InTucker Magazine

From the Mayor – January 2017

The year 2016 will always have a special place in the history of Tucker. Future generations will know this as the year we incorporated as a city; our birthday, so to speak. What they may not realize is how much sweat equity was put in by volunteers, business, civic and church leaders and, only very recently, its own elected officials, to help lay the foundation for this great town over the course of the last 125 years!

This past year, we have completed some daunting tasks. Tucker opened its own City Hall, complete with an amazing staff. These talented professionals come to us through contracts with CH2M, InterDev and Charles Abbot Company, bringing with them decades of local government experience. You may not know them personally yet, but you know their work, because you’ve seen it in the dozens of public meetings and other accomplishments over these past few months.

Led by City Manager Tami Hanlin, Tucker now handles all its own zoning and code enforcement. John McHenry and Courtney Lankford work diligently with developers on behalf of the city to ensure that any growth in Tucker is “smart growth”. Code enforcement veteran William Wharton has taken on the challenge of leading a department that will be critical to protecting the property values and public safety of our community. And, with leadership from City Clerk Jennifer Davis, we are also issuing our own business and alcohol licenses, as well as building permits.

As we move into 2017, I see a year of opportunity for our city. We will continue to work toward establishing a department to oversee Tucker’s beautiful parks. “Tucker Tomorrow”, the effort to create our first comprehensive plan, will come into focus thanks to input from our residents and businesses. We will soon have our own public meeting space and court, to be housed in a refurbished office space in what we will call the City Hall Annex on First Avenue.

These are exciting times in Tucker. I hope you’ll join me and your City Council on the road ahead as we work together toward a bright future.