Gwinnett County Advisory Roundtable with Brian Johnson, City Manager, City of Peachtree Corners

Brian Johnson
City Manager
City of Peachtree Corners

Brian L. Johnson is the City Manager of Peachtree Corners, Georgia where he serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the city and is responsible for the management of all city departments and of all city affairs. Appointed in 2015, Mr. Johnson oversees one of the most extensive applications of using public-private partnerships to deliver government services that exists in the country. Recognized as a leading authority on the creation of new cities and the implementation of public-private partnerships, he frequently serves as a municipal advisor both in the United States and abroad.

Mr. Johnson is also the founding creator of Curiosity Lab at Peachtree Corners, a city owned and operated 3-mile autonomous vehicle test track and 500-acre 5G-enabled living laboratory ecosystem designed specifically as a proving ground for IoT, mobility, and smart city emerging technologies. As one of the only real-world testing environments of its kind in the world, Curiosity Lab has become an example of how a city can combine its public right-of-way with the research and development of technology to achieve economic growth. Mr. Johnson has presented nationally and internationally on the economic benefits of creating a public technology laboratory and has provided advisory assistance to numerous cities considering similar projects.

During Mr. Johnson’s current tenure as City Manager, his economic development team has been responsible for more than $2 billion in new investment in Peachtree Corners involving major companies like Siemens, North American Properties, Hapag-Lloyd, Soliant Health, Crawford, and Intuitive Surgical.
Prior to joining the City of Peachtree Corners, Mr. Johnson’s professional career began in the military where he served as both a Cryptologist in the U.S. Navy and as an Infantry Officer in the U.S. Army. He has also previously served as the City Manager of Garden City, Georgia and Anniston, Alabama.

Mr. Johnson is a Distinguished Military Honor Graduate from the University of Georgia where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science as well as a Master of Public Administration. He is a graduate of Harvard University’s Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government as well as the Leadership Savannah, Leadership Gwinnett, and Leadership Georgia programs. He is a Georgia Trend 40 Under 40 “Best & Brightest” honoree, two-time recipient of the Bronze Star Medal for Valor, and one of only 1,379 local government management professionals worldwide to have earned the prestigious Credentialed Manager designation from the International City/County Management Association.