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Recently there was an article in a local newspaper about a Milton resident who found a lost dog.  No big deal, right?  Well, the resident wound up bemoaning Milton as a “sorry town” because he couldn’t figure out how to contact the dog catcher.  He went on to say: “I don’t know where I live…Where is Milton?” 

I don’t agree with a newspaper editor using one resident, who in my opinion doesn’t fairly represent the general population because heck, this guy doesn’t even have a computer, to characterize an entire city.  And, I don’t agree that Milton is a “sorry town.”  However, I do agree with the general point that was trying to be made.

Where Are Milton and Johns Creek?

Milton – and Johns Creek for that matter – are suffering from identity crises and some growing pains as new cities.  However, I also believe that residents of these cities have a responsibility to inform themselves.  If you have a computer, it is not that hard.

I’ll make the point slightly differently.  We should all know where we live.  Period.  We might not know exactly where the city lines are as we drive around, but we should know if our house is in Milton, Alpharetta, Roswell or Johns Creek.  There are only four possibilities – it is not that hard.  And we should know the general location of the cities. 

For instance, Johns Creek is the eastern most portion of North Fulton County, mostly east of Jones Bridge Road.  Milton is in the northwestern corner of North Fulton, etc.  This is simple geography and basic civic responsibility.  Here are some maps for reference:  Map of City of Milton, GA    Map of City of Johns Creek, GA

Emotional Centers Are What is Missing?

My point would be that while the physical boundaries of the cities should be well known, the emotional centers of the new cities, Milton and Johns Creek, are missing.  Roswell has its Roswell Square and Old Mill historic areas.  Alpharetta, at least, has its Main Street in “downtown” Alpharetta, although that is admittedly stretching the definition of “emotional center”.  It is a physical place, though, and the Alpharetta City Hall is located there.  Milton and Johns Creek don’t even have that.  They are more a state of mind and a physical affiliation.  Both new cities currently have their “city halls” in office complexes and Johns Creek’s City Hall and Municipal Court are not even in the same complex. 

As far a service offerings by the new cities, some residents understandably still don’t know where to turn when they need help.  Remember that we still all live in Fulton County and the County still is responsible for certain important functions:  water and sewer service; judicial services; health and human services; and, some environmental services including animal control.

The cities are now responsible for public safety (police and fire), community development and land use planning and some local public works like parks, traffic engineering, road maintenance.  The major impetus to incorporating as cities was to have control over local land use and to improve the service levels for public safety.

The challenge now is to communicate to residents who to call for what.  My experience with both cities is that they have done a good job making information available via their web sites (www.cityofmiltonga.us and www.johnscreekga.gov) and they have main phone numbers where you can speak to a person or the call is quickly returned.  I left a voicemail on the City of Milton’s main number early one evening and at 9AM sharp the next morning someone called me back with the answer to my question.

What is in a Symbol?

The larger challenge is creating literal and symbolic “hearts” for these two cities.  Even little Crabapple has the silos.  What do Milton and Johns Creek have?  If you look at the masthead on Milton’s website, the graphic is of a playground and concession stand at Hopewell Baseball field, some horses and the clubhouse at White Columns.  When the concession stand is a good as it gets, there is a problem.

Johns Creek’s graphic symbols are just as allusive:  a strip mall, twisted tree trunk, golf carts, street sign (saying Johns Creek Parkway) and a girl on a slide.  That could be anywhere.

While the question posed by our Milton resident, “Where is Milton?”, seems simple on the surface, the real test of the new cities is whether they can carve out an identity of their own and create local symbols to reinforce that identity.

[Credit for dogcatcher graphic to Dean Yeagle.  Thanks.]