Chamblee City Councilman Paul Stovall has deep roots in Chamblee. “I’m third generation owner of our house in Chamblee,” Paul says. The house he’s referring to was previously owned by his grandparents and originally purchased in the early 1960s. According to Paul, he and his wife, Sunny, bought the house from his grandparent's estate in 2004. At that time, the house was in greater DeKalb County and annexed into Chamblee city limits in 2014.
Growing up, Paul and his family lived in Lilburn, but he says they visited his grandparents often. At that time, he says the area was mostly industrial and he’s seen a lot of changes over the years.
After buying the home, Paul and Sunny got involved by volunteering, and Paul became a member of city council in the position vacated by Karen Lupton and then he was reelected,
Paul has been a part of many of the recent changes. “They had the comprehensive plan…and that's why I wanted to be in the city,” Paul says. And he’s quick to credit city staff members for doing the real work. “These people went to school to learn city planning and engineering,” he says. “On council, we listen to their recommendations based on law and science.”
Paul says he likes that there’s a coolness to the density of Chamblee’s Downtown District with something for everyone. “I like ice cream,” he says, talking about The Frosty Caboose. “And then across you have Vintage Pizzeria, and it’s this cool family thing. Then you walk further down it becomes more of a professional adult area with places like Blue Top. And further down you’ve got the social area. And then past that you get to Hopstix and a hip and trendy area.” And Paul says he likes that public art is now big part of the city’s appeal. “It’s a symptom of a healthy city,” he says.
They had the comprehensive plan…and this is why I wanted to be in the city. Paul Stovall, Chamblee City Councilman