City Staffing

Over the past four years, city staff turnover has ranged between 11% and 18%, with a much lower 7% turnover so far in 2025. Thanks to the initiatives we launched in 2022 and 2023, both our fire and police departments are now fully staffed for the first time in years, with exceptionally low turnover rates.

While we cannot discuss individual personnel matters, what we can say is clear: the City Council holds management to high standards, and we expect all employees to be accountable to the community they serve. Building a strong team sometimes requires making difficult decisions to ensure that only the best and most committed talent is in place.

Since taking office in 2022, my focus has been on creating a high-performing organization. Today, I believe we are exactly where we need to be—staffed with the right people to deliver the very best for Johns Creek.

A Well-Planned Tunnel

In 2021, the City of Johns Creek adopted the Town Center Vision and Plan, developed by a task force of residents and industry experts. This award-winning plan highlights safe pedestrian and bicycle connectivity as a key priority—and it calls specifically for this tunnel:

“The existing Johns Creek Greenway connects the plan area to the south along Medlock Bridge Road. Proposed tunnels would connect the existing multi-use path directly to the Town Center core.”

This tunnel is not a “tunnel to nowhere.” It is a vital connection to the Johns Creek Greenway, which already links to both local shops and national retailers. It ensures that residents of Hearthside, Ashwood Meadows, and Johns Creek Walk have safe, walkable access to the Town Center.

By tying the Town Center directly to the Greenway and nearby neighborhoods, the tunnel strengthens connectivity, boosts local businesses, and improves safety.

This is smart planning in action—building the future we envisioned together.

Police Staffing 

Our commitment to safety is clear: Johns Creek now has more officers per capita than ever before, protecting our families, neighborhoods, and businesses.
Nationally, police departments have faced significant recruitment and retention challenges since 2020. When I took office in 2022, Johns Creek was experiencing a similar deficit of officers. We implemented targeted measures—and the results speak for themselves.

•    Sign-on bonuses for new officers (Summer 2022)
•    Classification and compensation study (2023), leading to competitive pay increases
•    Retention bonuses for milestone years of service (late 2023)

These initiatives helped reduce police turnover from around 20% in 2022–2023 to just 5% in 2024, well below the national average. They also enabled us to successfully recruit new officers, filling all five new positions in the 2025 budget.

Today, our Public Safety departments are fully staffed, well-supported, and prepared. Thanks to these efforts, Johns Creek continues to be the safest city in the country, with strong retention, successful recruitment, and excellent emergency response.

Public Safety

Since 2022, we have increased funding for Public Safety by 36%, with roughly half of the city budget dedicated to keeping our community safe. We are building a new Fire Station and Police Substation in the Newtown area and continue to invest in personnel, training, equipment, and vehicle replacement through our well-funded accrual program.

Our police and fire departments are fully staffed, a rare achievement as many areas nationwide struggle with recruitment and retention. These efforts have improved turnover rates in 2024 and 2025, keeping them below national averages.

Thanks to these investments, Johns Creek continues to be recognized as one of the safest cities in the country, with excellent response times for both police and fire services.

We are committed to maintaining a strong, well-supported public safety team that keeps our neighborhoods protected and our community thriving.