Tucker

Tucker is a city in DeKalb County, Georgia, located near Atlanta. It was originally settled in the 1820s, and later developed as a railroad community in 1892. In a November 2015 referendum, voters approved incorporating Tucker into a city. In March 2016, Tucker residents elected the city's first mayor and city council. It has a population of 35,322, according to the 2016 U.S. Census Bureau annual estimate of resident population. The city is located at 1117 feet above sea level, at the highest point of the railroad line between Atlanta and Richmond, Virginia, on the Georgia-Virginia border. It is home to the University of Georgia, Emory University, and the Emory College of Pharmacy and Dentistry. The town's name is derived from the name of a local family with the surname Tucker, which is believed to have been in use in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The first train steamed into the new Tucker station on Sunday, April 24, 1892, with a four-hour trip carrying 150 passengers and a baggage car. In 1983 the line became Seaboard System and merged with the Chesapeake & Ohio, Baltimore & Ohio and the Western Maryland in 1986 Chessie System to form current operator, CSXT. Although no longer a train stop for passengers, the Tucker depot is currently a field office for a field field maintenance, track repair and track repair service for the CSX railroad line. The area that would become Tucker was in Militia District 572 in Henry County in 1822.

History

The 1821 Georgia Land Lottery opened portions of state land for settlement between the Flint and Ocmulgee rivers. The Muscogee (Creek) Nation ceded the land to the United States in January of that year. Tucker, at 1,117 feet (340 m) feet above sea level, is the highest point of elevation on the railroad line between Atlanta and Richmond, Virginia. Among the thirty cemeteries within a 4-mile (6 km) radius of Main Street, approximately 30 graves belong to individuals born in the 18th century. DeKalb County delegates voting against secession from the United. States, Georgia joined the Confederacy and seceded from the Union in 1861. Union soldiers camped at Henderson's Mill, used the Brownings Court, one of the few buildings in the area they did not burn, dismantled the railroad to Stone Mountain, and formed the left wing of Sherman's advance to Atlanta. The first train steamed into the new Tucker station on Sunday, April 24, 1892. The Seaboard Air Line Railroad system, a collection of regional railroads headquartered in North Carolina eager to extend its reach to Atlanta, leased the road to the Georgia, Carolina and Northern Railway in 1886. On Saturday, July 1, 1967, the Seab boards merged with the Atlantic Coast Line to form Seab Board Coast Line Railroad. In 1983 The line became Seab board System and merged with Chesapeake & Ohio, Baltimore & Ohio and the Western Maryland in 1986 Chessie System to form current railroad operator, CSXT.

Geography

Tucker is located in northeastern DeKalb County at 33°516N 84°1317W (33.851736, -84.221524), approximately 15 miles (24 km) northeast of downtown Atlanta. The Eastern Continental Divide cuts through Tucker, along Chamblee-Tucker Road to LaVista Road and continuing south towards Mountain Industrial Boulevard. Tucker is in the state's Piedmont geologic region, composed of igneous and metamorphic rocks resulting from 300 to 600 million year old sediments. Rocks typical of the region include schist, amphibolite, gneiss, migmatite, and granite. Over a dozen creeks originate in Tucker including Burnt Fork Creek, South Fork Peachtree Creek, Camp Creek, and Henderson Mill Creek. From 1906 until its demise in the 1940s, Burnt Fort Creek was the primary tributary for the Decatur Waterworks. Tucker's climate, typical of a humid subtropical climate, features mild winters and hot summers. The record high is 110 °F (43 °C), recorded on July 8, 1927, and the record low, January 21, 1985, 10°F (23 °C). Tucker has occasional extreme weather, in spite of moderate conditions compared to communities in many other states, Tucker has occasionally extreme weather. The town has a population of 2,816. It is located on the Georgia Turnpike, which runs from Atlanta to Cobb County.

Transportation

MARTA, the Metro Atlanta Rapid Trans Authority, has six daily bus routes traversing Tucker. Tucker is located on Interstate 285, Interstate 85, U.S. Route 29, State Route 8, and State Route 407. Tucker also has a number of state routes and state routes for pedestrians and cycling. The city is home to the Atlanta Children's Museum of Art and Science, a museum dedicated to the history of art and science in Atlanta. The museum is located at 75 Tucker, 120 E. Ponce de Leon Ave/Tucker, 124 Pleasantdale Road, 125 Clarkston/Northlake, and 126 Northlake/Chamblee.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 37,005 people, 14,479 households, and 8,753 families residing in the city. As of 2012, the median income per household was $64,388, and the per capita income was $33,552. 11.4% of the population is below the poverty line, 5.6% lower that the state average. The home ownership rate is 70.7% and the median value of owner occupied housing units, $233,700. Multi-unit structures (apartment complexes, condominiums) represent 22% of all housing. According to the 2010 census, the Tucker Census-designated place (CDP) had a population of 27,581. The racial and ethnic composition of the CDP was as follows: White : 63.0% (Non-Hispanic Whites: 57.8%) Black or African American : 22.3%Hispanic or Latino (of any race): 10.6%. American Indian or Alaska Native: 0.4%. Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander : 0.1%.Multiracial : 2.7%. The city is located in the U.S. state of Georgia. The city's ZIP code is 6054. It is located on the Georgia Turnpike, which connects to Interstate 435 and I-20. It has an estimated population of 37,000, including 14,000 people living in the Tucker CDP, and 14,500 people in the surrounding areas.

Culture and contemporary life

Tucker consists of 1960s and 1970s-era ranch and split-level homes. Various neighborhoods are typically groups by geographic association with elementary schools and other centers of community life such as parks. Several churches including Rehoboth Baptist, established in 1854, and First Baptist of Tucker, established in 1893, maintain large youth athletic programs. The Farmers Market on Main Street has recently moved from its position in Downtown Tucker, to a venue just outside Downtown at a church on LaVista Rd. The weekly 42-mile (68 km) Tucker Ride and Baby Tucker is where the big boys and racers show up to play. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints built a regional welfare and emergency response center in Royal Atlanta Business Park in the 1970s. Tucker is home to multiple Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, Pentecostal, and Presbyterian churches; Catholic, Mormon, and over a dozen non-denomination Christian churches, some holding services in Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese. The Tucker High School varsity football team, the Tucker Tigers, is a large seasonal draw for former and current Tucker alumni and residents. TFL and Triumph Youth Soccer Association (TYSA) are the two largest independent youth sports organizations in the community. The TFL holds games and practices at the privately owned Fitzgerald Field. TYSA is the largest in DeKalb County, and the fourth largest youth soccer association in Georgia. The annual Tucker Cruise-In is held monthly between April and September.

Economy

Tucker serves as corporate headquarters for several nationally recognized companies including; Oglethorpe Power, YP Holdings, Primo Grills and Smokers, and Inland Seafood. Tucker is also home to the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association the Emory University Orthopaedics and Spine Hospital, the Montreal Industrial district, and Royal Atlanta Business Park. In August 2014 the Tucker CID changed its name to Tucker-Northlake CID to reflect expansion into the Northlake business district. In February 2013, DeKalb County Board of Commissioners approved the formation of the Tucker Community Improvement District (CID) The CID funds may be used for street and road construction and maintenance, parks and recreation area, public transportation, and other services. CID investments are often leveraged through state and local grants increasing return on investment.Commercial property owners in both districts vote on a self-imposed millage rate increase and use the funds for community improvements. The tax and millage rates increase applies to commercial property only and not residential. The Tucker CDP had 3,709 businesses, and the ethnic composition of the owners was as follows: 18% black or African -owned, 10.3% Asian-owned, 4% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander-owned and 4.7% Hispanic/Hispanics (of any race) Women were 28.8% of theOwners of Tucker businesses in 2007. Tucker has a population of 3,715.

Government

In a November 2015 referendum, 74% of voters approved incorporating Tucker into a city. In March 2016, residents elected Frank Auman the city's first mayor, and Honey VanDeKreke, Matt Robbins, Michelle Penkava, William Rosenfield, Noelle Monferdini, and Anne Lerner its inaugural city council. Tucker is in Georgia's 4th and 6th Congressional Districts; Georgia State Senate Districts 40 and 41; and Georgia House of Representatives House Districts 81, 86, 87, and 88. It is also in DeKalb County Commission Districts 1 and 4 and Super Commission District 7. It has a population of about 2,000. The city is located on Georgia's Gulf Coast. It was incorporated as a city in November 2015, and became a city on March 1, 2016. It's located on the Georgia Gulf Coast, near the state's southern border with Florida and South Carolina. Its population is about 1,200, and it is in De Kalb County, Georgia, which is in the southern part of the state. It also has a small portion of the Atlanta metropolitan area, in the south-central part of Georgia. Tucker's population is less than 1,000, and the city is in a county that is home to more than 3,000 people. The town's population has grown to 2,200. It had a population in 2010, and in 2012, it had a total of 2,100. It now has a total population of 3,100, and has a growth rate of 1.7%.

Education

In the Tucker CDP, 91.4% of adults have graduated high school, 7% higher than the state average, and 46.8% have a bachelor's degree or higher. All public schools in Tucker operate under the jurisdiction of the DeKalb County School District. The Sam A. Moss Service Center is also located in Tucker. In Tucker, the average age of a resident is 25.5 years old. The average household income is $50,000. The median household income in Tucker is $60,000, and the average household wealth is $80,000 in Tucker. Tucker has a population of 2,816. Tucker is located in Georgia's Cobb County, and is part of the Cobb County Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes parts of Cobb, Cobb, and Gwinnett counties. Tucker's population is 2,716. It has a median age of 25.0 years old, which is 2.7 years older than the statewide average. It is also the largest CDP in the state with a total population of 3,715. Tucker also has a high school population of 1,814. It also has an elementary school population (1,813) and a middle school (2,722). Tucker is home to the De Kalb County High School, which was built in the 1950s. The school district also operates the Meadowcreek High School and the Parkview High School. The town has a number of charter schools, including the Smoke Rise Charter Charter Elementary School.

Infrastructure

Tucker is home to over 230 acres (93 ha) of DeKalb County parks and recreation areas. The Tucker-Reid H. Cofer Library, and the Northlake-Barbara Loar Library operate two branches in Tucker. In 2005, the Atlanta Regional Commission issued Tucker a grant for the development of a Livable Cities Initiative (LCI) In 2010, the library moved to a 25,000 square foot facility at the intersection of LaVista Road and Lawrenceville Highway. The new facility received LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The portion of Tucker in Gwinnett County is serviced by police, fire, and rescue departments in the Gwinnet Police Department, North and South Precincts, and Station 2 on Harmony Grove Road. In 2008 the De Kalb County Board of Commissioners approved the Tucker Overlay District enabling local business to improve the downtown area. In 2010 the county built a second library on LaVistas Road in Tucker, the North Lake Barbara-Loar community branch, approximately 3.4 miles west of the Tucker- reid H Cofer branch. In 2009 the library expanded from 10,000 sq ft to 15,000sq ft. The library received LEed Gold certification in 2010 for its new facility. The county built another library in Tucker in 2011, the Tucker Cofer Branch, which opened on Church Street in 1965. In 2012 the county added a library branch in Tucker-reid Cofer, located on the corner of Church Street and Cofer Crossing Road.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Tucker, DeKalb County, Georgia = 6.9. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 31. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 89. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Tucker = 5.2 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 37,005 individuals with a median age of 43.1 age the population grows by 3.13% in Tucker, DeKalb County, Georgia population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 1,831.57 residents per square mile of area (707.16/km²). There are average 2.51 people per household in the 10,777 households with an average household income of $65,178 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 10.50% of the available work force and has dropped -6.39% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 16.72%. The number of physicians in Tucker per 100,000 population = 284.2.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Tucker = 53.3 inches and the annual snowfall = 1.4 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 108. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 217. 87 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 27.9 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 34, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Tucker, DeKalb County, Georgia which are owned by the occupant = 70.42%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 35 years with median home cost = $159,390 and home appreciation of -8.29%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $8.13 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $7,198 per student. There are 13.1 students for each teacher in the school, 380 students for each Librarian and 324 students for each Counselor. 6.07% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 24.87% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 16.39% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).