Cobb
Fourth candidate joins commission chairman race
The field of candidates for the Cobb Commission chairman seat grew to four Friday with East Cobb resident Larry Savage confirming his intentions to run. Savage, a retired businessman, ran unsuccessfully for the seat against Tim Lee last year. Since then he has become a fixture at government and community meetings. He plans to launch his campaign in January. Earlier this week Mike Boyce, a retired Marine colonel and East Cobb resident, announced his candidacy for the seat. Former chairman Bill Byrne also plans to challenge Lee for the seat next year.
Janel Davis
Orchestra may have to cancel season
The Georgia Symphony Orchestra, formerly the Cobb Symphony Orchestra, needs $80,000 to continue the rest of the season with eight concerts scheduled January through May. Music director Michael Alexander attributes the 60-year-old orchestra’s financial need to a decrease in community and corporate funding the last three years. He said the Georgia Youth Symphony, which is part of the organization, will continue its program. Information: www.georgiasymphony.org.
Tucker McQueen For the AJC
Councilman arrested on assault charges
A Marietta city council member faces misdemeanor charges for allegedly assaulting another member of the council, the GBI said Friday.
Anthony Calvin Coleman, 54, has been charged with one count each of simple battery and simple assault, both misdemeanors, according to John Bankhead, GBI spokesman.
Coleman allegedly assaulted Annette Lewis in a parking lot after a Sept. 22 meeting on redistricting. The Marietta police department requested the GBI investigate the incident, and the GBI completed its investigation Nov. 10, Bankhead said.
Coleman turned himself in at the Cobb County jail at 1 p.m., according to jail records. He was being held on $2,000 bond.
Alexis Stevens
School board holds forum on redistricting
The Cobb County school board will hold a final public forum Wednesday on planned changes to attendance boundaries in South Cobb.
The lines are being redrawn to accommodate population shifts and new construction. The proposed map, which would take effect in two phases over the next two years, is available at www.cobbk12.org. The meeting is 6:30 p.m. at South Cobb High, 1920 Clay Rd., Austell.
The school board is expected to vote on a final map in February.
Ty Tagami
Students learn while repairing homes
Construction management students from Southern Polytechnic State University learned while volunteering to repair homes during three community service projects this fall.
Students donated their Saturday mornings to replace rotted porch handrails and decking, fix gutters, repair cabinets and provide other upgrades for low-income senior and disabled homeowners, said Trent Anderson, president of the SPSU Constructor’s Guild. They will resume volunteering with HouseProud Atlanta, Inc. in the spring, he said.
Ty Tagami
DeKalb
Holcomb wants lawmakers drug-tested
State Rep. Scott Holcomb, D-Atlanta, said he filed a bill Friday requiring all state lawmakers to be drug-tested.
The bill came in response to one filed last month by Republicans, who want the state to drug-test parents who apply for federal financial assistance. Holcomb, who represents parts of north DeKalb County, tweeted that "if required for the poor, we [lawmakers] need to do it, too."
State lawmakers since Nov. 15 have been allowed to submit proposed laws and resolutions in advance of next year's legislative session, which begins Jan. 9.
Kristina Torres
Family seeks return of stolen athletics rings
Avis Williams didn't care about losing two flat-screen TVs, a laptop, jewelry and other valuables when thieves broke into her Decatur home a week ago. Irreplaceable, though, is the football national championship ring and the three Atlantic Coast Conference rings her son earned at Florida State University.
Jeff Womble, 30, played nose guard at FSU from 1999 until he graduated in 2003. Williams is making a plea for the return of the engraved rings, which were not insured. Williams returned home Saturday afternoon after visiting relatives for Thanksgiving. Her son picked her up at the train station. When they arrived at her house, they learned of the break-in.
Fran Jeffries
Scout troop honored with special day
Decatur mayor Bill Floyd has proclaimed today Boy Scout Troop 107 Day, honoring the oldest scout troop in metro Atlanta. Troop 107, based in south Decatur, has been continuously chartered since November 1911, originally meeting in a one-room schoolhouse now located on Church Street next to the city cemetery. The first scout master was Scott Candler, who served as Decatur mayor from 1923 to 1940. The troop now has 15 members.
Bill Banks for the AJC
School district hires firm to seek operations chief
A national search will commence in DeKalb County for the next operations chief of the school system.
The school board on Wednesday approved the hiring of Iowa-based consultant Ray and Associates to conduct the search for a chief operating officer. DeKalb County Schools' last COO, Pat Reid, was indicted last year in a racketeering case that alleged bribery and theft from the school system. The contract for the search firm is for up to $20,000, said system spokesman Walter Woods.
Ty Tagami
Stone Mountain CID spruces up roadway
DeKalb County's newest Community Improvement District recently began cleaning up more than 15 miles of roadway to improve the look of its area.
The Stone Mountain CID crews edged curbs, removed trash and illegally-posted signs and did other landscaping along side roads and main drags such as Mountain Industrial Boulevard.
Crews also cleaned the boulevard's bridge over Highway 78 and repainted guardrails at that intersection.
More information about the CID and its work: www.stonemountaincid.com.
April Hunt
Gwinnett
Pair sentenced for running Ponzi scheme
A Lawrenceville man and a Roswell woman have been sent to federal prison for running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors out of $18 million, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Geoffrey A. Gish, 57, was sentenced to 20 years in prison, and Myra Ettenborough, 56, was sentenced to seven years behind bars. From 2004 to 2006, they defrauded clients of the investment firm Weston Rutledge through false promises of high-yield trading programs that supposedly offered secure and extraordinarily high returns, U.S. Attorney Sally Yates said in a statement.
Bill Rankin
Suwanee sells historic downtown property
Suwanee’s Downtown Development Authority has sold one of the city’s oldest commercial buildings to a business focused on constructing, remodeling and retrofitting buildings using “green” practices.
Deming LLC agreed to a 50-year lease-to-purchase price of nearly $259,000 for the two-story Pierce’s Corner building, which was built in 1910.
The property most recently was an antique shop. It has also been a general store, cotton gin, grocery store, dentist office and silent movie theater.
Joel Anderson
Community leaders complete training
Gwinnett Place CID Executive Director Joe Allen and Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce Business Development Manager Nicole Wright were among the latest class of graduates from the Board of the Georgia Academy for Economic Development’s Region 3 training program.
The Academy’s multi-day program, taught one day a month over a four-month period, includes training in the basics of economic and community development. Information: 404-679-4789 or cynthia.easley@dca.ga.gov.
Joel Anderson
Cagle to speak at Gwinnet chamber lunch
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle will speak to the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce at noon Dec. 14 at Gwinnett Center, 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Duluth.
The cost is $45 for chamber members and $55 for non-members, or $500 for a table of 10. The deadline to register is Dec. 9. To register and for more information, visit www.gwinnettchamber.org.
David Wickert
Duluth hosts holiday camp for children
Parents are invited to register their children, ages 5 to 10, for the Duluth Holiday Camp from Dec. 19-22.
The camp will run from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day at Bunten Road Park. The fee is $80 for Duluth residents and $100 for non-residents.
Campers will make gifts for friends and family, bake holiday treats and crafts. Information: 770-814-6981 or jrogers@duluthga.net.
Joel Anderson
Christmas parade in Lilburn today
Lilburn will kick off its annual Christmas Parade at 10 a.m. today. The parade route extends along Main Street to the grandstands in front of Lilburn City Hall at 76 Main Street.
Joel Anderson
Northside
Library card holders can get tutoring online
Anyone with an Atlanta-Fulton library card can get help studying for tests, finishing homework, prepping for the GED, finding a job, becoming a U.S. citizen or learning Spanish or English, all over the Internet. The library system has rolled out eCampus, a free online learning system for all ages and grade levels. Every library branch has books and materials supplementing eCampus. Programs include live one-on-one tutoring sessions, video test preparation and self-paced adult education classes. Information: 404-730-1759 or www.afpls.org/ecampus.
Johnny Edwards
Holiday fire prevention effort kicks off
The Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services is conducting “Keep the Christmas Wreath Green,” a fire prevention awareness effort encouraging citizens to prevent fires during the holidays. When a house fire occurs in Cherokee County through Dec. 31, the fire department will replace a green bulb with a red bulb. Each red bulb will represent a house fire. In 2010, 21 of the 50 green bulbs were replaced with red ones. The first wreath was erected Thursday at the downtown plaza in Ball Ground.
Kenneth Musisi
Milton invites input in online survey
An online community character study is available at the city of Milton’s website, www.cityofmiltonga.us, as part of the city’s Livable Communities Initiative (LCI) Grant study of the Ga. Highway 9 area.
The survey, which takes less than 10 minutes, includes a visual study of business, residential and green space areas. Residents rank images that are most appropriate for the Ga. 9/Windward/Deerfield parkways area. There are also questions about issues of transportation, business, housing and pedestrian access.
Results will help city planners plan for growth.
Andria Simmons
City businesses decorate for top prize
Sandy Springs business owners can display their seasonal spirit in the city’s first holiday decorating competition. The contest, sponsored by the city and local arts and business groups, will award $1,000 to the business whose storefront presents the best décor representing the holiday spirit.
The winning storefront will be announced during the Sandy Springs/Perimeter Chamber of Commerce’s holiday gathering Dec. 15.
Information: 770-730-5600; www.sandyspringsga.gov/sparkle. Patrick Fox
Tucker school vying for grant for running track
Livsey School in Tucker is a nominee in The Clorox Company’s Power a Bright Future grant program to bring a walking or running track to Livsey’s top field. Voting can be done online once a day through Dec. 9. The program that receives the highest number of votes will be awarded the $50,000 grand prize, the next top vote-getters will each be awarded a $25,000 grant. One additional school will receive a $25,000 judge’s choice grant. Log on to www.powerabrightfuture.com and register with the search keyword “Livsey.”
Kenneth Musisi
Southside
Commissioner holds budget hearing
Fulton commissioners are holding hearings on the county’s 2012 budget, giving taxpayers a chance to ask questions and sound off before a plan gets approved in January. Vice Chair Emma Darnell’s session for District 5 will be Monday at 6 p.m. at the Darnell Senior Multipurpose Facility, 677 Fairburn Road, N.W., Atlanta.
A draft of the $597.5 million budget would raise the special tax rate for unincorporated south Fulton -- part of which Darnell represents -- by 1.5 mills.
Johnny Edwards
GDOT hosts meetings on reversible lanes
The Georgia Department of Transportation will host two open houses on the proposed reversible express lanes on I-75 through Henry County. The meetings will be from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 13 at Eagle’s Landing High School; and on Thursday Dec. 15 at Southside Christian Fellowship on Mt. Carmel Road in McDonough. The proposed project involves constructing barrier-separated reversible lanes (carrying northbound traffic in the morning and southbound traffic in the afternoon) within a 12.24-mile section of I-75 between Highway 138 in Stockbridge and Highway 155 in McDonough.
Monroe Roark for the AJC
Peachtree City winter market begins today
Local vendors will continue to set up shop at the Peachtree City Farmers Market, which starts today. Seasonal produce, fresh breads and other homemade goods will be sold from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays through April. The market is in the Aberdeen Shopping Center parking lot off Ga. Highway 54. Information: www.ptcfarmersmarket.org. Jill Howard Church
School band performs concert for charity
The Fayette County High School Band will perform a special holiday concert on Thursday to benefit the Children at Risk in Education (CARE) program.
The concert is free, but guests are asked to bring items needed by students and their families, including coats, socks and underwear, toiletries, gift cards, CDs, canned goods and gift items for teenagers.
The event starts at 7 p.m. at the school; call 770-719-2112 for information.
Jill Howard Church
Sorority hosts Christmas Cantata in East Point
The East Point/College Park Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. will hold its Christmas Candlelight Cantata at 7 p.m. Dec. 15 at Headland Heights United Methodist Church, 2147 Dodson Drive in East Point. The event is free and open to the public.
Mea Watkins
Dixie Wing hosts Pearl Harbor service
The Commemorative Air Force Dixie Wing will hold its Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony Sunday from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at 1200 Echo Court in Peachtree City, near Falcon Field.
A member of the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association will be the guest speaker, marking the 70th anniversary of the attack. The event is free and open to the public.
Jill Howard Church
Atlanta
Former neighborhood chief pleads guilty
The former president and treasurer of the Cabbagetown Neighborhood Association has pleaded guilty to stealing $78,000 from his neighbors, the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office said.
Robert Dwayne Wood, 34, was sentenced to 20 years probation and 2,000 hours of community service and agreed to full restitution. Wood used the money to pay for personal expenses, prosecutors said. Some of the money Wood took was collected during the association’s annual “Chomp and Stomp” fundraiser, and other funds came from donations to a tornado relief fund.
Bill Rankin
Marta CEO to speak to solar energy meeting
MARTA general manager and CEO Beverly Scott will be the keynote speaker at the Georgia Solar Energy Association’s annual membership and holiday luncheon Tuesday.
Scott will talk about MARTA’s just-completed solar canopy installation at the Laredo bus facility that is expected to generate enough electricity to offset a significant portion of the facility’s electricity.
The luncheon starts at 11:30 a.m. at Maggiano’s Little Italy at 3368 Peachtree Road N.E. in Buckhead. The cost is $39 for members of the association and $45 for guests.
Rhonda Cook
Artist shows paintings at Darnell senior facility
Artist Malaika Favorite will re-introduce “Studies in Black History, 1999” Tuesday, for History and Culture Day at the Harriett G. Darnell Senior Multipurpose Facility.
The collection of paintings marked the facility’s 1999 opening. History and Culture Day is part of the facility’s anniversary celebration, which also includes a Monday concert with the Darnell Facility Chorus, and the 12th Anniversary Celebration Ball Friday.
The facility is at 677 Fairburn Road N.W., Atlanta.
For information: 404-699-8580.
Laurie Hoffman
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