Communities
There are many ways to differentiate between individual communities in the greater metropolitan area. As a geographer, I tend to consider them all. The one way that most all Atlantans differentiate among themselves is whether you are inside or outside of the perimeter (I-285, the Atlanta By-pass). In the not so distant past, those living outside the perimeter were considered to live far away, but as time passed communities and people moved progressively further out. Indian Hills is a well known early golf community, at first considered so far out it that it met skepticism as to whether it could ever be a success. Now Indian Hills, well established and seeing a period of renewal, is in a highly developed area and located much closer to the city than our newer golf communities. As growth continues to radiate from Atlanta, some people believe a new outer perimeter is needed to accommodate cross traffic in the suburbs and create convenient limited access transportation for exterior communities.
After deciding whether you want to be an innie or an outie, there are further distinctions, some governmental, like cities and counties, other merely named as an area, like East Cobb. East Cobb is an area that many are familiar with, but there is no official boundary for the area, generally considered to be in Cobb County East of I-75. Sandy Springs is a community that had no official boundaries until recently. The boundaries became official after a 2005 election to incorporate as a city. Jones Creek is another such area. Click Here to find out what The Economist has to say about Atlanta communities
Listed below and the main city governments- within 10 county core area of ARC
Acworth
Alpharetta
Atlanta
Austell
Auburn
Avondale Estates
Berkley Lake
Braselton
Buford
Canton
Chamblee
College Park
Conyers
Dacula
Decatur
Doraville
Douglasville
Duluth
East Point
Fayetteville
Forest Park
Grayson
Hampton
Hapeville
Holly Springs
Jonesboro
Kennesaw
Lawrenceville
Lilburn
Loganville
Marietta
McDonough
Morrow
Norcross
Peachtree City
Powder Springs
Riverdale
Smyrna
Snellville
Stockbridge
Stone Mountain
Sugar Hill
Suwanee
County Governments
Cherokee County, 770-479-0440
Clayton County, 770-477-3311
Cobb County, 770-528-8600
DeKalb County, 404-298-4000
Douglas County, 770-920-7272
Fayette County, 770-461-3611
Forsyth County
Fulton County, 404-224-0102
Gwinnett County, 770-822-7324
Henry County, 770-954-2470
Rockdale County, 770-929-4152
Spalding County, 770-467-4360
Walton County, 770-267-1474
Planning and Zoning
Atlanta Regional Commission Atlanta Greenspace
