Recommendations / Civic Engagement / Big Idea #3: Hub Cities Strong

Big Idea #3: Hub Cities Strong

Part of the "ATHENS REGIONAL COALITION" initiative

Civic EngagementAthens-ClarkUnder $250,000

Overview

Establish Hub Cities Strong, a multi-tiered regional collaboration governance framework that positions Athens-Clarke County as the primary pilot engine for inter-municipal resource synchronization across Georgia’s thirteen Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) centers. The initiative simultaneously deploys local, regional, and statewide service-sharing solutions: (1) Local Level: builds a centralized, user-friendly digital Community Resource Guide and a Mobile City Hall vehicle fleet to route vital services directly to high-need neighborhoods; (2) Regional Level: creates a Regional Impact Index dashboard using Placer.ai data and sets up a cross-sector Athens Hub Task Force; and (3) Statewide Level: organizes the formal Georgia Hub Cities Coalition in partnership with GMA to build an intergovernmental Policy Lab for shared-service agreements, behavioral health diversion tactics, and GIS tracking templates.

Action plan

Short-term
(Short Term Goals/Action Items Year 1 - Strategy & Local Pilots): Establish the cross-sector Athens Hub Task Force and schedule the first organizational session within 90 days; contract an in-house graduate student intern team to compile, design, and index the comprehensive digital Community Resource Guide; procure and customize the first Mobile City Hall pilot vehicle; launch an interactive online dashboard mapping foundational service entry points across high-need commission districts.
Medium-term
(Medium Term Goals/Action Items 6-24 Months - Regional Sync): Partner with the Carl Vinson Institute, Georgia Municipal Association (GMA), and regional commissions to deploy the shared GIS Open Data Portal; deploy the Mobile City Hall fleet live across underserved sectors to manage neighborhood-level housing support, ID routing, and utility assistance; integrate automated Placer.ai data feeds to track out-of-county user draws and launch the Regional Impact Index.
Long-term
(Long Term Goals/Action Items 2-3 Years & Beyond - Statewide Scaling): Formally convene the annual Georgia Hub Cities Coalition Summit to draft standardized, cross-jurisdictional service agreements; scale up behavioral health walk-in stabilization and mobile crisis response prototypes modeled after National League of Cities "Cities of Opportunity" guidelines; secure long-term capital backing through state legislative appropriations and federal infrastructure grants to anchor the network.

Expected impact

Projected Community EventsCommunity

Total annualized headcount of Mobile City Hall pop-up service deployment operations executed across high-need commission districts.

Timeframe: Short-term
Projected Participation RateCommunity

Minimum baseline household data tracking sample size achieved via Mobile City Hall engagement to gauge service satisfaction values.

Timeframe: Short-term
Projected FundingEconomic

Combined short-term implementation capital value secured across guide production, index setups, data portals, and staff lines.

Timeframe: Short-term
Projected Partner OrganizationsEconomic

Percentage of active outreach representation maintained across core housing, health, and workforce task force sectors.

Timeframe: Medium-term

Key stakeholders

Georgia Municipal Association (GMA)Athens Area Community Foundation (AACF)ACCGov Unified GovernmentGeorgia Association of Regional Commissions (GARC)UGA (Carl Vinson Institute & School of Social Work)Georgia Peer MSA Hub Cities (Macon, Rome, Columbus, etc.)

Estimated budget

$10k - $100k annually$205,000 Total Initial Capitalization and Implementation Budget Baseline (Annualized Operations). • Local Strategy Deployment ($20,000 direct subtotal): Includes $10,000 for the production of the physical/digital Community Resource Guide, and $10,000 annually for Mobile City Hall fleet operations, neighborhood outreach pop-ups, and baseline logistics. • Regional Strategy Analytics ($25,000 direct subtotal): Allocates $25,000 annually for the development, maintenance, and software licensing fees of the Regional Impact Index dashboard (incorporating Placer.ai and Athens Wellbeing Project data models). • Statewide Strategy & Data Platform ($150,000 direct subtotal): Includes $100,000 annually for the core staffing, administrative management, and advisory support of the Georgia Hub Cities Coalition network, alongside $50,000 for the construction and hosting of the shared GIS Open Data Portal.