Buckhead Coalition
| Formation | 1988 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Sam Massell |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Legal status | Active |
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
Region served | Buckhead, Atlanta |
President and CEO | Katharine Kelley |
Key people | Sam Massell (founding president, 1988–2020) Jim Durrett (president, 2020–2026) Jonathan Rodbell (chairman, 2025–present) |
| Website | thebuckheadcoalition |
The Buckhead Coalition is an invitation-only nonprofit organization of business and civic leaders in the Buckhead district of Atlanta, Georgia, founded in 1988 by former Atlanta mayor Sam Massell.[1][2] The organization helped establish the Atlanta Police Foundation in the early 2000s and advocated for the creation of the Buckhead Community Improvement District in 1999.[3] It was one of the leading institutional opponents of the Buckhead cityhood movement of 2021–2022, a proposal to separate Buckhead from the city of Atlanta.[4]
History
[edit]Founding
[edit]The Buckhead Coalition was founded in 1988 as a private nonprofit corporation by about 75 chief executives of Buckhead-based firms, with Massell, who served as Atlanta's mayor from 1970 to 1974, as its founding president.[1][5] The Marietta Daily Journal described the organization as a "chamber-like, invitation-only organization" whose membership had grown to about 100 chief executives by 2019.[2] Massell led the organization for 32 years, until his retirement in 2020, and was informally known in Atlanta as the "Mayor of Buckhead."[1][5]
Under Massell's leadership, the Coalition advocated for the construction of Georgia 400 through Buckhead and for the related extension of MARTA's Red Line.[5] The organization also advocated for the creation of the Buckhead Community Improvement District, a self-taxing commercial property district that was established in 1999 and subsequently spun off as a separate organization.[6]
Atlanta Police Foundation
[edit]In early 2003, the Buckhead Coalition was one of three Atlanta business associations, alongside Central Atlanta Progress and Midtown Alliance, that provided start-up financial and logistical support for the newly created Atlanta Police Foundation, including helping to establish its governing board.[3] Massell, then president of the Buckhead Coalition, was quoted by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at the time saying a police foundation "will make a big difference in Atlanta."[3] The Coalition's public safety efforts have continued in subsequent years through reward programs and coordination with the Atlanta Police Department's Zone 2 precinct, which covers Buckhead.[2]
Leadership transition and alignment with the Buckhead CID
[edit]Following Massell's retirement, the boards of the Buckhead Coalition and the Buckhead Community Improvement District (CID) decided in 2020 to place both organizations under a single executive. Jim Durrett, who had served as executive director of the Buckhead CID since 2009, became president and CEO of the Buckhead Coalition while continuing to lead the CID.[7] The two organizations also moved toward closer coordination with two other Buckhead groups, Livable Buckhead and the Buckhead Business Association.[7]
Buckhead cityhood movement
[edit]Beginning in 2020 and 2021, a group called the Buckhead City Committee, led by Bill White, pushed for legislation that would allow Buckhead to secede from Atlanta and incorporate as a separate city, citing concerns about crime and city services.[4][8] The Buckhead Coalition, along with the Buckhead Community Improvement District, the Buckhead Business Association, and Livable Buckhead, was among the first organizations to publicly oppose the proposal.[9] In August 2021, the cityhood movement's leader sent an open letter to Buckhead Coalition members seeking their support, which The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on directly.[4] The following month, after Durrett criticized the cityhood push at a press conference, White publicly accused the Coalition of "spewing lies and doomsday drivel."[10] The cityhood proposal failed to advance in the Georgia legislature in 2022.[8]
Recent leadership
[edit]Durrett announced his retirement from both the Buckhead Coalition and the Buckhead CID in mid-2025, effective in early 2026, prompting a national search for his successor.[11] In October 2025, the organization announced that Katharine Kelley would succeed Durrett as president and CEO of both the Buckhead Coalition and the Buckhead CID, a transition independently confirmed as complete at the Coalition's January 2026 annual luncheon.[12][13]
Governance
[edit]The Buckhead Coalition is led by a chairman and a president and CEO. Eric Tanenblatt served as chairman from 2023 to 2025, when he was succeeded by Jonathan Rodbell, co-founder of Atlanta Property Group, at the organization's January 2025 annual luncheon.[14] Membership in the Coalition is by invitation only and capped at about 125 members, with annual dues reported to range from $6,000 to $9,000.[13]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "Remembering Mayor Sam Massell". Atlanta History Center. March 16, 2022. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Massell muses on Buckhead crime, development". Marietta Daily Journal. March 1, 2019. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "'The sky is the limit here': Atlanta Police Foundation's early history". Atlanta Community Press Collective. December 12, 2024. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Capelouto, J.D. (August 3, 2021). "Buckhead cityhood movement: Leader looks to members of Buckhead Coalition for support". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Sam Massell, former mayor and Buckhead champion, remembered as visionary leader". Buckhead.com. January 3, 2023. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- ↑ "Position Specification". Buckhead Coalition. 2025. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- 1 2 Saporta, Maria (2020). "Buckhead Coalition will be aligned with other Buckhead groups". SaportaReport. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- 1 2 "The Buckhead cityhood debate is as old as the wealthy area's annexation into Atlanta decades ago". CNN. March 17, 2022. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- ↑ "The rise and fall of the Buckhead cityhood movement: An updated timeline". Buckhead.com. March 10, 2023. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- ↑ Capelouto, J.D. (September 29, 2021). "Buckhead cityhood: Hearings set for bill during special session, Georgia lawmakers say". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- ↑ "Search for Transformational Buckhead Leader Kicks Off as Jim Durrett announces retirement". Buckhead.com. July 22, 2025. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- ↑ "Buckhead Coalition & Buckhead Community Improvement District Name Katharine Kelley as CEO to Guide Buckhead's Growth and Vibrant Future". Buckhead Community Improvement District. October 15, 2025. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- 1 2 "Coalition Chair Rodbell Welcomes New CEO, Members". Atlanta Jewish Times. January 28, 2026. Retrieved June 16, 2026.
- ↑ "Buckhead Leaders Talk Public Safety, Urban Development at Annual Luncheon". Marietta Daily Journal. January 24, 2025. Retrieved June 16, 2026.