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PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:
Thursday, August 20, 2026
Council for Quality Growth Names Jim Vaught & A.J. Robinson Recipients of 2026 CID Awards
17th Annual CID Recognition Event & Awards Honors CID Leadership & Regional Impact
METRO ATLANTA, GEORGIA – The Council for Quality Growth proudly announces the recipients of its 17th Annual Community Improvement District (CID) Awards. The 2026 reception and award presentation will honor Jim Vaught, Chairman of Lilburn CID, and A.J. Robinson, President of Downtown Atlanta, Inc. The 17th Annual CID Recognition Event, presented by Georgia Power, Lilburn CID, and POND, will be held in November on a date to be announced soon.
Vaught and Robinson follow an esteemed list of CID Award recipients that have demonstrated leadership and commitment to forward progress among our state’s growing number of Community Improvement Districts. The Council’s one-of-a-kind CID Recognition Event annually highlights the work that our CIDs are doing all year to advance our region’s greatest economic centers and strengthen the unique character area of the business communities they serve. In addition, the Council presents two awards to two nominated and carefully selected CID leaders that have greatly impacted the region. The John Williams CID Leadership Award recognizes a CID volunteer, and the CID Professional Excellence Award recognizes a CID industry professional.
The 2026 recipient of the John Williams CID Leadership Award is Jim Vaught, Chairman of the Lilburn CID. Vaught has provided years of dedicated leadership to Lilburn CID, helping advance infrastructure, mobility, and quality of life throughout the community. “Jim’s quiet, effective leadership, along with his excellent relationship with our city partners, has allowed the CID to make a significant contribution to the Lilburn community, over a period of almost two decades,” said Tad Leithead, Executive Director of the Lilburn CID. Vaught has lived in Lilburn for over 30 years and has spent much of his career dedicated to education and service. He spent 50 years in education, including serving in DeKalb County Public Schools as a teacher, principal, and headmaster at DeKalb Christian Academy. He also helped found Providence Christian Academy in Lilburn, where he served as head of school for 25 years before being named Headmaster Emeritus in 2016. In addition, he served for 24 years in the Georgia Army National Guard, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2000 after serving in Desert Storm.
Under Vaught’s leadership, Lilburn CID has continued to make strategic investments in infrastructure, safety, mobility, and connectivity while building strong partnerships with the City of Lilburn, Gwinnett County, GDOT and other regional partners. Most notably, the CID helped bring the $4.3 million Bryson Park/Hood Road Roundabout project from concept to completion in 2025. The project transformed three intersections into a single, lighted roundabout designed to improve visibility, reduce congestion, and create safer, more efficient routes for drivers and pedestrians along Lawrenceville Highway. The CID contributed $300,000 to the project and helped secure a $1 million Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Bank grant, with additional funding from the City of Lilburn, Gwinnett County and GDOT. The CID has also advanced projects along US 29 including pedestrian safety improvements, new sidewalks, landscaping and beautification, curb cleanup, and the implementation of Lilburn’s Livable Centers Initiative, which focuses on creating a more walkable and connected community. In 2026, the CID continues that work with renewed landscaping and corridor cleanup efforts along US 29 and the approval of a stormwater study to support future infrastructure planning in partnership with the City of Lilburn.
The 2026 recipient of the CID Professional Excellence Award is A.J. Robinson, President of Downtown Atlanta, Inc., the recently combined brand of the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District (ADID) and Central Atlanta Progress (CAP). Robinson is set to retire later this year after 23 years in the role. During his tenure, Robinson helped guide ADID’s work to make Downtown Atlanta safer, cleaner, more connected, and more vibrant through investments in public safety, infrastructure, mobility, beautification, and placemaking.
Much of Robinson’s work with ADID has focused on transforming Downtown’s public realm. Under his leadership, ADID expanded its Ambassador Force and Clean Team, providing supplemental public safety, hospitality, maintenance, and beautification services throughout the district. He also helped advance the revitalization of Woodruff Park, where ADID assumed stewardship of the park, improved its physical environment, expanded programming, and introduced new amenities and activities. ADID’s capital investments have included streetscape improvements, sidewalk and pedestrian enhancements, lighting, landscaping, public art, and other projects that improve the daily experience of Downtown Atlanta.
Robinson has also been instrumental in advancing some of Downtown’s most ambitious long-term infrastructure projects. He championed The Stitch, a transformational vision to reconnect neighborhoods divided by the Downtown Connector through approximately 17 acres of new park space and multimodal infrastructure. Under Robinson’s leadership, ADID helped build the project’s public and private support and contributed funding toward its development. The Stitch remains on track to become a reality. The team is still advancing with remaining design and construction funds and will complete shovel-ready engineering, permitting, and approvals for Phase 1 by mid-2026. Robinson and ADID have also helped advance the Downtown Atlanta Master Plan, Broad Street and Peachtree Street improvements, and other transportation and public-space initiatives that strengthen Downtown’s connectivity and economic vitality.
Robinson’s 2 decades of leadership have made a lasting impact on Downtown Atlanta. He has helped bring together property owners, businesses, residents, civic leaders, and government partners around a shared vision for the district and played an important role in positioning Downtown for continued investment and growth. He has partnered with many others to help establish the Georgia Aquarium, the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, the Chick-Fil-A College Football Hall of Fame, Centennial Yards, South Downtown and the Atlanta Streetcar. He was also instrumental in bringing the WNBA Atlanta Dream to the city. Prior to joining Downtown Atlanta, Inc., Robinson spent 22 years with Portman Holdings, where he served as President. His career in Atlanta has been defined by a commitment to strengthening Downtown and advancing the partnerships and investments that support its continued vitality.
The Council commends the work of both Jim Vaught and A.J. Robinson to progress the impact of Community Improvement Districts around the region. With the efforts of leaders like these, CIDs continue to produce billions of dollars for infrastructure investments, new parks and greenspace, public safety, traffic mitigation projects, landscape improvements, and much more.
Vaught and Robinson will be recognized and presented with their respective awards at the Council for Quality Growth’s Annual CID Recognition Event in November. Each year, the Council uniquely convenes the 30-and-counting Community Improvement Districts in our region to recognize the work they do year-round to enhance the quality of life here across metro Atlanta and to support the newly established CIDs as they become activated across the state of Georgia. This is the 17th year the Council has held this event and presented the CID Awards.
For details about Community Improvement Districts, please visit www.CouncilforQualityGrowth.org/CIDs. Details for the Council’s 17th Annual CID Recognition Event will be announced and registration will open soon. Sponsorships are available now. To sponsor, please contact Briana Stewart at bstewart@councilforqualitygrowth.org.
About the John Williams CID Leadership Award
The John Williams CID Leadership Award recognizes volunteers who have played an instrumental role in championing CIDs around the metro Atlanta region through their vision, leadership, and dedication. Previous award recipients include Governor Roy Barnes, Senator Johnny Isakson, Tad Leithead, Kerry Armstrong, Bob Voyles, Mason Zimmerman, David Allman, John Shern, Natalie Tyler-Martin, Dan Buyers, and John Heagy.
About the CID Professional Excellence Award
The CID Professional Excellence Award is given annually to a CID Executive Director, staff member, or contractor recognizing an individual’s commitment to professional excellence through leadership in successfully investing in critical transportation infrastructure and quality of life improvement projects to enhance the district’s economic vitality. In 2020, Gerald McDowell received the inaugural award, followed by Ann Hanlon in 2021, Emory Morsberger in 2022, Jim Durrett in 2023, Joe Allen in 2024, and Kevin Green in 2025.
About the Council for Quality Growth
The Council for Quality Growth is a trade organization that works to ensure continued growth and economic success for generations to come by providing advocacy, information, and education to its members. In its 41st year, the Council is committed to the mission of promoting balanced and responsible growth and is proactively involved in the formulation of policy and legislation critical to the growth and development industry. The Council addresses, head-on, strategic economic planning, infrastructure needs, and tough quality-of-life issues throughout the metro Atlanta region and state. For more information, please visit http://www.councilforqualitygrowth.org.
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