Tibby DeJulio

With overwhelming gratitude, and a touch of sadness, the High Point Civic Association wishes a very Happy Retirement to Sandy Springs’ longest-tenured employee, Tibby DeJulio.

 

Tibby’s contribution to High Point and Sandy Springs has set an impressively high bar for those who follow.  His involvement spans 38 years, with first, the creation of Sandy Springs, and subsequently the governing.

 

By now, you know the Sandy Springs Cinderella story - the long, hard, uphill battle to give residents a right to vote on incorporation, and the unheard-of results - a whopping 93% majority voting Yes.

 

Tibby’s role as a founding member goes back to 1985, when he and his young family moved to High Point. By 1987, he had joined recently-formed HPCA’s board and was involved in the opposition of an apartment development on High Point Road. Through these community efforts, he met nearby neighbor Eva Galambos and his life would be forever changed. Tibby and Eva quickly became united in efforts to protect our neighborhoods by creating our own city. Over the years, many were involved in the cause, but Tibby and Eva were consistently at it’s forefront. 

 

Together they were a true dream team, with shared passions and complimentary skills. Tibby brought financial know-how, and Eva’s superpower was her unrelenting determination. While creating Sandy Springs’ blueprint, they realized a shared disdain for bureaucracy, as well as tight-fisted budgeting goals.

 

In 2005, Tibby won his first bid for city council, and was re-elected to 4 more terms, representing District 5 for an astonishing 20 years. He also served as Mayor Pro Tem for the first 8 years of cityhood.

 

He has always supported the strength of neighborhoods, by protecting both their physical nature to foster family and community well-being, and also by protecting residents from harm with top-notch public safety departments.

 

He has voted against large multi-unit developments in order to preserve single family residences. He gives top priority to public safety issues by providing, among other things, regular pay raises for first responders to ensure the very best police and fire departments. 

 

Sandy Springs Police Department now has a waiting list of applicants who want to join, and our Fire Department boasts the highest possible rating of the Insurance Service Office (ISO), putting them in the top ONE PERCENT of nationwide departments.

 

He’s been a fierce proponent of a balanced budget - “we live within our means”.  Key to this effort, the city charter mandates a reserve of 25% of its budget for emergencies (ie natural disasters).

 

He was also instrumental in changing the landscape of adult entertainment in our new city. He formed the committee which changed liquor service hours from 4 am closing time to 2 am (city of Atlanta closed at 2:30 am). More difficult, but ultimately successful after 12 years, was separating liquor licenses from adult entertainment, thus allowing the city to eliminate alcohol from the equation, making these establishments a much less desirable destination.

 

Somewhat ironically, the city has recently purchased the land of a former strip club to build a new fire station for District 5!! 

 

When asked if he thought the City of Sandy Springs had met his expectations, his reply? “It’s not only met, but far exceeded, above and  beyond, anything we ever dreamed of.”

 

It’s almost a fairy-tale ending for this civil servant’s long, productive career.