Politics & Government
More Than 100 Attend Cross Keys Foundation Civic Forum
Public and private officials pledged to work together to improve education and facilities at Cross Keys High, Woodward Elementary and other Brookhaven schools.
More than 100 people attended Cross Keys Foundation's first-ever civic forum on Tuesday night, a number that "overwhelmed" organizer Kim Gokce.
"We had a good mix of folks from the single-family homes and Park Towne North families," Gokce said. Here is his report on the event:
"The dialog was facilitated by Maria Duarte, spokesperson for Azteca Atlanta TV channel and a Brookhaven resident, and myself. Brookhaven City Manager Marie Garrett and Mayor J. Max Davis were present, as was District 4 city councilman Joe Gebbia and Board of Education District 2 member Marshall Orson.
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"The dialog portion lasted for 1:45 and was very productive. A significant focus was on code compliance and reporting processes in response to questions from apartment residents. The officials discussed their joint interest in Cross Keys HS, public education generally in Brookhaven, and pledged to work together to see it get the attention in terms of support and investment that all recognized as lacking for many years.
"The officials indicated a commitment to continue a dialog with area residents and requested a similar forum at Woodward Elementary and planned to visit Montclair ES as well. I pledged the Foundation would hold an annual forum at the high school since it was such a productive event and really showcased the amazing things going on in our community.
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"The participating organizations were:
- Brookhaven Boys and Girls Club
- Athena's Warehouse
- The Cowart Family YMCA
- The Center for Pan Asian Community Services
- The Cross Keys Sustainable Neighborhood Initiative
- The Hispanic Health Coalition of Georgia
- Capstone Financial MassMutual "LifeBridge"
- Friends of Briarwood Park
- Latin American Association
"The event's goal was to bring together the community assets in terms of residents, schools, non-profits, and elected officials for a dialog and it was a success that I look forward to making a even bigger event next year.
"I recognized Councilman Joe Gebbia with a Cross Keys Lifetime Membership lapel pin.
"For fun, we closed with a silly, three-question trivia challenge for the three elected officials for which we awarded the coveted Cross Keys Foundation coffee cup. Mayor J. Max Davis answered two of the three questions about Cross Keys HS trivia and Marshall Orson answered one.
"The first annual Cross Keys Cup was awarded to Mayor Davis."
See Also:
Cross Keys Foundation to Host Civic Forum
