East Cobb advocates take aim at county government in cityhood debate

May 6—EAST COBB — After a downright graceful debate on East Cobb cityhood two weeks ago, both sides of the argument seemed inclined to take a different tack in round two.

Craig Chapin, president of the cityhood committee, spelled out as much in his closing statement Wednesday night at the East Cobb Rotary-hosted debate.

"Tonight, we came in with a different strategy. The strategy was simply this: contrast (with) what Cobb County is on the record for — their vision, where they're headed, and the votes that they have that are headed in that direction," Chapin said.

The pro-cityhood group — Chapin, along with Cindy Cooperman and Scott Sweeney — spent much of the evening criticizing a county government they say is out of touch with East Cobb.

Spending, Sweeney said, is "out of control" as county staff have asked for over 650 new positions to be created in the upcoming budget with $178 million in new spending. Chairwoman Lisa Cupid is "very, very much in favor of pushing forward an agenda with a 1%, 30-year tax for transportation." The only way to push back on that agenda is with the unified voice of a city government, he said.

Both Sweeney and Chapin pointed to a quote from Cupid that's been a focal point for cityhood advocates.

"We have a county chairperson who has come out and clearly said, 'next door to you is where affordable housing needs to go within Cobb,'" Chapin said, later adding, "The reality is, there are changes coming. Who do you want in control?"

(The full quote comes from Cupid's State of the County address, which is as follows: "My assertion that we need to consider housing for everyone has been an impetus for a new city forming, because the concern is I am bringing affordable housing next door to you. I can tell you that if you want grocery stores next door to you, if you want schools next door to you, if you want a laundromat next door to you, affordable housing is going to have to go somewhere.")

Across the aisle, opponents kept their sights trained on the cityhood committee's alleged lack of clarity on how a city of East Cobb would fund itself, deliver services, and improve upon the job Cobb County is already doing.

Bob Lax of the anti-cityhood East Cobb Alliance opened by pledging, "I'm not going to tell you why you should oppose the city of East Cobb," before laying out dozens of questions he said neither the cityhood advocates nor their feasibility study had sufficiently answered (he then said that if those questions weren't addressed, he would in fact urge residents to vote no).

Not only that, Lax argued, but his review of other recently formed cities found their budgets to be orders of magnitude — 17 times, in one case — larger than what was estimated in their respective studies.

"The biggest concern that I have," added Mindy Seger, of the anti-cityhood East Cobb Alliance, "is how do you improve something that is already the best it can be? Cobb County Fire is top notch, world class, in the top 1% of what they do. How do you improve that?"

Cityhood advocates seemed at times to grow frustrated with the shots taken at the feasibility study conducted by Georgia State University. Chapin implied those attacks were coming from amateur analysis.

"The question is, why does the legislature only allow a certain group of PhDs who have a specific expertise to put together a feasibility study? And the answer is simply because you stand citizens up, no matter how well intentioned, they are going to find a hole here, and find a hole here ... I mean, it's a constant game of whack-a-mole," Chapin said.

In that vein, Chapin would accuse the anti-cityhood East Cobb Alliance of fear-mongering, disinformation, and promoting "conspiracy theories" about the cityhood movement's ties to developers.

Added Sweeney, "(The study) is not a plan. These people sitting to my left, myself, nor anybody on the East Cobb committee can definitively say, 'This is where the government center will be.' We do not have that authority."

East Cobber Jeff Hart later told the MDJ he found that approach refreshing.

"They were honest — no, we don't have all the answers, but we're going to have better representation. To me, that kind of makes sense," Hart said.

Though if the audience of well over a hundred in the Pope High School auditorium was keen on the more aggressive angles, it didn't show. Aside from some scattered chittering, attendees dutifully upheld the directive to keep their reactions to themselves.

While accusations of twisting the facts came from both sides, so did the assertion that above all, both groups want to keep "East Cobb the way it is."

"When you step back, the schools are full, the roads are packed, and how do you continue to add density?" Chapin argued. "...What it boils down to is simply this: if your vision for East Cobb is not urbanization, then you'd better vote yes."

Seger shot back, "At least let me know you've done your homework, and you've done the math, and you understand how this is going to work. We don't have that. We don't have those champions here that are going to see this through to fruition, that have raised their hands and said 'I'm going to run for city council, I'm going see this through.'"

Early voting on the cityhood referendum began Monday, May 2 and runs through Friday, May 20. Election Day is May 24. To check your eligibility to vote in cityhood referendums, visit mvp.sos.ga.gov.