Friday, Feb. 18, 2005 | ||
Bad Links? | Its your future, South FultonBen Nelms South Fulton residents have a great opportunity Feb. 22 to have their voices heard on a vastly important topic. That topic encompasses the immediate future of Fulton County between now and 2025. The occasion is the final community input meeting for Fultons 20-Year Comprehensive Plan. The South Fulton meeting will be held Feb. 22 from 6:30-8 p.m. at the South Service Center at 5600 Stonewall Tell Road in College Park. The final document will serve as a guide for local government and citizens as growth and service delivery decisions are made over the next two decades. If you think this plan is not significant, just consider the following. The population of the unincorporated areas of Fulton are expected to increase 42 percent by 2025. But thats not all. Fairburn, Union City and Palmetto are experiencing exponential growth, having nearly doubled their populations in just the past four years! They are positioned between west and southwest metro, expected to grow by 191,663 people by 2030, and south southwest metro, expected to increase its population by 297,004 people during the same period, according to Atlanta Regional Commissions 2004 Annual Report. The 20-Year Comprehensive Plan is one venue, but not the only one, where citizens can simultaneously learn more about local affairs, voice their opinions and make well-reasoned suggestions that relate directly to their future. City council meetings, county commission and school board meetings and any public meeting where items relating to you and your familys future are being discussed are excellent examples. And most every elected board in this part of the world has a methodology for citizens to address their views and their concerns. It has long been common place in America for people to believe that their voice means nothing, that they can have no legitimate input into the decisions made by the people they voted into office. This view is simply wrong, and dangerous. It is the offspring of apathy and ignorance, it perpetuates the myth that, as citizens, we cannot have a positive affect on the circumstances of our lives and that of our children as relates to the decisions made by our various governments. But nothing could be further from the truth. I have seen on numerous occasions where the people and the press have made an absolute difference, especially in issues involving local government. Nobody gets everything they want, but the failure to make the attempt ensures that you get nothing. Another popular myth that abounds in the American culture says that one or two people, or even a small group, dont stand a chance at affecting change in their community. Once again, this misguided belief is the offspring of apathy and ignorance. This is not meant to mean that we can or should get everything we want when we want it. It just means that even one or two people can help facilitate a good idea when driven by conviction and tenacity. Besides, as most people know, the squeaky wheel gets the oil. Its just that it is better to be squeaky for a worthwhile reason that benefits the community, not a self-serving or nebulous one that benefits nothing. Pesky citizens engaging some disinterested board members notwithstanding, a rebel with a cause will always get much farther than a rebel without one. Its been said a million times that life today is complicated, with commitments everywhere and not enough time to get them done. True. Yet we all know that we can usually find a way to do the things most important to us. The world of South Fulton is changing right before your eyes. More than ever, your attention to and, perhaps, your enhanced understanding of the events in your changing world may be warranted. Its your future, South Fulton.
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