About the Cumberland CID
The Cumberland Community Improvement District (CID), Georgia’s first CID, is one of the nation’s premier models of public-private collaboration. More than 190 commercial property owners pay additional voluntary property tax and the CID leverages these funds to advance key projects for increased access, better connectivity, and a more vibrant character throughout the Cumberland area.
Each year, the CID creates more value for the community by initiating and leading enhancements to make Cumberland a more attractive place to operate a business, to work, and to live. Today, Cumberland has a $26.6 billion annual impact on Georgia’s economy. Cumberland is home to major entrainment venues and major companies including the Atlanta Braves, Papa Johns, The Home Depot, Synovus, Comcast, TKE, Cumberland Mall, Genuine Parts Company, and more.
Our History
Throughout the late 1960s and 1970s, metro Atlanta expanded in geography and population, creating suburban commercial nodes. Traffic congestion arose in areas such as around Cumberland Mall in Cobb County due to increasing suburbanization and a newly completed freeway system. The composition of traffic infrastructure posed an issue of accessibility for local businesses trying to attract customers, especially those in the Mall and surrounding area. At the time, property owners relied on business owners’ associations to support needed improvements, but these organizations often did not raise enough funds to either directly fund projects or provide sufficient matching funds for state or federal grants.
In 1982, a Cobb County local developer and prominent property owner, John Williams, began looking for a solution. He collaborated with local commercial property owners and modeled their solution, the CID, on BIDs in Virginia as well as development authorities in Georgia. The CID was designed to be a special purpose, autonomous, governmental entity with the power to self-tax commercial property owners (not including any residential properties) for public improvement projects.
Cumberland CID leadership
Meet the Cumberland CID’s Board of Directors and Staff Leadership. The Cumberland CID is governed by a seven member board.
Governance in Cumberland
The Cumberland CID is broadly known as a special purpose tax district. It was enacted in 1988 and was able to collect commercial property taxes through Cobb County. Three things had to happen first before the Cumberland CID was born. 1) A constitutional amendment. 2) Enabling state legislation. 3) A Cobb County CID Act.
The Cumberland CID, like all Community Improvement Districts (CIDs) in Georgia, was founded upon the basis of Article 9, Section VII of the Georgia Constitution. The voters approved the amendment providing for CIDs in 1984. Georgia Legislature also required local legislation to establish a CID within any jurisdiction including unincorporated Cobb County.
The Cumberland CID was brought into being through the enactment of a resolution by the Cobb County Commission and the consent of the commercial property owners in the Cumberland area. In fact, at least 51% of the property owners representing at least 75% of the property value agreed to have their properties included.
The Cumberland CID is a 6 ½-square-mile area about 10 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta. Located in unincorporated Cobb County, it encircles the intersections of I-75, I-285 and U.S. Highway 4.The CID encompasses the heart of the thriving greater Cumberland submarket. The CID’s boundaries are determined by the consent of the local commercial property owners.
The Cumberland CID operates under seven of the eight allowable purposes of Article 9, Section VII of the Georgia Constitution:
- Street and road construction and maintenance, including curbs, sidewalks, street lights, and devices to control the flow of traffic on streets and roads.
2. Parks and recreational areas and facilities.
3. Storm water and sewage collection and disposal systems.
4. Development, storage, treatment, purification and distribution of water.
5. Public transportation, including, but not limited to, services intended to reduce the volume of automobile traffic, to transport two or more persons, to improve air quality, and to provide bicycle and pedestrian facilities and the operation of a Traffic Management Association or similar entity.
6. Terminal and dock facilities and parking facilities.
7. Planning, development, and improvement consistent with Cobb County’s coordinated and comprehensive planning
The Cumberland CID board raises funds by setting an ad valorem millage rate on real property, specifically excluding property used residentially. The Cumberland CID has set the millage rate at five mills, which is the maximum set by the Cobb County CID Act. The millage rate is placed upon the regular tax bills sent by the Tax Commissioner, who transmits the collected taxes to the CID Board for expenditure in accordance with the purposes of the District.
Our Partners
The Cumberland CID is proud to work with various Federal agencies, State of Georgia, and Cobb County government to improve the Cumberland area. We are honored to call the following agencies and officials our partners in the development of the Cumberland community.
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