Peachtree Corners, Georgia

Peachtree Corners is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area, and is the largest city in Gwinnett County with a population of 42,243 as of the 2020 US Census. Peachtree Corners is the only Atlanta northern suburb developed as a planned community. The city is bordered to the north and west by the Chattahoochee River and is located east of Dunwoody.

Prior to 1818, the western corner of what became Gwinnett County was Creek and Cherokee territory, and it was illegal for white families to settle there.

For the next century, the area remained a rural farming community. In the late 1960s, Paul Duke developed the idea of creating Peachtree Corners, a planned community to be constructed in the area that was once known as Pinckneyville. As a member of the Georgia Tech National Advisory Board, he raised $1.7 million to develop the business center. Initial residents of the technology park included GE, Scientific Atlanta (now part of Cisco Systems), and Hayes Microcomputer Products. In 1968, Duke established Peachtree Corners, Inc., a development corporation for the residential parts of the community. During the 1970s, Jim Cowart began to develop the neighborhoods that Duke had planned. Initial neighborhoods developed by Cowart included Peachtree Station,

The United Peachtree Corners Civic Association (UPCCA), an umbrella group of neighborhood homeowners' associations, was formed in 1993 in response to land use and development concerns in the area. Despite the efforts of the UPCCA, some development opposed by the UPCCA continued in Peachtree Corners throughout the 1990s; therefore, in 1999, the idea of incorporating Peachtree Corners was first proposed. Nonetheless, due to the complexity of existing law, an incorporation movement did not then materialize. In 2010 the UPCCA again pursued the incorporation of Peachtree Corners after a failed attempt by the city of Norcross to annex a portion of Technology Park Atlanta. In a referendum held on November 8, 2011, residents of Peachtree Corners voted to incorporate as Gwinnett County's 16th city, and, with a population of 43,059, it became the county's largest. Municipal operations began on July 1, 2012.

Peachtree Corners is located in the western corner of Gwinnett County, 21 miles (33 km) from downtown Atlanta. Seven miles of the Chattahoochee River define the northern and western border of Peachtree Corners, and it is bordered by the cities of Dunwoody, Doraville, and Sandy Springs (DeKalb and Fulton counties) on the west, Buford Highway and Norcross city limits on the south, Roswell and Johns Creek (both in Fulton County) across the Chattahoochee River on the north, and the city limits of Berkeley Lake and Duluth on the east.

+Peachtree Corners racial compositionRaceNum. Perc. White (non Hispanic)18,98144.93%Black or African American (non Hispanic)9,55722.62%Native American720.17%Asian3,9289.3%Pacific Islander150.04%Other/Mixed2,0294.8%Hispanic or Latino7,66118.14%
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 42,243 people, 16,905 households, and 10,668 families residing in the city. The median household income (in 2019 dollars) was $71,149, and the per capita income was $43,783.

Since Peachtree Corners was not a city or a census designated place at the time, no demographic data is available for the city from the 2010 U. S. Census. However, the city contains ZIP code 30092, which in 2017 had an average adjusted gross income (AGI) of $69,905 per household. The median home price in 2017 for Peachtree Corners was $325,000. As of 2017, Peachtree Corners was 60.2% White American, 23.3% African American, 9.6% Asian American, and 2.5% two or more races. Hispanic Americans of any race made up 14% of the population. Those living in the same house more than one year were 86.9% of the population, an average of 2.62 persons lived in each household, of the population 94.1% had a high school diploma or higher, 52.6% had a Bachelor's degree or higher with 19% of the population having a Master's degree or higher, and, not counting library or school supplied computers, 96.5% of the population or above had home computers. ZIP Code 30092 had a population of 38,008 at the 2010 census; however, with parts of ZIP Codes 30071, 30096, 30097, and 30360 being within the city limits of Peachtree Corners, the estimated population of the city was 43,509 in 2017 with a population increase of 14.5% from 2010.

The economy of Peachtree Corners is largely driven by the concentration of businesses in planned office parks, particularly engineering firms, logistics organizations, health technology groups, and information technology companies. In October 2014, United Arab Shipping Company relocated its North American Headquarters to Peachtree Corners. The company purchased a 50,000 square foot office building on Spalding Drive for logistics, accounting and customer service operations. In 2017 it merged with Hapag Lloyd, keeping its headquarters in Peachtree Corners, investing an additional $5.5 million, and adding 363 new jobs to expand its offices. With 230 vessels and more than 12,000 employees, Hapag Lloyd is the fifth largest shipping company in the world, serving customers in 127 countries. In May 2016, Comcast Corporation, the American global telecommunications conglomerate and owner of Xfinity and NBCUniversal, relocated its Southeast Headquarters to the Wells Building, a 10 story office building in Peachtree Corners. Soliant Health, a leading provider of specialized healthcare and education staffing services to hospitals and schools around the nation, expanded its Peachtree Corners headquarters to 83,000 square feet. The Harlem Globetrotters are headquartered in Peachtree Corners as well as the Southern Section of the United States Tennis Association (USTA). Peachtree Corners has 12 hotels to serve business travelers and visitors including Hilton, Marriott, and Hyatt. Jointly working with Deutsche Telekom's T Mobile and Georgia Tech, Peachtree Corners developed a 5G incubator known as Curiosity Lab located in a 500 acre smart city technology park in the city, one of the nation's first smart city environments. Jacobs Engineering Group, Peachtree Corners, Delta Air Lines, Bosch, Cisco Systems, and Qualcomm are also jointly working to deploy smart system technologies in the city through technology that connects vehicles and infrastructure, focusing initially on roadside infrastructure, traffic management, and road safety. The French American Chamber of Commerce moved its operations from the Consulate General of France in Atlanta to office space within the Innovation Center at Curiosity Lab. In relation to the move, La French Tech – a French government supported ecosystem of startups, investors, decision makers and community builders – will expand collaboration with Peachtree Corners as it guides companies looking to develop technologies and expand into North America. Funded by the city, Peachtree Corners has produced a non profit business incubator affiliated with the Technology Development Center at Georgia Tech as part of the city's Curiosity Lab that provides for software and hardware technology startups, providing these companies with the support they need to launch new products and grow.

Annually, Peachtree Corners' "Art on the Chattahoochee" is held along the banks of the Chattahoochee River at Jones Bridge Park that attracts visitors who peruse the work of artists. Also featured are live demonstrations and performing arts including solo, acoustic and group performances, as well as a Budding Artist Kid's Zone with activities including craft stations, spin and chalk art, and food and refreshments. Peachtree Corners has an annual Summer Concert Series set on the Town Green at the city's Town Center featuring performers from across the nation. Other annual events include the "Peachtree Corners Festival" that includes arts and crafts, live music, shows, and food, as well as the "Holiday Glow on the Town Green" evening event featuring live choral performances, the Holiday Glow in the Corners Parade, and the lighting of the great tree. The Gwinnett County Public Library system operates the Peachtree Corners branch in Peachtree Corners.

Peachtree Corners has multiple parks including the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area along the Chattahoochee River, the Medlock Bridge Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area with river access, the 12 acre Holcomb Bridge Park overlooking the river and having improvements including an amphitheater, the 30 acre Jones Bridge Park with pavilions, a community building, soccer fields, other enhancements, and river frontage, as well as the 93 acre multiple amenity Pinckneyville Park. The 227 acre (918,636.41 m2) Simpsonwood Park has 2,140 linear feet (652.27 m) of river frontage along the Chattahoochee River. Peachtree Corners is home to the headquarters for the Southern Section of the United States Tennis Association (USTA). The $103 million project was developed in a partnership between the city government of Peachtree Corners and Fuqua Development. Each year Peachtree Corners conducts public participation road running events including the four mile (6.437 kilometers) “Light Up The Corners Glow Run” and the one kilometer “Twilight Trot”.

Peachtree Corners is in proximity to many major highways in Metro Atlanta, such as I 285, I 85, GA 316, and GA 400. The city is approximately 21 miles (33 km) northeast of downtown Atlanta. A number of collector roads distribute traffic around the city, including GA 141 (Peachtree Parkway/Medlock Bridge Road), GA 140 (Holcomb Bridge Road), Peachtree Corners Circle, Spalding Drive and Peachtree Industrial Boulevard.

Peachtree Corners has implemented support for electric vehicles having installed one of the State of Georgia's largest electric vehicle charging facilities that provides charging without cost to users, and installing the country's first roadway surface solar panel system to support it, with plans for further expansion of roadway solar power collection and charging facilities and including solar power for existing infrastructure across the city by installing other types of panels that may include sidewalk, bike lane, and other surface collectors.

Gwinnett County Transit serves the city. The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA)'s Doraville Rapid Rail Station is approximately 5.7 miles (9 km) from Peachtree Corners, while the Chamblee Rapid Rail Station is approximately 9.3 miles (14.9 km) away. MARTA provides rapid heavy rail service and connecting services to Atlanta, Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and other points north, south, east and west. The city also has an operating autonomous shuttle that operates on a stretch of road on Technology Parkway.

Peachtree–DeKalb Airport is a county owned, public use airport approximately 7.9 miles (13 km) from Peachtree Corners. Gwinnett County Airport is a municipal airport located about 18 miles (29 km) from the city. Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, which is a major passenger hub for domestic and international travelers, is located 29 miles (46 km) south of Peachtree Corners. It is accessible by I 85, I 285, and MARTA.

The Western Gwinnett Bikeway is a multi use trail along Peachtree Industrial Boulevard. It is a shared use path, cycle track, and bike lane connecting to neighboring Duluth and Norcross. Peachtree Corners has been adding additional sidewalks and safety upgrades for pedestrians, thus far adding many miles of sidewalks, additional pedestrian safety crossings, and adding 175 street lights, all designed to make the city more walkable, safer and more connected. The city also has a 14 foot wide walkway arch truss pedestrian bridge with elevators and stairs over S. R. 141 (Peachtree Parkway) for pedestrians walking between The Forum and the Town Center. The city is also adding to a multi use trail system (the Corners Connector Trail system) that crisscrosses the city linking office parks, restaurants, retail centers, the new town center and surrounding neighborhoods. In addition, the city has launched the world's first fleet of shared E scooters with teleoperated repositioning.