Peachtree Corners

Peachtree Corners is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area and is the largest city in the county. The city is bordered to the north and west by the Chattahoochee River and is located east of Dunwoody. In the late 1960s, Paul Duke developed the idea of creating a planned community to be constructed in the area that was once known as Pinckneyville. In a referendum held on November 8, 2011, residents voted to incorporate as Gwinnet County's 16th city, and, with a population of 43,059, it became the county's largest. Municipal operations began on July 1, 2012, and the city's population is expected to reach 42,243 by the 2020 US Census. The area was once Creek and Cherokee territory, and it was illegal for white families to settle there before settlement was legalized in 1818. In 1967, Duke initiated the planning of Technology Park Atlanta, a campus for high technology industries that would benefit from employing engineers and business people graduating from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), the University of Georgia, and other universities with technology and business schools. During the 1970s, Jim Cowart began to develop the neighborhoods that Duke had planned. In 2005, efforts were abandoned after a straw survey of some residents seemed to indicate that the majority did not support incorporation. In 2010 the UPCCA again pursued the incorporation of PeachtreeCorners after a failed attempt by the city of Norcross to annex a portion of TechnologyPark Atlanta.

History

In the early 1800s, a road was built along a Native American trail from what is now Buford to Atlanta. A small farming community, known as "Pinckneyville," grew up along that road. In the late 1960s, Paul Duke developed the idea of creating Peachtree Corners, a planned community to be constructed in the area. In a referendum held on November 8, 2011, residents voted to incorporate as Gwinnett County's 16th city, and, with a population of 43,059, it became the county's largest. Municipal operations began on July 1, 2012, and the city is now the largest in the county. The city is home to the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), the University of Georgia, and other universities with technology and business schools. It is also the home to Technology Park Atlanta, a campus for high technology industries that would benefit from employing engineers and business people graduating from the Georgia Tech and other colleges. The area was once known as Creek and Cherokee territory, and it was illegal for white families to settle there before settlement was legalized in 1818. The name of the road Medlock Bridge Road comes from a white squatter, Isham Medlock, whose name is lent to Medlocks Bridge Road. In 1827, the community was home to its second school, the Washington Academy. In 1870, a railroad was built through neighboring Norcross, and due to the heavy trading that could be done via the railroad, all of the area's businesses and many residents moved to Norcross. For the next century, the area remained a rural farming community. During the 1970s, Jim Cowart developed the neighborhoods that Duke had planned.

Geography

Peachtree Corners is located in the western corner of Gwinnett County, 21 miles (33 km) from downtown Atlanta. It is bordered by the cities of Dunwoody, Doraville, and Sandy Springs on the west, Buford Highway and Norcross city limits on the south, Roswell and Johns Creek on the north, and the city limits of Berkeley Lake and Duluth on the east. Seven miles of the Chattahoochee River define the northern and western border of PeachtreeCorners, and it is located on the outskirts of the city of Atlanta. The town is home to the Atlanta Falcons football team, which is based in the suburb of Duluth, Georgia. The city is also the home of the University of Georgia, which plays host to the Georgia Tech women's football team. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a training base in the town, which was established in 1883. It was named after the town's first post-World War II commander, George P. H. W. Bush, who was born in 1875. The area is also known as the birthplace of the Atlanta Braves, who were founded in 1878 and moved to the city in 1881. It has been the site of the World War II Battle of the Bulge, which took place from 1875 to 1883, and has been home to many other major battles, including the Battle of Gettysburg and the Civil War, which ended in 1894.

Demographics

As of the 2020 U.S. census, there were 42,243 people, 16,905 households, and 10,668 families residing in the city. The median household income (in 2019 dollars) was $71,149, and the per capita income was $43,783. As of 2017, Peachtree Corners was 60.2% White American, 23.3% African American, 9.6% Asian American, and 2.5% two or more races. ZIP Code 30092 had a population of 38,008 at the 2010 census; however, with parts of ZIP Codes 30071, 30096, 30097, and 30360 being within the city limits, the estimated population of the city was 43,509 in 2017. The city contains ZIP code 30092, which in 2017 had an average adjusted gross income (AGI) of $69,905 per household. Those living in the same house more than one year were 86.9% of the population, an average of 2.62 persons lived in each household. Of the population 94.1% had a high school diploma or higher, 52.6%. had a Bachelor's degree or higher with 19% of. the population having a Master'sdegree or higher. 96.5%. of the people or above had home computers, and, not counting library or school supplied computers, 96.4% had at least one computer in their home. In 2017, the median home price in the town was $325,000.

Economy

The economy of Peachtree Corners is largely driven by the concentration of businesses in planned office parks. The city has 12 hotels to serve business travelers and visitors including Hilton, Marriott, and Hyatt. The Harlem Globetrotters are headquartered in the city as well as the Southern Section of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) The city is host to the Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) conference which involves development of intelligent transport systems. Peachtrees Corners has developed a 5G incubator known as Curiosity Lab located in a 500-acre smart city technology park in theCity, one of the nation's first smart city environments. It provides developers with the ability to build and test such things as autonomous vehicles, robotics, industrial drone applications, mixed reality training and entertainment, remote medical care, personal health and fitness wearables, and other technologies. In August 2021, the NASDAQ-100 and S&P 500 company, Intuitive Surgical announced its expansion of its PeachtREE Corners facility, building an additional $600 million dollar, 750,000 square foot, net zero carbon footprint, medical campus. The company added 1,200 new jobs and adding to the cluster of many medical, biomedical, biopharmaceutical, and health information technology companies that are in Peachtreek Corners. The French-American Chamber of Commerce moved its operations from the Consulate General of France in Atlanta to office space within the Innovation Center at Curiosity Lab. In relation to the move, La French Tech a French government-supported ecosystem of startups, investors, decision-makers and community will expand into Peachtreen.

Arts and culture

Annually, Peachtree Corners' "Art on the Chattahoochee" attracts visitors who peruse the work of artists. Summer Concert Series features performers from across the nation. Holiday Glow in the Corners Parade, and the lighting of the great tree are other annual events. Gwinnett County Public Library system operates the Peachtree Corners branch in PeachtREE Corners. The library is located in the town's Town Center and is open to the public on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on the weekends from 9 to 11 a. m. and 11 to 11 p. m., respectively. The branch is located on the second floor of the Town Center, which is also home to the city's public library system. The Gwinnet County Public library system operates a branch in the city. It is located at the intersection of I-20 and I-85. The town is home to a number of cultural events, including the annual "Art in the Park" festival and the "Holiday Glow on the Town Green" evening event. The Town Center is also the site of the "Peachtrees Festival" that includes arts and crafts, live music, shows, and food, as well as a Budding Artist Kid's Zone with activities including craft stations, spin and chalk art, andFood and refreshments. The city's library system also operates the Peachtrees Corners branch of the Gwinnetta Public Library, which serves the town.

Parks and recreation

Peachtree Corners is home to the headquarters for the Southern Section of the United States Tennis Association. The 227-acre (918,636.41 m2) Simpsonwood Park has 2,140 linear feet (652.27 m) of river frontage along the Chattahoochee River. There are many nearby golf clubs, some with restaurants, bars, fitness centers, swimming pools, reception rooms, and/or accommodations. The city has an indoor amusement park called Nitro Zone with 127,000sqft of activities. The Corners Connector Trail system provides passage to trails along Peachtree Cornwall Circle and Medlock Bridge Road as well as to paths that stretch north to the city of Duluth and beyond. Each year the city conducts public participation road running events including the four mile (6.437 kilometers) Light Up the Corners Glow Run and the one kilometer Twilight Trot. The town also has an outdoor mall, The Forum, with multiple restaurants and boutique shops. It also has a movie theater, an amphitheater, a 2,500-square-foot Veterans Monument, and the Town Green, which was developed in a partnership between the city government and Fuqua Development. A thrust arch style 14-foot wide walkway pedestrian bridge features two elevators and two sets of stairs and connects the Town Center and The Forum. The bridge also connects to a trail along the stream that is adjacent to the Town center that is part of the Cornered Connector trail system.

Government

The City of Peachtree Corners was incorporated on July 1, 2012. The city is governed by a mayor and six city council members which are elected to four-year terms. Departments in the city include Communications, Community Development, Finance, Downtown Development Authority, and Public Works. It has its own municipal court and employs a city attorney. It is authorized to collect property taxes of up to one millage a year, though the city has thus far operated only on business license, franchise and other fees without levying any property taxes. SPLOST, Georgia Department of Transportation, and federal grant dollars contribute to the funding of capital projects. The first elections for Mayor and City Council were held in Spring 2012. Subsequent elections have been held in November of every other year, starting in 2013. Because of this, Peachtrees Corners has lower county taxes than unincorporated Gwinnett County. It also has a city manager, city clerk, and a community development director. In addition to the mayor and city council, the city also has code enforcement personnel, building officials, and department directors. Its mayor is also the city's first African-American mayor. It was incorporated in 2012 and has a Council-Manager form of government. The mayor and council members are elected for a four year term. It currently has a mayor, city council member, and code enforcement staff. The City has a police force, fire department, code enforcement, and public works department. Its city attorney is also a city employee.

Education

Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) serves Peachtree Corners. Wesleyan School (K-12th grade) and Cornerstone Christian Academy are private schools. A charter school, the International Charter Academy of Georgia (Jjia Cht Gakuin) opened in 2018 for K-5th grade. The new charter school has a bilingual English and Japanese education program. In 2021 it had 165 students, some of whom attend the school in order to learn Japanese and others being Japanese children temporarily living in the United States.Nearby is another charterSchool, the New Life Academy of Excellence (K -8th grade), that has ailingual English and Chinese education programs. The Gwinnett county Public Library system operates the PeachtREE Corners branch in Peachtrees Corners, Georgia. It is the only GCPS school with a IB Diploma Programme. It also has a branch of the Georgia State Library system, which serves the area. The library system also operates a branch in Duluth, Georgia, in the town of Duluth. It was founded in 1881 and is the oldest public library system in the state. It has a library system that serves the entire county of Georgia, as well as the city of Atlanta. It opened its first branch in 1883 and has since expanded to serve the entire city. It closed its Duluth branch in 1998. It reopened in 2008. It now serves the Gwinnet County area. It's the only school in the county with an IB Di diploma programme.