ICS accepting donations for student service project

from ICS Director of Development Lauren Azoulai:

"Our fifth grade is working on a project to collect and box up donated toiletries for homeless individuals and people living with AIDS.  One of the girls who is leading the project wrote a beautiful letter to reach out to businesses and other volunteers.  That letter is attached. 

Items can be brought to the school during the coming weeks, but it seemed to make the most sense to try to make it easier and collect the items at [the October 22 neighborhood] meeting.  Please let me know if you can help with this.  Thanks so much. "

Click to enlarge.

LIttle Creek Farm Fall Festival Fundraiser [Oct. 200]

Little Creek Farm is a DeKalb County facility. If you have never visited, this is the perfect chance--it's a treat!

Via Little Creek Farm:

Bring your whole family to enjoy a beautiful, fun fall day at the farm! We will have activities sure to entertain folks of all ages including fabulous riding demonstrations, pony & horse rides (even adults who are kids at heart can enjoy!), carnival games, kids crafts, tasty food (chili, hotdogs, homemade booked goods, yum!), and an expansive silent auction offering items of every price range. We've got some other fun, free activities in the works, so visit back soon for more details! 

Cost: $5 admission (cash or check only), kids 5 & under get in free! Admission includes access to the barn, silent auction, fabulous riding demonstrations, and select activities. Bring additional cash or checks for activities such as pony rides, crafts, and carnival games. Credit cards will be taken at the silent auction via PayPal. 

The Good: All proceeds go to benefit the Little Creek Farm Conservancy and their efforts to remodel the outdoor arena.

Little Creek is another nearby treasure, located on Lawrenceville Highway across from North DeKalb Mall. Little Creek offers horse boarding and riding lessons. Little Creek offers self-guided tours as well as guided tours. From their website:

"The Mission of Little Creek Farm Conservancy, Inc. is to promote the stewardship of Little Creek Farm for equine activities, including educational, environmental and recreational outreach programs for the general public. 

Little Creek Farm is a facility of Dekalb County Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs. "

Update: ALG meeting with Barton & Blackmon neighbors

The area in question sits on a slice of land between North Decatur Rd. and Scott Blvd.

From Hans Williams, MANA Zoning Co-Chair:

Notes from meeting with Atlanta Land Group:  10-16-12 

• Atlanta Land Group (AGL) is investigating the 17-acre neighborhood between Scott Blvd and N. Decatur road
• ALG would work on behalf of the homeowners to broker a deal with a developer, who in turn would deal with commercial retailers.
• ALG is working with North Decatur Baptist Church in the sale of their land.
• ALG is seeking to represent the Barton Way and Blackmon neighbors as a collective, and admits that a few homeowners holding out can prevent any deal from taking place. ALG's deals with homeowners are contingent on both everyone agreeing to sell and the land being rezoned.
• ALG is primarily interested in the residential properties.  If a potential developer is interested in including the commercial properties behind the residential neighborhood, those could be included, but it is the residential properties that represent the highest developable value.  The commercial properties are irregular in shape and not conducive to the standardization most commercial retailers demand.
• ALG has confidence in being able to find developers and retailers who are interested in the properties, and that a deal could go through if the residents were willing.
• ALG will spend the next week to ten days talking with residents one on one, gathering feedback and gauging interest.  Then they will send out an email and let the homeowners know what the general consensus they are hearing is.  If there is consensus from the homeowners to move forward, and they have a verbal agreement from the enough home owners, they will have everyone sign a listing agreement.  A listing agreement will allow ALG to represent the homeowners for a set number of days (90 to 100).  During that time they will broker a deal with a potential developer, otherwise the deal will not happen.
• Once a deal has been brokered and a contract is signed by all homeowners, it will still take time before closing.  It could take 12 to 14 months from when the community is first contacted until closing.  And the sale is still contingent on the development passing the rezoning process.
• This neighborhood is a desirable neighborhood.  Retailers are seeking to move into more in-town neighborhoods with established population bases.  The location near Suburban Plaza and the City of Decatur makes this area very attractive.

Most of the questions revolved around how likely this was to actually happen.  There was definitely a mix of reactions from “This is about my home, not just money” to “It is all about money.”  I did not notice any real negativity towards the idea of this deal happening, only concern that homeowners can remain whole and skepticism that this will be successful.  A few homeowners at the meeting have been through this before, and expressed concern over the inevitable conflicts such a deal, successful or not, brings to the neighborhood.

The meeting was mostly limited to residents who are directly affected; in addition to the MANA zoning co-chair,  a representative from Commissioner Rader's office was also present.

MANA supports the homeowners' right to decide whatever is best for their families. The MANA zoning team will continue to monitor potential developments.

Hunting Valley Drive Closures: Oct. 18 and 20

Click to enlarge.  Closures planned for October 18 and 20.

Sent to MANA:

I am writing on behalf of Atlanta Gas Light to update you on activities around the pipeline installation at Hunting Valley Drive that will involve some road closures later this week. We recognize this is short notice but work in the area went more quickly than expected.

The contractor’s traffic plan is attached so neighbors can see the exact location of the closure and the planned detour around it.

The drilling work at the site is almost finished, but to complete the installation, the contractor needs to cross Hunting Valley Drive twice with the pipeline shutting down a small section of the road during this process.

The first closure is planned for this Thursday, October 18 and is expected to only last for a couple of hours or less. The second closure is set for Saturday, October 20 and could continue for up to 12-14 hours. Once this part of the installation gets underway, it cannot be stopped. Please be aware that this schedule could shift out by a day or two and possibly push the work to Saturday and Monday. Should it extend further into the week, we will reach out the neighborhood again.

As noted on the traffic plan, signage will be posted in the neighborhood to alert pedestrians and motorists of the road closure.

The areas around the drill sites will be cleaned up and temporarily stabilized once that work is complete in anticipation for the remainder of the pipeline installation currently scheduled to get underway in the neighborhood in December.

Thank you very much for your help in getting the word out to the community during this brief disruption.  We look forward to meeting with you all on Monday.

Regards,

Zachary Donald Smith
Consultant | Atlanta Gas Light
404.754.3481
zachary.smith@jacobs.com

Discussion on the GA Charter School Amendment [Oct 17]

Via CHCA...

Event Date and Time:  10/17/2012 - 9:15am

From the Emory Lavista Parent Council, Cosponsored with eduKalb.

Join us at 9:15 am  (refreshments begin at 8:45 am), Wednesday, October 17, 2012, at the International Community School (Formerly Medlock Elementary), 2418 Wood Trail Lane, Decatur, GA 30033.   

The Georgia Charter School Amendment: The Devil is in the Details.   

Rep. Scott Holcomb will provide an overview of what led to the amendment being proposed and then join Mark Peevy, former Executive Director of the Georgia Charter School Commission and Margaret Ciccarelli, Legislative Services Manager and Attorney, Professional Association of Georgia Educators  for a discussion of the proposed Georgia Charter School Amendment and how it will affect our schools and choices.

As you probably know, the November 6 election will include a vote on a constitutional amendment to modify how charter schools are established in Georgia. The amendment is not about voting yes or no on whether charter schools can be established, but is about control over how they are established. Voting yes would amend current law to allow the Governor and a politically appointed commission to approve new charter schools. Voting no preserves the current system, whereby local school boards,  in conjunction with the State Board of Education, make determinations over charters in their districts. This decision is being watched closely because it may set precedents for other states to follow.

This is a rather contested decision, as Governor-approved charters would compete for public funds.

A search of AJC online articles turns up a number of items on this ongoing debate. Creative Loafing,  the AJC's Get Schooled blog, and the Huffington Post all have featured this issue in recent weeks.

Pro and Con Arguments

YES: Proponents argue that the amendment will enhance school choice and preserve local control of schools (since schools are run locally). The GA Chamber of Commerce has issued a pro-amendment position statement.

NO: Detractors argue the move is dangerous because it removes power from local, elected school board officers and grants it to a non-elected independent board located elsewhere. The VoteSmart Georgia website argues against the amendment. There are also serious concerns about commercial interests influencing the decision:

• Outside money pours into Georgia for charter amendment fight [AJC, Sept. 14, 2012]
• A private electronic memo outlines charter school campaign [AJC, Sept. 15, 2012]
• Attorney says Olens 'strangely quiet' on whether amendment advocacy opinion applies to Gov. Deal [WABE/NPR, Oct. 11, 2012]

Developer wants Blackmon Drive and Barton Way homes [Info Meeting on Oct. 16]

Dear Neighbors,

the letter below was distributed to homes on Blackmon Drive and Barton Way. There is a meeting scheduled at the Scott Boulevard Baptist Church meeting hall on Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 7:30pm.

This is all the information that is available at this time. Please attend the meeting if you can, and support our neighbors.

Click to enlarge.

Update: unknown connection to this proposed development.

Early voting reminder

A reminder, from DeKalb County's Voter Registration and Elections office.