The Dunwoody City Council has approved the ordinance to set the ad valorem tax at 2.74 mills – a rate that has remained the same since incorporation – even though property tax values have dropped considerably in the past several years.

Councilor Denis Shortal wants the city to use the collected taxes for capital projects like street paving.

Council also voted to approve a construction agreement for Dunwoody Village Parkway. The agreement with the Georgia Department of Transportation passed 4-2. Councilors Terry Nall and Adrian Bonser, who have both spoken out against the current plan, voted no. Both thought that the city could improve the parkway without removing the median and by spending less money to accomplish goals of beautification, sidewalks and repaving.

The project, as planned, will cost $2.4 million with nearly half of that coming from a combination of GDOT and MARTA grants. The original grant for the project, obtained with the help of Sen. Fran Millar, was $500,000 and was intended to beautify the parkway and add sidewalks.

Possibly one of the most controversial council decisions, the approved plan is to remove the tree-lined median from the parkway, and to remove one lane of travel each way. The construction plan also calls for wide, on street bike lanes and sidewalks on either side of the parkway.

Joe Hirsch questioned the city’s vision of the parkway, and asked if there were agreements with the businesses in the Village to tear down and relocate closer to the street. This vision is promoted by the city in artist renderings. Hirsch was doubtful that the city had any sort of agreement with the company that owns Dunwoody Village.

Shortal said that while the city doesn’t have a promise from the owners of the Village, “there is a good feeling that they’ll enhance the area.” He added that the parkway is unsightly, that the project will be a tremendous enhancement for the city and “we’re all going to be happy when it’s done.”

Councilor Lynn Deutsch said that her vision of the Village would have been to level the area and rebuild from the ground up. Given the successes of the businesses in the Village, she said she didn’t think her vision would be realized anytime soon. Deutsch voted in favor of the construction agreement.

The overwhelming majority of citizens providing public comment about the parkway dis- agree with council’s decision. Jim Dickson is no exception and asked council to defer the decision until after the election this fall. The election will make it clear that the voters and citizens definitely do not want this project, said Dickson.

Dickson also referenced Davis’ public statements about the city’s need to change to attract a generation who grew up on TV shows like “Seinfeld” and “Friends.”

“Tell them to move to New York City,” said Dickson. “Meanwhile the good people of Dunwoody are going to do whatever is necessary to preserve the unique charm and high quality residential community we have enjoyed here for decades.”

The topic of tornado sirens was brought up again after the storm on June 20 that brought winds strong enough to down trees and power lines, leaving most of Dunwoody in the dark. Shortal emphasized the need for the city to purchase sirens and said it would be money well spent. He encouraged council to plan for sirens in next year’s budget which he estimated to be $170,000 to $200,000. Citizen Gerri Penn echoed Shortal’s sentiments in her public comment.

Penn relayed several stories of warnings that would have come too late for residents. She received a cell phone warning after the storm had passed. Another neighbor received a text warning of the storm at 11 p.m. The storm hit the city at around 7:30 p.m.

Instead of moving the dog park (at Brook Run Park) or putting in more bike lanes, the city should install sirens, said Penn. “Let’s not wait for a grant to put in sirens.”

Deutsch encouraged citizens to purchase weather radios and set them for a larger area.

Nall seemed to disagree stating that sirens would not have gone off because DeKalb County was not under a tornado warning.

Shortal countered Nall’s statement and said that sirens are set to go off when winds are expected to exceed 70 miles per hour and when golf ball-sized hail or larger is predicted.