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Good schools start with good communities
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the Supreme Court’s decision that Tax Allocation Districts (TADs) may not use school funds for redevelopment and revitalization.
That ridiculous decision led state legislators to two unnecessary pieces of legislation allowing TADs’ use of school funds, including Senate Resolution 996, which authorizes the use of school funds for community redevelopment and revitalization at the state level; and House Bill 1208, which is specific to Gwinnett County TADs.
The Gwinnett bill could be dead if voters don’t approve the statewide bill in November. Gwinnett voters will have to pass both bills.
First, let’s clear up one misconception about TADs’ use of such funds using the OFS site at Jimmy Carter Boulevard and I-85 as an example.
Only the property tax dollars that would normally be paid from the OFS site would be used for redevelopment and revitalization.
Not the property tax dollars from your home.
Not the property tax dollars from the shopping mall down at the corner.
ONLY the tax dollars from the site of the TAD district are funneled back into that site for redevelopment and are only good for a maximum of six years.
Is that clear? Feel better now? Good. I was kinda hoping so. There you go, take a deep breath. Relax. It will all be OK.
Now I am going to give you and the rest of Jawjuh an argument for why you should vote to approve the Senate Resolution and House bills.
A good friend of mine pointed out a Gwinnett county schools sign that reads: “Good Schools Build Better Communities.”
Incorrect. Yes, good schools draw good people who care about where they live, but point out one community in despair with good schools.
School performance is a direct reflection of the communities they serve. Schools will not improve unless an area improves FIRST.
If the community they serve does not get better can we really expect the schools to?
Both the senate resolution and the house bill up for our vote this November were unnecessary because using school funds for TAD use DOES help schools.
It would seem the better short term initial investment - for the schools - would be to boost the surrounding community first.
Revitalize a blighted community and schools will immediately show signs of improvement. It’s a win- win situation for all invested.
Which side are you on?
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Gwinnett Children’s Shelter offers new life and hope
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I recently took a visit to the Gwinnett Children’s Shelter up in Buford and met with Nancy Friauf, executive director, who gave me a tour of the facility and opened my eyes to the realities of just some of the heart breaking stories that have come through their doors.
She shared stories of children who were so brutally abused and neglected it would leave you in tears, furious, or if you are anything like me… both.
I could focus on all the abuse and neglect that led some of the kids to this facility. Kids who have come from every walk of life from living in tents in the woods to the more affluent, and some who don’t even know basic hygiene or how to use a knife or fork.
To me, that is not the purpose of the Gwinnett Children’s Shelter. Among its many roles, the shelter is providing these kids a sense of what a real true loving and supportive home should feel like. Things many of us take for granted.
I am not here to talk about their devastating situations, but rather about how you can help 12 boys and 14 girls heal from their past and have a better present and an even brighter future.
The kids in the shelter have been very fortunate to have some very gracious donors in the past including one woman who told her friends and family she didn’t want anything for her birthday but stuffed animals to donate to the kids for Easter to some businesses such as a pharmaceutical company building a baseball field, and a builder who built the Girls Long Term Facility (estimated at about $500,000) for the shelter at no cost to house 8 girls.
These kids deserve our support and there are plenty of ways you can help too.
Most importantly, they need financial support, they have a big need for volunteers to serve in several capacities including mentors, they need more businesses to participate in their “Safe Place” program, and they need other items donated such as gift cards from the big box stores, grocery stores, and entertainment to cleaning, hygiene and laundry supplies, to even X-box and PS2 games.
Here is my challenge to you, to businesses and to churches throughout Gwinnett County and abroad: Step up and help the Gwinnett Children’s Shelter give these kids the love and support many of us were so lucky to experience when we were their age.
Call the Gwinnett Children’s Shelter at 678-546-8770 or visit their website at http://www.gwinnettchildrenshelter.org to see what part you can play in providing a better life for those who probably deserve it the most.
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Who pays for 287 (g)?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’ll just come right out and say it —287(g) is nothing more than an excuse for the federal government not to do it’s job.
While I applaud the county for taking an active part in the few options they have dealing with illegal immigration. Illegal immigration IS a federal issue. The fact that ICE provides such a program for local governments who take the bait just further enables the feds not to do their jobs by not securing the borders and not enforcing immigration policies already on the book.
Cha-ching! Drizzle-drizzle-drizzle. That would be your tax dollars going down the drain.
There are plenty of political obstacles and financial hoops Gwinnett has to jump through in order to even be accepted into the program, but there is one thing we should all understand very clearly… while it will certainly have some impact, 287(g) is NOT the answer to the county’s illegal immigration problem.
Sheriff Conway did manage (after being used as a political ping-pong ball in election year “I can do anything you can do better” antics) to leap one of the major hurdles on the path through the application process. Money.
The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners approved the funding for the 18 additional officers Conway requested for Gwinnett to efficiently operate the program. Now the pressure rests solely on Sheriff Conway’s shoulders to make this happen.
Cha-ching! A million dollars for officers to process everyone through the program, vehicles and equipment per year.
Don’t think that 18 officers or the additional funds are necessary? I know… I know… Cobb County did it with officers already on the payroll. Allow me to do a little comparison for you of the two systems that makes the answer pretty self-explanatory:
Cobb County Gwinnett County
of arrests in 2007 36,500 39,000 of “foreign nationals” arrested in 2007 5,500 13,000Of those 13,000 arrested, up from 9,400 in 2006 by the way, some of them may have been arrested as many as six times. Another staggering number: 59.000, the number of “foreign nationals” arrested from 2000-2007 in Gwinnett. Keep in mind the majority of them are minor traffic violations.
The county still has to address another major hurdle — the 400 inmates currently sleeping on the floor— a mandate via the American Corrections Association, to enter the program.
Cha-ching! Approximately up to $6.6 million a year if the county is forced to house out all those inmates to other facilities. That amount could potentially increase to over $10 million a year by 2012.
Sheriff Conway has told me that the extensive application process is already underway and barring no further hurdles 287(g) can be in place as soon as October.
You asked for it. Get your check books ready.
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Talk about the Gwinnett Village Community Alliance
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
All this time that I have been writing about the Gwinnett Village I have focused so much on the Community Improvement District (CID) portion that I neglected to pay attention to the other critical area of the organization that is helping to lead the charge for change to the area - The Gwinnett Village Community Alliance (GVCA).
It’s high time and well deserved that I fulfill my promise to show them some love… right… now.
There are some key differences between the CID and GVCA. Where The Village CID relies on property owners that voluntarily self tax themselves and focuses on improvements to the infrastructure and economic development, the GVCA is funded solely by donations, grants and sponsorships and focuses on quality of life and community development.
The two sometimes cross paths and collaborate on projects such as marketing and branding for the area and the Village Green project, which is beautifying the area at exits along I-85.
The GVCA does hear plenty from residents about various code violations and from businesses complaining about the lack of customers and clients.
To improve this, The Village Alliance is encouraging businesses to join their merchant association and residents to keep a list of folks that live in their neighborhood with contact information so they can keep in communication and send announcements regarding the Gwinnett Village.
The Village Alliance’s biggest accomplishment so far was the 2007 summer program at Radloff Middle School, where they took 150 students off the street for eight weeks at 10 hours a day for tutoring and recreation with the Boys and Girls Club.
This year, in addition to Radloff, the GVCA will be adding Summerour Middle School to the program and Lilburn Middle School in 2009.
The Village Alliance biggest need is donations. BIG donations and grants primarily from the major businesses and corporations in The Village and abroad to support their summer school programs. Sally Sherrington-Haggard, Executive Director of the GVCA, pointed out to me, the level of performance by the local schools feeds directly into the equation of our property values.
So answer these two questions for me:
1) Do you want your property values to increase?
2) Do you want to keep the little brats busy and (hopefully) out of trouble this summer?
If you answered “YES” to either or both of these questions, then isn’t it time you called the Gwinnett Village Community Alliance and see what you can do to aid them in their mission?
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Move over Rachael: Norcross on $40 a day
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you are hungry and looking for restaurant to grab some grub, Norcross, incorporated or otherwise, is in no short supply.
It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. Norcross was once the getaway resort town for Atlanta socialites.
Times may have changed some since, but Norcross has something for everyone from the very low end to the fairly high end and just about any kind of cuisine you can think of.
I have yet to sample all Norcross has to offer and I thought it would be fun to take a culinary tour of Norcross befitting one of Rachael Ray’s signature shows “$40 a day.” But I have a few more rules:
I have never eaten at the restaurant before.
One restaurant must be new to the area.
One meal must be eaten on the east side of I-85, another between I-85 and Downtown Norcross, and one in Downtown Norcross.
Let’s see how well I faired eating out on $40 a day in Norcross!
Breakfast - “Old Timers Breakfast” and coffee.
Cracker Barrel 6175 McDonough Drive Norcross, Ga. -
$10.03
Yes, I already broke a rule, but I have never been to the Norcross location, so it qualified. It appears that Cracker Barrel hasn’t really changed much in 20 years with the “General Store” and the very country cottage style décor that sets the tone for their food.
Lunch - baby back ribs, caesar salad and the ABSOLUTE BEST mashed potatoes that have ever crossed my lips. And, of course, iced tea. Norcross Station Café 40 South Peachtree Street Norcross, GA - $23.13
I had heard so much about Norcross Station and I was pleasantly surprised because I was expecting a diner/sandwich shop kind of atmosphere. The décor inside really mirrors the charm of both the surrounding downtown area and the railroad history of the building with a great menu selection.
Dinner - cheeseburger with tomato and jalapeno (fresh..not pickled) with a Diet Coke.
Five Guys Burgers 5860 Jimmy Carter Blvd., Norcross, GA - $7.09
I had $6.84 left in my budget by the time dinner rolled around, which was fine because I was far from hungry thanks to breakfast and lunch. Five Guys has a typical burger joint diner atmosphere which is getting rave reviews by the experts.. and my friends!
Total for the day: $40.25. I busted it (and probably my diet) by 25 cents. I doubt Rachael Ray is gonna jump out of the shadows to beat me with her rolling pin.
Where would you have eaten for $40 a day in Norcross following the same rules?
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Wow, calling all Latino’s trash now, legal or not. Then the Quality people will pack up and run if anyone not their kind moves into their neighborhHood. Must be a Southern thing running and Hoods.... read the full comment by Bruce Wilcox | Comment on Good schools start with good communities Read Good schools start with good communities
It most certainly WILL affect the school tax digest in funds collected. Therefore, it will affect everyone anywhere this county. Here a TAD, there a TAD and soon there will be a TAD everywhere. Then what will happen to the school... read the full comment by Michael H. Smith | Comment on Good schools start with good communities Read Good schools start with good communities
With all due respect Mr. Orr, if the taxing district does not effect you, why should you care? The only way it could effect you if an Atlantic Station type development arises on Jimmy Carter. Let’s see, less crime, more tax revenue, more developers... read the full comment by Bruce Wilcox | Comment on Good schools start with good communities Read Good schools start with good communities
there is the professional world of warcraft power leveling here. welcome.... read the full comment by jimelyyes | Comment on Who pays for 287 (g)? Read Who pays for 287 (g)?