Mark Gresham | 30 OCT 2025
When voters in Johns Creek, Georgia, head to the polls this coming Tuesday, November 4, 2025, they’ll decide on a $40 million bond to build a new Performing Arts Center in the city’s developing Town Center. While the measure is local, its impact could extend well beyond city limits. In metro Atlanta, where suburban growth often outpaces cultural infrastructure, the proposed center represents a step toward a more balanced, regionally connected arts ecosystem. The project offers a rare chance to align civic development with cultural investment, filling a gap that many suburban communities in the region have long struggled to address.
For years, Johns Creek has been a community with strong cultural ambitions but without a major dedicated venue. The proposed 800-seat center would provide a permanent home for the Johns Creek Symphony Orchestra, youth theater, dance troupes, and civic gatherings that now scatter across improvised spaces like school auditoriums. With flexible acoustics and multipurpose design, it is envisioned not as a luxury facility but as a community engine—one that could help anchor the city’s Town Center alongside mixed-use developments such as Medley and The Boardwalk. By combining performance spaces, rehearsal rooms, and civic areas, the PAC promises to meet both artistic and community needs.
The financial structure is measured: $40 million from the bond, with additional funding from reserves and low-interest financing, amounts to roughly $80 per year for the median homeowner. For that investment, Johns Creek gains not only a performance venue but a focal point for civic identity and local enterprise. The model is far from untested—Sandy Springs demonstrated the potential of such an investment with the Byers Theatre at City Springs, which has become both a cultural hub and an economic driver since opening in 2017. The parallels are clear: similar size, similar cost, and the same vision of integrating art, commerce, and community life.
Skeptics may note that the Atlanta region already boasts venues like Spivey Hall, the Rialto Center, and Emory’s Schwartz Center. Yet each serves a distinct purpose—academic, institutional, or urban—and few offer the accessibility or suburban convenience that Johns Creek’s center would provide. In a region where arts institutions often cluster downtown, the PAC’s northern location fills a geographic and cultural gap, offering a professional-grade venue closer to where thousands of families actually live. This accessibility ensures that arts programming reaches a broader, more diverse audience, rather than remaining the province of urban cores or academic institutions.
More broadly, the project signals a shift in how cities like Johns Creek—and, indeed, all of metro Atlanta—define growth. Cultural infrastructure has often lagged behind population expansion in suburban corridors, leaving residents to drive significant distances for professional arts experiences. The Johns Creek initiative could mark a turning point: a recognition that great cities are built not on commerce alone but on places where people gather to experience art, exchange ideas, and create shared identity.
Of course, questions of fiscal prudence and long-term sustainability are fair. Theaters rarely pay for themselves on ticket revenue alone. But the returns on civic pride, local business vitality, and regional reputation are substantial. If handled transparently and managed with foresight, the Johns Creek Performing Arts Center could become not just a local amenity but a model for suburban cultural investment across Georgia. Ultimately, the decision rests with Johns Creek voters, but the rest of metro Atlanta should watch closely. A “yes” vote on November 4 would affirm that the region values the arts not as an afterthought, but as an essential component of thriving, connected communities. ■
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- John’s Creek Performing Arts Center bond referendum (official city government page): johnscreekga.gov/performing-arts-center-bond-referendum/
Read more by Mark Gresham.
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