Tucker, GA — City Council members unanimously approved an expansion of Tucker-Northlake Community Improvement District (CID) to include nine additional parcels.

It is standard for CIDs to request approval from the City Council responsible for taxing commercial properties after receiving confirmation from the county’s tax assessor.

A memo from John McHenry, Tucker assistant city manager, says, “TNCID continues to grow while providing security, landscaping, beautification and other services that increase commercial property value. This CID is an excellent partner on a number of issues including the recently adopted Downtown Master Plan and an upcoming Northlake Transportation Plan.”

The expansion stands to add $50 million dollars of property subject to taxes and fees by Tucker-Northlake CID. The amount collected is based on 40% property tax assessments. Most of the added parcels are located in the district of DeKalb County Commissioner Robert Patrick.

Matthew Lee, Tucker-Northlake CID executive director, said, “We are pleased to have more commercial property owners joining the Tucker-Northlake CID. Their added investment supports our continuing effort to improve commercial corridors in the area. It’s worth noting that they are doing so after a year of economic challenges due to the pandemic. That’s significant.”

Additions to Tucker-Northlake CID are:

G2 Surfaces, 2308 Fellowship Road; SDM Northlake LLC, 2245 and 2247 Northlake Road; BSD Investments, 4200 1^st Ave.; 2^nd Street Real Estate Holdings, 2341 and 2349 2^nd St.; Metropolitan Multi-List Inc., 4297 Hugh Howell Road; Cox Broadcasting, 3973 LaVista Road; and BB Moses Properties, 4401 Bibb Blvd.

SDM Properties is owned by Steve D. Martin, developer of a proposed townhome development at 2245 and 2247 Northlake Parkway.

Council members approved Tucker Summit CID’s appointment of a new member to replace Bill Kaduck, who is planning to retire from his business, Microdesigns. The new appointee is Carl Deckers, owner of Gatc LP, an incubator of international companies expanding in the United States. Mayor Frank Auman said Deckers has been a great partner to the city by encouraging his clients to stay in Tucker.

City Council followed the special called meeting with a brief work session to review the $16.2 million budget for FY22.

City Manager Tami Hanlin said the budget reflects the priorities of the community, mayor and council. Hanlin compared the FY22 budget to goals from the city’s comprehensive plan to enhance downtown Tucker, improve transportation connections, preserve and improve neighborhoods, strengthen recreational and community resources and bolster the city’s economic base.

By spending $9.8 million on transportation projects, Tucker will improve safety, traffic flow and overall connectivity of the city. The budget includes Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) money from DeKalb County.

The city plans to employ a full-time planner. A highly-trained, professional staff helps to protect neighborhoods and create more consistency within the city, said Hanlin.

“Finally, the last stated goal is to bolster the economic base. The industrial and business community are key to the vitality of the city of Tucker. They support our overall economy and they allow us to keep our millage rate low through occupational tax revenues,” said Hanlin, who plans to hire a full-time economic development manager.

No votes were taken after executive session for matters of personnel and litigation. City Council meets again on May 10. The first read of the FY22 budget will be presented on May 24.

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