http://www.ajc.com The latest headlines from AJC en-us Copyright 2009, Cox Newspapers Inc., AJC Sat, 4 Jul 2009 22:46:36 EDT Newspapers COXnet RSS Generator v1.0 http://img.coxnewsweb.com/C/08/17/52/image_1352178.jpg http://www.ajc.com 5 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2009/06/30/road_stimulus_projects.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2009/06/30/road_stimulus_projects.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:37:26 EDT The state Department of Transportation has awarded another 22 projects to be paid for by the federal stimulus. The projects are worth $57 million, according to Georgia DOT, and construction should begin next month. They include a repaving project on 20 miles of I-575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties, traffic light upgrades on Old Alabama Road in Fulton County, pedestrian upgrades on Memorial Drive in DeKalb, and others. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/28/dixie_speedway.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/28/dixie_speedway.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Sun, 28 Jun 2009 21:23:34 EDT During its 40 years of existence, Dixie Speedway in Woodstock has become far more than just another Saturday night dirt track. Races there have become weekly rituals — can't-miss events for generations of drivers and fans. Even as times have changed, and the neighborhood has developed to the point there's a Home Depot and Lowe's just down Ga. 92 from the track, Dixie has remained true to its working-class roots. Just as they did decades ago, mechanics and plumbers and body-shop workers and salvage yard operators spend weeknights working on their cars so they can be a part of the Saturday night show. And it's still one that won't break the budget of the average fan. Adult tickets for a regular show are just $10, and kids 8 and under get in free. Track owner Mickey Swims, at age 67, is plenty well-off enough to retire, but he still handles the hardest jobs himself. Any race night finds him sweaty and grimy from hours spent plowing and grading the track, watering it and then packing it down to a smooth surface, all done with equipment long cast off from a construction crew somewhere. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/22/fraud_cherokee_id_theft.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/22/fraud_cherokee_id_theft.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Tue, 23 Jun 2009 07:19:40 EDT In a brazen example of identity theft, a woman walked into three Wachovia banks in Cherokee County and used counter checks to withdraw $15,500 from a Florida woman's account. The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office on Monday released security camera photos of the suspect, hoping someone will recognize her. The withdrawals occurred on two days last month. On the first day, the woman took out $4,500 at one Woodstock bank, then $6,500 at another. On the second day, she withdrew $4,500 from a Wachovia in Canton. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/17/allatoona_0617_web1.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/17/allatoona_0617_web1.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Fri, 19 Jun 2009 13:04:22 EDT A 23-year-old woman who drowned in Lake Allatoona was identified Thursday as Shastin Rader, an assistant softball coach at Reinhardt College where she also played as a student. Divers found her body around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday in the waters of Lake Allatoona near Shoal Creek in Cherokee County several hours after the search began near Knox Bridge Highway west of Canton. Rader and two men were on a jet ski Tuesday night when they apparently hit a submerged tree stump around 10 p.m., state and county authorities said. She was not wearing a life vest. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cobb/stories/2009/06/18/wellstar_aetna.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cobb/stories/2009/06/18/wellstar_aetna.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Thu, 18 Jun 2009 17:58:45 EDT WellStar Health System has sent 14,000 letters to patients saying it may terminate its relationship with Aetna insurance company. While the letters have alarmed patients who worry they'll have to switch hospitals or insurance companies, an Atlanta health consultant said the letters could simply be a negotiating tactic and that people probably have little to worry about. Michael Rovinsky of Integrity Consulting Group said such letters have become a commonplace tactic during hardball negotiations between insurers and hospitals, used by both sides. One side, for instance, might use the letter to alarm patients, who then could call and apply pressure to the other side to settle the negotiations, he said. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/17/allatoona_search.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/17/allatoona_search.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:06:26 EDT Divers found the body of a 24-year-old woman in the waters of Lake Allatoona in Cherokee County a little after 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, according to Kristina Summers, spokeswoman for the Wildlife Division of the state Department of Natural Resources. Summers said the woman has not been publicly identified because her family has not been reached. Her name will be released once the coroner makes a positive identification and after relatives have been told. Three people, the woman and two men, were on a water scooter Tuesday night and they apparently hit a submerged tree stump around 10 p.m., according to Summers and Tim Cavender of Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/12/allatoona_drowning.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/12/allatoona_drowning.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Sat, 13 Jun 2009 14:50:26 EDT Cherokee Sheriff's Office deputies are investigating a possible drowning of a 5-year-old boy at the Sweetwater Day Use area on Lake Allatoona. At about 3:52 p.m. Friday, Cherokee Sheriff's Office deputies were dispatched. According to Sheriff officials, the victim was located about 40 feet from shore in about 6-foot deep water. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/12/serial_burglar.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/12/serial_burglar.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:44:11 EDT A Canton teen was arrested Thursday for allegedly breaking into the same Cherokee County home and taking items five times in the past month — all while the residents were at home. Zane Rotruck, 17, was charged with five counts of burglary and one count of entering an auto, Cherokee sheriff's Lt. Jay Baker said. The last burglary occurred early Wednesday, Baker said. One of the residents at the home in the Woodmont subdivision spotted Rotruck exiting the back of the home and called 911. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/06/cherokee_student_injured.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/06/cherokee_student_injured.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Sun, 7 Jun 2009 19:17:25 EDT A Cherokee High School senior injured in a swimming pool accident has been transferred to a facility specializing in spinal injuries. Matt Blaylock was moved from Grady Memorial Hospital to the Shepherd Center's spinal cord injury unit on Thursday, said Larry Bowie, spokesman for the Shepherd Center. Blaylock, 18, was airlifted to Grady on May 29 after he hurt himself diving into the shallow end of a swimming pool in the BridgeMill subdivision in Canton, authorities said. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2009/06/05/reversible_toll_lanes.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2009/06/05/reversible_toll_lanes.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Fri, 5 Jun 2009 19:16:14 EDT The toll lane proposal for I-75 and I-575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties has been reduced to two new reversible lanes, a state Department of Transportation staff official said Friday. Darryl VanMeter, DOT's acting administrator for innovative projects, told a regional transportation meeting that the project is being redrawn in an effort to save it in the face of a beleaguered budget. The state originally proposed to add eight single-direction toll lanes on I-75, four for trucks and four for cars. But that became too expensive, as estimates ballooned from $1.8 billion to $4 billion, and the DOT experienced a budget pinch. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/03/fundraiser_slain_optician.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/03/fundraiser_slain_optician.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Wed, 3 Jun 2009 18:38:02 EDT Just months after a Cherokee County optician was murdered in her home, friends and neighbors raised funds in her memory. Kimberly Burton, who helped establish Eyes on You Care in Canton, was found dead in her home in January. Her husband, Rodney Burton, fled to Mexico for two months following the murder. He then confessed to the crime and is in jail. The River Green Run, organized in 18 days, raised $5,825 to benefit the Cherokee Family Violence Center, according to John Rust, race director. The 5K Run, One Mile Walk and One Mile Fun Run had 362 participants. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/03/lake_arrowhead_fire.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/03/lake_arrowhead_fire.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Wed, 3 Jun 2009 17:46:47 EDT One person was killed and two others injured Wednesday in an early-morning fire that destroyed several units of a Cherokee County condominium complex. The blaze broke out around 4 a.m. on Mountain View Court, in the Lake Arrowhead community near Waleska, Cherokee fire spokesman Tim Cavender said. Cavender said arriving fire crews found eight units in two buildings fully involved in flames. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/02/interstate_575_wreck.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/02/interstate_575_wreck.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Tue, 2 Jun 2009 22:26:11 EDT A 26-year-old Canton man was killed on his motorcycle Tuesday afternoon on I-575, authorities said. James Andrews Adames lost control and struck the guard rail, Canton police spokeswoman Cpl. Stacy Bailey said. Police responded at 1:30 p.m., and southbound traffic was shut down between Riverstone Parkway and Cumming Highway until about 3 p.m., authorities said. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/02/cherokee_student_injured.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/02/cherokee_student_injured.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Tue, 2 Jun 2009 14:41:07 EDT A Cherokee High School football star injured in a swimming pool accident last week remained in Grady Hospital's intensive care unit Tuesday, listed in fair condition. Matt Blaylock, an all-county linebacker who earned a scholarship to Tusculum College in Greeneville, Tenn., underwent surgery for spinal injuries Monday. He hurt himself Friday night diving into the shallow end of a pool in the BridgeMill subdivision in Canton, and was flown by helicopter to Grady. http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/01/cherokee_pool_injury.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/cherokee/stories/2009/06/01/cherokee_pool_injury.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13 Tue, 2 Jun 2009 04:23:09 EDT A Cherokee High School senior injured in a swimming pool accident has been upgraded from critical to fair condition at Grady Memorial Hospital. Matt Blaylock, 18, was flown by medical helicopter to Grady Friday night, the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office said. He hurt himself diving into the shallow end of a swimming pool in the Bridgemill subdivision in Canton, authorities said. Blaylock had been scheduled to attend graduation ceremonies this past Saturday.