More than 400 people filled the Cherokee Conference Center on Wednesday to hear county leaders address a familiar tension: how to keep growing without losing what makes the north Atlanta suburb attractive in the first place.
Commission Chairman Harry Johnston used his eighth annual State of the County address to argue that managing Cherokee’s expansion requires cooperation between county government, its six cities, school officials, and business leaders. The county’s population stands just under 300,000 and grows about 2% annually.
“There are people that we need to be part of our community and part of our economy that are struggling to live here,” Johnston said. “And we aggravate this problem a little bit with our slow growth policies.”
Johnston acknowledged he doesn’t have solutions yet to the county’s housing affordability challenges, but said officials are committed to finding answers that balance growth with quality of life.
The chairman noted that voters approved a six-year, 1% sales tax, expected to generate $445 million for transportation projects. The tax takes effect in April, more than doubling the county’s road improvement budget, with construction starting in June.
“Hallelujah and thank the voters of Cherokee County,” Johnston said.
School performance and workforce development
Cherokee County School District Superintendent Dr. Mary Elizabeth Davis opened the program by highlighting the district’s 8th-place ranking among Georgia’s 180 school districts in the state’s College and Career Readiness Performance Indicator.
The district serves 42,000 students with 3,000 teachers and offers 44 career pathways. Roughly one-third of high school graduates complete career pathways or earn industry certifications before graduation.
Davis credited the school board’s focus on student outcomes and noted the district filled 99.9% of teaching positions at the start of this school year, well above the regional average of 70-80%.
“It’s not just the best place to live, work, and play,” Davis said. “It’s also the best place to learn.”
Heath Tippens, president of the Cherokee Office of Economic Development, delivered his first address in the role. He announced a $25 million corporate expansion, creating 70 jobs, and highlighted the Be Pro Be Proud career exploration program, which reached 4,489 Cherokee students in 2025.
Tippens emphasized workforce development and entrepreneurship, noting that Startup Cherokee impacted more than 1,000 entrepreneurs last year. The county continues investing in industrial site development at Canton Corporate Park and The Bluffs, along with expanded sewer infrastructure.
“The job market is evolving, and families feel that shift every day,” Tippens said. “That’s why our work to connect talent to opportunity matters now more than ever.”
Johnston closed by emphasizing shared responsibility for the county’s trajectory, saying “the people who care about our county have built a county worthy of its people.”
The annual address was hosted by the Council for Quality Growth, Cherokee County Government, and Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce.
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