STONECREST, GA– The City of Stonecrest has been designated as a “City of Civility” by the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA). The Stonecrest City Council adopted a civility resolution on June 28, 2023.
A 2019 poll by Weber Shandwick revealed that over 90% percent of Americans believe that incivility is a problem, with nearly 68% percent identifying it as a major problem. Civility is more than just politeness; it is about disagreeing without disrespect, seeking common ground as a starting point for dialogue about differences, listening past one’s preconceptions, and teaching others to do the same.
“We’re committed to respecting each other’s views as we work together towards moving Stonecrest forward,” Mayor Jazzmin Cobble said, highlighting the importance of open communication and cooperation in our community’s development.
GMA, in partnership with Georgia City Solutions (GCS), a nonprofit organization managed by the Association, created the Embrace Civility program to equip Georgia’s cities and partner organizations with resources to create more civility in their meetings and among their residents, the general public, and meeting attendees. Civil behavior and speech are critically important to a healthy, functional, and respectful society. For public service to be effective, there must be an atmosphere of respect and tolerance and a commitment to a healthy public exchange of diverse ideas and viewpoints.
“I commend the City of Stonecrest for embracing civility and adopting the resolution to become a GMA City of Civility,” said GMA CEO and Executive Director, Larry Hanson. “We believe that Georgia’s cities have a great platform to model open, free, and vigorous debate while maintaining the highest standards of civility, honesty, and mutual respect.”
To become a City of Civility, City Councils are required to adopt a Civility Resolution and pledge to engage in civil behavior with each other as well as with residents and meeting attendees. Cities also have a civility pledge that can be published or recited at meetings. Learn more about the Embrace Civility program at www.gacities.com/civility.
1 Comment
It is unclear when this award was allegedly given to the city of stonecrest. If this is what GMA considers to be a city of civility we must take a look at GMA and what they really stand for. Obviously, they are talking about someplace other than the Stonecrest Ga. where I live. Stonecrest has been criticized by a local TV station for having their reporter removed for simply asking the mayor a question concerning matters that were before the city council.
There have been from citizens and the news media that the doors to City Hall during public meetings were locked preventing entry by citizens. It took reports in the news media and complaints to the state to stop this practice.
There have also been complaints from various citizens, myself included, that Mayor Jazzmin Cobble actually leaves the dais when the comments from the public section occurs during city council meeting. This is easily verifiable by watching the last three City council meetings which are online.
Most importantly, and what should be troubling to every citizen of stonecrest, is the fact the city council allowed police to be called on myself and another citizen who were merely seated waiting for a special call public meeting to begin. Instead of starting the meeting, city council and the mayor sat on the dais for approximately 20 minutes past the schedule meeting time. They then conducted a roll call and immediately presented a motion to go into executive session. A citizen who was seated next to me was approached by a security guard on two occasions and told she was there to escort that person out of the meeting. That person, a well-respected business owner in stonecrest, had no criminal trespass warning against them. Nor have they committed any offense during that meeting which warranted their removal. This all stem from a personal dispute between the mayor and that person. Shortly thereafter a DeKalb county Police lieutenant and sergeant entered the city council chambers. These law enforcement officials stated they had informed the city they could not remove us from the meeting as we had done nothing. So, instead these two on duty police officials stayed in the room for over an hour with us wow we waited for the meeting to start. After approximately an hour, I informed city manager Gia Scruggs she could tell City council and the mayor to come back out because I was going home to watch a TV program. As I was leaving the parking lot I spoke via telephone to a friend who informed me that the council was back out and making decisions.