Floyd, Ellis to Reach out to Residents Wednesday

More than 170,000 DeKalb residents may find  Mayor Bill Floyd of Decatur and DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis on the other end of the line when they answer the phone on Wednesday.

The June 15 event is a telephone townhall meeting. During the phone study, the two elected officials will talk directly to residents about what transportation improvements the residents would like to see in Decatur and DeKalb, and around the Atlanta region. 

The townhall meetings will put the 21 members of the Atlanta Regional Transportation Roundtable directly in touch with members of their communities to discuss the regional transportation projects that could be funded with a penny sales tax referendum.

The calls are part of a series of that put elected officials, including Floyd and Ellis, in touch with more than a million residents across the 10-county Atlanta region in just six days, according to a release. 

Most of the Decatur transportation projects and all the Avondale Estates projects have been trimmed from the November 2012 regional transportation referendum.

But two have survived the cuts so far: 

--The Decatur to Clifton Corridor, which would provide safety upgrades and bicycle, pedestrian and transit support facilities on Clairemont Avenue, Commerce Drive and Church Street in an effort to improve connections between downtown Decatur and the Emory/Clifton Corridor regional employment center.

-- The Decatur Circulator Shuttle, which would connect the Decatur, Avondale and East Lake MARTA stations and Decatur/Avondale activity centers to the Emory/Clifton Corridor, Avondale Estates and Atlanta.

DeKalb residents will be called at random through an automated system to participate in the forum, which begins at 7:15 p.m. and will last an hour.

Residents who choose to participate will stay on the line and be able to ask questions of Ellis and Floyd, who will be on the call live, and to make suggestions about their transportation needs and wishes.

 “Mayor Floyd and I look forward to speaking with potentially thousands of our friends and neighbors at one time,” said CEO Ellis. “Our goal is to learn what regional and local projects will help DeKalb residents most.”

Anyone who doesn’t receive a call, but wishes to participate in the townhall, can call a toll-free number that will be posted online at www.atlantaregionalroundtable.com.