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LaVista Hills YES co-chair resigns after General Assembly approves bill for a cityhood referendum

Annexation and new cities Avondale Estates Decatur Metro ATL

LaVista Hills YES co-chair resigns after General Assembly approves bill for a cityhood referendum

Briarcliff Initiative member Allen Venet left, talks with Lakeside City Alliance Chairwoman Mary Kay Woodworth during a July 2 DeKalb Operations Task Force meeting. The two groups merged and became LaVista Hills YES. File Photo by Dan Whisenhunt
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Briarcliff Initiative member Allen Venet left, talks with Lakeside City Alliance Chairwoman Mary Kay Woodworth during a July 2 DeKalb Operations Task Force meeting. The two groups merged and became LaVista Hills YES. File Photo by Dan Whisenhunt

Briarcliff Initiative member Allen Venet left, talks with Lakeside City Alliance Chairwoman Mary Kay Woodworth during a July 2 DeKalb Operations Task Force meeting. The two groups merged and became LaVista Hills YES. File Photo by Dan Whisenhunt

Mary Kay Woodworth has spent years pursuing the creation of a new city, first as chairperson of the Lakeside City Alliance then as co-chair of LaVista Hills YES.

But following the General Assembly’s recent approval of a bill that would allow for a vote on creating a city of LaVista Hills, Woodworth has stepped down from her leadership role. She says she will still be active in promoting the LaVista Hills cityhood initiative, however.

“I have been involved In the cityhood effort for over three years, with the generous support of my husband and family,” Woodworth said. “Now is a good time to return  that support by refocusing on those that mean the most to me.”

Her co-chair, Allen Venet, will now become the cityhood movement’s primary spokesperson.

“Mary Kay has decided to step away from her leadership role for a very well deserved rest,” he said.

Venet is the former president of the Briarcliff Cityhood Initiative. Competition between the Briarcliff and Lakeside groups, in addition to competition from a proposed city of Tucker, led to the bill’s failure in the 2014 Legislative session. Over the summer, the Briarliff and Lakeside movements merged to become what eventually became known as LaVista Hills YES.

The job was a volunteer effort, Woodworth said. She personally paid the cost of operating the LaVista Hills YES website.

Woodworth is also the Executive Director of the Georgia Urban Agriculture Council, a job she has held since 2011.

“Along with many other committed colleagues, I’ve been honored to be part of the idea for cityhood for this area and have achieved the goal of securing a referendum,” she said. “There are many interested, motivated and willing volunteers, and I leave LaVista Hills YES in the very capable hands of my former co-chair Allen Venet. I strongly support the effort and look forward to helping pass the referendum for cityhood in November, 2015.”

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