Georgia County Government - April 2009 - (Page 21) DEKALB COUNTY continued from page 19 improve technology, heighten customer service, and coordinate more effectively with the county’s municipalities and region. The CEO’s broad vision to leverage DeKalb’s prosperity and resources – including cultural and racial diversity – in all kinds of new and better ways, is anticipated to result in new solutions for many challenges. As a leader, Ellis’s qualifications are imminent. He holds a B.A. in economics and finance from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business; and a J.D. degree from the University of Texas, where he served the student body as president. In addition to a private law practice – he is a partner with the firm Epstein, Becker & Green, from which he is on leave – the CEO has taught courses at Georgia State University College of Law and frequently lectures on smart growth and urban development issues. Ellis says he has always had a passion for public service. First elected in 2000 to the DeKalb Board of Commissioners representing District 4, he was elected by his fellow BOC members as presiding officer, and in that capacity he led the BOC through its most extensive reorganization ever. “The aim was ensuring openness and transparency in the legislative process,” he asserts, something to which he remains dedicated. Ellis is, too, a dedicated volunteer who serves on the National Community Development Council of the Urban Land Institute (ULI). He is also a member of ULI-Atlanta’s Smart Growth Committee and in addition to his community activism, the CEO has held leadership roles in organizations including 100 Black Men of America, Big Brothers and Big Sisters, within his church, and within the Democratic Party. Ellis has supported key state legislation pertaining to economic development and preservation of property values. Envisioning its importance for DeKalb County’s future, last year he was a major proponent of a Tax Allocation District (TAD) Constitutional Amendment, approved by the Georgia Legislature, and supports the creation of special tax districts for high-priority government needs to meet demands, especially for the future. Burrell Ellis took his ‘Consensus for a New DeKalb’ platform, and the county’s proposed budget, to community gatherings countywide from January to mid-February. Here, he addresses a packed audience at Tucker Recreation Center. Ellis is a member of the ACCG Board of Managers and continues his active membership in National Association of Counties (NACo), continuing as chairman of the Large Urban County Caucus (LUCC), representing the 100 largest urban counties in the country and their 50 percent “share” of the nation’s population. Perhaps the most striking thing about Ellis’s approach to local government leadership are his continual appeals to, and inclusion of, DeKalb citizens. Citizens were integral to the process of forming the CEO’s budget, which he took to every neighborhood in DeKalb County during community gatherings from Jan. 5 through Feb. 19. “Everyone must have a voice in local government,” Ellis poses. “County government in DeKalb had been losing sight of that. As District 4 commissioner, I didn’t think we embraced multicultural, or racial, unity to the extent we could; in fact, it seemed to be that government was, inadvertently, dividing people.” Ellis acknowledges that as he and his supporters began reaching out to citizens of DeKalb, over two years ago, in home get-togethers, through online surveys, through civic groups and community forums, something positive happened. “We began to get a clear sense of what was on the hearts and minds of county residents. We took the priorities of the people, and it has been my goal to make these the priorities of the county.” Many of his insights are downright striking. “We found the people of DeKalb were not as divided as elected officials had thought,” Ellis asserts. “Reigning crime in was an overriding concern, as was code enforcement, the quality of our public education system, and similar quality-of-life issues. People felt ‘locked out,’ as though they had no voice. “We wanted to gain a much better understanding, too, of how the people saw their tax dollars being spent.” Indeed, Ellis brings a personal mission to handling the county’s finances accountably and frugally – and came by this naturally. Both his parents were finance professionals and his father, as Assistant Director of Investment Management for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. “I learned early that fi nance can be proactive,” he smiles. His 2009 budget and priorities for DeKalb County, indeed, put this tenet to the test. Priorities for a New DeKalb A safe DeKalb County is on the CEO’s front burner, a priority taken DEKALB COUNTY continued on page 24 APRIL 2009 www.accg.org 21 http://www.accg.org
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