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February 2009
Public deserves last say on Sunday sales
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday diners at O’Charley’s Restaurant in Snellville occasionally try to order a glass of wine or a brew to accompany their meals. No dice.
Wait staff at the restaurant, located on Scenic Highway, have to relay the news: Restaurants within the city limits aren’t permitted to sell alcohol on Sundays.
To some customers, it’s a big deal, enough to make them go elsewhere. To others, it doesn’t matter so much. Nevertheless, “this happens all the time,” said Kenny Ohikhokhai, a manager who’s been with the franchise eight years. “We just tell them the obvious. All you can do is apologize and send them down the road.”
Down the road would be anywhere within a few miles’ radius of O’Charley’s. Like The Avenue Webb Ginn, a swanky retail/restaurant hub on the city outskirts. According to Mapquest, the complex is exactly 2.18 miles north of O’Charley’s.
Monday, the Snellville City Council rejected, by deadlock, an ordinance that would have allowed Sunday alcohol sales at local restaurants. Those in favor of the ordinance supported it for economic reasons. Businesses, they explained, are struggling. Help them out by letting them serve booze seven days a week. Those who didn’t cited morality.
At our state Capitol, a vote scheduled for Wednesday on whether to allow Sunday alcohol sales in stores never saw daylight. Get this — only two of 13 lawmakers showed up, so there wasn’t a quorum on hand to meet and consider Senate Bill 16 by Sen. Seth Harp. If adopted, it would allow local voters to decide if stores could sell beer, wine and liquor in communities.
It’s unfortunate that politicians — who support Sunday sales must do so, generally, under the auspices of economics — say that it’s good for businesses. Say that, in these dire economic straits, O’Charley’s could prosper from selling shots of whiskey on Sunday. Say that the state coffers could swell from the sales of six packs.
Wouldn’t it be refreshing if Mr. Legislator had the wherewithal on this issue to stand on a platform of practicality and individual liberty? Wouldn’t it be grand if Mrs. Councilwoman politely questioned the logic of constituents who claim Sunday alcohol sales are an attack on their values?
What tends to happen with this recurring issue is this: Those who oppose Sunday sales, generally, raise up and organize. They show up in droves at city council meetings when the issue is to be discussed. (About 150 mostly anti-alcohol residents turned up for Snellville’s meeting Monday night). They rev up campaigns that target politicians, put the fear of God in them a la the Christian Coalition of Georgia, which has said it would include the issue in its political scorecard.
Which is why Georgia voters ought to be allowed to decide this issue themselves. In the ballot booth. Take the issue out of the hands of politicians too concerned about their public careers and the next election. Even if you disapprove of Sunday sales, you ought to have no qualms about voters deciding the matter.
Opponents of Sunday sales generally tend to defend their position based on faith, and in many cases, fear. They lament that DUIs and drunken crashes will astronomically increase on this one day. The sacredness of Sunday — which isn’t sacred for everyone — will be sacrificed. People will stop attending church, stop giving and start boozing. An additional day amounts to total destruction. What little faith.
Selective prohibition.
Legislation of morality.
They seldom work.
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Show me the documents
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Foreclosure madness abounds.
Apparently, though, there’s a way to stall the process. I have no qualms with it, particularly if you’re about to lose your home through no fault of your own — job loss, for example.
So give this a read, and lemme know what you think. Check it out.
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Pet owners short of cash get help feeding animals
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
You’ve lost your job and face foreclosure.
You have a couple of dogs that are like family, but you can hardly afford food for human consumption, much less animals.
What’s a pet owner to do?
Well in metro Atlanta, people can turn to Daffy’s Pet Soup Kitchen, a nonprofit located off Oakland Industrial Court in Lawrenceville. The months-old nonprofit provides food for animals whose owners can’t. The Gwinnett County charity is getting slammed due to the economic malaise. People from hundreds of miles away drive to its 1,600-square-foot warehouse to get a free month’s supply of food for Rover.
“Back in December, we gave away 20,000 pounds of dog and cat food,” said Tom Wargo, founder of the all-volunteer organization. “We got on Channel 11, so we got hit. Right now, we give away 8,000 to 12,000 pounds of dog and cat food a month.”
And there appears to be scant let-up as the year grinds on.
In fact, there’s such a demand for pet soup kitchens and related services that Daffy’s — which already has an Athens location — plans to expand across the metropolis. Daffy’s in College Park, located at 3699 Main St., opens Feb. 28. Other locations are under consideration for various counties and communities, including Marietta and Grant Park.
Wargo says more pantries are needed. He fields calls from across the country from animal lovers who want to start a charity and are interested in its operation.
“For what we do, there will always be a need,” he said while we toured the stock room. “But lately, people are losing their jobs and losing their houses every day. And they have pets. If they couldn’t get food from us, they’d have to turn [the pets] over to animal control or some rescue facility. That doesn’t really fix the problem. Instead of finding them a temporary home, we try to feed the animals at their homes so they can stay there. We’re working to keep families and pets together.”
To get the food, pet owners must adhere to some pantry rules, among them:
- They can only come for food once a month.
*They are required to do five hours community service a month at Daffy’s or some other charity.
- The pets must be spayed or neutered within three months if they haven’t been already. (Daffy’s refers clients to vets who offer medical services at discounted rates).
Rosie Hottum of Dacula sings Daffy’s praises. She lives on a dead-end street where people drop off animals all the time. “I have taken in six cats and had them spayed,” she wrote in an e-mail. “There are always at least 10 in my yard in the mornings, so it gets very expensive. That’s why Daffy’s has been such a blessing to me.”
Now about the name “Daffy.” He’s a mixed Jack Russell terrier that Wargo, who owns a construction company, spotted wandering around a job site a year or so ago. Now he’s the charity mascot.
For more information, call 404-345-6821 or online: www.daffyspetsoupkitchen.com.
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Balfour’s words
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sen. Don Balfour (R-Snellville) has written an explanation as to why he plans to host a community meeting at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Snellville City Hall to discuss that town’s city council.
Here it is:
In recent weeks, I have received numerous emails and phone calls about a situation best described as “city council gridlock” in Snellville. Many residents and voters living in one of Gwinnett’s largest cities tell me they are dissatisfied with the institutional gridlock in Snellville and how the community’s needs are being addressed.
In 2004, the legislature changed the city charter to allow the mayor to vote on all issues before the city council. The problem that it created was that with this additional vote, there became six voting members on any given issue.
The fact that this change resulted in an even number of elected officials voting on proposals has resulted in regular three to three votes. It has meant gridlock and for the city. Of the 14 cities in Gwinnett, 12 have an odd number of voting members. Because of this structure, these cities seem to run with much less confrontation or gridlock.
As a result of having so many people contact me, I have agreed to help host a community meeting at the Snellville City Hall this Thursday, February 19th, from 7:30 to 8:30 PM, sharp.
The purpose of the meeting will be to find solutions to the situation to make the city government more effective. It’s past time to find those solutions.
Every single Snellville resident is invited. This is designed to be a positive meeting for all residents, not a forum for arguing or debate. We will explore options including, but not limited to, adding one new city council seat, eliminating one city council seat, or changing the city charter to allow the mayor to vote only in the case of tie votes.
I want to hear from those who live in the city about what, if anything, we should do to address the issue of gridlock and maybe bring an end to the recent incendiary media headlines.
It has been my privilege to serve you and move forward with the business you elect me to address. I look forward to hearing from you this coming Thursday evening, February 19th, at 7:30 at Snellville City Hall.
Don Balfour
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Snellville feedback
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dear Snellville residents:
Here’s your chance to give your opinion on the configuration of the Snellville City Council. Sen. Don Balfour (R-Snellville) is to host a community meeting at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at City Hall to talk about a council apparently incapable of dealing with critical issues and gets into a tizzy about everything.
In other words, governance has been relegated to soap opera-style drama.
As you would imagine, the meeting isn’t sanctioned by city officials.
What do you think needs to happen for the city council to return to a functioning body?
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Foreclosures end up loss for many, a gain for others
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sheena and Otis Wallace looked at five houses a day for two consecutive weeks.
But it really didn’t take Sheena that long to find the one she wanted to call home. Early in the search, she grew attached to a four-bedroom, two-story abode in Dacula. It had a formal living room, dining room and family room, but the wedding coordinator was sold on one particular feature.
“What got me was the sun room,” she said. “My heart stayed with this one.”
And if all goes well, the Wallaces may close on their new home soon. The couple took advantage of the county’s ever-growing inventory of reduced foreclosures. According to Foreclosurefreesearch.com, a Web site that keeps track of such real estate, nearly 2,000 distressed properties were on the market in Gwinnett County this week.
Bargains abound. Practically every town and every corner of the county has foreclosures held by banks as well as the Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD. Norcross Realtor Clyde Rivers drives a PT Cruiser with a wrap-around banner: “HUD homes — $100 down payment,” it states. He’s a certified HUD specialist — “been doing it more than 20 years,” he told me, mentioning the catchy name of his business Web site, hudking.com.
Naturally, Rivers doesn’t expect people to buy homes like they gobbled them up during the heydays of lax lending and overbuilding. He knows, too, that people, generally, are reluctant to purchase a big-ticket item such as a house or car these days. Experts say that’s the very thing that needs to happen.
The fear of losing a job runs deep. So does the pessimism, mistrust and uncertainty. All cripple recovery.
But even in this climate, there’s a sector of the employment world (nurses, for example) whose jobs remain stable. They could capitalize on low home prices, record-low interest rates and special buyer programs such as HUD’s $100 down program. It allows borrowers with good credit (580 or higher) to buy a dwelling with $100 down. HUD will also pay a much as 3 percent of the sale price to offset closing costs.
“HUD knows their properties are being sold as is, and some — not all — need work,” Rivers told me. “To offset that, [the agency] lowered the down payment, which leaves the buyer able to do a few things once they get in. This information needs to get to the right folks to let them know about the program. A certain number would buy a home if they could get into it with a small down payment.”
Like the Wallaces, who are clients of Rivers. For them, the hardest part about buying a HUD home was choosing the right property. Sheena works from home. Otis, her husband, is a civilian contractor working in Iraq with a cleaning company. When he came home for the holidays, the couple spent most days house hunting.
“We went out every day,” she said. “But my heart stayed with the [house in Dacula] that we had seen the very first week. My heart stayed with that one. I hate to gain from someone else’s loss, but it’s buyer’s market.”
On Tuesday, the Wallaces are scheduled to close on their new home.
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What dealership will follow Saturn of Gwinnett’s lead?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This is bad.
Real bad.
Those are the words of Doug Bachtel, a consumer economics and demographics expert at the University of Georgia. He knows Gwinnett well because he’s researched and studied the county’s spectacular immigrant-driven economic growth for decades.
So when news broke that Saturn of Gwinnett had closed its doors, I gave him a call. Here’s his take on car dealerships in Gwinnett , from the mega-dealerships near the Mall of Georgia to Gwinnett Place Mall, U.S. Highway 78 and everything in between.
“This could be the start of something,” Bachtel told me. “Gwinnett is diversity with a captial “D.” It is not just black and white. It’s Hispanic. It’s Chinese. It’s other Asians, Indians, Eastern Europeans. Given that, it means these folks would be partial to all the different car companies. They wouldn’t just ‘Buy American.’
“Given the economic times we are in - and it took a while to get in it - if one of [the dealerships] goes belly-up, you can probably see a trickle-down effect.”
“It’s like a domino.”
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Waste transfer site heavy on Norcross
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bert Nasuti did a little research the last time an applicant proposed putting a waste transfer station in Gwinnett County.
The commissioner paid a visit to a facility near Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. He hung out inside the facility as well as on its grounds. He observed garbage trucks of all types and sizes — “about one every 10 minutes when I was there” — line up, idling and waiting for the chance to unload.
“The smell in the area, outside, was pretty bad because of the trucks coming in and out all day,” Nasuti told me in an e-mail. “There isn’t really a way to regulate or condition the smell of what comes in. Technology inside the building can do a lot. They had sprayers that were like giant misters dropping a real strong Lysol-type smelling substance. But they couldn’t do much with the trucks outside, and the coming and going.”
On Tuesday, the Gwinnett County Commission voted 3-2 to approve a waste transfer facility at Beaver Ruin Road and Shackleford Road.
The majority did so even though the Planning Commission advised against rezoning nine acres near I-85 and Beaver Ruin Road from light industrial to a heavier industrial category.
They did so despite objections from area business and property owners, notably the Holy Vietnamese Martyrs’ Catholic Church, a 4,000-member congregation adjacent to the site for the proposed garbage facility.
It’s safe to say few would want a waste transfer station as a next-door neighbor. Gwinnett County Commission Chairman Charles Bannister got one thing right: There’s nowhere in the county to locate such an operation and not have it opposed. Yet the county has to meet state and federal regulations regarding trash while it produces more and more of it.
Surely there’s a better way, a better location, for a waste transfer station than this Norcross spot.
Primarily, the area is zoned for light industrial and warehouse-type operations. If the facility is built, those businesses will have the privilege of seeing a steady stream of garbage trucks come and go.
If it’s built, chances of high-end revitalization — something the county has touted for the area — will undoubtedly suffer, upstaged by garbage trucks.
Norcross city officials, along with the Gwinnett Village Community Improvement District, opposed the project.
“The decision was not the best for the community, and it’s a [special zoning] use that is unlike any use in that area,” said Chuck Warbington, the CID’s executive director. “There is a huge difference between light industrial zoning for offices and warehouses and heavy industrial use, which a facility like this would require.”
Then there’s the Holy Vietnamese Martyrs’ Catholic Church. The working-class immigrants raised $1.7 million to buy the property — an old car dealership — and fixed it up. The congregation plans to stay put and expand, according to Atlanta Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory.
Nasuti didn’t criticize commissioners Bannister, Shirley Lassiter and Kevin Kenerly for their decision on Tuesday. Zoning matters, he wrote in an e-mail, are the toughest issues officials deal with.
On this one, Nasuti said he cast an opposing vote for several reasons, including what he observed a few years back at the garbage facility near the airport. (Commissioner Michael Beaudreau joined Nasuti in opposing the project.)
“I just felt that the truck traffic and smell issues were too much,” Nasuti wrote. “… You know — trash is trash.”
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Snellville, Part II
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Maybe his intentions are noble, that he acted on behalf of citizens and for the good of the community.
I speak of hizzoner - Snellville Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer. He recently called the dogs on Snellville Councilman Robert Jenkins for code violations. Seems Jenkins has an old toilet and a broken-down car in his yard. Junk.
Oberholtzer has blown the whistle on the official. He took photos of the offensive trash and e-mailed them to the police department. Oberholtzer said he’d heard from several residents about the yard who were afraid to report the violations themselves. He has said this isn’t a vendetta, though Jenkins and Obeholtzer tend to clash when it comes to city affairs.
Only he knows the truth.
Meanwhile, Jenkins has pledged to clean up his trash.
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Church vs. garbage facility
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Today may be the day a Catholic congregation learns if gabarge facility will open up next door to their church.
Members of The Holy Vietnamese Martyrs’ Mission, which is in an old car dealership near the intersection of I-85 and Beaver Ruin Road, has vehemently opposed the facility. A developer wants to build the garbage transfer station on abandoned property down the road from the church. The 4,000-member church has been there two years.
The Gwinnett County Commission is to vote on the issue during its 2p.m. meeting today. County officials can expect a large turn-out from the congregation; on Sunday, the church held a vigil to draw attention to the issue.
“We’ve got a garbage problem in the county, but you don’t put a transfer station next to a church,” said Archdiocese spokeswoman Patricia Chivers.
Amen.
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