St. Jude's Children Research Hospital Benefit [June 12]

Click to enlarge.

17 artists are selling bowling pins today at Suburban Lanes of Georgia! ALL proceeds go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital! This is your time to help and I know you will- Auction starts at 5pm and goes until 10pm. There will be 11 artists there on site! You should come support them! They graciously donated these hand painted pins to help children get the funds needed to fight cancer and other afflictions....and the only way we can keep this kind of event going is if we have your support! Now come on Atlanta- support the arts like I know you can!!!

FREE! ALL AGES! $1 BOWLING ALL DAY! FREE FACE PAINTING FOR KIDDOS 5-8PM! 10 ARTIST VENDORS- SCULPTURE- PAINTINGS- CLOTHING- PHOTOGRAPHY!

See additional details here.

330-unit apartment complex coming to corner of Church St. and Milscott Dr.

From Atlantic Realty Partners via the Cross-Neighborhoods Committee:

June 10, 2014 

Atlantic Realty Partners is pleased to announce that on May 27, 2014, the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners approved its applications for the development of a 330-unit apartment complex to be located on 9.4 acres on the corner of Church Street and Milscott Drive in Decatur. The site was previously occupied by a car dealership but has been vacant for years. The multifamily complex, to be named “The Reserve”, will feature two “U-shaped” buildings enclosing a terrace courtyard with landscaping and a swimming pool. (See attached site plan). To maintain an urban feel, the buildings are situated directly adjacent to the street and will largely shield the parking lot from view. Additionally, the developer will install sidewalks and landscaping along both Church Street and Milscott Drive.    

Specifically, the Board approved (1) an amendment of the Comprehensive Plan Map from Commercial Redevelopment Corridor to Town Center; (2) a rezone from General Commercial to Office-Institutional; and (3) a Special Land Use Permit to increase the allowed height to five stories. The project was approved site-plan specific and subject to 17 conditions (attached). 

The developer wishes to thank all those who attended the public hearings and meetings regarding the project. Community input resulted in a final product far superior to what we started with. Atlantic Realty would like to specially thank the members of the Cross-Neighborhoods Committee for their input and informal support throughout the planning process. We look forward to seeing this project finally come to fruition and maintaining a continued presence in the local community.

"The Reserve": residential development on the corner of Church Street and Milscott Drive.
Click to enlarge or see the original file here.

Atlanta Time Machine creator victim of hit-and-run by red SUV @ Flagler Ave., Morningside

Please be on the lookout for a red SUV with recent damage on the front end. Creative Loafing and WSB-TV report that Greg Germani, creator of the Atlanta Time Machine, Medlock resident and overall awesome guy suffered serious trauma and injuries and was taken to Grady Memorial after what appears to be an intentional hit-and-run on Flagler Avenue in Morningside.

http://clatl.com/freshloaf/archives/2014/06/10/witnesses-motorist-intentionally-hit-bicyclist-in-morningside-left-scene

The Creative Loafing item includes a comment stating

Any witnesses to this hit and run, please contact Detective Robert Jackson, APD Zone 2, (404) 816-7067.The victim's last name is actually Germani but it is listed as "German" on the police report. 

http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/police-driver-intentionally-hit-bicyclist-dragged-/ngHnq/

Please be on the lookout
for a red SUV likely showing
damage on its front end.

According to the WSB report, the vehicle may be a Dodge Nitro, and if so, would look something like this.


Greg: hang in there, everyone's pulling for you!!

Medline LCI slides from June 5 community meeting AND report draft

That's the spirit! Pedal power at the Medline LCI meeting.

The Medline LCI community meeting last June 5 had a great turnout (around 100) and covered the history of the Atlanta Regional Commission and its Livable Centers Initiative. The Medline LCI is centered around DeKalb Medical Center and as such, stands to impact our area because its recommendations will help shape future development by establishing priorities and best practices. As noted in the presentations, LCIs strive to create accessible environments that include residential and commercial property, employment sites, and a high level of access for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. Photos of the meeting are available here and presentation slides appear below.

The Medline LCI process is not over: the changes it recommends span 25 years into the future, and we can expect that there will be many more opportunities to review this LCI's vision and test how well recommendations work. The Medline LCI team is in the process of finalizing the project report. Their draft (and information on how to submit comments) can be found at https://sites.google.com/site/medlinelcistudy/ [direct link to the report: https://www.dropbox.com/s/123noa4kk05ksuc/MedlineDraft_June.pdf]. Comments will be accepted through July 7, 2014.



Addendum: The Medlock Area Neighborhood Association, Clairmont Heights Civic Association and Good Growth DeKalb submitted comments and concerns about the plan on July, 2014; see that post here.

Community meeting to review and discuss DeKalb County Acquisition of South DeKalb YMCA [June 9]

via Beth Nathan @ Civic Association Network (CAN). 

Come discuss whether the currently proposed public-private partnership with the South DeKalb YMCA is an appropriate expenditure of county Parks Bond dollars or a windfall for the YMCA.   

Carpool with some neighbors. Let's generate a LARGE turn-out of citizens from multiple commission districts who care about county planning and decision-making.   

A vote on this item is scheduled for the June 10 BOC agenda, having been deferred several times. 

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COMMUNITY MEETING to review and discuss DeKalb County Acquisition of South DeKalb YMCAMonday, June 9, 7 pm, Tucker Recreation Center, 4898 LaVista Road, Tucker    sponsored by Commissioners Rader and Gannon
DeKalb County is considering spending approximately $5 million of the remaining Parks Bond dollars (approx $1M from district-allocated funds and $4M from countywide funds which is ~38% of remaining countywide funds) to acquire the South DeKalb YMCA and then lease it back to the YMCA for 50 years at $1/year.  The YMCA is to devote the purchase proceeds to site improvements. This YMCA is geographically close to several other DeKalb recreation/health facilities (parks & senior centers). The local community has said that they need this improvement to local recreation/health facilities because the local population is very dense and not very healthy; they also say that this proposal is consistent with the Recreation, Parks and Cultural Affairs Master Plan. An easy introduction to the proposal is found on Crossroads News: http://crossroadsnews.com/news/2014/apr/11/dekalb-county-acquire-south-dekalb-ymca/
Many important details are summarized in SoDeKalbYMCA_DetailOverview.pdf, compiled by Commissioner Rader's office
Source documents on this proposal, the RPCA Master Plan, and parks bond funding are available on the Civic Association Network's website in the reference materials section.  See http://www.can-dk.org/file-cabinet/parks_gardens/southdekalbymca

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If you can't attend but wish to share your opinions about this proposal, you can find the Board of Commissioners' contact information here.

Suburban Starbucks SLUP [June 24]

Selig Enterprises invites community feedback in advance of filing a special use land permit (SLUP)  for a drive-through Starbucks at Suburban Plaza. DeKalb County requires SLUPs for all new drive-throughs.

The meeting will take place on Tuesday, June 24, 7pm, at North Decatur Presbyterian Church (611 Medlock Road).

Click to enlarge or download file here.

For all previous posts on Suburban Plaza's redevelopment, click here. The redevelopment timeline is available here.

Selig update on Suburban Plaza: commitments, timelines

Selig Enterprises has forwarded an update on its Suburban Plaza redevelopment project. In addition to restating Selig's commitments to the community, the letter includes this redevelopment timeline:

demolition of parts of existing structures: in the coming weeks (summer 2014)
facade renovations: fall 2014
anticipated redevelopment completion: summer 2015
new tenants open for business: fall 2015

Click to enlarge or download the file.

Selig and the Medlock Area Neighborhood Association (MANA) began discussing Suburban Plaza's redevelopment as soon as plans were announced in the summer of 2011, and in collaboration with members of the Cross-Neighborhood Committee, reached and signed this agreement on December, 2011.

Selig also seeks community feedback on a special land use permit (SLUP) to allow a drive-through Starbucks at Suburban Plaza. The announcement for that June 24, 2014 meeting is available here.