Tucker, A Community Driven Effort

The City of Tucker was incorporated in 2016 after a landmark vote of nearly three quarters of voters approving the grass roots efforts of their neighbors and the Tucker 2015 organization. The City of Tucker operates under a council-manager form of government. The Tucker City Council is comprised of a mayor and six council members elected by the people on a nonpartisan ballot for four-year terms. Two council members are elected to represent each of Tucker’s three districts, while the mayor is elected to represent the entire City. The terms for council members are limited to two consecutive four-year terms and the mayor is allowed three consecutive four-year terms.

The City of Tucker covers more than 22 square miles with a population of over 38,000 residents. It provides core services including planning and zoning, code enforcement, parks and recreation, and public works. Other services like water, sewer and sanitation happen through intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) with DeKalb County. Law enforcement is provided through an IGA with DeKalb County Police. Officers from the Tucker Precinct enforce laws and ordinances throughout the boundaries of the city. Tucker is also home to the headquarters for DeKalb County’s Police and Fire Rescue operations.

Tucker has two major community improvement districts (CIDs), the Tucker Northlake CID and Tucker Summit CID, representing hundreds of businesses ranging from sole proprietorships to multi-national corporations. These CIDs work to maintain and enhance the look of Tucker’s commercial corridors, while also funding transportation improvements within their boundaries.

Primary retail areas in Tucker include Briarcliff Village, Northlake Festival, Tucker Meridian, Cofer Crossing and the redeveloped Northlake Mall. Within Tucker there are more than 3,000 licensed businesses. DeKalb County Department of Education oversees public schools in the City of Tucker. The Tucker Cluster elementary schools include Brockett, Idlewood, Livsey, Midvale and Smoke Rise. Students from those schools move on to Tucker Middle School and then Tucker High School. Smoke Rise Elementary School is the newest of the cluster schools, having been built in 2021. Tucker High School was rebuilt in 2008, while the district has money earmarked for several upgrades in maintenance for the rest of the cluster.

With a long and storied history

In 1892, the Georgia, Carolina and Northern railway built a railroad through what is now Tucker’s downtown. That was also the year that Tucker got its post office, run by postmaster Alpheus Chewning. These are the factors that led to the widely held belief of 1892 being the year Tucker was founded. Over the course of the next century, Tucker grew and developed, while still maintaining its small-town charm. Cofer Bros. hardware store (1919) and Matthews Cafeteria (1955) remained Main Street staples into the 21st century, as did the annual Tucker Day celebration, which takes place on the second Saturday in May.

Located in northeastern DeKalb, Tucker was always considered a place with strong community engagement and representation in the county government. Through volunteer organizations like the Tucker Civic Association and Main Street Tucker Alliance, the residents advocated for the community, held festivals and fundraisers to support and celebrate each other.

It is this pride in Tucker’s neighborly kindness that has helped guide the city government in its decision and policy making and created the Tucker Way.