I understand and appreciate the fact that all cities have a need to create balanced growth. In order to create balanced growth, a government often will help the impovershed in an attempt to facilitate economic upward mobility. There are costs to such programs, and these costs must be paid by someone -- often the person who already has money. Naturally, in Atlanta City Government, that often means the Buckhead resident.

I also understand and appreciate the need to respect that these residents pay significant tax amounts that drift away from where they reside. Because of this monetary drift, these residents rarely see their tax dollars at work. That can be genuinely frustrating.

Finally, I understand that if Buckhead were to become its own city, Midtown would likely pursue a similar effort -- leading to a divided and marginalized City of Atlanta.

Is there a solution? The soon-to-be Ex-Senator Adelman proposed the Georgia Township Act, which would have provided a weak taxing power (a small property tax) to areas that desire to become Townships, a government structure less powerful than a county or city that would be able to make basic decisions about zoning.

I think that a Buckhead Township would have to be afforded the power to negotiate with the City of Atlanta the amount of subsidization Buckhead should supply to the rest of the City. I do not say this because I want to see the weakening of Buckhead's participation in the City of Atlanta, but rather because I see this structure as the only way of it continuing.