A Nostalgic Progress

It is with some trepidation that I welcome the news of which begins tomorrow, June 20. The GRTA(Gwinnett Regional Transportation Authority) Park 'n Ride Xpress service will depart the Hebron Baptist Church lot beginning at 5:20am on weekday mornings every two hours until 7:50am  and afternoon service will depart Atlanta beginning at 3:25 very two hours until 5:55pm.

While our town’s rapid population growth and the increased cost of gas loudly demands such a transportation solution, a part of me is reluctant to see yet another element of big-city life enter our community.

In the past five years, we have become home to numerous restaurants and several bars. We no longer have to drive to the Mall of Georgia or down to Lawrenceville/Suwanee Road to have a fancy dinner. Gone are the days when Dairy Queen was THE only food spot in town -- not that I'm not happy because I never developed a taste for the 'brazier burger".

Hamilton Mill has developed into a busy shopping area with the presence of , WalMart, and a myriad of specialty shops. Downtown Dacula has been ever-changing, with stores opening and closing, but now the area between Dacula and 2nd Ave is finding its equilibrium. Several new stores are flourishing, an expanded now occupies the bigger space of the old Post Office and plans are being made by the City Council for a .

Twenty years ago, residents could only dream of a popular golf course like . The thought of having a within a few miles of intown folks was a much-discussed pipe dream. Today, three Publix stores have a Dacula address. This is one added community feature that I am most grateful for. Driving to Winder or Lawrenceville to buy groceries wasn' much fun.

I hope this commuter route serves its purpose well, though I can honestly say I hope it is not
the first of many. I don't relish the thought of say five commuter buses holding up traffic already backed up on Dacula Road and Hwy. 324 during school and work rush hours.

But perhaps the looming possibility of folks other than commuters heading our way and changing the comfortably rural/suburban life we've come to know into a more urban one is the most troubling. I've never been a supporter for these same reasons.  I suppose some could say its a big leap from commuter buses to worrying about a train full of kids from Little Five Points heading our way. For someone who cherishes the hometown feel that Dacula has always given me, its not that big of a jump.

Dacula represents a lot of things to a lot of people -- the home of , the location of the , one of the , or maybe just a place to stop for a quick milk shake at the before mentioned on a trip between Athens and Atlanta.

Whatever you think of when you think Dacula, whatever feelings you have for your hometown, or in my case, my adopted hometown, one thing is certain: we welcome progress, we know the economic benefits that it brings, we appreciate that time marches on, demographics change and a community's requirements change.

But allow us to keep our nostalgia. Allow us to occasionally pine for those simpler days, for a simpler time when there was that one stoplight on Hwy. 8 that everyone kidded passerbys  about missing; when the drive down Dacula Road to Hwy 324 was a shady, tree-lined one, when Hamilton Mill was still a bit of wide open country on the road to Braselton.

Yes, time does march on, with the necessary demands of a changing community. There will be many commuters who will relish the thought of a relaxing drive to work in Atlanta without having to deal with the pressures of driving 1-85 or 1-285. They can drink their coffee, read their papers, and text safely to their hearts content. There are always things gained when progress arrives to any town. I hope the new Xpress service bus provides some relief to commuters weary of dealing with the daily stresses of that 30+mile drive.

And in the back of my mind, as I have dinner at the new Chinese restaurant on Liam Ave.and enjoy having a right across the street from Publix, I will wistfully recall the past that was Dacula. Respecting her history, I will drive past the old Pharr house and hope that it remains there awhile longer!