Community Government in Action

publication date: May 12, 2008

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author/source: Jonathan Copsey / STAFF

By Jonathan Copsey / STAFF

Gary George, Alpharetta Director of Public Safety

For Alpharetta Director of Public Safety Gary George, the Bellsmith subdivision is more than just a neighborhood; it’s his neighborhood.

Or, more specifically, it’s his responsibility.

George was just named as the subdivision’s PACT officer, a duty the director looks forward to fulfilling.

“To me its just community government,” he said. “It’s all the way from the mayor to the public safety employee to the public works employee to the parks and recreation employee. It’s an idea that works in the city. It ties the entire city together with the community and enhances the ability of these residents and assures them that they can be the eyes and ears of the police, but also everyday quality of life issues.”

PACT, or Police and Citizens Together, is a four year old program designed to help the citizens of Alpharetta get more out of their government.

The program has been heavily pushed by officers Terry Joyner and Jennifer Howard to be a true community project in which each of Alpharetta’s 104 police officers and nearly all the firefighters have been given at least one neighborhood to watch. This includes everything from keeping an eye on the local crime to telling citizens which department to call for replacing a street sign.

“What if they’ve got a manhole cover missing?” George said. “They would call me, the PACT officer. That’s not a 911 emergency, but that’s something that I can get taken care of for them. [I might help] to create a fire safety inspection of a residence to replace the batteries in their smoke detector, or organize a crime or rape prevention class.”

David Bradley of the Bellsmith Homeowners Association, was all smiles at the idea of Alpharetta’s Director of Public Safety paying special attention to his neighborhood, as well as the safety it will bring.

“I feel as though we have a competent police officer to do what is expected of a PACT officer,” he said. “I hope that the PACT program brings together a little more unity in the neighborhood. We are new to this area and are excited to step up the security and have some events that bring the neighbors out so that we can all meet each other and know faces and names.”

And that’s all Director George wants: to put the “community” back in community government.