The Buckhead Coalition announced at its Jan. 23 luncheon that Jonathan Rodbell would be the organization’s new chairperson. He succeeds Eric Tanenblatt.
Rodbell is co-founder and partner of Atlanta Property Group and will serve a two-year term. Tanenblatt, global chair of Public Policy and Regulation at Dentons US, chaired the group from 2023 to 2025.
“I look forward to collaborating with our members who all share a commitment to the well-being of our neighborhoods and Buckhead’s place within the City of Atlanta,” Rodbell said in a prepared statement.
The Buckhead Coalition is an influential, invitation-only group of more than 100 area business and community leaders. Jim Durrett is president and CEO of the organization whose main areas of focus are public safety, planning and zoning, transportation and infrastructure, city services, and people experiencing homelessness.
Its annual luncheon is also invitation-only and attracts many of the city’s top business and civic leaders. More than 100 attended the Jan. 23 event. They included numerous elected officials such as Atlanta City Council members Mary Norwood and Howard Shook, who represent Buckhead; Fulton County Commissioner Chairperson Rob Pitts; State Rep. Betsy Holland, whose district includes Buckhead, and members of the Atlanta Board of Education.
Mayor Andre Dickens was the keynote speaker. He said Buckhead’s crime rates are down double digits from last year. He also said furniture is being moved into the Atlanta Public Safety Center, commonly called “Cop City.”
“We will begin our operations in the next four to six weeks, where we will start actually training people,” he said. “This is a promise made and a promise kept, and we are thankful to get to the finish line of this really important part of Atlanta’s infrastructure.”
Tony Ressler, a Buckhead resident and principal owner of the Atlanta Hawks, discussed his vision and hope for the revitalization of Downtown Atlanta with the massive Centennial Yards development.
