FreePress 8-7-16

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F REE P RESS

championnewspaper championnewspaper champnewschampionnews

thechampionnewspaper.com

FRIDAY, August 7, 2015 • VOL. 18, NO. 19 • FREE

• A PUBLICATION OF ACE III COMMUNICATIONS • Serving East Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chamblee, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, Dunwoody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Tucker and Stone Mountain.

See Center on page 15A

Lou Walker Senior Center: 10 years later

See Land on page 15A

Atlanta United soccercomplex approved

by Carla [email protected]

For June Green, becoming a member othe Lou Walker Senior Center was “oneo the best things I’ve ever done” since

becoming a senior citizen.“It’s the best senior center in the United

States,” Green said. “It has been great orme. “

Te Lou Walker Senior Center iscelebrating its 10-year anniversary. Tecenter has been a staple or seniors in theouth DeKalb area since 2005. Te center

holds various classes or seniors rom

technology, dancing, aquatic classes andmore.

“We believe every senior has a voice andis valued,” said center acility coordinatorDarryl Blackwell.

Te center has an average o 3,000members.

Donna Dees, president o DeKalb ForSeniors Inc., said the center has been an“amazing” addition to the community.

“Te center itsel has been a lie saveror so many,” she said. “It gives the seniorsa place to go, something to do, to makeriends. Sometimes people come aferthey’ve lost a husband or a wie and instead

Members gather in the Victory Room for events and other social activities.

he Lou Walker Senior Center hosts classes, activities and events for members, including a “Showdown with Motown!” event.

OpINION, 5A LOcAL, 8A eDucAtION, 18A

Business ................................20A

ducation.........................18-19A

Sports ...............................22-23A

Oinion ......................................5A

classifd ...............................21A

QuIck FINDeRtwO AttORNeYsseek HOuseSEAT

summeR cAmp AtemORY FOcuses ONtecHNOLOgY

geNDeRDIscRImINAtION ANDtHe AmeRIcAN mALe

by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

DeKalb County commission-ers voted 4-3 on Aug. 4 to approvean incentive package with Arthur

Blank , a coounder o Te HomeDepot, set to bring major league

soccer ranchise Atlanta United FCto the county.

Te acility Blank plans to buildwill be the only soccer complex inthe region.

DeKalb County will spend

roughly $12 million and relinquish41 acres o government land or

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Page 2A The Champion FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015

LOCAL

Lithonia asks to manage county-owned part of local park

Wade Walker Park chosen for county’sCentennial Bowl

DeKalb County Recreation, Parks and Cultural Af-fairs has announced Wade Walker Park as the host sitefor the 2015 Centennial Bowl to be held Aug. 7-9 inStone Mountain.

Home of the most competitive youth football tour-naments in the nation, the annual Centennial Bowl

hosts 100 football teams from around the country.Wade Walker Park is the home of the Central DeKalbJaguars, the largest youth football program in the At-lanta metropolitan area.

For more information about the Centennial Bowl,contact Valister Wilson at (678) 768-7444 or [email protected].

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404-297-9522

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY INSTITUTION


he deadline is approaching for Avon-dale Estates to update its comprehensiveplan, and city officials are seeking residents’

assistance.he city’s comprehensive plan 10-yearupdate is a citywide blueprint for future de-velopment activities.

“We’re working on doing an entire planor the whole city, not just focusing on the

downtown area because we’ve done that withhe Downtown Master Plan,” City Planner

and Community Development Officer KeriStevens said during the July 15 work sessionmeeting.

he city is asking residents to take anonline survey on key community issues andopics; these and responses will be includedn the final plan. he city has held two public

meetings to discuss ideas and issues regard-ng the city’s needs.

A third public meeting will be held Aug.26 at city hall, and Commissioner JohnQuinn is encouraging all citizens to attendhe meeting.

“It’s a great opportunity to be a part of

the planning process and to see how thatworks,” Quinn said.

Avondale Estates is required to updateits comprehensive plan every 10 years. hecity’s 10-year update is due Oct. 31, 2016 andthe Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) is

assisting the city, without cost, with the com-prehensive plan development, drafting andmeetings.

he plan can be used to promote “order-ly, rational and quality development,” accord-ing to the city. he planning process can alsohelp the city invest money in infrastructuresuch as streets, parks and other facilities.

According to a presentation on the plan,the city is considering adding greenspace,an active and passive recreation facility andannexation. he city is also reviewing at acommunity aesthetic strategy, such as way-finding and signage, sidewalks, beautificationprojects and more.

A steering committee has been formedto assist in the development of the plans andpublic presentations. he group consists ofrepresentatives from city boards and com-missions, residents and business owners.

Te survey is posted on the city’s websiteand results will be collected through Aug. 9.

Avondale Estates updatingcomprehensive plan


Lithonia has asked

DeKalb County to transfermanagement of the county-owned portion of LithoniaPark to the city.

During the Aug. 3 citycouncil meeting, LithoniaMayor Deborah Jackson aid she recently sent a pro-

posal to the county askinghat it hand over manage-

ment of the pavilion and ballfields to the city. Jackson saidhe city entered into a lease

agreement with the countyyears ago to manage part ofhe city-owned park, exclud-

ng the amphitheater.“he agreement expiredn 2003, but the county had

been continuing to maintainhat part of the park,” Jack-on said. “We were looking ataking back the management

of the park, but we would askhat they would continue to

do the maintenance of thepark.”

Jackson said a servicedelivery agreement with thecounty is up for renewal nextyear.

“Between now and thenwe can discuss what changes,

if any, we may want to makein that relationship,” Jacksonsaid.

he proposal sent to the

county states the city wouldlike to manage the county-

own part of the park begin-ning in August 2015 to “geta sense of what things theyhave rented out, or whatongoing contracts they haveand things like that.”

“In the past, we’ve beenreferring people to thecounty when they wantedto use the pavilion, Jacksonsaid. “Once we agree on adate that becomes effective,

they’ll come to the city.“It seems like [the

county] was not objecting tous taking it back,” Jackson

added.Although the county

has owned areas of the parkthat are mostly used by thepublic, Lithonia police havemonitored all activity in thepark.

“We’re closer [to thepark] than the county,”Lithonia Police Chief Roo-sevelt Smith said. “We getcalls first anyway. he cityreally has been doing it allalong.”

‘We get calls first anyway.

The city really has been

doing it all along.’-Police Chief Roosevelt Smith

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The Champion FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015 Page 3A LOCAL

Stone Mountain councilwomanproposes mosquito control programby Carla [email protected]

Stone Mountain has a mosquito prob-em and one city councilmember is on amission to fix it.

During the July 20 city councilwork session, Councilwoman AndreaRedmond proposed adding a mosquitocontrol program to the 2016 city budget.The program would bring in a biomist topray pesticide from a service truck.

Redmond said the cost of the pro-gram would be $9,275. She said the ser-vice truck will have a 30-gallon drum topray pesticide in a 150 feet radius in thepring and in the fall.

“There are two applications per year,”he said. “We would do half on one night

and half [of the community] on anothernight.”

Redmond said the cost for a 30-gal-on drum is $1,800. The program would

also allow larvicide to be thrown intoclogged drainage ditches and ponds.

Redmond said she got informationfrom the city of Sugar Hill.

“They have been using these productsfrom Clark Manufacturing for the lastfour years,” she said.

Redmond said the city has beendiscussing ways to control mosquitoesince March because there are abandoned

homes with standing water.

“We have buildings with flat roofsand water is trapping in there,” she said.“We are a dish for mosquitoes, but not

only that there has been an introductioninto Georgia of a mosquito that is a tigermosquito and it’s relentless. It does not just stop with regular pesticide.”

Redmond said it is the city’s responsi-bility to take on this problem.

Councilman Richard Mailman, whoowns a landscaping business, said the cityshould look into educating citizens.

“The problem is that normally you’retaking care of everything in your house,but what I see, when I go to 10 to 15houses a day, is people have flower potsfull of water, there are tires laying out fullof water, there are tarps that has water inthem and that’s where the problem is,”Mailman said. “To deterred or to get ridof majority of the problem before we evendo this spraying is we need to get that in-formation out to people.”

Redmond said education will be apart of the program.

“It’s the same thing as with code com-pliance too,” she said. “It’s all about edu-cation, and we all should know that andwe all should contribute but you knowthat there is always going to be someonethat does not. Therefore, I felt like if wetook more of a proactive approach thatthis could help eliminate our problem.”

County implements special purpose home repair program

he DeKalb County Human and Community DevelopmentDepartment has created the Special Purpose Home Repair Pro-gram to assist low income elderly and legally disabled homeownersin DeKalb County with the costs of critical home repairs.

“he program will help eligible homeowners with preventingimminent threats to health or safety due to dangerous, hazardousand/or unsanitary conditions in their homes,” according to a newsrelease. “he program is available to assist low-income homeown-

ers that cannot afford to make the repairs in a timely manner.”All repairs will be limited to the basic systems of the home:electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling and roofing systems.

he Special Purpose Home Repair Program will be open fornew applicants on Aug. 10. Applications will be available on theDeKalb County website at www.dekalbcountyga.gov.

Applications will also be available for pick-up at the followingDeKalb County locations: Clark Harrison Building, 330 W PonceDe Leon Avenue, first floor, Decatur; Manual Maloof Building,1300 Commerce Drive, first floor, Decatur; Central DeKalb SeniorCenter, 1346 McConnell Drive, Decatur; DeKalb/Atlanta SeniorCenter, 25 Warren Street, Atlanta; Lithonia Senior Center, 2484Bruce Street, Lithonia; Lou Walker Senior Center, 2538 PanolaRoad, Lithonia; and Scottdale Senior Center, 3262 Chapel Street,Scottdale.

Interested applicants may also call (404) 371-2144 for addi-tional automated information or instructions.

County selected as site for state reentry initiative

DeKalb County has been selected by the Governor’s Officeof ransition, Support and Reentry (GOSR) as the pilot site forPhase II of its Georgia Prisoner Reentry Initiative (GA-PRI).

Nearly a year ago, interim DeKalb County CEO Lee May launched DeKalb County’s Reentry and Recidivism ask Force inan effecty to reduce recidivism and those barriers that impede suc-cessful reentry of DeKalb’s returning citizens.

he GA-PRI is a component of the governor’s efforts tostreamline state agency operations to better provide tools and sup-port and to improve public safety. his state-level initiative focuseson prisoners who have served their terms and are assimilatingback into society.

he DeKalb Reentry and Recidivism ask working in col-

laboration with GOSR, is building a network of wrap-a-roundservices to eliminate gaps in service for juveniles, as well as thosegoing in and out of local jails, state and federal prisons.

“he governor’s reforms will fit well within the framework ofour reentry and recidivism strategies here in DeKalb,” May said.“We are honored to have attracted this partnership with the GA-PRI, and together, we will be working diligently to produce thekind of measured success our citizens deserve to expect.”

For more information, contact Kathleen Smith at [email protected], or call DeKalb County Human Development at(404) 270-1178.

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th chamion FRee pRess, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015 pag 4A

Stop bullying nowstand up • speak out

OpINION

John Hewitt

[email protected]

Chief Operating Officer

Former Attorney Generalof Georgia Michael Bow-ers in his remarks aboutpreliminary findings of his

omprehensive investigationof DeKalb County said heand his team of investigatorsare finding “misdeeds, in-ptitude, some corruption…ignificant corruption, but

mainly just downright stu-pidity.”

Bowers was asked by In-erim DeKalb County CEO

Lee May to “to investigatehe affairs, records, expen-

ditures of employees anddepartments under the au-hority of the CEO.” May an-

nounced the pending inves-igation at a press conference

held March 18.

County employees werefirst supposedly told thatthey were expected to coop-erate fully with Bowers andhis team of investigators; but

were subsequently told that

that they would not be forcedto.

When Bowers firstlaunched the investigation he

said, “We’re going to root outconflicts of interest, corrup-tion, malfeasance and mis-feasance, so help me, God.”It seems that Bowers and histeam are doing just what hepromised.

Bowers also told Belcherthat he and his team havequestions about “significantsums of money” and thattheir findings, when released,will likely “make folks realmad.”

DeKalb needs a completeinvestigation and I commendMay for taking the initiative

to have the audit done. May

might be sorry he ever askedfor this comprehensive inves-tigation. It seems that theremay be questions about pow-

erful leaders and that whenthe final findings are releasedit could just be the proverbialstraw that broke the camel’sback.

Bowers’ findings coupledwith a class action lawsuitagainst the county that alsoreferences alleged wrongdo-ings by the CEO’s office, thedistrict attorney’s office andthe now-dissolved recorderscourt that could potentiallyaffect 100,000-plus individu-als may send heads rollingand leave DeKalb residentswith even less leadership

than we have had in a long

time.When the same depart-

ments and individualscontinue to be involved in

controversy, the likelihoodof innocence becomes moredifficult to presume and thepublic’s trust continues toplummet.

Meanwhile, we wil l waiton the outcome of Bow-ers’ investigation and seewhether May will make goodon his initial promise that hewould know the results at thesame time as the public.

Hopefully there is a sub-stantial amount of countymoney set aside for legaldefense funds, it may beneeded soon.

‘Just downright stupidity’

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th chamion FRee pRess, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015 pag 5A

Let Us Know What You Think!

THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS encour-ages opinions from its readers. Pleasewrite to us and express your views. Lettersshould be brief, typewritten and containthe writer’s name, address and telephonenumber for verification. All letters will beconsidered for publication.

Send Letters To Editor, The Champion Free Press, P.

O. Box 1347, Decatur, GA 30031-1347; Send emailto [email protected] • FAX To: (404)370-3903 Phone: (404) 373-7779 . Deadline for newsreleases and advertising: Thursday, one week priorto publication date.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The opinions written by colum-nists and contributing editors do not necessarilyreect the opinions of the editor or publishers. ThePublisher reserves the right to reject or cancel anyadvertisement at any time. The Publisher is notresponsible for unsolicited manuscripts.

Publisher: John Hewitt Chief Financial Ocer:Dr. Earl D. GlennManaging Editor:Andrew CauthenProduction Manager:Kemesha Hunt Photographer:Travis HudgonsSta Reporters:Carla Parker, Ashley Oglesby

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GA. 30030 • Phone (404) 373-7779.

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F REE P RESS

STATEMENT FROM THE

PUBLISHERWe sincerely appreciate thediscussion surrounding this and anyissue of interest to DeKalb County.The Champion was founded in 1991expressly to provide a forum fordiscourse for all community residentson all sides of an issue. We have nodesire to make the news only toreport news and opinions to effect

a more educated citizenry that willultimately move our communityforward. We are happy to presentideas for discussion; however,we make every effort to avoidprinting information submitted tous that is known to be false and/orassumptions penned as fact.

Being stoned, Part 1“The South owes a debt of

honor to the living and re-vered dead to make StoneMountain an appropriate

hrine to the Confedera-y. Thousands of schoolchil-

dren now grown, remembergiving their pennies more thanwo decades ago to see that

dream come true,” from a let-er by six-term Atlanta Mayor

William B. Hartsfield (1890-971) in February 1945, urg-ng reactivation of the long

dormant Stone Mountain Me-morial Commission to thenGeorgia Gov. Ellis Arnall 1907-1992).

Being stoned on the Afri-

an continent, or much ofhe war-torn Middle Eastoday would likely mean a

violent death, or maimingand crippling injury, afterbeing pummeled and peltedwith dozens or hundredsof large rocks and stones,often thrown at the victimby members of their familyor community, for crimesanging from adultery toheft. Victims remain dispro-

portionately female, particu-arly in Arabic and Muslimountries, often related to

accusations of bringing

hame to a family. This is anxtra-judicial process, akin toynching.

In most parts of the west-rn world, and certainly inhe Americas, being stoned

has a much more positiveconnotation and denotation,both related to experienc-ing a hallucinogenic highfrom smoking, ingesting or,in some cases, shooting up a variety of herbal and phar-macological products. Samewords, very different mean-ings, from differing cultures,and of course differences ofcontext, and perspective.

Since before the cavemen, and arguably one ofthe modern wonders of theworld, is the granite out-cropping that we now referto as Stone Mountain. Longcalled Rock Mountain, andother names by the Chero-kee, Creek and other native

American tribes, the moun-tain and its smaller cousinsArabia and Pine Mountain,were all long quarried andsources of industry and jobs.

When Georgia settlers

were encroaching on CreekIndian territory around themountain in 1813, President James Monroe dispatched

U.S. troops, led by AndrewJackson to relocate the stub-born pioneers who were thensquatting on Indian territory.

Settlers who did not heedJackson’s warnings and no-tice to vacate were typicallyburned out of their farmsand homesteads.

Ironic that Old Hickorywas chosen for this assign-ment, as he would dispatchtroops again to Georgiawhile serving as president inthe 1830s to expel thousandsof Cherokees and other Na-tive Americans in the Trail ofTears.

The mountain and its sur-rounding acreage were origi-nally part of Henry Countyuntil 1822, when DeKalbCounty was created.

Fulton would be later cutout of DeKalb and StoneMountain Park now straddlesand in some places forms theborder between DeKalb andGwinnett Counties.

Approaching the CivilWar years, DeKalb Countysupported maintainingthe Union, and sent Stone

Mountain attorney GeorgeK. Smith to the state convention considering seces-sion. Smith twice votedagainst leaving the Union,but when the vote went state-

wide in favor of secession,by a vote of 166 to 130, theentire state pulled behind thewar effort.

As the most importantrailroad in the state at thattime was the Georgia Rail-road, connecting Atlanta tothe state capital in Milled-geville, as well as other popu-lation centers such as Athensand Augusta, there werenumerous battles betweenSherman’s Union troops andConfederate forces, as Sher-man attempted to sever therailroad lines between StoneMountain and Decatur. Af-ter Atlanta fell, the rail linewas destroyed and the rail-road ties and timber burned.

Post-war, the mountainwas primarily known forthe fine granite quarriedon the mountain’s south-ern side. Due to the lowiron content, uniform colorand poor water absorption,Stone Mountain granitebecame desirable as build-ing stone. This granite wasused in the construction ofhundreds of courthouses andpost offices across the coun-try and in the U.S. Capitol,Stone Mountain granite wasused to build the steps on the

East Wing of the U.S. Capitolbuilding, the vaults of theU.S. Treasury, the ArlingtonMemorial Bridge, the FederalReserve’s gold depositoryat Fort Knox, the locks of

Bill Crane

[email protected]

Columnist

the Panama Canal and thetunnel connecting Detroit,Mich., to Canada—to name just a few prominent edifices.

To be continued .This sum-mary relies heavily on thework of David Freeman , au-thor of Carved in Stone: TheHistory of Stone Mountain , Mercer University Press, 1997.

Bill Crane also serves as a political analyst and commen-tator for Channel 2’s ActionNews, WSB-AM News/Talk750 and now 95.5 FM, as wellas a columnist for The Cham-pion, Champion Free Pressand Georgia Trend. Crane isa DeKalb native and business

owner, living in Scottdale. Youcan reach him or comment ona column at bill.csicrane@ gmail.com.

OpINION

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LOCAL

If you would like to nominate someone to be considered as a future Champion of the Week, please contact Andrew Cauthen

at [email protected] or at (404) 373-7779, ext. 117.

LEE WILLIAMS


A series of questions from DoravilleCouncilwoman Trudy Jones Dean at a publichearing on July 20 revealed the name of thenewest addition to the former General Motorsite:

Nalley Nissan which was recently acquiredby Asbury Automotive Group.

he Duluth-based automobile companypurchased 20 acres from he Integral Group,ead developer for the Assembly project for19 million.

According to US Securities ExchangeCommission records, “As of June 30, Asburyoperated 86 dealership locations, including...29 brands of new vehicles, as well as 26 colli-ion repair centers and three stand-alone used

vehicle stores.”Until Dean’s questions, no public an-

nouncement had been made about the dealer-hip.

In a July 6 council meeting Dean said, “It’snot council’s job to promote this project but to

ind out as much as we can to ensure that it ishe best fit for the developers as well as for ourommunity.”

Egbert Perry , chief executive officer ofhe Integral Group, confirmed the sale anduture car dealership when questioned by

Dean.Perry said the dealership will have a show-

ase for cars “and if I understand correctly,hey intend to do about $47 million’ worth ofmprovements by May or June of next year,bout $250 million in sales tax revenue per

year.”he dealership will be inside the tax allo-

ation district (AD) but will not be receivingAD dollars.

Perry said the car dealership will represent$47 million in property value increase – anmmediate increase in the AD’s $350 millionax base.”

he plan was approved by majority of theity council.

Lee Williams has servedhe community as a volun-eer and as an employee ofhe city of Decatur for 15

years.Williams, 53, was hon-

ored for his work in Decaturby receiving the homas O.Davis Award at the June De-catur Business Associationmeeting. he award honorsa public employee who hashelped strengthen the bondbetween government andhe community, served as

a role model for others inpublic service, contributedo the well-being of the community, inspired others to

get involved in public service

and served the public withrespect.

he award is named forDecatur’s longtime city attor-ney. Williams is the facilitymanager for Decatur ActiveLiving.

“It is very humbling tobe a recipient of this award,”Williams said. “It is an honorand a pleasure to have myname listed among the previ-ous winners of the homasO. Davis Award.”

During his years withDecatur, Williams has taughtchildren to ride bikes safely;managed sports camps,

facility rentals and adultprogramming, and he is anactive participant in the SafeRoutes to School program.Williams, a resident of StoneMountain, is also a memberof the Georgia Recreationand Parks Association andthe National Recreation andParks Association.

He also serves as a men-tor to teens and young menin the community. Williamssaid his passion for commu-nity service began with hisparents.

“Both my mother andfather were very giving peo-

ple,” he said. “heir moto,was see a need, fill a need.So, when I was asked to par-ticipate with these organiza-tion I did not hesitate.

“I feel that it is impor-tant to be able to give backto your community and oneof the best ways to do that isthrough volunteering yourtime,” Williams added. “Ithink that it is very impor-tant to introduce our youthof today into the service of volunteerism. Volunteeringis a great way to help youthexpand their horizons.”

Nalley Nissan toinhabit Assembly

An aerial view of the former General Motors plant, currently known as Assembly.

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Avondale EstatesRegistration opened for Labor Day race

Runners and walkers can register for AvondaleEstates’ 37th annual Labor Day Race. The racewill be held Sept. 7 and benefits the AmyotrophicLateral Sclerosis (ALS) Association. The event in-cludes a 1-mile and 5K race followed by an awardsceremony. The race will start and end by WillisPark, at the corner of Dartmouth Avenue andClarendon Place. To register, visit www.active.com.

Brookhaven

Registration open for adult softball league

Adults ages 17 and older can sign up forBrookhaven’s 2015 Fall Adult Softball League thisfall. Registration is open Monday through Fri-day until Aug. 14. Participants must have turned17 years old prior to Jan. 1, 2015. The registra-ion fee is $625 per team. Registration will beaken at the Parks and Recreation main office at

Lynwood Community Center, Monday throughFriday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Registration alsowill be accepted via fax, mail and online at www.brookhavenga.gov/city-departments/parks-rec-reation-/activities-programs and requires a com-mitment form to reserve a team spot in the league.Mailed or faxed registration forms must include

payment and be received by Aug. 12. League play begins the week of Aug. 31 and

will continue until the week of Nov. 9. LynwoodCommunity Center is located at 3360 OsborneRoad NE. For more information, contact TaylorDavis at (404) 637-0542 or visit www.brookhaven-ga.gov/city-departments/parks-recreation.

DecaturOrganization to host back-to-school drive

Blessings on Wheels will host its August Back-To-School Drive Aug. 8 and is in need of supplies.The organization is requesting donations of bookbags, notebook paper, spiral notebooks, two pock-et folders, rulers, erasers and calculators. Dona-ions will be accepted through Aug. 7. Donations

can be dropped off at NBE Shipping and BusinessServices, 3564 Wesley Chapel Road in Decatur. Formore information, contact Keischa Robinson at404) 820-6341.

Emory researcher partners with the LupusFoundation of America for Decatur seminar

Georgia chapter of the Lupus Foundation ofAmerica continues to partner with S. Sam Lim of the Emory University School of Medicine toraise awareness and educate the lupus community.

The chapter is presenting Lupus 101: The BasicsSeminar on Saturday, Aug. 15, from 9 to 11:30 a.m.at the Courtyard Atlanta Decatur, located at 130Clairemont Ave. in downtown Decatur Georgia.

Lim is an associate professor of medicine and

epidemiology, clinical director of rheumatology atEmory University School of Medicine, and chief of

rheumatology for Grady Health Systems. He alsoserves as the co-chairman of the Georgia chapter’smedical advisory board.

Lim will present information on lupus, itssymptoms, treatments and coping techniques. Theprogram will include a question-and-answer seg-ment followed by a panel discussion with patienttestimonies and success stories. The seminar isfree and breakfast will be provided to registeredattendees and their families.

For more information or to register, visit www.lupusga.org.

Local church model for improving nancialliteracy in community

Pastor E. Dewey Smith Jr. and the Houseof Hope Atlanta (Greater Travelers Rest BaptistChurch) will host the No Longer Bound FinancialLiteracy Fair to help participants increase theireconomic strength. This event will take place Sat-urday, Aug. 15, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in theHFS Multiplex, 4650 Flat Shoals Parkway, Decatur.

The program will feature topics ranging fromstudent loans, bankruptcy, credit building, debtelimination, entrepreneurship, investing, willsand estate planning and much more. There will beexhibits, seminars and a panel discussion whereattendees are able to ask questions of financial ex-perts.

Among those participating in the financialliteracy fair are the Securities and Exchange Com-

mission, Georgia Student Finance Commission,Small Business Administration, Wells Fargo Bank,Bank of America, Farmers Insurance, PrudentialFinancial and AFLAC.

The event is free and open to the public. Toreceive registration details for this event, [email protected].

Lithonia

Stonecrest Library to host arts event

Stonecrest Library will host its monthly cel-

ebration of the arts through the Scribes and Vibesevent Aug. 8, 1-4 p.m. The event will feature po-etry, music and fine art through musical perfor-mances, open mic and art exhibits.

The library is located at 3123 Klondike Roadin Lithonia. For more information, call (770) 482-3828.

City to host comprehensive plan open house

Lithonia will hold an open house to discuss itscomprehensive plan Aug. 17 at city hall. The openhouse will begin at 5 p.m. and end at 6:45 p.m.Residents, business owners and city leaders canshare their thoughts to develop a vision, goal anddirection for the city. City Hall is located at 6920

Main Street. For more information, call (770) 482-8136.

TuckerHandbell choir seeking ringers

The three octaves of Schulmerich Handbellsand Handchimes at Lawrenceville Road UnitedMethodist Church in Tucker is offering those ages10 an up an opportunity to participate in commu-nity handbell choir.

“Want to be a real ding-a-ling? Now’s yourchance to live up to a reputation,” states an an-nouncement about the handbell choir.

The community bell choir will entertain folkswith a mix of popular, novelty, sacred and classi-cal tunes in nursing homes, schools, communitygroups, churches and local festivals.

Practices will be held on Sunday afternoons or

Saturdays for approximately an hour.Ringers do not need to be a member of thechurch.

For more information email the church [email protected], Jack Sartain at [email protected], or Pat Mosley at [email protected].

Countywide Apparent phone scam targets DeKalb Countyresidents

A phone scammer who has plagued othermetro area counties has called DeKalb Countyresidents with hollow threats of arrest if fines are

not paid for jury duty summons. The calls are notlegitimate, said DeKalb County Sheriff Jeff Mann.According to one potential victim’s experi-

ence, the caller identifies himself as a DeKalbCounty Sheriff ’s Deputy, uses the last name of anactual deputy and gives a fake badge number. Ifthe caller is unable to make direct phone con-tact, he or she will leave a voicemail message andphone number but that number does not reachthe DeKalb County Sheriff ’s Office. The caller isbeing told that a DeKalb County Superior CourtJudge–again using a real judge’s name–issued a

jury or grand jury summons to the person beingcalled and the person being called did not appear.According to the caller, a warrant has been issuedfor the called person’s arrest. To lift the warrant,the person called must pay a fine.

“Not so,” Mann said. “The DeKalb CountySheriff ’s Office is not calling people to collect finesfor any purpose, nor have we authorized anyone tomake phone calls on our behalf. This is suspiciousbehavior and a scam.”

The scammer then gives specific and detailedinstructions on how to pay the fine by going to aCVS Pharmacy and purchasing an InstaPay card inamounts from $400 to $2,100 to be deposited in a“National Treasury” escrow account. If the personcalled says he or she will go to the Sheriff’s Officeinstead or contact an attorney, the scammer gener-ally hangs up.

“Please protect yourselves,” Mann urged.“First, do not pay these people in any form, includ-ing debit, credit cards or cash. The best way to

avoid being scammed is to just hang up.”Anyone who receives such a suspicious callshould contact the DeKalb County Sheriff ’s OfficeInvestigative Unit at (404) 298-8125.

AROUNDDEKALB

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LOCAL

Voters will go to the pollsAug. 11 to fill the vacatedGeorgia House of Representa-ives District 80 seat.

Attorney Taylor Ben-nett and former Brookhavenmayor J. Max Davis will faceoff in the runoff. In the July

4 special election, Bennetteceived 35.97 percent of the

vote, while Davis received 32.9percent.

The District 80 seat becamempty when former Rep. Mikeacobs was appointed by

Gov. Nathan Deal as a StateCourt judge of DeKalb, replac-ng Eleanor Ross, who is now

a federal judge for the North-rn District of Georgia.

Each candidate was given aquestionnaire by The Cham-pion with instructions to limit

answers to 75 words.-----

Name: Taylor BennettEducation: Georgia Instituteof Technology 2004-2008.Degree: B.S. in international

tudiesOccupation: Attorney (focuson labor and employment)What political offices haveyou held in the past? I havenot held political office in thepast.Have you ever been convictedof a crime? I have never beenonvicted of a crime.

Why are you seeking this of-ice? I am running for office

because I believe the peopleof House District 80 deservea state representative who isommitted to transparency,

accountability, and a coopera-

ive approach to solving ourtate’s biggest problems. Wemust work together—electedofficials and constituents,eachers and parents, employ-rs and employees—in order

grow our economy, improveransportation, cut waste-ul spending, and rebuild

our public education system.House District 80 deserveshat kind of representative.

What do you understand theduties of this office to be? Listening to and communicat-ng with my constituents will

be my first priority. A repre-

entative should be a conduitor his or her constituents athe state house, and solicitingnput from citizens is essen-ial to effective representa-

Two attorneys seek vacant House seat

PUBLIC NOTICENOTICE OF ELECTION

DECATUR CITY COMMISSION ANDDECATUR BOARD OF EDUCATION

The Decatur City Commission officially announces the Call for the City's General Election to be held in theCity of Decatur, Georgia, on November 3, 2015 for two Decatur Board of Education members for four yearterms of office, and three City of Decatur Commissioners for four year terms, such terms to begin at theorganizational meeting in January 2016.

One City Commissioner from Election District 1, Post BOne City Commissioner from Election District 2, Post BOne City Commissioner District At-Large

One Decatur Board of Education member from Election District 1, Post BOne Decatur Board of Education member from Election District 2, Post B

DeKalb County will conduct this election at the following proposed precincts:

Election District District : Polling Place for ElectionClairemont East 1 : First Baptist Church of Decatur, 308 Clairemont AveClairemont West 1 : The Church at Decatur Heights, 735 Sycamore DriveGlenwood Precinct 1&2 : Holy Trinity Parish, 515 E. Ponce de Leon Ave.

Oakhurst 2 : Oakhurst Baptist Church, 222 E. Lake Dr.Ponce De Leon 1&2 : First Christain Church of Decatur, 601 W. Ponce de Leon AveRenfroe 2 : Renfroe Middle School, 220 W. College Ave.Winnona Park 2 : Winnona Park Elementary School, 510 Avery St.

Each candidate will file notice of his or her candidacy and the appropriate affidavit in the office of the ElectionSuperintendent at City Hall, 509 North McDonough Street, Decatur, Georgia. The opening dates for qualifyingwill start Monday, August 31, 2015 beginning at 8:30 A. M., and continuing until Wednesday September 2,2015 at 4:30 P.M. The qualifying fee for City Commission office is $144.00 and the qualifying fee for Board ofEducation members is $35.00

Registration for voting in the November 3, 2015 election will cut off on Monday, October 5, 2015.

For the November 3 General Municipal Election, the Absentee Poll will open 21 days prior to the Election (October 12).

All Advance Voting (Absentee in person) will be held at 4380 Memorial Drive, Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM

to 4:00 PM, October 12 through October 30.

Questions concerning absentee voting, early voting or voter registration should be directed to DeKalb County

Elections Division at 404-298-4020.

The Decatur City Commission gives notice this 20th of July, 2015

tion. Transparency is equallyimportant. Citizens deservegovernment that they cantrust, and I will remain open,accountable, and transpar-ent. Serving in a manner thatmakes my constituents proudis paramount, and I look for-ward to the task.What expertise do you havethat will help you fulfill theduties of this office? As anemployment attorney I amwell acquainted with the chal-lenges facing our economy.We must find better ways foremployers and employees tothrive, and I am well preparedto facilitate commonsense so-lutions to problems that stifleeconomic growth. As a formerathlete, I know what it takes tolead a team, and that a team is

stronger than the individual.I believe in teamwork, and Iam eager to lead our districtforward.

-----

Name: J. Max DavisEducation: UGA, GSU, JD,John Marshall Law SchoolOccupation: Attorney What political offices have you held in the past? Mayorof the city of Brookhaven

Have you ever been convictedof a crime? No.Why are you seeking this of-fice? I want to continue tobuild on my record of reform-ing and helping our commu-nity and state to be the best itcan be. I want to cap propertytaxes so no one will be hitwith skyrocketing tax bills andseniors on fixed incomes cankeep their homes. I also wantto work to improve education-al outcomes for all childrenwith a new city school system.What do you understand theduties of this office to be? Ilearned the duties of a mem-ber of the State House fromwatching my father serve for22 years. We have to listen toour constituents and under-stand that the government is

there to serve the taxpayer not vice versa. We are there to passa balanced budget that meetsthe needs of our growing state,while facilitating freedom andlimiting the growth of govern-ment.What expertise do you havethat will help you fulfill theduties of this office? My lifeexperience has prepared mefor this office. My time as anattorney and small business-man, working at the grass-roots level to create the cityof Brookhaven and serving asits first mayor give me uniqueperspective on how to makethe different levels of govern-ment work together to meetour shared goals.

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Stone Mountain businessesreceive grant awards

Proposed Substantial Amendment to the 2008-2013Consolidated Plan, including the 2013 Annual Action Plan;

Neighborhood Stabilization Program Grant I, and the 2014-2018Consolidated Plan, including the 2014 Annual Action Plan

DeKalb County is proposing a substantial amendment to the 2008-2013 Consolidated Plan, including

the 2013 Annual Action Plan, the Neighborhood Stabilization Program Grant (1), and the 2014-2018

Consolidated Plan, including the 2014 Annual Action Plan.

The purpose of this amendment is to revise the original 2013 CDBG Annual Action Plan Budget so that

more funds can be utilized in the completion of DeKalb County Fire Station #3 construction in Avondale.

The proposed amendment will reallocate funds which were originally designated for the Improvements to

Shoal Creek Park, The City of Lithonia Plaza, and Streetscape Improvements.

Additionally, the County proposes to amend the Neighborhood Stabilization Program Grant (1) Budget by

adding CDBG as an additional source of funding for the completion of the redevelopment of Brookside

Park. The County therefore proposes to amend the 2014 Annual Action Plan to reect the reallocation

of funding which was originally designated for the Tobie Grant/Scottdale Intergenerational Center to the

Brookside Park project.

All citizens are invited to review the proposed substantial amendment to these programs from August

6 – August 21, 2015 on the DeKalb County website, www.co.dekalb.ga.us, and at the locations identied

below.

DeKalb County Human and Community Development Department

330 W. Ponce de Leon Avenue, 6th Floor, Decatur, Georgia 30030

Monday - Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Chamblee Branch Library Decatur Branch Library

4115 Clairmont Road, Chamblee 215 Sycamore Street, Decatur

(770-936-1380) (404-370-3070)

Redan-Trotti Branch Library Wesley Chapel-William C. Brown Branch Library

1569 Wellborn Road, Redan 2861 Wesley Chapel Road, Decatur

(770-482-3821) (404-286-6980)

Please contact the libraries for days and hours of operation.

Comment forms may be obtained and completed at each of the above listed locations. Comments

may also be faxed or emailed to the Human and Community Development Department.

Fax: (404) 371-2742

Email: [email protected]


wo Stone Mountainbusiness owners have extraunds to spend on business

needs thanks to a grant pro-gram.

Artsy Fawn and SweetA’Roma, both located onMain Street, were recipientsof BOOS Stone Mountaingrant program awards. ArtsyFawn received $650 andSweet Aroma received $350.

Sherry Fortner, co-owner of Sweet A’Roma, saidt is great to receive the grant

money.“I’m so excited,” she said.

I love to play with a new toyand I can’t wait to play witht.”

Stone Mountain Down-own Development Author-ty (DDA) created the grant

program earlier this year.Mechel McKinley , executivedirector of the DDA, saidhe grant is funded by localnvestors who want to seemall businesses thrive in the

Stone Mountain Village.“We had an informa-

ional meeting in March andhave been talking to poten-ial investors over the pasteveral months,” McKinleyaid. “he investor group

met in mid-July and votedon the applications.”

he first round of grantapplications were acceptedhrough July 1, and 10 appli-ations were submitted.

“We were really excitedabout [the applications]and they varied from equip-ment, to facades, to interiorenovations,” McKinley said.hey were really widely

varied and it was exciting toead through them.”

Fortner heard aboutgrant program and was ex-ited to apply for it.

“he town really tries toupport its local businesses

and I thought that was great,”he said. “hey’ve supported

us since we’ve been here.”Fortner’s business has

been open for 17 months,and she said it has been busy.

“We haven’t had to doanything to boost the busi-ness,” she said. “he foodpeaks for itself and the cus-omers have been from word

of mouth and they keepoming back. We appreciateheir business.”

Investors contribute aminimum of $200 a year

with a commitment to re-main part of the BOOSStone Mountain group fortwo years. Business ownersare able to apply for grantsquarterly.

Grants are available forinvestments such as signage,equipment, marketing oradvertising needs, and inte-rior or exterior renovations.Grants will be made foramounts between $100 and

$1,000. he awarded fundsare not to be used for day-to-day operating expenses.

he due date for the nextround of grants is Oct. 1, andgrants will be awarded at theend of October.

he BOOS StoneMountain applications formsare posted on the city ofStone Mountain’s website,www.stonemountaincity.org. Sweet A’Roma was awarded $350 from the BOOST Stone Mountain grant

program. Photo by Carla Parker

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LOCAL

CITY OF BROOKHAVEN NOTICE FOR ELECTION

AND QUALIFYING PERIOD

Notice is hereby given that an Election for the City ofBrookhaven will be held on uesday, November 3, 2015 forthe offices of Mayor and Council Member Districts One (1)and Tree (3).

Qualifying for said election will be held Monday, August31, 2015, uesday, September 1, 2015, and Wednesday,

September 2, 2015, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 12:30p.m., and 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. (Georgia Election Code21-2-132(c) (3)). Each candidate shall file a notice of can-didacy in the office of the City Clerk of Brookhaven, 4362Peachtree Road, Brookhaven, Georgia. Each candidate mustmeet the qualifications of the Charter and Code of the City ofBrookhaven, as well as applicable State law. Te qualifying feefor mayor is $480.00 and the council seats is $360.00 which is3% of the total gross salary of a council person for the preced-ing year (Georgia Election Code 21-2-131 (a) (1) (A)).

Te last day a person may register and be eligible to votein the Municipal Election and Runoff is Monday, October 5,2015 (Georgia Election Code 21-2-224(a)). Te polls will beopen on Election Day, uesday, November 3, 2015 from 7:00a.m. until 7:00 p.m. Te date of the Run-off, if necessary, isuesday, December 1, 2015.

Questions should be directed to Susan Hiott, City Clerk, at(404) 637-0464 or [email protected] D. Hiott, MMCCity Clerk

Meet Tallon (ID# 27774280) this 2 yearold Lab mix is as friendly as they come! He

greets everyone he meets with a smiling faceand wiggly tail. This playful boy heads straightfor the toy box as soon as he enters a room.He loves plush toys the most and can’t wait tocarry them around in his forever home. Tallonhas been great with other dogs at the shelterand would probably really enjoy having acanine companion in his new home. He walksnicely on a leash too; so your weekend hikesshould be a breeze with this boy by your side!Is Tallon your perfect match? Come meet himat DeKalb Animal Services and find out!

If you adopt Tallon or any dog weighingover 20 lbs. or any cat during August you’llpay only $10 during our “Tail End of Summer”special” including their spay/neuter, vaccinesand microchip at no additional charge. If youwould like more information about Tallon

please email [email protected] or call (404) 294-2165. All potentialadopters will be screened to ensure Tallongoes to a good home.

Pet of the Week


In the wake of theCharleston church massacre,DeKalb public safety officialswant the faith-based com-munity to be properly pre-pared for any type of emer-gency.

he DeKalb County Of-ice of Public Safety held aommunity training sessionuly 29 at Rehoboth Baptist

Church in ucker to teachaith-based leaders and staff

how to prepare for a poten-ial crisis.

Detective J.K. Walker ofhe DeKalb police homeland

ecurity unit instructed lead-rs on how to develop emer-

gency operations plans andhow to respond to incidentsuch as an active shooter onhe premises, severe weather

and fires.Deputy Chief Operat-

ng Officer of Public SafetyCedric Alexander said hewanted to bring faith leadersogether because, “we are in

a very different time in thisAmerican history.”

“With the tragic thingshat we hear about and see

o frequently, sometimesway too frequently, we haveo acknowledge the fact that

we have to be able to protect

ourselves,” Alexander said.On June 17, Dylann

Roof , a 21-year-old White

man, shot nine Blacks todeath at Emanuel AfricanMethodist Episcopal Churchin Charleston. Among thosekilled were the church pas-tor and State Sen. ClementaPinckney .

he attendees were toldof resources they can use tosecure their churches, suchas security cameras and hir-ing off-duty police officers.

In Georgia, citizens areallowed to bring a concealedweapon inside a church if thechurch allows it. Alexandersaid that they or someone

on their staff have the rightto bear arms if they cannotafford to hire an off-duty of-ficer.

“I understand the factthat you may not have mon-ey in your budget in order tohire off-duty police officers,”Alexander said. “What Iwould encourage you to do ismake sure you talk with yourattorneys, make sure that youreceive proper training inthe use of the firearm so thatyou all won’t hurt each other.You have the right to defend

yourself, you have the rightto defend your congregation.How you chose to do that isgoing to be left up to each

one of you individually.”Alexander also informed

leaders that if there is an

emergency at their place ofworship, DeKalb police andthe sheriff ’s office will re-spond swiftly.

“Here in DeKalb we aregoing to respond,” he said.When you call we are go-ing come, and we’re going tocome very hard and we’re go-ing to come very fast.

“Unfortunately, as sad asit may be, the likelihood ofthese types of events to con-tinue to happen are going tobe great,” he added. “hat’sa reality. It’s not a matter ofwhere it’s going to happen or

how it’s going to happen, it’s just a matter of when. We allneed to be cognitively awareof it happening and be readyto respond.”

Karl Moore, pastorof Clarkston First BaptistChurch, said his church hassecurity measures in place,but he will share the infor-mation that was presentedwith his staff.

“here was great insightof what might be comingand to prepare us for the im-minent threats that seemed

to be prevailing themselvesnow,” Moore said. “his herewill just enhance what wealready do.”

DeKalb police train faith-basedleaders on crisis procedures

Detective J.K. Walker of the DeKalb Police Homeland Security Unit in-structs leaders on how to develop emergency operations plans.

Interim CEO Lee May speaks to about 50 faith-based leaders during asafety training session.

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by Kathy Mitchell

In its 10-year history, theDecatur Book Festival—nowhe Atlanta Journal Consti-ution Book Festival—has

grown to be the nation’s larg-st independent book festivaland the fourth largest bookestival of any type in the

United States.he first year, the festival

eatured six stages and drew35,000 attendees. When theestival returns Sept. 4-6, this

year there will be 18 stagesand more than 90,000 peopleare expected.

“he 35,000 the first yearhocked us,” recalled Philip

Rafshoon, the festival’s pro-gram director. “he numbersust keep growing. We were

warned early on that interestn printed books was wan-ng but that hasn’t been thease. here was a drop-off inales of printed books when-books first came out, buthat didn’t last and sales of

printed books are going upagain.”

Rafshoon, the formerowner of an independentbookstore in midtown Atlan-a, said he worked with theestival over the years andook over as program direc-or three years ago.

“It was a natural fit forme since during the years thebookstore was open, fromhe early ‘90s through 2012,

we held lots of book-relatedvents. Of course, the festivals on a much larger scale, butt still involves working with

publishers and authors anddesigning events,” he said.

Rafshoon noted that theprogram committee worksyear-round, but really kicksnto gear the early part of the

year looking to put togetherhe perfect mix of authors

and events. Festival officials

go to New York in the springo get publishers’ recommen-

dations on authors to feature.“hey know we treat our

authors like rock stars sohey really make an effort toind outstanding writers for

us. What we end up with is amix of authors that publish-rs recommended and peo-

ple we decided to go after.Because we’re independent,we don’t feature authorsbecause a sponsoring corpo-ation or institution wantshem; we choose authors we

want,” he said“We want this to be ev-ryone’s festival,” Rafshoon

added, noting festivalgoerswill not only find world-

famous authors but also newand emerging authors. “Wewant events for avid readers,casual readers, those who areinterested in groundbreak-ing material and those whosetastes are more traditional.

“We try for a broadspectrum of interests anddemographics. he cookingpavilion is very popular andwe’re expanding it this year.here’s a romance pavilion

just for writers of romancenovels.”

Children’s books are amajor part of the festival,according to Rafshoon.“We even have a “kidnote”speaker, who is a featuredchildren’s book author.”his year’s kidnote ad-dress will be given by JudySchachner, creator ofthe Skippyjon Jones picturebooks. Schachner, whose

address will be one of thefestival’s first events on Fri-day at 5 p.m., will launch hernew character and picturebook, Dewey Bob, at the fes-tival.

We are so fortunate tohave novelist Erica Jong asour keynote speaker thisyear,” Rafshoon said. Jong isthe author of the best-sellingnovel Fear of Flying, whichchallenged conventional

thinking about women, mar-riage and sexuality when itwas published in 1973. Dur-ing her appearance at thefestival, Jong will launch ofher new novel Fear of Dying ,a sequel to Fear of Flying thatfestival promoters describeas “a hilarious, unsparinglyhonest and heart-wrenchingstory about what happenswhen one woman steps re-luctantly into the afternoon

Book festival ends first decade bigger than ever

See Books on page 14A

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LOCAL

DeKalb school students bowl with deputiesby Justin Beaudrot

Stars and Strikes Bowling Center, locatedin Stone Mountain, hosted the Sixth Annual

Community Day with Sheriff Jeff Mann. hisevent introduced children from Chapel HillMiddle School and local YMCA’s to DeKalbCounty law enforcement.

Tom Walker Sr. has hosted this eventfor six years; originally at Suburban Lanes inDecatur. After the sale of the Suburban Lanesproperty earlier this year, Walker coordinatedwith Stars and Strikes to host the event there.

Walker said he wants to help children beable “to identify a positive role model, develop self-respect, [and] see if we can helpreduce the number of juvenile incidences inour school system.” Walker also said he wantschildren to know ”the opportunities you’vegot to get yourself straight again, and make

sure they know there are police on campusthat they can turn to” in case they find them-selves in trouble.

Amid bowling and donated pizza, DeKalbCounty law enforcement officers and childrenfrom around DeKalb enjoyed each other’scompany. he event is about showing thecommunity, and especially the children, thatmembers of law enforcement are people theycan trust to help and guide them.

Representatives from DeKalb CountySheriff ’s Office, DeKalb County Solicitor-General, DeKalb County Police and Depart-ment of Juvenile Justice were in attendance.hey spoke with the children about trustingand respecting law enforcement agencies,making better life decisions and staying in

school. hey also spoke with the childrenabout resources available to them should theyever encounter any trouble.

DeKalb County Solicitor-General SherryBoston led a pledge, which the whole audi-

ence recited, about being a leader and prom-ising to not miss any school days.

“Statistics show that 80 percent of peoplein prison are high school dropouts or without

a GED. In the DeKalb County jail, it’s 90 per-cent. So there is a direct correlation betweennot getting an education and committingcrime,” Boston said, “A big part of our office isprosecuting crime everyday, but what we re-ally want is to prevent crime, and the best wayto prevent crime is to get to kids and youngpeople at a young age, and talk about howthey don’t have to have a life of crime if theydo the things that can make them successfulin their life.”

Book bags, paper, folders, pens, pencilsand highlighters were given to the children aspart of this drive.

Lashawn Reaves, director of administra-tion at DeKalb County Sheriff ’s Office, said

the donations were collected by the officesand organizations present at the event. Hesaid that everyone was glad to help out, andlooks forward to the back-to-school driveeach year.

As a parting message to the children,Walker said, “You all know about the badstuff that’s going on in the news about lawenforcement, well they [the officers] are herebecause they care about you. hey’re good,they want you to respect them, and they defi-nitely respect you…. We know we’re going tohave incidences, but we don’t want to haveyou being one of those incidences, but if you[are], we want you to know that’s not the endof the world. hat’s not the end of the world.here are ways that we can help you get back

on your feet.”Walker announced he will begin a junior

bowling program at Stars and Strikes, andinvited the children present to join him thisSeptember and January for the program.

Students collected donated school supplies. Photos by Justin Beaudrot

t. L. Robertson and Director of Administration Lashawn Reaves bowlwith a CHMS student.

Children from local YMCA’s also participated in the community day.

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LOCAL

WEEKPICTURESIn

Photo brought t you by DCTV

DeKalb County begins one-day-a-week sanitation collection service July 6, 2015

Residential customers will have same-day garbage, recyclable materials and yard trimmings collection

For more info, call or visit:

(404) 294-2900

www.rollingforwardtoone.com

City of Decatur’s skyline sees a new addition as the Arlo mixed-use development takesshape. Photo by Travis Hudgons

A worker posts a “facility closed” sign at Browns Mill Aquatic Center on July 29. The center, which was closed July 28 after stafng problems, reopened on July 31. Photos by AndrewCauthen

The new Peachcrest Elementary School is nearly ready to be lled with teachers and stu-dents on Aug. 10. Photo by Andrew Cauthen

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LOCAL

Food trucks apossibility in Clarkston

NOTICE OF ELECTION, QUALIFYING REQUIREMENTS, AND

REGISTRATION

CITY OF AVONDALE ESTATES, GEORGIA

Notice is hereby given that a General Municipal Election for the City of AvondaleEstates will be held on Tuesday, November 3, 2015 to elect one (1) Mayor and two (2)

Commissioners to the Avondale Estates Board of Mayor and Commissioners. The termof office is four (4) years. Voting will take place at Avondale Estates City Hall, 21

North Avondale Plaza from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Any person who is a resident of the

City of Avondale Estates and who is registered with Dekalb County Board of

Registrations and Elections as an elector within the City of Avondale Estates at least

thirty (30) days prior to this election, shall be eligible to vote in this election. Deadline

for voter registration is October 5, 2015.Persons wishing to qualify for this election may file a notice of candidacy with the

Qualifying Officer at Avondale Estates City Hall, 21 North Avondale Plaza, from 8:30

a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. beginning Monday, August 31

through Friday, September 4, 2015. The qualifying fee is $3.00.Application for absentee ballots may be made by mail, fax or in person to: DeKalb

County Election Supervisor, Memorial Drive Complex , 4380 Memorial Drive, Suite

300, Decatur, GA 30032-1239, Telephone: (404) 298-4020, Fax: (404) 298-4038. This notice is given pursuant to Chapter 21 of the Official Code of Georgia, as

amended, pertaining to municipal elections, this 6th day of August 2015.

City of Avondale Estates


In the past few yearsood trucks have become a

popular trend nationwideand may soon debut inClarkston.

On July 28 ClarkstonCity Manager Keith Barkeraid, “Given Clarkston’s lo-ation and desire to attract

more people to the down-own central business area,he establishment of a regularood truck event seems to be

a logical step towards achiev-ng that desired outcome.”

Barker said foodrucks will be a success in

Clarkston, based on the pop-ularity of the Refuge Coffeeruck, a newly establishednonprofit organization thatoffers jobs and job trainingor resettled refugees livingn Clarkston. Currently, the

nonprofit is operating as aoffee truck with two refu-

gees hired and working.Barker said he’s “con-

tantly amazed at the num-ber of people that are there

all day [even though] theheat index is about 110 de-grees.”

He said, “he city alsowants to do what we can tomake sure that we attractpeople who may not be fa-miliar with what Clarkstonhas to offer, as well as givesomething to the residentswho live in and aroundClarkston an opportunity tocome together as a commu-nity around some fun event.”

he city’s code restrictsor prohibits many formsof outdoor vending, whichwould restrict a food truck orcart from conducting busi-ness on public rights-of-waywithin the city.

Jason Gaines, planningand development manager,said the city council willneed to amend the code sec-tion to allow food trucks tobe exempt from having toobtain temporary land-usepermits.

“Any change to the textof the zoning ordinance fallsunder the provisions of theGeorgia Zoning Procedures

Act, which means we mustproperly advertise and con-duct public hearings for thatchange in language,” Gainessaid.

Clarkston’s city councilmoved its upcoming plan-ning and zoning board meet-ing to Aug. 24 to gather pub-lic comment before adoptionof the ordinance. If adopted,the second public hearingwill take place at a regularcouncil meeting on Sept. 8prior to a vote.

Barker said, “he longrange goal is that we want toget people used to comingto downtown Clarkston inadvance of us finishing ourstreetscape.”

He said he also hopes vendors will consider turn-ing their food trucks into“brick and mortar businesseshere in Clarkston.”

Barker said pending ap-proval of the ordinance, thecity council is considering apilot food truck rally in Oc-tober.

of life.”“Of course, we’re thrilled to have Pat Conroy returning

and so many other wonderful authors,” Rafshoon said. Con-roy, the best-selling author of The Lords of Discipline, ThePrince of Tides, South of Broad and other books, will moder-ate a panel discussion, “All Stories Are rue, Some Even Hap-

pened.” here also will be an author with a book about Con-roy, Catherine Seltzer, who wrote Understanding Pat Conroy which “sketches Conroy’s biography and explores each of hismajor works,” according to a news release from the festival.

Other festival highlights include:Drew Daywalt, author of the children’s book The Day

the Crayons Quit, will lead the Saturday kick-off parade andlaunch his follow up, The Day the Crayons Came Home.

Damon Tweedy , M.D., author of Black Man in a WhiteCoat: A Doctor’s Reflection on Race and Medicine, will discusshis memoir of his experience grappling with race, bias andthe unique health problems of Black Americans.

In a panel discussion, “Life, Me and Mom,” Jamie Brick-house, author of Dangerous When Wet , and George Hodg-man, author of Bettyville, will discuss mother-son relation-ships and self-discovery.

Ari Berman, a political correspondent for The Nation,will discuss the impact of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, aschronicled in his book Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Strug- gle for Voting Rights in America.

Libba Bray , author of many young adult novels, will re-turn to the festival with her new book, Lair of Dreams.

Amy Stewart will launch Girl Waits with Gun about oneof the first female sheriffs in history — and whose story hasbeen previously untold.

Five contributors to Best American Poetry 2015, Afaa Mi-chael Weaver, Evie Shockley, Denise Duhamel, Laura Mc-Cullough, Jericho Brown, will read from their works.

Former “dad” columnist at CNN Josh Levs will discusshis book All In: How Our Work-First Culture Fails Dads,Families, and Businesses — And How We Can Fix It Together

“We urge visitors to plan their visits by making a sched-ule for themselves before they come. Otherwise they may

miss something they really wanted to see,” Rafshoon said.Some events, although they’re free, require tickets. For aschedule and more information, visit http://decaturbookfesti- val.com/sessions.

BooksContinued From Page 11A

DeKalb Chamber of Commerce announces new staff DeKalb Chamber of Commerce has announced the hir-

ng of three key staff members.Chamber President Katerina Taylor said the new team

brings “new energy, enthusiasm and fresh ideas that will helppropel our goals to support and strengthen the business com-munity.”

DeKalb Chamber members and the community canmeet the new staff at the upcoming Business After Hours on

Aug. 18 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Iberian Pig, 121 SycamoreStreet in Decatur.

he new staff members include:

Kim Childs, vice president of operations, who has morehan 20 years of experience working in corporate retail and

commercial banking. She is responsible for streamlining alloperational areas of the chamber.

Emily Yang , communications and experiential marketingmanager. She is responsible for managing internal and exter-nal communications and overseeing the chamber’s signatureevents and programs.

Rick Young , director of membership development, a etailand commercial banker with more 16 years of experienceworking in the Atlanta and DeKalb market. He is responsiblefor managing member acquisitions, retention and engage-ment and overseeing all member relation events.

For more details about the Chamber’s upcoming events,visit www.dekalbchamber.org.

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Center Continued From Page 1A

Land Continued From Page 1A

th chamion FRee pRess, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015 pag 15A LOcAL

o sitting at home grieving, they get tocome out and participate in things tokeep them active.

“You have to be an active senioro be a member,” she added. “Tere

are exercise classes, computer classesand social activities. Tere is a travelclub where they travel to places such asSouth Arica, Hawaii and New York. Ithas been a major blessing to the southDeKalb area.”

Green has been a member o thecenter since 2011. She said she enjoyshe line dancing classes and the trips.

“I just enjoy it,” Green said. “Whenwe’re closed, I get bored because I missbeing there and associating with thepeople that’s there. I love it.

“When I tell people o Lou Walkerhey’re just amazed because they’ve

never heard o anything like it,” Greenadded. “It’s wonderul.”

Te center would not be where its without DeKalb For Seniors, Inc.

DeKalb For Seniors was incorporatedn 2003 to assist the center in obtainingesources needed and not covered byhe county budget or programming

and other expenses. Te organizationhas saved the county more $700,000o ar through donations, purchases

and volunteer hours, according to thecenter’s website.

Te DeKalb For Seniors board odirectors is made up o six volunteers,ncluding Dees, who has been with

DeKalb For Seniors since 2008.“I joined because I have a love or the

enior population and I wanted to serveon a board where I will be able to makean immediate and substantial difference,a tangible difference where I could seewhere the money was going and seewhat type o work was being done,” Deesaid.

DeKalb For Seniors purchasedtems or the center such as a baby grand

piano in the Victory Room, wheremembers ofen gather. Tey also provideransportation to events, commission

meetings and other destination.DeKalb For Seniors also sponsors

events or clubs within the center. Itponsored an annual back-to-schoolupply drive July 31. School supplies

were donated to Stoneview ElementarySchool in Lithonia.

“We are a volunteer board,o we have provided [the center]

with proessional services throughmarketing,” Dees said. “We have anattorney that sits on the board, and wehave been able to help with legal things,ust being able to be a resource.”

Blackwell said DeKalb For Seniors isa “antastic” organization.

“Tey’ve helped us with a lot odifferent programs over the years,” heaid. “Tey’ve been very supportive o allhe efforts that we have here at the Lou

Walker center.”

Te group plans to assist with the 10-year celebration, which the center’s staffs currently planning. Although details

have not been finalized, whatever takesplace Green is sure to attend.

Blank’s Atlanta United FC to builda $30 million soccer complex atthe intersection o KensingtonRoad and Memorial Drive nearInterstate 285 in Decatur.

Commissioner Sharon BarnesSutton said, “It will be a tremen-dous benefit. I’m so elated thatwe’re going to have this tremen-dous transormational partnershipor Memorial Drive.”

Barnes said the development othe soccer complex opens manypossibilities or the corridor.One benefit is that it will provide“much needed recreation or thepeople that live in DeKalb Countybecause residents will be able touse the soccer fields,” she said.

“It brings exposure, it bringspeople here and gives them areason to be over in the area and

I believe it will attract other busi-nesses,” Sutton added.

Although many residents haveraised concerns about the costo the project, Sutton said, “thecost is worth it. It’s a very low costconsidering the land is county-owned, so we don’t get any taxeson it anyway.”

Soccer ranchise owner Blankplans to build a 3,500-seat sta-dium, three outdoor practicefields and a two-story corporateheadquarters on land behind theDeKalb County Jail. Te proposal

states our additional fields and anindoor training acility could bebuilt later.

Interim DeKalb County CEOLee May said the county was ag-gressive in landing this deal. “Me-morial Drive has not seen a dollaro development in two decades. Ithe private sector was interestedin the Memorial Drive area it

would’ve happened by now,” Maysaid.

“For me it’s not as much abouta sports acility. It’s about hav-ing a financial investment in thiscorridor that’s sorely in need,” headded.

CommissionerJeff Radersaid he would like to see AtlantaUnited FC in DeKalb County butwanted to renegotiate a better deal“that’s good or everybody.”

DeKalb County beat out com-petitor Marietta or the deal withBlank. According to the AtlantaBusiness Chronicle, Marietta o-ered Blank and his team a 30-yearlease o 49 acres the city owns onFranklin Road with an initial rento a $1 a year or five years andthen air market value priced rentor the remainder o the lease.

DeKalb County’s offer is said tohave been six times greater thanthat o Marietta.

Rader said, “When DeKalb satdown to negotiate we didn’t runthe model. Instead, the CEO’s o-fice negotiated with Atlanta Unit-ed and it was a David-versus-Go-liath scenario. DeKalb was repre-sented by the CEO’s staff withoutan objective analysis but with aburning desire to make somethinghappen south o Decatur.”

Unlike the biblical account,Rader said, in this instance Goli-ath won.

Rader agreed that somethingneeded to be developed in southDeKalb but said, “We didn’t havethe background to know what thenecessary incentive would be.”

Under the proposal, the totalcost or land preparation anddemolition o 40 acres is an esti-mated $3 million to $5 million.Additionally, $7 million in rent

would be paid to Blank over threeyears or office space or county’sparks department. Te annualpayment would be $2.33 millionor the first three years and then$10 per year or the remainder othe ground lease.

Atlanta United FC’s soccer sea-son starts in January 2017.

Atlanta United FC is exemptrom paying property taxes, andpermitting ees or the soccercomplex.

Additionally, the county willseek unding or pedestrian im-provements rom the soccer com-plex to the Kensington MARAStation and to demolish the cur-rent animal shelter.

Under the plan, DeKalbCounty Parks and Recreation De-partment would be able to use the

property or lacrosse, 3v3 soccer,rugby, field soccer, kickball andultimate Frisbee.

Te agreement states Blankis required to pay the county 15percent o revenue or namingrights and branded events held atthe complex and ownership o theland and acilities would revert tothe county afer 30 years.

It is estimated that approxi-mately 83 people would work atthe team’s onsite corporate head-quarters in 2017, growing to 123people in 2018 with salaries thataverage $150,000 per year, accord-ing to the memorandum o under-standing proposal.

Te deal is estimated to bring123 construction-related jobs with10 percent o the jobs going toDeKalb residents.

Commissioners Rader, KathieGannon and Nancy Jester votedagainst the proposed deal.

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EDUCATIONThe Champion FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015 Page 18A

Summer camp at Emoryfocuses on technology by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

Parents often limit themount of time children spendn front a screen. At iD ech,n eight-week summer camp at

Emory University, those rulesdon’t apply.

he company uses the on-ine game Minecraft to intro-

duce students to concepts suchs basic game design for ages 9o 12, as well as programmingor ages 13 to 18. he camp is

divided into weeklong segmentsnd offers courses related to

programming and app devel-opment, robotics engineering,game design, 3D modeling and

nimation, filmmaking, photog-aphy and web design. here aretotal of 16 classes taught on a

weekly basis.Camp Director Yolanda

Moore said “Most kids playMinecraft on their tablets.When they come here and playt on a computer they get aompletely different feel for the

game, and they’re very excitedo go in and modify it.”

Campers range from begin-ner to advanced level. She saidllowing campers to explore the

game helps them “see what they

an create.”While Minecraft’s appeal ishelping iD ech grow, the com-pany has also worked gamesike Portal 2, rackmania, andhootmania into its curriculum.

Video games are just thebait, according to one of theprogram’s director.

“We look for products thatre interesting–that’ll appeal to

kids–because we want to showhem how they can take a hobbyike video gaming and turn itnto a career,” Moore said.

he company is also part-nered with Code.org. he or-

ganization is a nonprofit with amission to expand participationn computer science by makingt available in more schools.

Moore said additionally,o ensure that each student re-eives quality instruction eachlass had its own game, an eB-

ook that “gives the campers aeference to go back to instead

of having an instructor standingover them and lecturing.”

Each game plan includespractice modules and eachamper is encouraged to com-

plete the modules before asking

question.She said the game plan forc-s campers “to be able to specifi-ally ask and address questionshat are applicable to what it is

that they are trying to gain anunderstanding about.”

Moore said although the

number of campers is steadilygrowing, what makes the campunique is its ability to maintainsmall student-to-teacher ratios.he camp is designed with aneight students per instructorratio.

“We’re able to give individu-alized attention within thesesmall groups and with our cur-riculum we’re able to bend itand mold it according to thatcamper’s learning style. hisgives them a lot of exposure andopportunities to learn,” Mooresaid.

he camp is in its 15th sea-

son on the Emory Universitycampus.

Moore said the biggestchange has been the rise in girlsbecoming interested in the field.

“raditionally it’s a male-dominated field, but now whenyou look into the groups youwill see a lot more girls,” shesaid.

Rachel Smith a 3D model-ing and animation student, saidthe hardest part of learning anew program is learning thecontrols.

“You’re constantly clicking

the wrong buttons and movingthings so you use control + Z, alot.”

Pressing the Z key whileholding down the Control keyon a computer keyboard can beused to undo the last action.

Smith said, “Once you learnthe controls it gets a lot easierand you can develop more com-plex and intricate designs.”

Smith’s group was assignedto create an object and build ascene around the base object.Smith chose to design a cameraand built a bookshelf and wallsaround it.

Moore said Smith and otherstudents are on the “cusps ofwhat they want to do after highschool.”

She added, “When campershave been here repeatedly theinstructors set goals for themto accomplish in terms of whata camper’s next steps shouldbe and if a student is investedin their craft they can start tolook at colleges they offer whatthey’re interested in.”

She added, “It’s a greatstepping stone for campers todiscover what they want to do

next.”For additional informationabout iD ech camp visit idtech.com. Registration for the campbegins as early as November.

iD Tech campers at Emory University take a break from working on computer monitors to play outside.

Scratch programming camper Olivia R. receives assistance from the programming instructor.

Campers in the scratch programming camp session help each other create interactive games.

Youngsters create blocks and shortcuts in the Minecraft video game.

Student nalize their week-long design projects.

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EDUCATIONThe Champion FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015 Page 19A

New Georgia Law Concerning

High School Graduation

Passed by Governor

March 30, 2015, GovernorNathan Deal signed HouseBill 91 into law, therebycreating a new code section,O.C.G.A. § 20-2-281.1. Tislaw became effective uponthe Governor’s signature.Tis law states that studentsshall no longer be requiredto earn a passing score onany graduation tests to earn a

high school diploma.

Students that were unableto earn a high schooldiploma solely due to notearning passing scores onthe graduation tests willbe eligible to petition andreceive their high schooldiploma. Te law includes allsubjects, forms, and versionsof the Georgia High School

Graduation ests (EnglishLanguage Arts, Mathematics,Science, and Social Studies),Georgia High School Writingest, and Basic Skills ests(Reading, Mathematics, andWriting).

Eligible students musthave completed City Schoolsof Decatur graduationrequirements in order to

receive their diploma.If Decatur High Schoolwas the last high schoolthat you attended and wereunable to earn a high schooldiploma due solely to notachieving a passing score onthe graduation tests, you areeligible to petition for theawarding of your high schooldiploma.

Former Decatur HighSchool students interestedin petitioning for their highschool diploma should followthe process listed below:

Contact Deborah Shadrix,404-370-4187, ext. 2165,[email protected] atthe Decatur High SchoolCounseling Office to receive

information regarding thepetitioning process. Once thepetition has been receiveda team comprised of theGraduation Coach and aCounselor will review thepetition and determinewhether City Schoolsof Decatur graduationrequirements have been met.Tere is no deadline by whicha petition may be submitted.

Chamber of Commercehosts reception for

school superintendentDeKalb Chamber of Commerce hosted an official wel-come reception for more than 150 guests to meet and supportStephen Green, the county’s new school superintendent. heevent was in partnership with the DeKalb County Board ofEducation.

he reception took place July 29 at the DeKalb CountyBoard of Education, Administrative & Instructional Complexn Stone Mountain.

“We are very excited to have Dr. Green joining DeKalbCounty Schools as the new superintendent,” said KaterinaTaylor, president of DeKalb Chamber of Commerce. “I’mfamiliar with his past school system, having been educatedmyself in kindergarten through 12th grade in the KansasCity, Kansas Public School System. It will be great to be a partof what he will bring to the table.”

Green previously served as the superintendent for KansasCity Public Schools for nearly four years. During his leader-ship, he helped the school system earn provisional accredita-ion from the state, balance three consecutive budgets and

pass financial audits and stabilize enrollment.

DeKalb Chamber Chairman Al Edwards; DeKalb Chamber PresidentKaterina Taylor; Dunwoody Mayor Mike Davis; Lithonia MayorDeborah Jackson

DeKalb Chamber President Katerina Taylor; Dr. Stephen Green;Doraville Mayor Donna Pittman

Publix Media & Community Relations ManagerBrenda Reid; Oglethorpe Power Corporation Di-rector of Community Relations Diane McClearen;DeKalb County Board of Education Member,District 2, Marshall Orson

Dr. Stephen Green and wife Kimberly with James Tsismanakis, execu-ive director/CEO - Discover DeKalb / DeKalb Convention & Visitors

Bureau

Dunwoody Mayor Mike Davis; Adrienne Alexander (Chief Alexander’saughter); Deputy Chief Operating Ofcer of Public Safety Dr. Cedric L.

Alexander; Silverman Construction Program Management President &CEO Arnie Silverman; DeKalb Chairman Al Edwards

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BUSINESSThe Champion FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, AUGUST 7, 2015 Page 20A

Back-to-school spending needn’t wreck the budget

DeKalb Chamber of Commerce • Two Decatur Town Center, 125 Clairemont Ave., Suite, Decatur, GA 30030 • 404.378.8000 • www.dekalbchamber.org

INNOVATION

by Kathy Mitchell

he reopening of DeKalb Coun-ty schools Aug. 10 means more to

families with school-age youngstersthan a change in schedule. It meanssignificant shopping and spending.

he National Retail Federation(NRF), which lists back-to-schoolamong America’s major retail events,estimates that the average familywith children in grades K-12 willspend $630.36 on electronics, appar-el and other school needs this year.otal spending nationally is expectedto reach $24.9 billion.

With careful planning evenfamilies with several children andrelatively modest household incomescan get through the period with fam-

ily finances intact, according to Dun-woody financial planner HowardJoe, senior vice president of wealthmanagement at Merrill Lynch.

“here is a tendency to thinkthat because education is impor-tant—and it is—families shouldspend freely on education-relatedexpenses, but even these expensesshould be carefully thought through.he most important thing is to startwith a budget,” Joe said. “Neverhead out on a shopping trip with-out deciding beforehand how muchyou can spend. It’s easy to pull out

a credit card and keep buying with-out really thinking about how muchyou’re spending. Every child is dif-ferent and every situation is unique.

Parents should shop with individualchildren in mind.”

he NRF survey indicates that92.7 percent of families involved inback-to-school shopping will pur-chase new apparel, spending an aver-age of $217.82 per child.

“Retailers know the stores willbe full just before school starts, andshoppers can find bargains if theylook carefully. Many schools, pub-lic and private, have gone to schooluniforms. his limits the number ofnew outfits a child needs. Also, par-ents can contact the school to see ifthere are parents who have uniforms

their children have outgrown thatare still in good condition that theycan buy for less than a new uniformwould cost,” Joe suggested.

He said it’s important for fami-lies to distinguish between wantsand needs. “Children may not un-derstand that the family’s financialresources are limited, so they maysay ‘I need,’ when in fact what they’rea

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