(Lawrenceville, Ga., Jan. 28, 2010) - Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners Chairman Charles Bannister has been named vice-chairman of the Atlanta Regional Commission. ARC Chairman Tad Leithead appointed Bannister to the two-year term on Wednesday.

Bannister has been a member of the ARC executive committee since 2005. He also belongs to three other ARC committees: transportation and air quality, policy and regional transit.

"I have had the pleasure of serving with Tad on the Atlanta Regional Commission executive board and other committees for many years and look forward to working together to provide the leadership that our dynamic, growing region needs and deserves," said Bannister. "Tad's private sector experience as a developer and my role as the top elected official of the second-largest metro county are complimentary. We bring different strengths and perspectives to the table that together will benefit the businesses and residents of the metropolitan Atlanta region."

The other executive committee officers named were DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis (secretary), Johns Creek Mayor Mike Bodker (treasurer) and Community Foundation for Northeast Georgia Executive Director Judy Waters (parliamentarian).

The Atlanta Regional Commission is the regional planning and intergovernmental coordination agency for the 10-county area including Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale counties, as well as the City of Atlanta. For 60 years, ARC and its predecessor agencies have helped to focus the region's leadership, attention and resources on key issues of regional consequence.