ARTICLE - Gwinnett County, GA Water towers retired

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By Camie Young
Senior Writer

LAWRENCEVILLE - The water towers that have proclaimed "Gwinnett is great" and "Success lives here" for more than a decade will come down.

Commissioners decommissioned the 35-year-old tanks, along with four other water structures made unnecessary by the upgrade of a pump station in Norcross.

The towers, visible from Interstate 85 near Jimmy Carter Boulevard as drivers enter the county, have boasted Gwinnett's motto for years, but some officials say they aren't sad to see them go.

"Those have been outdated for years," said Jim Maran, president of the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, which began the branding. "We need a fresh image."

Maran said a new marketing ploy is under development.

"There's some nostalgia," Chairman Charles Bannister said. "But it's necessary we reduce our expenses in any way we can and they are no longer necessary."

Commissioner Shirley Lasseter agreed with the reminiscence.

"It's symbolic of where we've come from," she said, referring to the county's growth as a suburb during the 1980s and 1990s, when it was one of the fastest growing counties in the nation.

But Chuck Warbington, who heads the Gwinnett Village Community Improvement District, which includes the Jimmy Carter Boulevard area, said he didn't have an issue with the decommissioning.

"We've moved on from using water towers for economic development," he said.

Along with the four other structures, Water Production Director Neal Spivey said the county would save $100,000 in operating costs each year and other $100,000 in capital costs for maintenance each year.

He said the county will prepare a bid with several options for the tower: a tank manufacturer could buy the tanks and transport them intact, a demolition crew could take the towers down and get the benefit of using the materials for scrap or the county could pay a demolition crew to take them down.

Likely, the towers would remain at least until the fall, he said.

"On one hand, I hate to see those towers go, but on the other hand, removing them will certainly help beautify these areas by eliminating the industrial feel of the big tanks," said Gwinnett Water Resources Acting Director Lynn Smarr. "And, of course, success will continue to live in Gwinnett County."