There were ups and downs for Cobb County government in 2015. Here's a look back at some of the big moments:
January:
- Cobb Commission Chairman Tim Lee hired a chief deputy to be a liaison between his office and the media. Kellie Brownlow was hired from the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce at an annual salary of $105,000. After Brownlow's hiring, Lee did not speak directly to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on any substantive issue.
February:
- Georgia Supreme Court justices heard arguments about the constitutionality of the county's plan to issue nearly $400 million in debt to support construction of SunTrust Park.
- The county changes the design of the bridge over I-285, connecting SunTrust Park with the county's convention and performing arts centers. The county asked their engineering firm to design a double-deck bridge that would carry pedestrians on the top and buses on the bottom.
March
- Delta Airlines announces it will be a sponsor of a premium lounge inside SunTrust Park.
- Comcast announces it will be the sole tenant of an office building overlooking SunTrust Park, in the Braves' mixed-use development. The agreement will bring 1,000 jobs to the area.
- Commissioners denied a zoning change that would have allowed a controversial assisted-living facility to be built on 53 pristine acres off Roswell Road in East Cobb.
- New stadiums being built by the Falcons and Braves are granted a state exemption on paying sales tax on construction materials.
April
- Commissioners approve $3 million in funding for new police vehicles, a move that allowed the county to take one step closer to implementing a take-home car program for officers.
May
- Chairman Lee remodeled his office for a second time in three years, at a combined cost of more than $34,000.
June
- Commissioners approve a long-range transportation plan for the county that does not require a public referendum for the county to proceed with the controversial, $500 million bus rapid transit project. Each of the four district commissioners said they thought the referendum was required.
- The Atlanta Journal-Constitution found misleading information in a key bus rapid transit environmental study, and the same language repeated in a FTA grant request, submitted by the county. The misleading statements made it appear that rapid transit had the support of the commission, when no such vote was ever taken.
- The Georgia Supreme Court approves the county's plan to issue debt for SunTrust Park stadium construction.
July
- Commissioner Lisa Cupid writes a memo to county leadership complaining that a police officer profiled her as she drove home late on July 15. She says the officer, Maurice Lawson, had "utter disregard" for her safety.
- The AJC reports that the bridge to SunTrust Park over I-285 won't be open until at least September 2017, the Braves inaugural season in the new stadium.
- Commissioners approve hiring Sheri Kell as the county's new $110,000-a-year communications director. Kell worked on a Lee political event in 2015, and her mother-in-law serves as Lee's campaign chairwoman.
August
- Commissioners hear that the planned shuttle that will operate around SunTrust Park will cost $1.2 million a year.
- Lee's deputy chief, Kellie Brownlow, plagiarized major parts of a pro-police letter to the editor, submitted to the AJC for publication. The AJC later found another case of Brownlow plagiarizing material on Lee's behalf. No disciplinary action is taken.
- Cobb sells $376 million in bonds for SunTrust Park construction. The amount is about $1.6 million less than originally anticipated.
- The AJC finds that the legal defense for Lee's ethics case from 2014 cost taxpayers $24,000.
September
- The Georgia Department of Transportation provides the county with $42 million for transportation projects near SunTrust Park, but provides no money for the bridge over I-285.
- Commissioners approve a $783.8 million budget with a split vote. Even commissioners who voted in favor of the budget complained about their lack of input in the process.
- The county announces the bridge over I-285 to SunTrust Park will not open for any portion of the Braves 2017 season.
October
- Commissioners approve a $205,000 pedestrian study for the area around SunTrust Park.
- The county is notified that it did not receive the federal grant in which the AJC found incorrect information about bus rapid transit.
November
- Faye DiMassimo, Cobb's director of transportation, announces she is leaving to take a position with the city of Atlanta. The announcement comes just 18 months before the new stadium opens, and with more than $100 million in pending transportation projects around the stadium.
December
- Video of a traffic stop initiated by Cobb Police officer Maurice Lawson, the officer involved in the Lisa Cupid complaint, shows Lawson telling a black motorist "I don't care about your people," leading community activist groups to call for his termination.
- The county calls for an investigation into the handling of the Lawson complaint.
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