Bannister Keeps Promises
Chairman Charles Bannister
By Staff Reports

LAWRENCEVILLE - Three years ago, Gwinnett County was facing tremendous obstacles. Traffic congestion was worse than ever before, crime rates were skyrocketing, we were losing high-paying jobs, and sprawl was consuming the county. Charles Bannister knew that it was time for a change and while he had been very effective in his representation of the county under the Gold Dome, he felt it was time to come home. With the feeling of dedication to the county that he loves, Charles ran for Chairman and promised the people of Gwinnett that he would work to reduce traffic congestion, enhance our police force, end the sprawl consuming our county, and create high-paying jobs.

Four years later, the evidence is undeniable, Bannister has kept his promises. Under his leadership, Gwinnett has seen 500 million local, state and federal dollars directed to over 100 transportation projects aimed at reducing traffic congestion. We have seen the I-85/316 Interchange come to reality faster than anticipated, the addition of accel and decel lanes as well as traffic light synchronization, and the beginning of the first new road in 18 years. The last 3.5 years under Charles Bannister have proven that when a county chairman has long established relationships with decision makers in state government that Gwinnett can get the money to fix its traffic woes.

With regard to public safety, over 300 new police officers AND Sheriff’s Deputies have been added. This wasn’t just a growth in force to keep up with the population. The fact is that when Charles took office there was significantly less than 1 officer per 1000 people, and that has now been remedied to being more than 1 per 1000. “The added manpower has allowed the police to create an anti-gang task force that has led over 300 gang arrests in the first three months of 2008 alone,â€