{"id":7371,"date":"2019-06-14T13:10:43","date_gmt":"2019-06-14T17:10:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/?p=7371"},"modified":"2023-02-15T10:47:16","modified_gmt":"2023-02-15T15:47:16","slug":"statesboro-mayor-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/2019\/06\/14\/statesboro-mayor-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"Revitalizing Statesboro – Double Eagle Mayor Leads Community to New Era"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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It\u2019s an exciting time to be mayor of Statesboro, Georgia.\nMayor Jonathan McCollar (\u201903, \u201907) is busy with his \u201cday job\u201d as assistant\ndirector of the Liberty Campus plus his many mayoral duties. But he doesn\u2019t\nmind all the work. Being at the helm for some of that largest development\nprojects in Statesboro\u2019s history is rewarding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt’s been amazing, just amazing,\u201d said\nMcCollar. \u201cThe future of Statesboro is great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Creek on the Blue Mile, announced to much\nfanfare last December, is one such project. The development aims to revitalize\nabout 36-acres in downtown Statesboro by turning a storm water drainage canal\ninto a beautiful riverwalk-type area with new commercial and residential\nproperties. The project helps frame the Blue Mile, the city\u2019s historic corridor\nto downtown from Georgia Southern University.
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\u201cTo be honest with you, the potential that\nthis area has, and the impact it has on this community is phenomenal,\u201d said\nMcCollar. \u201cIt’s breathtaking when you really think about it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the speed at which the development is\nprogressing is fast, thanks to a collaboration with Georgia Southern and many\ninvolved community leaders and their organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe went from taking a project from something that was going\nto happen years down the line, to a project that’s\nready to go almost immediately,\u201d said\nMcCollar. \u201cAnd we would not have been\nable to do that if not for the resources and connections we got from working\ncollaboratively with Georgia\nSouthern.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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True Blue<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A Statesboro native, McCollar is true blue through and\nthrough. With a bachelor\u2019s degree in history and a master\u2019s in public\nadministration, the University has been an important part of most of his life.\nHis wife Adrianne also works at Georgia Southern. They have five children ages 10\u201317.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

McCollar commutes an hour each way to his job\nin Hinesville. But due to his flextime work arrangements with the University,\nhe can be at the mayor\u2019s office two afternoons a week. And thanks to hands-free\ntechnology, he\u2019s able to stay abreast of city matters on his drive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI’m able to do meetings via my phone. Able to answer emails quickly. I have all of my phone calls that go to my desk at City Hall forwarded to my phone. So when a citizen calls, I’m the one that’s often picking up the phone. And they’re usually shocked,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Inspired by Georgia Southern<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

McCollar attributes his venture into politics to Georgia Southern. The mayor was inspired by Saba Jallow, Ph.D., associate professor of political science and international studies, a professor who had a major impact on him. Through Jallow, McCollar became involved with the Model African Union, a vehicle for University students to study the organization and performance of the African Union through a simulation of the body and briefings at African Embassies in Washington, D.C.
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\u201cWhat he introduced me to was public policy,\u201d said McCollar. \u201cAnd one of\nthe  lessons that Dr. Jallow taught me was, if you’re going to get involved with public policy,\nmake sure you have an understanding of what it looks\nlike when it meets the common person. And from that point on I came to believe\nthat through good public policy you can\nchange the lives of people and create a high quality of life for individuals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the short time he\u2019s been mayor, McCollar has already been implementing changes to public policy. Some of those policies include the youth development commission known as SCYN (Statesboro Community Youth Network), a workforce development commission named Statesboro Works, and the One Boro Initiative, a diversity and inclusion commission. But he is insistent these accomplishments are the fruits of collaboration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOn day one, we immediately hit the ground\nrunning,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I say \u2018we\u2019 because it’s a team effort. I didn’t get\nhere by myself. The policies that were created were done in a collaborative\neffort.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Pebbles in the\nLake: Creek on the Blue Mile, the West District and Tormenta Stadium Projects<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The collaboration that is spawning the Creek on the Blue Mile is just one cog in\nthe larger development wheel for Statesboro. Other projects include the West District, just off the Blue Mile in downtown, and the Tormenta FC soccer stadium, which includes\nplans for a major grocery store, retail spaces and hotel. These new projects combined aim to create over 750 jobs and expand the tax base by\nmore than $250 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat we were looking for was that pebble to\nthrow into the lake to create this economic wake across the community,\u201d said\nMcCollar. \u201cWell, Statesboro was fortunate enough not just to get one pebble,\nbut got three. And we got these three pebbles in a 12-month time period.\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

McCollar feels that the future of Statesboro\nis great, and it’s even better with collaboration from community organizations\nand Georgia Southern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI’m extremely excited because we want to create an environment where collaborative efforts go to create a better community overall. These are the types of things that Georgia Southern and their staff are extremely key in. And that’s the message that we want to send, that we are a progressive community that’s looking to put good people to work, and we are inviting great organizations to come and help us do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked if Georgia Southern had a big\nimpact on what he\u2019s been able to achieve so far, McCollar is certain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf it was not for me meeting Dr. Jallow and having the opportunity to attend an event in D.C. where I saw policymakers trying to address real-life issues, I don’t think I would have ever been interested in running for public office,\u201d he said. \u201cGeorgia Southern played a key role in where I am today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2013 Liz Walker<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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