A street with cars parked on the side of it.

Our Community

The City of Stone Mountain, aka Stone Mountain Village (SMV). The City of Stone Mountain was originally part of the Creek Nation until it was ceded by the State of Georgia in 1821. During the 1830s, Andrew Johnson, an area pioneer, purchased most of the land, now the City of Stone Mountain.

Get in touch to learn more about Village Forward.

Our Approach

On a mission to help create a better quality of life for the SMV community by providing educational and advocacy services with the intent to fundraise for planning and implementation.

Our Team

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Jelani Linder

Chair.

Jelani possesses a master’s degree in urban planning and design from the University of Georgia. He served as the chair of the City of Stone Mountain’s Downtown Development Authority for 8 years.

A woman with curly hair standing outside smiling.

Shani Linder

Vice Chair.

Shani holds a degree in Social Work from Georgia State University. She ran for a city council seat in 2021 and has served on the City of Stone Mountain’s Parks and Recreation Committee for 3 years, which led to rebuilding a McCurdy Park playground alongside Kaboom! in 2022.