around the state will take up the same role,” says Clemons, who has served in fire service for 29 years. “We need our women in those lines of work.”

Clemons is certainly a role model for young women. As Forest Park chief since August 2021, Clemons says it’s been a goal not only of her own, but of other women firefighters throughout the country to implement fire camp. Budgeted for up to 89 firefighters, the Forest Park department is well ahead of the national average for women representation, with 13 women, counting the chief. “Do we want more women in the fire service? Absolutely,” says Clemons. “But for an organization of this size, we’re doing okay.”

Perry

Reimbursing Restaurants: Clover Wine Merchant owners Lannette and Michael Tomlin hold a check given as part of the Natural Gas Incentive Program. Photo: Contributed

Attracting new business to historic downtown Perry can be a challenge, especially when it comes to restaurants because of the large investment required for equipment. To help bring new eateries to the area, the Downtown Development Authority, along with the city of Perry, created the Natural Gas Incentive Program, which reimburses new restaurants for up to 50% of their natural gas equipment and installation costs. Since 2019, over $160,000 in grant money has been issued to seven new eateries, says Downtown Manager Alicia Hartley.

In 2024, two new restaurants came online, Ghost Runner Pizza and Trattoria di Napoli. Earlier grant recipients include Morning by Morning, ‘Orleans on Carroll Street, Oliver Perry’s and Clover Wine Merchant. There is diversity among the eateries with regards to menus and price points, as well as among the owners, which include women and young entrepreneurs, adds Hartley.

Cody Walker, co-owner of Ghost Runner Pizza, also benefitted from the program.

“Some are more fine dining, [such as] Oliver Perry’s,” she says. “Perry really needed that full fine-dining experience. And then you have Ghost Runner Pizza, which is counter service for pizza and salads, their bread and butter, which they do great. Through the natural gas grant program, they were able to get a beautiful pizza oven that helped offset some of their initial costs.”

Applications for the grant program are accepted year-round, with no cap on funding, says Hartley. When an application is approved, funds for the grant are transferred from the city’s utilities coffer to the DDA, which then issues the grant to the business owner.

“We figured [the Visionary Cities Award] would be a good opportunity to tell the rest of the state about our program,” says Hartley.

Thomaston

When it comes to attracting graduates to a role in public service, especially key administrative and public safety positions, one challenge for municipalities is keeping talented young adults from leaving to seek careers elsewhere. The city of Thomaston set out to improve that situation by introducing young people to the opportunities within local government. To inspire the next generation of civic leaders and close a critical workforce gap in local government, the city created the Pathways Internship Program for high school and college students.

“[Getting a job in] local government is always perceived as ‘You’ve got to know someone to get in,’” says Danielle Jefferson, human resources director for Thomaston. “This program gives our upcoming workforce, upcoming leaders, an opportunity to come into local government and see what we do.” During the eight weeks of the paid internship program, participants get valuable hands-on experience and mentorship opportunities.

Future Leaders: Graduates of the Pathways Internship program at the Thomaston City Hall meeting in August 2024. Photo: Contributed

Now in its second year, the program targets diversity and jumped from 30 applicants the first year to over 90 the following year, says Jefferson. “We’ve been connecting with college students from Thomaston and giving them the opportunity to see that they don’t have to go to Atlanta or Columbus or Savannah. They can come right here to the city of Thomaston and grow and work and make a difference in their own community.”

One of the goals for the program is to expand outside of local government opportunities by partnering with local industries to identify specific workforce needs, says Jefferson. “We have a vast amount of industry, and I’m looking at building out our workforce, connecting the industries with college students looking for opportunities for internships and introducing them to the industry. For us it’s all about growing our workforce and cultivating civic engagement at the grassroots level.”

Collaboration and Partnership

by Betty Darby

Metter

Creating a Brand: Marie Motes, owner of MaMa E’s Bakery, makes her famous cheese straws. Photo: Contributed

Generations of Metter farmers have grown cotton, soybeans and other crops in this rural corner of Georgia. Now thanks to some innovative thinking, they’re also growing jobs, ideas and partnerships.

The Georgia Grown Innovation Center, or GGIC, started out in late 2020 with the pooled resources of Metter’s economic development efforts, the Georgia Department of Agriculture and nearby Georgia Southern University. The idea was to take the business incubator model that has worked so well for technology and industry and apply it to agriculture.

Creating a Brand: the Georgia Grown Innovation Center. Photo: Contributed

Fast forward to today. The GGIC has filled up its original 25,000-square-foot home and expanded into another building. The 14 initial clients now number 295. New partners, including five more universities, have come aboard. Better Fresh Farms, a hydroponic, indoor year-round produce operation that was GGIC’s first client, has added an offshoot named 4 Fungi’s Regenerative, which bought more than 20 acres from the Candler County Industrial Authority for an innovative mushroom farming operation. A renovated Metter Welcome Center on Interstate 16 boasts the first shop carrying products branded as Georgia Grown, the marketing initiative for goods grown and processed here. And in FY2023, the GGIC created 100 new jobs in Candler County.

Creating a Brand: Heidi Jeffers, Metter’s director of economic development and GGIC manager. Photos: Contributed

The GGIC’s success is being replicated elsewhere. A second center is taking shape in Albany. And the Department of Agriculture’s Deputy Director of Marketing Matthew Kulinski says future expansion might encompass Atlanta, where restaurants, food processing and landscaping are some of agriculture’s metropolitan outposts.

“What makes us different from other incubators is we are a collaborative effort, and we are not territorial,” says Heidi Jeffers, Metter’s director of economic development.

“We didn’t see this as something that was specifically for our little county or city. We were creating a brand and using ‘location, location, location’ to become a central place for people to meet and get the resources they need,” says Metter Mayor Edwin Boyd.

Hogansville

Historic Revival: Hogansville’s Royal Theater, which is nearly 90 years old, reopened in November 2024 after its restoration. Photo: Contributed

When Jaws popped up on the Royal Theater’s screen in Hogansville late last year, it brought the circa-1937 theater full circle. Locals remember the film as the last one shown at the downtown theater before it was mothballed as a movie house about 1980.

Renovating historic downtown theaters became a staple of downtown revitalization programs decades ago, but Hogansville had other uses for its theater first. Donated to the city in 1981, it housed City Hall from 1984 to 2021, when city offices moved to a former bank building, recalls Lynne Miller, former community development director. The restoration drive dates to at least 2017, and Miller became so passionate about it she held off her retirement until the grand opening ceremony in November.

Job Well Done: Lynne Miller, center, in blue, delayed her retirement as Hogansville community development director until the grand opening ceremony of the Royal Theater. Photo: Contributed

Funding was a challenge. Supporters managed to get the theater included in a Troup County SPLOST initiative. A hefty patchwork of state, federal and private grants filled in the rest of the nearly $4 million cost. Support came from Fox Gives, the community support arm of Atlanta’s historic Fox Theatre, in four different grants from 2018 to 2024. Other sources included the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Historic Preservation Division, the Callaway Foundation, the Georgia Council for the Arts, the U.S. Economic Development Administration and T-Mobile.

Miller says the plan is for the theater, which has a staff of two, to become self-supporting with its calendar of movies and live performances. Reducing a 30% downtown commercial vacancy rate is another goal.

“There’s something about taking these old buildings that are falling apart and bringing them back that is so inspiring,” says Hogansville Mayor Jake Ayers. “Sometimes you get caught up in just doing what you need to do to survive, so small communities don’t get to celebrate their history that much.”

Cornelia

How do you bridge cultural, language and historical barriers in a small North Georgia city where the population is almost evenly split between White residents and people of color (mostly Hispanic or Black)? In Habersham County’s Cornelia, diversity and inclusiveness efforts range from the artistic – like a mural championed by the city’s Black community and festivals celebrating Hispanic culture – to pure business, such as translation services for city communications. Business classes in Spanish for budding Hispanic entrepreneurs kicked the project up a notch beginning this past fall.

“The Hispanic community and the Black community are such a big part of our city that it was just a natural conclusion to reach out and include as many people as possible from those communities. We want to give everybody equal footing and an equal chance to succeed,” says John Borrow, mayor of this municipality of just over 5,300.

Community Development Director Jessie Owensby says the classes, taught by one of the area’s Hispanic entrepreneurs, address the disparity that only 42 of Cornelia’s 500 businesses are Hispanic owned.

Recent municipal outreach to the Black community included holding a professional design charrette for public works projects in Cornelia’s historically Black neighborhood. To such strategies, add a public art project – a mural incorporating a bit of local folklore. As the story goes, many decades ago, “Tim Loves Tink” appeared as a graffiti message. City efforts to paint over the message only led to its reappearance, so now the new mural incorporates the love declaration.

Public Art Project: This mural began with a graffiti message that had been painted over, only to reappear, so the declaration Tim Loves Tink is now a key part of the mural. Photo: Contributed

Cornelia has turned to its communities for help in bridging gaps. Soque Street LLC, a community advocacy group, wrote the successful grant and managed the project. Another example? To help stage a Latino festival saluting Hispanic heritage downtown, Owensby turned to Cornelia restaurant owner Luis Covarrubias. She figured he has a knack for communicating – after all, his videos about restaurant Raspas El Tigre had over a million TikTok followers. And in October 2024, the city assisted in hosting the inaugural Marigold Festival to celebrate the Spanish holiday, Dia de los Muertos.