DOUGLASVILLE, GA, January 09, 2026 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Ronald Johnson Jr. has been selected for inclusion in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

Mr. Johnson has established a distinguished career in urban and community planning, marked by a steadfast commitment to improving the quality of life in small towns and rural communities. Since March 2025, he has served as deputy community development director for the City of Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia. In this capacity, he manages long-term planning initiatives and geographic information system services, co-leads the development of the city's comprehensive plan and reviews plat applications for new hamlets. He ensures that all projects align with the city's founding vision and upholds legal requirements. His responsibilities also include shepherding new development through the Form-Based/Tranquility Code, protecting the Chattahoochee River corridor and more than 40,000 acres of conserved land, and assisting landowners in utilizing conservation easements to sustain farming and forestry.

In 2023, Mr. Johnson founded West Georgia Planning, where he serves as principal consulting planner. Through his firm, he assists small towns west of Atlanta by developing unified development ordinances and long-term planning strategies tailored to communities with limited budgets. His work embraces the New Urbanism approach to classic city planning, emphasizing walkability, mixed uses, heightened architectural standards, historic preservation, and conservation. Mr. Johnson and his firm are distinguished in the Atlanta region for crafting easy-to-understand, illustrated form-based zoning codes that standardize progressive concepts in communities throughout West Georgia including downtown mixed uses, incremental housing options such as accessory dwelling units, incentivized and flexible zoning requirements, and encouraging inviting public spaces that foster vibrant community connections. In 2025, Mr. Johnson's firm completed the first citywide rezoning for the City of Bowdon, Georgia, complete with a public-facing interactive zoning map.

Prior to these roles, Mr. Johnson was community development director for the City of Dallas, Georgia, from 2024 to 2025. There, he led a citywide rezoning effort that marked a significant transformation for the community. From 2019 to 2022, he served as planning and zoning specialist for the City of Villa Rica, Georgia, before being promoted to planning and zoning administrator, a role he held until 2024. During this period, he co-authored the city's zoning ordinance, administered the city's land use boards, designated numerous districts and sites historic, and oversaw all development applications during the largest growth in new development in the city's history, managing over 60 projects over five years. Of those projects, notable is the Villa Rica Town Center, a key 56-acre mixed-use project in Villa Rica designed to link the masterplanned golf-course Mirror Lake neighborhood with the expanding downtown district and features premium retail and residential components, including a grocery anchor, diverse dining and shopping options, a mix of single-family and multifamily housing, and a multi use trail connecting the area.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Johnson served as zoning officer for the Township of Cranford, New Jersey, from 2017 to 2019 and for the City of Plainfield, New Jersey, from 2013 to 2017. His tenure in Plainfield was particularly notable; in 2015 he founded the Downtown Plainfield Alliance, a nonprofit organization created to secure grants unavailable to municipalities due to their status. Under his leadership, the alliance obtained funding from TD Bank in partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation to plant 94 trees downtown, a project that involved local volunteers and bank staff. He also played a pivotal role in rezoning downtown Plainfield and the Netherwood train station area for transit-oriented development, which earned Plainfield the 2015 New Jersey Smart Growth Award. He also served on the City of Plainfield Planning Commission and Shade Tree Commission.

Mr. Johnson began his professional journey as a planning intern with the City of Plainfield from 2012 to 2013 after serving as a finance department intern earlier that year. He also gained experience as an intern with the Housing Authority of Plainfield in 2012 and worked as student coordinator II at Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey from 2011 to 2012.

Among his most significant achievements is his leadership in the Bouckaert Farm rezoning project completed in October 2025, the largest rezoning by land area in Georgia's history at over 8,000 acres. This initiative envisions a new walkable hamlet with 10 miles of river trails connecting regional trail systems. Mr. Johnson's expertise was critical in shaping this plan alongside colleague Mike Morton. The project will feature 8,384 new housing units, 315,500 SF of office space, 65,000 SF of grocery store space, 177,500 SF of retail and restaurant space, a 200-acre golf-course, a 600 student elementary school, and a 1,000 student high school, all while preserve 5,450 acres in one of the fastest growing regions of the Southeast for the enjoyment of future generations.

His academic foundation includes a Bachelor of Arts in city, urban, community and regional planning from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey in New Brunswick, earned in 2013. Mr. Johnson also holds several professional certifications: certified planner from the American Planning Association, supervisory management development from Georgia Municipal Association, Stormwater Level 1A (Blue Card) from the NPDES Training Institute, and zoning official certification from Center for Government Services at Rutgers. These credentials have underpinned his ability to deliver high-quality planning services across diverse communities.

Mr. Johnson's approach is deeply influenced by his upbringing in Plainfield and surrounding areas, where his parents prioritized exposure to diverse environments—an experience that fostered strong communication skills and an appreciation for multiple perspectives. This background has proven invaluable during council meetings and public engagement efforts throughout his career. His inspiration for urban planning also originated during childhood after discovering urban planning simulator games, a formative experience that revealed the complexities behind city government and development. A subsequent move from walkable New Jersey neighborhoods to sprawling suburban metro Atlanta heightened his awareness of urban design's impact on daily life and mobility.

An active member of both the American Planning Association and the Georgia Planning Association, Mr. Johnson has been recognized through several honors, including an NAACP honoree proclamation from the Office of the Mayor in Plainfield in 2013; the Youth Leadership Award from the Plainfield NAACP in 2013; and scholarships from the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation and the Kean University Foundation. Mr. Johnson was selected as an ARCUS Leadership Fellow in 2019 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a prestigious program funded by American Express that provides emerging leaders in historic preservation with advanced training, online coursework, and networking opportunities to strengthen the field.

Outside of his professional commitments, Mr. Johnson pursues personal interests including spending time with family and friends, reading, exploring family genealogy and historical research. Looking ahead, he aims to further advance West Georgia Planning while continuing to provide world-class planning services to financially constrained communities throughout West Georgia, helping them achieve healthier, more connected futures through thoughtful people-centered strategies.

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