Powder Springs Mayor Thurman hosts town hall meeting on moving city forward

Powder Springs Mayor Al Thurman began the city’s first quarterly with a town hall on community. Held at the Ford Center, Thurman emphasized the importance of having a mission for the city to follow. 

With members of the city council and department officials by his side, Thurman said, “The collaborative effort between the city, residents and businesses to promote a safe, economically secure and stimulating city where people want to visit and call home, will open the doors to progress and prosperity. I get feedback from the citizens. I take my cue from you and the things you want to see in the city and that’s how we move forward. The whole point of telling you why, how and where is for you to be a part of this shared vision moving forward. We need your support; we need to hear from you.”

The majority of the meeting was spent discussing growth, diversity, parks, new business and how to move forward at the right pace. In addition to Thurman, each council member introduced themselves, voiced their concerns and described specific areas they would be working on. Councilman Patrick Bordelon discussed the importance of making sure the city continues to attract and retain talent. He also referenced being “very optimistic about the future” as he pointed to the city’s police department moving from 60% staffed to almost 100%.

Thurman told the crowd that the city has had great success with developers coming into the community to build, saying, “One of the biggest concerns I hear from citizens is how to keep the small-town feel. We don’t want to ruin the city. We want to create balance, keep the history, create new restaurants, make Powder Springs a destination, and keep taxes low. It’s a balance. We’re taking a six-month moratorium to look at all of the developments coming to the city to make sure we can handle and provide service.”

Among the issues discussed were keeping the city clean and a new recycling program, putting cameras up to photograph license plates and issue tickets through the mail, and the impact that the new city of Mableton will have on the community of Powder Springs.

Thurman ended the meeting talking about diversity, equity and inclusion, and wanting to see more young people and active seniors involved and being a part of the downtown community.

Tiffany Neuhoff, a Powder Springs resident and real estate paralegal, voiced her concerns about the cleanliness of the parks in the area and if the city was going to put in a dog park.

For more information about the city and to watch a full recording of the town hall meeting click here.