COBB
Powder Springs alters sanitation schedule
Tuesday routes for sanitation pickup in Powder Springs will be changed to Wednesday.
No yard waste or brush will be collected during New Year’s week but will resume on Jan. 9.
Information: cityofpowdersprings.org/index.aspx?nid=387 or Powder Springs Public Works Department at 770-943-8010.
Carolyn Cunningham for the AJC
AJC Political Insider speaks to group
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Political Insider Jim Galloway will speak to the South Cobb Business Association at noon Jan. 2 at Presbyterian Village, 2000 East-West Connector, Austell.
Cost is $10 for members or $20 for guests.
Information: sc-ba.org.
Carolyn Cunningham for the AJC
Subdivision to be built on public housing site
The Marietta Housing Authority has approved a $1 million bid from Traton Homes to build 43 to 45 houses on a former public housing site on 10 acres off North Marietta Parkway.
The 125-unit Lyman Homes was razed in 2007. The Traton houses will sell from $250,000 to $280,000.
The public housing agency has sold three of its former public housing sites to private developers.
Tucker McQueen for the AJC
KSU exhibit in Austell library through January
A Kennesaw State University exhibit may be viewed through Jan. 30 at the Sweetwater Valley Library, 5000 Austell Powder Springs Road, Austell.
“In Her Father’s Eyes” tells her father’s story of his daughter Kitty Weichherz before she and her parents were killed at the Auschwitz concentration camp in Germany during World War II.
Kept safe with Kitty’s aunt, her father’s journal tells of daily life in Europe on the eve of Hitler’s Final Solution.
Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday.
Information: 770-819-3290 or kennesaw.edu/historymuseum/inherfatherseyes.shtml.
Carolyn Cunningham for the AJC
Basic Webmail class offered Thursday
A free class on Basic Webmail will be given from 4 to 5 p.m. today at the Powder Springs Library, 4181 Atlanta St.
Participants will be taught how to create free webmail accounts for applying for jobs and sending resumes.
Information: Bruce Thompson at powdersb@cobbcat.org or 770-439-3600. Carolyn Cunningham for the AJC
Free Christmas tree recycling available
Keep Cobb Beautiful is sponsoring free Christmas tree recycling at select parks and recreation locations through Jan. 5 and some Home Depot locations on Jan. 5.
Free mulch will be available to residents after Jan. 5
Information: 770-528-1135.
Jaime Sarrio
GWINNETT
Duluth to host New Year’s celebration
The City of Duluth has partnered with Entertainment Design Group to host the New Year’s Eve Crawl from 6 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Dec. 31 at the Duluth Festival Center and Amphitheater.
The family-friendly celebration will include a kick-off with dancing to a DJ, live music featuring The American Flyers Show Band, the Chick-fil-A Bowl Game on a big screen, a gigantic Snow Slide, and a Winter Carnival.
Admission is free but a nominal fee will be charged for food, beverages and Winter Carnival activities.
Kenneth Musisi
Berkeley Lake annexes Hermitage Plantation
Following a public hearing to address any concerns, Berkeley Lake has approved the annexation of Hermitage Plantation subdivision.
By becoming residents of Berkeley Lake, homeowners will save money by avoiding unincorporated Gwinnett storm water utility and streetlight fees, and by paying lower garbage collection fees.
Karen Huppertz for the AJC
Berkeley Lake ahead of schedule to repay bond
Berkeley Lake will be able to repay the bond used to fund lake repairs earlier than expected. Receipt of FEMA funds are allowing the repayment to be completed during first quarter 2013.
In addition, the city’s greenspace bonds were recently refinanced saving the city $158,000 over an eight-year period. Karen Huppertz for the AJC
Sugar Hill moves city hall
Sugar Hill City Hall will closed Jan. 7 and 8 as officials move to their new location at 5039 W. Broad St.
Six departments will be moving to the new location including, administration, planning and development, post office, gas department, code enforcement and building inspection.
The city will host a grand opening 1 to 4 p.m. Jan. 13.
For emergencies, call 770-945-6716. Karen Huppertz for the AJC
Teacher recognized nationally
Jackie Ellett, a fine arts specialist at Duncan Creek Elementary, was named the National Art Education Association’s Southeastern Art Educator of the Year.
Ellett, an educator of 26 years who joined Gwinnett Public Schools in 1986 and Hoschton’s Duncan Creek the year it opened in 2004, previously was named the Georgia Art Education Association’s Educator of the Year. MICHAEL ALPERT FOR THE AJC
Water and sewer rate increase
Effective January 2013, Gwinnett will implement a rate increase for water and sewer effective through December 2013.
Single-family residences will pay between $4.69 and $9.38 per 1,000 gallons for water depending on volume and $7.11 per 1,000 gallons for sewer.
All irrigation and builder accounts shall be billed at two times the tier-one volumetric rate.
Information:www.gwinnetth2o.com, or call 678-376-6700 for a complete list of rates and charges.
Karen Huppertz for the AJC
NORTHSIDE
Canton to change mayor and council pay
The Canton City Council recently voted to raise council member pay to $8,000 annually and mayoral pay to $10,000, from $2,100 and $3,000 respectively.
The increase would take effect effect after the start of 2014 as current officeholder terms end. The Council also voted to phase out the mayoral and council pension plan.
Mark Woolsey for the AJC
Moonshine exhibit closing in mid-January
The “Liquid Gold : Moonshine in Cherokee County” exhibit at the Cherokee County History Museum and Visitors Center, 100 North St., Canton, has been extended to Jan. 12. The exhibit featuring moonshine-related documents, photos and artifacts is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday.
Admission is free. Mark Woolsey for the AJC
Weather closes major Forsyth County trail
The Big Creek Greenway Trail in Forsyth County was scheduled to be closed through today as park department crews clean up after flooding and downed vegetation. The Forsyth County portion of the trail extends from Bethelview Road to McFarland Parkway. For updated info: www.forsythco.com
Mark Woolsey for the AJC
Roswell band enters nationwide contest
The Roswell High School Band has entered the “Gift of Music,” a nationwide contest sponsored by Rackroom.com to win $15,000 for their band program. The RHS Wind Ensemble submitted a video recording of their Winter Concert performance of “Deck the Halls.”
Cast votes online Friday through 9 p.m. Jan. 11. Limit one vote per person per day. The four contestants with the most votes will each receive the $15,000 grand prize. Information: tinyurl.com/cazbqnv. Kenneth Musisi
Woodstock police offering rides home
The Woodstock Police Department will be conducting “Operation Safe Ride” for a fifth year on New Year’s Eve. Police will provide free rides home to bar patrons who may be impaired or feel it’s unsafe to drive. Callers must be at a watering hole within the city limits, must live in or near the city and be without money to call a cab. Information: www.woodstockga.gov
Mark Woolsey for the AJC
Forsyth completes new wastewater facility
Forsyth County recently completed a regional wastewater lift station and force main on McGinnis Ferry Road that is projected to save the water and sewer department nearly $1 million a year.
The $7.6 million project should handle development in south Forsyth County.
It includes a concrete diversion structure, which diverts wastewater that previously flowed to a Fulton County treatment facility to the county’s own treatment facility.
Water and sewer officials say the new station should pay for itself in seven years. Patrick Fox
ATLANTA
Guilty verdict returned in minutes
Just minutes after beginning deliberations, a Fulton County jury recently found 25-year-old Antonio Shaw guilty in the murder of an Atlanta man, the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office said.
Shaw was convicted of the Dec. 10, 2011, shooting death of Shomari Greeir and gunshot injuries to two others at a Parkway Drive apartment complex. The shooting was provoked by a fight between Shaw’s girlfriend and another woman, prosecutors said.
When Shaw pulled out a handgun, Greeir intervened and tried to convince Shaw to put his weapon away, but instead Shaw opened fire, killing Greeir and injuring the two women, the DA’s office said. Bill Rankin
Robbery suspect shot and killed by victim
Police were alerted to a shooting about 10:30 p.m. Monday when a deceased male was dropped off at Grady Memorial Hospital. At the same time, officers were at the scene of an attempted robbery at 20 Jackson St., police said.
The investigation revealed that the deceased male and another male attempted to rob a subject, police said. The intended victim shot one of the would-be robbers.
Roderick Banks, the 21-year-old man who transported the shooting victim to the hospital, was arrested and charged with armed robbery and felony murder.
The dead man’s name was being withheld until relatives could be notified. Mike Morris
Water main break in SW Atlanta repaired
A water main break in southwest Atlanta that cut service to hundreds of residents on Christmas Eve has been repaired.
About 250 homes between Wallace Road and Dayton Drive were affected, offials said.
The streets include Woodside Drive, Fern Valley Drive, Green Hill Court, Red Berry Lane, Reynolds Road, James Madison Drive, Dolly Avenue and Faron Drive.
She said the break was repaired around 9 p.m. on Monday night and service was restored. Staff
DEKALB
New courtroom taking shape
More than two years after agreeing to spend $4 million in federal stimulus dollars to renovate its aging Recorders Court, DeKalb County has recently agreed to spend $300,000 for furniture for the two new courtrooms.
The spending is part of a $1.8 million project that also renovates two existing courtrooms and makes several upgrades to the administrative and lobby areas of the facility on Camp Circle.
Chief Judge Nelly Withers and her staff spent off hours converting a storage area into a fourth courtroom last summer. April Hunt
Stone Mountain CID boosting security
The Stone Mountain Community Improvement District is boosting security patrols through the end of the year.
Businesses in the self-tax district already pay for private security and off-duty DeKalb County police to work in the area. Additional officers are being added, however, during the holiday season when fewer workers make businesses in the area between Mountain Industrial Boulevard in DeKalb and into I-85 in neighboring Gwinnett more vulnerable.
Businesses in the district also tax themselves to fund operations such as roadway work and landscaping. The goal is to add 2,000 new jobs to the area by the end of 2013. April Hunt
Dunwoody interchange wins design award
The diverging diamond design of the Ashford Dunwoody Road exit of I-285 in Dunwoody recently won two state transportation award.
The Georgia Partnership for Transportation Quality gave the exchange, the first of its kind in the state, its Best Innovative Solution and Grand Design awards.
The Perimeter Community Improvement District, which began the project to ease congestion for the 55,000 vehicles traveling the area daily, accepted the honors. April Hunt
Thousands more recycling in DeKalb
DeKalb County saw 6,400 new residents sign up for recycling in the first three months after making the service free.
After eliminating the $30 start-up fee, more than 4,000 residents joined the service in the first month after became free in late September. By December, that number had grown to 6,400.
The increase is the equivalent of about 4 percent more customers, added to the 21 percent who had been recycling. The county’s goal is to get 40 percent of its 159,000 customers to recycle in the next four years.
Information: 404-294-2900 or www.dekalbrecycles.com.
April Hunt
Community Council hosts inauguration trip
The Stephenson Community Council in Redan has partnered with Dream Big Educational Services to offer an opportunity for celebrating the presidential inauguration in Washington, D.C.
The tour departs Atlanta on Jan. 19 and returns early Jan. 22. Cost is $395 per person: 4 to 6 persons (suite) or $595 per person: 2 to 3 persons (single room).
Pricing includes: chartered bus transportation, two-night hotel stay, 9 meals, and guided tours of all venues and events. Information: tinyurl.com/d8vojs2. Kenneth Musisi
SOUTHSIDE
Woman gets life for killing boyfriend
A 27-year-old woman has been sentenced to life in prison for killing her boyfriend in his East Point home.
A Fulton County jury recently convicted Tacomsi Winters for the murder of 30-year-old Dionte Bradley on Dec. 22, 2011, the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office said. Winters initially denied killing her boyfriend but later admitted to police that she shot him, said prosecutors, who theorized that Winters killed Bradley because she believed he was seeing other women.
Bill Rankin
Vendor indicted for voucher fraud
A federal grand jury has indicted a woman for allegedly defrauding the Women, Infants and Children program at a grocery store she operated in Riverdale.
Lashunda Lovelace, 36, of Atlanta, was charged with fraud, theft of public funds and identification document fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Lovelace was ineligible to run a government assistance store, so she changed her name to “Tara Beasley” and illegally operated the store as a WIC vendor and also sold fraudulent driver’s licenses and social security cards, prosecutors said. Bill Rankin
Business networking event set
The second installment of the “Better Business Buzz Merchant Mingle” will be held 5 - 7 p.m. Jan. 16 at the East Point Corner Tavern, 2783 Main St., East Point. The series provides an opportunity for downtown businesses to network and explore the three participating cities: College Park, East Point and Hapeville, as each city will host an event. Information: Allie O’Brien, 404-669-8269 or aobrien@hapeville.org.
Arlinda Smith Broady
Community grant applications accepted
The Clayton County Community Development Department’s Office of HUD Programs is accepting applications for funding. The application deadline is 4 p.m. Jan. 25. Questions regarding the application will be accepted via email until Jan. 18. Information: lisa.nolton@co.clayton.ga.us. Staff
Alcohol to be allowedat some events in parks
The Henry County Board of Commissioners voted last week to amend the county ordinance to allow beer and wine only for specific events at Nash Farm Park, Heritage Park (arena and building area only) and the Locust Grove Event Center.
Such use will require written approval from the county’s recreation board and other stipulations.
Previously all alcohol consumption was prohibited at all such areas. Monroe Roark for the AJC
Peachtree City tax deadline looms
Nearly 1,200 businesses in Peachtree City still need to visit City Hall by Friday to renew their occupational tax for 2013.
Representatives are required to appear in person with photo identification and completed forms.
The city cannot process payments if the business has delinquent stormwater utility fees or false fire alarm fines. Jill Howard Church for the AJC
