Dog found (Superior / N. Decatur Rd.)

Archie is found! Will be home for dinner.
Yay!

Peach Jam 2013 [June 26-30]

Look to your nearby farmer's market for Peach Jam 2013 events [http://www.farmatl.org/events/peach-jam-2013/]!

Image via https://www.facebook.com/Slow.Food.Atlanta

If you would like to participate in any of the competitions, you need to register:

"PEACH JAM 2013 is a four day celebration of Georgia's favorite fruit, the peach, brought to you by Slow Food Atlanta and Community Farmers Markets. 

Guest attendance is free at all events. Samples of each category can be purchased at the markets on the day of the events.  This registration is for competitors only.  

Peach BBQ sauce competition
Wednesday, June 26th: 5-7 pm
Pig Roast and Peach BBQ sauce competition at the Decatur Farmers Market. Professional level entrants, limited to 25 participants. Registration is $25 and includes peaches.
163 Clairemont Ave, Decatur, GA 30030 

Cocktail competition
Thursday, June 27th: 5:30 -7 pm 
Cocktail competition conjunction with the Midway Pub and the East Atlanta Farmers Market. Professional level entrants, limited to 25 participants. Registration is $25 and includes peaches.
561 Flat Shoals Ave, Atlanta Ga 30316 

Peach cook-off
Saturday, June 29th: 10 am - 12 pm
Peach cook-off (all things peach) at East Lake Farmers Market.  Amateurs and professionals welcome, limited to 25 participants. Registration is $25 and includes a bag of peaches.
Corner of Second Avenue and Hosea L. Williams Drive
Atlanta, GA 30317 

Cobbler Competition
Sunday, June 30th: 11 am - 12:30 pm
Cobbler Competition, parade, and festival games at the Grant Park Farmers Market. Amateurs and professionals welcome, limited to 25 participants. Registration is $20 and includes peaches.
In historic Grant Park, 600 Cherokee Ave Atlanta Ga 30312 

All recipes should include fresh, Georgia Peaches.  Prizes vary based on event, but include fame and fortune!
Individual event details will be emailed after registration.  Questions? Contact peachjamatlanta@gmail.com" 

Zoning Code Update Public Info Meeting [June 18]

via Commissioner Larry Johnson's office. Click to enlarge.

See other zoning code update posts on MANA's website.

Support for the City of Briarcliff feasibility study

Red dog wearing a blue cape? No, it's the competing cityhood proposals that stand to affect our area!
Existing cities (Atlanta, Decatur, Avondale Estates and Clarkston) are colorized and labeled in black. Lakeside proposal is outlined in red,  Briarcliff proposal is outlined in a dashed blue line, and Tucker proposal is outlined in pink. Lakeside and Briarcliff boundary lines are slightly offset for clarity--position does not denote different coverage and where they overlap, both are following Hwy 85 and 285. Original map courtesy of Google.
Please report any inaccuracies to medlockassoc@gmail.com so that we may better inform our readership.

As has been reported in the media and here, proposals for new cities in the northern part of DeKalb County are gathering steam. CHCA has just posted an informative piece on this issue at http://clairmontheights.org/node/3450

As noted in the MANA editorial below [to appear in our next newsletter], the time has come to form an opinion about the future of the region. Georgia law specifies that before a cityhood proposal can be brought to the legislature, it must include a financial viability study, and the City of Briarcliff Initiative is collecting funds ($30,000 needed) to commission said study from the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at UGA. Since MANA is included in the Briarcliff proposal, the MANA Board has voted to contribute towards this study. If the study is not commissioned, funds will be returned to the donors. The Lakeside City Alliance (whose proposal excludes MANA and CHCA) is likewise collecting funds for a feasibility study.

---

City of Briarcliff Initiative
by Lynn Ganim

Many of us have opposed the creation of a city including our part of the county, preferring to remain in DeKalb County, but events have made it necessary to reconsider that opposition.  Momentum and political power seem to be on the side of a creation of a Lakeside City. This proposed city does not include the Medlock or Clairmont Heights areas and would isolate us politically from much of the rest of the northern and central section of the county. We do not know how that would affect our property values, levels of service, or taxes.

 We, of course, can choose to do nothing.  Or we can support the study for the proposed new city of Briarcliff, which pays tribute to the interests of our area. If the legislature chooses to accept neither of the cityhood proposals, then we continue as we have.  If the Briarcliff initiative passes the legislature, we can vote our preferences.  If the Lakeside City initiative passes the legislature, we will have no say at all.  For now these seem to be our choices.

A new formal organization now exists to “investigate and study the possibility of forming a city within unincorporated central DeKalb County, Georgia.” This proposed city of Briarcliff would include most of unincorporated DeKalb County inside an area outlined by I-285, I- 85, and the city limits of Decatur and Atlanta.  The new city overlaps much of the already-proposed Lakeside City Alliance map but adds neighborhoods and sections left out of that proposal; it was created by a group that includes representatives from many neighborhoods and civic associations in the relevant sections of the county. As a result, Briarcliff constitutes what proponents claim is a more logical and inclusive entity for a city in DeKalb County.

There are several steps in the process of cityhood.

Georgia law requires that to be called a city an entity must provide at least three of the following services: law enforcement, fire protection/fire safety, road and street maintenance or construction, solid waste management, stormwater collection and disposal, electric or gas utility service, code enforcement, planning and zoning, and recreational facilities.

Georgia law also requires that there be a study of the feasibility of any new city to provide the services it requires and pay for them.  This study costs $30,000 and must be conducted by a properly- recognized  organization  like the Carl Vinson Institute at the University of Georgia.  Work on the study must begin by July 1, 2013, so that it can be completed in time for the next legislative session. This is a crucial first step towards cityhood.  Fund-raising has already begun.

Once a study has been completed, the legislature then must decide whether or not to authorize a referendum on the proposed city.  Our understanding is that no more than one proposal for the same general section of the county would pass.  If the legislature approves the plan for a proposed city, the people directly affected will have their say in the referendum. No one else in the county would vote on the issue.

As a result of the concerns stated above, the MANA board has just approved supporting the study for the City of Briarcliff by contributing $1000 to the cost of the feasibility study. The board is also offering up to $500 in matching funds for contributions from the neighborhood. Details about the match are still being worked out and will be available at the MANA web-site at http://www.medlockpark.org/  They will also be discussed at the MANA Community meeting on June 17.   We emphasize that we are supporting the study, not necessarily the city itself, because we believe this option gives all of us more opportunity to have our voices heard. Otherwise, events may overtake us before we have a chance to decide for ourselves.

Since this situation is very fluid and extremely important to our neighborhood, we urge you to keep up with the local news about it, as well as information on the MANA web-site and the Civic Association Network site at http://www.can-dk.org/file-cabinet/government-municipal.

Note:
At a meeting in early May a representative of the City of Decatur stated that they are still interested in annexing certain (unspecified) commercial areas to increase the percentage of revenue they get from businesses and “straighten out” their borders.

A Charlotte connection?

11 Alive reports that

A study is underway to consider connecting Atlanta to Charlotte through high speed rail. ... The money for the study is covered by a Federal Railroad Administration grant that was matched by GDOT. At this time, there is no money earmarked to pay for building the rail line.  Read the rest @ 11alive.com

The GA Department of Transportation has additional information in its Atlanta to Charlotte Passenger Rail Corridor Investment Plan page, such as project need and purpose, corridor history, study process, project schedule, FAQs, public scoping meetings (June 4 in Suwanne, GA), and a study area map that shows the potential routes being studied:

Study area map, via http://www.dot.ga.gov/travelingingeorgia/rail/AtlantatoCharlotte/Pages/StudyArea.aspx
Click to enlarge

Medlock Pool: 2013 hours

2013 Hours
Closed on Mondays
Tuesdays - Saturdays:  Noon - 6 p.m.
Sundays:  1 p.m. - 6 p.m.

Children under 8 must be accompanied by an adult.

Adults 55 and older are free. [Thanks for the tip, Jean C.!]

Daily admission for DeKalb Co. residents is $3 (adults 18 and over), $2 for youths (ages 3-17) and free for children under 2 years of age. Annual pass is $45.

The pool will be open through August 2. It is unknown at this time if the pool will open for additional weekends in September.

See DeKalb County's Aquatics brochure includes pool hours, swim lesson schedule, etc.
http://www.co.dekalb.ga.us/parks/pdf/2013_aquatics_brochure.pdf

New Student Registration at Laurel Ridge Elementary School

Laurel Ridge Elementary has posted the hours for registering new students for the 2013-2014 school year:

Monday, June 3rd through June 6th - 8:30-11:30

Tuesdays in June & July - 9:00-11:00

Wednesdays in June & July - 2:00-4:00

More information about Laurel Ridge Elementary is available here: http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/laurelridge