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FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2015 • VOL. 18, NO. 8• 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.FreePress

see PDK on page 15A

see Center on page 15A

Flying first class out of PDK

Decatur dedicates Beacon Municipal Center

by John [email protected]

There’s a new way for the public to fly and its available now at DeKalb Peachtree Airport (PDK). It also has put PDK on popular travel sites such as Travelocity, Expedia,

Hotwire and Kayak.Memphis-based Southern

Airways now offers commercial service out of PDK that allows the public to avoid parking and security delays, requires only a 20-minute arrival prior to departure and is price-competitive with major

carriers flying into and out of Hartsfield Jackson International Airport.

The brainchild of Chairman and CEO Stan Little, Southern Airways began in a rather nontraditional way. Little, a prominent defense attorney in Memphis, said in an

interview at PDK that he used to own a private plane and had a vacation home in Destin, Fla.; he hired private pilots to fly him and guests to and from Memphis and Destin.

by Carla [email protected]

The Beacon Hill commu-nity was once a proud Black neighborhood in Decatur

with its own high and elementary schools in the 1960s.

The historic community faced changes over the years with many

of the buildings and homes demol-ished, but the spirit of the commu-nity remained and that spirit is felt throughout the new Beacon Mu-nicipal Center.

Decatur city officials, residents and many who grew up in the his-toric Black Beacon community, gathered May 16 to celebrate the dedication of the new Beacon Mu-

Happy memorial day

Decatur dedicated the $38 million Beacon Municipal Center May 16.

Decatur Mayor Emerita Elizabeth Wilson, who spearheaded the project, was “happy” to see the complex opened. Photos by Travis Hudgons

A Southern Airways taxies to depart PDK. Chairman and CEO of Southern Airways Stan Little

A the champion Free Press, Friday, May 22, 2015

local

See Judge on page 3A

by Andrew [email protected]

“Hero. Partner. Friend.”That’s the inscription on a

monument unveiled May 15 to recognize the importance of po-lice dogs.

“This K-9 memorial al-lows us to recognize, remember and honor public safety K-9s that have served the citizens of DeKalb County,” said interim DeKalb County Police Chief James Conroy about the only permanent statue in Georgia dedicated to K-9s.

“K-9s have become an in-tegral part of the public safety operations, are deployed on a daily basis for various tasks such as explosives and narcotics de-tection, criminal apprehension, [and] locating missing children and elderly persons,” Conroy said.

The monument, a statue of a dog named Hero mounted on a marble block, is located at DeKalb County Police Head-quarters, 1960 West Exchange Place, Tucker, on the hill where the current police headquarters signage overlooks the proposed police and firefighter monu-ments location. Leading to the monument is a walkway of pav-ers with the name of each K-9 and its handler and the years of the dog’s service.

“We are honoring truly an important aspect of our law enforcement agency here in DeKalb County,” said interim DeKalb County CEO Lee May.

“It’s something that I don’t think has been acknowledged by the general public the way that it should have been,” May said.

“Our K-9 unit, these K-9 dogs that have been trained from a very young age to protect and preserve life of our citizens here in DeKalb County, but also to protect and preserve life with our officers.

“You don’t think about things like this until things go bad,” May said.

DeKalb County Police Of-ficer Mark Taylor, whose K-9 partner passed away last year, said the “memorial is about the K-9s. It’s about every dog that’s ever been working in and around DeKalb County.

“It’s all for them just so that we can remember them and say thanks for what they did. They spent their whole lives working for us, and now we have this to say thanks,” Taylor said.

DeKalb County Police Of-ficer J. D. Huckabey was the handler for Rysa, who retired in 2010 after working as a K-9 for five years.

“I think that it is a good rec-ognition for dogs,” said Hucka-bey, who has been a K-9 handler for almost 10 years and with the department for 28 years.

“They do a lot of work,” Huckabey said. “[Rysa] put in a lot of years and all the dogs do. It’s a great memorial for them. They need to be recognized.

“They give 110 percent ev-ery day,” said Huckabey, who works with another dog, Luca. “When I don’t want to go to work, she does.

“Being a police officer is awesome, but being a K-9 han-dler is incredible,” Huckabey said. “It’s the best job in the department. I have definitely found my calling for that.”

K-9 memorial unveiled

Governor appoints new DeKalb judges by Carla [email protected]

Rep. Mike Jacobs (R-Brookhaven) is leaving the state legislature to become a State Court judge of DeKalb County.

Gov. Nathan Deal an-nounced May 12 the ap-pointment of Jacobs as State Court judge of DeKalb, replacing Eleanor Ross, who is now a federal judge for the Northern District of Georgia.

Deal also appointed Jean-Paul “JP” Boulee as

Superior Court judge of the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit. Boulee replaces for-

mer DeKalb Superior Court Judge Cynthia Becker, who resigned in March.

Boulee is a partner with Jones Day in Atlanta. Bou-lee said he is honored to be

nominated by the Judicial Nominating Commission and humbled to be selected.

“The judges in DeKalb County are exceptional,” he said. “I am excited to join them and learn from them. I will, though, very much miss my colleagues at Jones Day. I owe them, especially Richard H. Deane Jr., the head of the office, and Li-zanne Thomas, the head of the Southern Region.”

Boulee previously served as a captain in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate Gen-eral’s Corps. Boulee earned

Boulee Bernard Jacobs

DeKalb County Police officers and their K-9 partners participated in the official unveiling of the county’s K-9 memorial. Photos by Andrew Cauthen

DeKalb Police Officer J. D. Huckabey with Rysa. DeKalb Police Officer K. R. Brown poses at the K-9 statue.

Plans for the memorial began the death of DeKalb Police Officer Mark Taylor’s K-9 partner.

Interim county CEO Lee May said K-9s are an important part of the police force.

the champion Free Press, Friday, May 22, 2015 Alocal

Sally J. Friedman as Her-self by Judy Blume, and the Little House Books. Beverly Cleary also wrote some young adult books; Jean and Johnny was my favorite in middle school. Of course there was also was my love affair with Sweet Valley High.”

McVoy said her writing is for entertainment though readers may find life lessons in her books. “I’m never interested in pounding any messages into my pages, but because of the kind of read-er I was at that age—and still am—I’m always interested in writing about the deeper challenges of discovering who you are. Friendship, family and being someone of character are issues close to my heart, so I can’t help but make those the center point of my work, too.

“I’ve loved writing since I was very young. Parts of it are thrilling, and parts of it are frustrating. There’s a deep pleasure I still derive from it that’s hard to de-scribe,” she said. “Writing does, however, take a lot of time and a lot of energy; I don’t simply sit down and pour out pages. Sometimes you work for several hours to only get 500 good words out—or not even that much. Other times you have to re-work your entire plot, even after agonizing over the outline for months. It isn’t straightforward work, but it is intensely gratifying, and I feel privileged every day that I get to do this for my job.”

While Drive Me Crazy is McVoy’s first novel for preteens, it won’t be her last. “Currently I’m work-

ing on the companion book to Drive Me Crazy, which will come out in 2016,” she said. “This is All Your Fault, Cassie Parker is about Cassie’s ex-best friend, Fiona, and what happens to her over the course of the summer in which Drive Me Crazy takes place. I’m really enjoying writing for this age group, and hope there are many more to come.

“One thing I enjoyed a lot about Drive Me Crazy

was involving the grandpar-ents in the adventure. While Tess and Howie aren’t the main characters, they both play very large roles, and writing about the special relationships you have with your grandparents was a big pleasure. This is also about a fun, summer cross-country road trip, with both real and made-up locations along the way,” McVoy said.

by Kathy Mitchell

After six successful young adult novels, Decatur author Terra Elan McVoy has released Drive Me Crazy, for readers 8 to 12 years old. She said having a book come out is “a blessing every single time. This one was particularly exciting, since it’s my debut in the middle grade arena, but it’s always a special occasion.

“I’ve wanted to write for middle grade readers for a long time, in part because books were especially vital to me during that phase of my life,” she said. “I also work closely with kids this age in my job as a bookseller at Little Shop of Stories, and have deeply enjoyed the smart, thoughtful conversa-tions I have with them. I thought switching over to a slightly younger perspective would help me continue to grow as a writer, and also have fun at the same time.”

Like McVoy’s other books, Drive Me Crazy is written in the first person. She said of mentally shifting to another person’s perspec-tive, “There’s a lot of char-acter work that goes behind each [narrator] to get the voice exactly right. In writ-ing middle grade, the biggest difference is there’s definite-ly far less self-analysis going on. When Lana is scared, she’s just sacred—she doesn’t have a big monologue with herself about why. If Cassie’s angry, she’s angry, and she doesn’t try to rationalize or justify it.”

Keeping the language appropriate for a pre-teen girl means “not being vul-gar but also keeping the language sophisticated and savvy enough that modern tweens could relate to it,” she said. “There’s much more popular culture crossover

among adults and children these days, so the key is to make the prose age-appropriate, without dumb-ing things down. Listening closely to the kids around me definitely helped.”

Some content, McVoy acknowledged, may be too intense for pre-teen read-ers. “I save all the sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll for my young adults,” she said with a smile, “but I will say that many kids today are still going through difficult and challenging things, so not everything has to be sweet-ness and roses when you write for younger readers, either.”

McVoy, who was born in 1974, said she recalls her preteen years vividly but reminds herself that much has changed. “One thing that was very different when writing Drive Me Crazy was remembering that the girls would still be in touch with their parents or friends on a regular basis, instead of off on their own without cell phones. In some ways that felt constricting, but in other ways it really aided my plot.”

She said that as a teen she liked the kinds of books she now writes: books about real girls going through real-life situations. “I loved Ramona Quimby, Starring

Local author releases first book for preteens

a bachelor’s degree in politics from Wash-ington and Lee University and a law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law.

Boulee said he brings a “diversity of ex-perience” to the bench.

“I plan to work hard to become known as a judge that does his homework and tries his best to get to the right answer and to be respectful and fair to everyone who walks into the courtroom,” he said. “I like to think that one of the reasons I was selected was because my candidacy was supported by many of DeKalb’s different communities. I hope to earn the trust and support of all of the citizens of DeKalb County as I transition to this new role.”

Jacobs has been representing the 80th district for 10 years. He operates a law prac-tice in Sandy Springs.

On the day Deal announced the ap-

pointments, Brookhaven resident Catherine Bernard announced her candidacy for Ja-cob’s vacant sent.

“I am asking for the privilege to serve you as your next state representative,” Ber-nard said in a released statement. “House District 80 is one of the most vibrant parts of metro Atlanta, and needs representation focused on building strong communities through free enterprise and accountable, transparent government. I am committed to reading every bill, providing a public reason for every vote, and always listening to the people of our district–not outside interests attempting to drive the legislative process. Bernard served as chair of the Brookhaven Redevelopment Referendum Committee, which defeated the November 2014 Re-development Powers Law referendum in Brookhaven.

Judge Continued From Page 2A

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Terra Elan McVoy says she always wanted to write for middle grade readers.

McVoy’s latest novel tells of two preteen girls on a road trip.

The Champion Free Press, Friday, May 22, 2015 Aopinion

REDUCE • REUSE • RECYCLE•REDUCE • REUSE • RECYCLE

Guest Editorial:

Our complaints help

DeKalb County’s story needs to change

@AndrewChampNews

Andrew [email protected]

Managing Editor

I hear a lot of complaints about DeKalb County. Peo-ple complain about potholes and roads that need repav-ing. They complain about corruption in the govern-ment. They say the county needs to do a better job at-tracting jobs. Others say the police don’t respond to calls in a timely fashion. Some believe the county needs to be cleaner.

Sometimes we need to put things in perspective. Recently I spent several days in the greater St. Louis area–my daughter is on a robotics team that competed in the world championships there.

Whenever my family travels to another city, we enjoy seeing how the natives live; we don’t just stick to the touristy areas. In St. Louis this was easily accomplished since our hotel was 14 miles from the Edward Jones Dome at America’s Center

where the robotics competi-tion was held.

We traveled through several cities in the St. Louis region, some with popula-tions less than 1,000. I later learned that St. Louis Coun-ty has 90 municipalities and the city of St. Louis is not in the county; it is an indepen-dent city, completely sepa-rate from the county. Al-though we are dealing with a frenzy of incorporation

efforts, DeKalb probably will never have 90 cities–15 to 20 maybe, but not 90.

In St. Louis–the county and the city–the roads are terrible. In areas, cars bounce along pothole-rid-den roads. Our worst roads are pleasant compared to many of the roads there.

The most significant dif-ferent between St. Louis County and DeKalb County that I noticed was the urban blight. Sure, most of DeKalb County was officially labeled a slum by our Board of Commissioners in a urban redevelopment plan. But my trip to St. Louis opened my eyes to real slums. I can’t count the abandoned business, industrial and residential buildings I saw. In one village, nearly the whole Main Street area was abandoned. In another city, an abandoned apartment building with missing win-

dows had signs of homeless people staying there.

And we went to Fergu-son. It’s just a small, unas-suming town where all hell broke loose in August 2014 after a Ferguson Po-lice officer fatally shot an unarmed Black man. Riot-ing and vandalism ensued and nine months later, the signs of chaos are still there. A makeshift memorial to Michael Brown, the man killed by the officer, remains outside his apartment com-plex. A partially burned Advance Auto Parts store remains abandoned and surrounded by a temporary chain link fence. A nearby TitleMax store was burned to the ground and has relo-cated.

Another boarded-up, burned store bears this graf-fiti epitaph: “Real people de-stroyed what is not theirs to destroy, causing real people

to lose business and jobs.”In DeKalb there have

been a couple of police-in-volved shootings scrutinized by the public. But residents protested peacefully and le-gally, not with rocks, match-es and guns.

Yes, we complain in DeKalb County, not because things are as bad as they are in St. Louis and some other communities around the na-tion, but because things are not as we want them to be. We have higher standards and bigger dreams than some communities, and our proactive complaints and healthy dissatisfaction help us to continue to improve our lot in life.

Complaints and all, I was glad to be back in DeKalb County after my St. Louis visit.

by Steve Bradshaw

And the hits just keep on coming…

I don’t know if the recently reported probes into DeKalb County will amount to anything. In fact I will not even speculate one way or the other.

However, I will say that this is just one more story that underscores the negative narrative that has evolved about DeKalb County in recent times. In essence it is just another log on the fire. Make no mistake about it, DeKalb is burning.

At this point recounting all of the negative stories about DeKalb County would only serve to distress me further. We know the story, and the story is shameful. The story needs to change.

In case there are those who regard the current situation as merely an embarrassment with no tangible consequences I ask you to consider the following:

In my business development roles I have called on executive level business people all over this country so I have a pretty good sense of their thought process. When presented with the opportunity to open or

relocate a plant, or distribution center or regional office company CEO’s have an array of choices globally, nationally and locally. Each time I read about some new facility going up in Fulton or Gwinnett or Cobb or anywhere else in the metro Atlanta area it not only makes me sad. It makes me mad.

So, why don’t company CEO’s choose DeKalb County? Because they do their research and they read. Honestly, if you were a company CEO would you seriously consider locating your business here in this hotbed of controversy when you can literally go anywhere else in the world?

This continuing negative narrative translates into the lack of a significantly growing commercial tax base in DeKalb. Over time for you and me this will mean stagnant or decreasing property values and higher taxes. With a few exceptions, if you live south of Highway 78 consider what has occurred with the value of your property in recent years.

Of course there are those who will continue to make excuses no matter what happens. However, until we come to terms with the fact

that the majority of these problems lie at our doorstep things will not significantly improve. We have to own these issues and work to resolve them. This means holding our elected leadership accountable. No one in power has put themselves into elective office. Somebody voted for them.

The good people of DeKalb County work every day, pay taxes and obey the laws. We don’t just have to accept controversy and corruption. We don’t just have to accept the lack of new business development and jobs in our county. We should expect better. We demand more.

In the business world results matter: make your goals, receive the rewards and look forward to new goals. If you consistently fail to meet your goals you are asked to move on so that you can be replaced with someone who will get the job done. Holding people accountable works.

With so much at stake we need to wise up. We need to stop bestowing vast political power upon people who are just nice, good-hearted, well-meaning and put on a good show for us. This is not enough. They have had their chance and they

have failed. We need to start taking a serious look at people who are intelligent, competent, and ethical and motivated to serve in public office for the right reasons. Let’s get some new blood into these positions and see if they perform as promised.

My biggest fear, in light of all that has occurred is that the good people of DeKalb County–the great “silent majority” of people “who work hard and play by the rules” will simply retreat into their own personal worlds and just hope for things to get better. That would be the worst of all possible outcomes, because hope is not a strategy.

Please don’t retreat. ENGAGE! ENGAGE! ENGAGE! Take a serious look at those who seek political power. Take ownership of what’s yours. This government belongs to you.

DeKalb’s story is bad right now. But, it does not have to stay this way. We have the ultimate power to change that story.

However, the story will not change until there is a leadership change. The only people who can make that change are you the voters.

opinionThe Champion Free Press, Friday, May 22, 2015 A

Let Us Know What You Think!THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS encour-ages opinions from its readers. Please write to us and express your views. Letters should be brief, typewritten and contain the writer’s name, address and telephone number for verification. All letters will be considered for publication.Send Letters To editor, The Champion Free Press, P. O. Box 1347, Decatur, GA 30031-1347; Send email to [email protected] • FAX To: (404) 370-3903 Phone: (404) 373-7779 . Deadline for news releases and advertising: Thursday, one week prior to publication date.

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

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

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stAtement from the Publisher

We sincerely appreciate the discussion surrounding this and any issue of interest to DeKalb County. The Champion was founded in 1991 expressly to provide a forum for discourse for all community residents on all sides of an issue. We have no desire to make the news only to report news and opinions to effect a more educated citizenry that will ultimately move our community forward. We are happy to present ideas for discussion; however, we make every effort to avoid printing information submitted to us that is known to be false and/or assumptions penned as fact.

One Man’s OpiniOn

“The tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach,” educator and minister Dr. Benjamin E. Mays (1894-1984) and president of Morehouse Col-lege from 1940-1967 as well as longtime mentor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Offering some free coun-sel for the next superinten-dent of our DeKalb County School District, as our grad-uation rate hangs among the state’s lower tier, and the long recession continues to cause many young men and women to believe they have no place in the modern job market.

Since the dawn of the U.S. Industrial Revolution, and the little red school-house gave way to the “unified school district,” America has been standard-izing, assembly lining and ‘one size fits most’ top-down structuring, and periodically re-structuring public educa-tion.

Despite massive public expenditure (6 of every 10 state tax dollars in Georgia) for funding primary educa-tion (K-12), our results re-main mixed. Though there are systems, schools, prin-cipals, teachers and PTAs which constantly strive for and achieve academic excel-lence, more often the out-comes of a majority of our schools range from medio-cre to average.

And as is often the case

in the real world, inquisitive students, industrious parents and gifted educators often find a new and successful path long before the masses get with the program.

One of the latest innova-tions in pilot phases being offered in several Georgia schools and schools systems is called YouScience. The initially web-based tutorial and counseling program fo-cuses on helping high school sophomores and juniors determine at a an earlier age how their own special skills, interests, hobbies and pas-sions potentially match and track best with a wide array of career paths.

We all know that chil-dren, as well as adults, learn better when they are en-gaged and genuinely care about the material being presented.

This pilot initiative is also intended to deal with a sig-nificant Georgia economic and education challenge,

Work Force Readiness, while also hopefully reducing student debt, improving job prospects and better prepar-ing thousands of Georgia high school graduates with skills which employers are seeking, but not find-ing. Early adopters and pilot schools include the Bremen City Schools and Marietta and Decatur high schools in metro Atlanta.

Created by a DeKalb County public schools and UGA grad, Philip Hardin, the YouScience program focus has a very simple proposition: sooner or later, we all figure it out—who we are, how we think, what we want to do with our lives. But what if you could do it faster?

Randall Redding, found-er and CEO of R.K. Redding Construction and Georgia president of the Associ-ated General Contractors of America is already a fan, and program cosponsor, in his local school district and spreading elsewhere a bit like Johnny Appleseed.

As the economy has started to more rapidly thaw, and heat has returned to the construction space, Red-ding noted in his company as well as the industry, the surprisingly high number of managers and supervisors in their 50s, nearer the sunsets of their careers, versus the sunrise. And yet with his in-dustry clamoring for skilled craftsman, general contrac-

tors, HVAC and electrical workers, open positions of-ten remain unfilled.

“Instead of just talkin’ about it, I decided we had to do something about it. Our industry has a stake in this too...as do dozens of com-munities like mine where employment opportunities are there, but perhaps in ar-eas, trades and professions not as well known to most students,” explained Red-ding during a recent Geor-gia State Senate hearing on work force readiness.

“We have three simple objectives—give students real-time information about what they do well, broaden their vision and understand-ing of existing employment opportunities and career paths and begin an informed dialogue with parents, at an earlier juncture, about the avenues and options po-tentially best suited to their child,” offers Hardin.

Our eldest daughter had a childhood dream of be-coming a marine biologist, and later a small animals’ vet...but that all changed much later during her first high school animal dissec-tion. She recently graduated magna cum laude from Au-burn and is already happily employed as a kindergarten teacher. She came to this chosen path during her high school senior year, after no small amount of anxiety and internal debate. The result may have been the same,

Bill [email protected]

Columnist

One size does not fit allbut with some guidance and tutorials guiding her earlier along the way, I know she would have gotten there sooner, and fortunately now, in at least a few hundred Georgia classrooms and schools, there’s an app for that.

Bill Crane also serves as a political analyst and commen-tator for Channel 2’s Action News, WSB-AM News/Talk 750 and now 95.5 FM, as well as a columnist for The Cham-pion, Champion Free Press and Georgia Trend. Crane is a DeKalb native and business owner, living in Scottdale. You can reach him or comment on a column at [email protected].

A broken government in disarray.That is not just the perception, it is

our reality. It is time for both elected and appointed officials in DeKalb County to accept this, admit this, and demonstrate we have the will to change this.

Those who say the perception is worse than the reality are part of the problem—not the positive solution.

In just the past few days DeKalb County taxpayers have witnessed me-dia reports highlighting the following:• Federal prosecutors issuing a subpoe-

na to DeKalb County seeking records on Zoning Board of Appeals Chair-man Darryl Jennings Sr. and a pool hall at the center of a bribery scandal.

• A former DeKalb County police offi-cer indicted on charges that he violated his oath of office by taking bribes.• Media reports that of the 11 officials

and vendors mentioned in the block-

buster special purpose grand jury report, in addition to Burrell Ellis, none has come to criminal prosecu-tion and there is a possibility the stat-ute of limitations will expire.

• And, the issue of the now infamous $4,000 payment from a DeKalb County vendor, which could have been graft, theft—or a setup to em-barrass a high-ranking official.

J. Tom Morgan, a former DeKalb County district attorney has stated, “This is just the tip of an iceberg, is my best guess.”

I fear Mr. Morgan may be correct. The true victims of our broken govern-ment in disarray are the taxpayers–the working men and women of DeKalb County who love our county, love their families, and try to do the right thing by going to work, obeying the law, and paying the very taxes that fund DeKalb County government.

Others are breaking what they are building—and it must stop.

I told WSB TV and the Atlanta Journal: “We can’t just keep depend-ing on reform by scandal and reform by indictment.”

I mean it.In the immediate future, I will offer

positive proposals to restructure and reform the very structure and founda-tion of DeKalb County government.

It is time for transformational reform. It is time to hold people ac-countable. It is time to create a trans-parent atmosphere and demonstrate to DeKalb County taxpayers their elected and appointed officials are serious about respecting them and their tax dollars.

For DeKalb County,Nancy Jester

DeKalb County: A broken government in disarrayGuest Editorial:


local

When Renee Bazemore joined Junior League of DeKalb County in 2011 she had just turned 40.

“My kids were heading to college and I felt it was just time for me to do some-thing for myself and [find] a way to get involved and give back to the community,” said Bazemore, who is the vice president of community for the Junior League’s board of directors.

Junior League “has been a great experience,” Baze-more said. “It has helped me to further develop my professional skills, my lead-ership skills as well as be-ing able to bond with other

women who have like goals. We all want to better serve our community. “I am a firm believer in

being involved in the com-munity and giving back, especially in the community where I live,” said Bazemore, who is the alumni asso-ciation director at Georgia State University.

The Stone Mountain resident said, “Volunteerism is important…because…you have an opportunity to get involved and do something that you like outside of your day-to-day work. When you’re a volunteer, you have the opportunity to expand your knowledge and skills.

“We have an opportunity to bring ideas and a different perspective,” she said.

Bazemore said organiza-

tions need more help than can be provided by paid staff.

“One of the quotes from Martin Luther King Jr. says we all can be great because we all can serve. Being a servant leader is very impor-tant,” Bazemore said.

In addition to volunteer-ing with Junior League, Ba-zemore is active at Greater Travelers Rest House of Hope. She is the chairwom-an of the steering committee for Advancement of Women at Georgia State University and is a volunteer instructor for the first-year learning experience classes at the col-lege. Additionally she works

with the Teacup Girls men-toring organization.

“Being a volunteer is very fulfilling as an indi-vidual, and I believe organi-zations definitely are in need of volunteers and people who care,” Bazemore said.

According to Bazemore, volunteers save companies and organizations approxi-mately $22 per hour. “If you think of the money that as volunteers we are saving an organization, …it’s invalu-able to the organization we are serving.”

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.

Renee BazemoRe

Ellenwood girl addresses commissioners about parksby Andrew [email protected]

Six-year-old year Gabrielle Manning of Ellenwood has some concerns about her community and she told the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners about them May 12.

“I am here to request funds for the things that I care about,” Gabrielle said. “I would like for you to do a few things for me.”

Gabrielle asked commissioners to renovate County Line Park.

“It is really old and the tennis and basketball courts are in a state of disrepair,” Gabrielle said. “I would like for the park to be fixed up.”

Gabrielle also asked for a new park on River Road. “It would be great to have a recreation center and awesome playgrounds and a place to have my birthday parties,” she said.

The homeschooled girl told commissioners she wants their help with tennis.

“I would like you to bring the lights on the Dottie Bridges tennis courts up to code so that I can play tennis at night time,” she said. “I also would like for you to pay for junior

tennis courts and balls at the Sugar Creek tennis courts.

My mom takes me there to practice, but the nets are too

big for me. Please buy the children’s size nets so I can

practice with the same nets and balls that I will use at my tennis matches.

“I know some of these things will take time but I think you can fix my tennis issues now,” Gabrielle said.

When asked why she addressed the commissioners, Gabrielle said, “because my mom told me to.”

“She wants me to learn how to speak in front of people so one day I can be president or something,” said Gabrielle, who added that she was “kind of nervous.”

Tricia Manning, Gabrielle’s mother, said she encouraged her daughter to address the commissioners because “the children are the ones who primarily use the parks and they’re the ones who when we go to the parks, they notice that the playground is old or they have complaints and issues.

“I wanted her to know where to go to field those issues and who should be listening to her,” Manning said.

“I think this is something we’ll do once a month to see what’s going on in our community and let her have a voice,” Manning added.

Foreground, from left, 6-year-old Gabrielle Manning meets Roy Wilson, DeKalb’s parks and recreation depart-ment director, after asking commissioners to fix the parks she uses. Background, from left, Gabrielle’s mother and sister, Tricia and Nadia Manning, accompanied Gabrielle at the commissioner’s meeting. Photo by Andrew Cauthen


avondale Estatesimprov summer camp begins in June

The Brink Improv will host a week-long im-provisational comedy camp June 1-5, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at DeKalb School of the Art. The camp is for children ages 8-12 and teenagers ages 13-17. The week will consist of improvisational exer-cises and games crafted to focus on confidence, listening, acceptance, communication and find-ing the fun. For more information, visit www.thebrinkimprov.com/summer-camp.

Clarkston

Residents can take part in budget project

The city of Clarkston has budgeted $10,000 to be used for community budgeting initiatives. On May 18 and June 15, residents have been invited to share how they want their tax dol-lars spent, and assist and vote on proposals. The participatory budget project begins at 9 p.m. and will take place at the Clarkston Community Center, 3701 College Ave.

Mayor Ted Terry said he is hopeful for resi-dents to join in “this exciting exercise in citizen democracy.”

ChambleeCenter for pan asian Community service receives grant

Komen Atlanta recently announced that it will grant approximately $1.5 million to 16 local healthcare organizations to provide breast health services to Metro Atlantans who otherwise might not have been able to afford them. Komen Atlanta’s fundraising efforts through Race for the Cure and other initiatives support the women and men in our community and Komen Atlanta’s mission, enabling thousands of Metro Atlantans to detect and survive breast cancer.

Komen Atlanta’s 2015 grant scope includes programs that address critical needs in our com-munity, funding innovative breast health and/or breast cancer services. The grant of approxi-mately $135,000 awarded to the Center for Pan Asian Community Service Inc. will support the CPACS Asian Breast Care (ABC) Program.

This program is a linguistically and cultural-ly competent screening and diagnostic program geared toward educating Asian women about the importance of mammograms and clinical breast exams (CBE), providing low/no cost clinical breast exam and mammography services, and linking women to linguistically and culturally competent providers if follow-up treatment is required.

DecaturMental Health and Wellness Fair scheduled

DeKalb County Superior Court Clerk Deb-ra DeBerry invites the community to a “day of changing the way we look at mental healthcare in DeKalb” on Sat., May 23 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

The event will be held in the Manuel Maloof Auditorium at 1300 Commerce Drive in Deca-tur. Presentations will be made by behavioral health care providers, information sessions, ac-cess to new and innovative therapy methods, numerous resources and representatives from DeKalb CSB, Behavioral Health Link, NAMI DeKalb, DeKalb County Jail, Veterans Affairs and local community behavioral health agencies and providers.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dana Patterson in the Clerk of Superior Court’s office, at (404) 687-4076.

DeKalb recruiting for poll officials

DeKalb County Voter Registration and Elec-tions invite residents of DeKalb County to take part in its meet-and-greet to learn more about what it takes to become a poll official and addi-tional ways to service the community.

Two meet-and-greets will be held for the recruiting initiative: June 20, from 10 a.m. to noon, and July 18, from 10 a.m. to noon.

The events will take place at the voter reg-istration and elections office, 4380 Memorial Drive, Suite 300.

To confirm your attendance call (404) 298-4045 or email: [email protected].

Lithonia

Commission candidates to appear in forum

Restore DeKalb is sponsoring a question-and-answer forum on May 26 for the candidates for the vacant District 5 seat on the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners.

The forum will be held at the Stonecrest Li-brary, 3123 Klondike Rd., Lithonia, at 6:30 p.m.

Stone MountainLibrary to hold book sale

The Friends of the Stone Mountain-Sue Kel-logg Public Library will host its annual book sale June 19 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. All hard covers will be $1and paperbacks will be $.50, unless otherwise marked. All proceeds go to fund pro-grams and materials at the Stone Mountain- Sue Kellogg Library. The library is located at 952 Leon Street in Stone Mountain. For more infor-mation, call (770) 413-2020.

Countywide

County recreation centers to hold summer day camp parent orientation

DeKalb County Recreation, Parks and Cul-tural Affairs will be hosting Parent Orientation Night on Thursday, May 28 at 7 p.m. at all recre-ation centers.

The orientation informs parents on the ac-tivities and programs to be provided during the Summer Day Camp programs for youth, ages 5 through 15. Parents will have an opportunity to meet staff and are welcomed to tour the facility.

DeKalb county swim season begins May 23

The 2015 swim season is scheduled to run Saturday, May 23, through Friday, July 31. Select pools will remain open on weekends until Labor Day weekend, Sept. 7.

Pool patrons have the opportunity to partici-pate in water aerobics, swim lessons and swim leagues throughout the summer. A grand open-ing ceremony and ribbon cutting is scheduled for Saturday, June 6, at the new Exchange Spray Ground.

Pool hours of operation are: • Browns Mill Aquatic Facility, 4929 Browns Mill

Rd., Lithonia—Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 7 p.m.

• Gresham, 3113 Gresham Road, Atlanta–Mon-days, closed; Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.

• Kittredge - 2535 N. Druid Hills Road, Atlanta–Mondays, closed; Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 6 p.m.

• Lithonia - 2501 Park Drive, Lithonia-- Mon-days, closed; Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 6 p.m.

• Tobie Grant - 644 Parkdale Road, Scottdale–Mondays, closed; Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.

• Kelly Cofer, 4259 N. Park Dr. Tucker—Mon-day, Wednesday-Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.; and Tuesday, closed.

• Midway, 3181 Midway Road, Decatur, Monday, Wednesday-Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 6 p.m.; Tuesday, closed.

• Medlock, 874 Gaylemont Circle, Decatur, Monday, Wednesday-Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 6 p.m.; Tuesday, closed.

The N.H. Scott pool will be closed for the season. For more information, contact Al Shep-pard, athletics and aquatics recreation program manager, at (404) 371-6270.

Around DeKalb


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After weeks of politics, a heated debate among county commissioners and a tie vote cast by the interim CEO, on May 12 county leaders approved $39.4 mil-lion in reallocated bond funding for sidewalks, li-brary, greenspace and parks projects.

At its May 12 meeting, the Board of Commissioners was considering allocating $6.5 million in 2006 county parks bonds funding to a new Tobie Grant Recreation Center. The board had been considering the project since March 24, but Com-missioner Sharon Barnes Sutton has been holding up approval of it in favor of re-leasing funds for a library in her district.

In a substitute measure, Sutton proposed an alternate expenditure of the remain-ing 2001 and 2006 bond funding.

“The 2006 bond money allows for all [of] us to move forward with projects in [our] districts,” Sutton told commissioners. “All of these are really important to our constituents.

“Pulling the projects out one at a time signals to me that there is an intent to try to get certain projects funded that commissioners support and leave the rest behind and leaving those citizens without the proper resources and attention that they deserve,” she said.

“It is unconscionable that the people of District 4 did not receive funding for a new public library,” Sutton said. “How is it that every other district received a li-brary and they did not? How

is it that all of these years Tobie Grant has been fight-ing and working to receive money for that recreation center?

“They have been denied for years and years,” she said. “This money was available. This money could have been appropriated back in 2006. We can’t continue to play politics with these people’s lives.”

Commissioner Jeff Rader said the projects need more consideration.

Sutton “is frequently outraged by all manner of things,” Rader said. “One of the things she is frequently outraged about is the cir-cumvention of her commit-tee in issues under its juris-diction.

“The proposal that she advances is basically to empty the District 4 parks acquisition fund in favor of transferring that money to an account that would sup-port the library,” Rader said. “The committee of jurisdic-tion, the [employee relations and community services committee], is working at all deliberate speed to ac-complish that and there’s no reason to act as though people are being cheated by that process.”

In the end, commission-ers were tied on the vote for release all of the fund-ing. Commissioners Larry Johnson, Sutton and Stan Watson voted in favor of it, while Commissioners Ka-thie Gannon, Nancy Jester and Rader were against it. Interim DeKalb CEO Lee May broke the tie in favor of the measure.

“With this vote we can utilize the dedicated funding that is already in place and get these important projects

completed for the people of DeKalb County,” May said in a statement.

In addition to funding for a new Tobie Grant rec-reation center, the funding includes:

• $3.5 million for deferred maintenance of existing recreation and parks build-ings

• $2.8 million toward the $10 million total acquisi-tion cost of the property near Briar Lake Park

• $800,000 for development of Ellenwood Park

• $4.3 million for the Brookhaven Community

Library • $4.2 million for the Ellen-

wood Community Library• $3.3 million for a new

Stone Mountain Library• $850,000 to complete the

central annex library facil-ity

• $4 million for road resur-facing throughout DeKalb County

• $600,000 for a sidewalk on Glenwood Road from Candler Road to Columbia Road

• $150,000 for a sidewalk on Rockbridge Road from Ridge Road to Wade Walk-er Park

• $150,000 for a traffic signal

and sidewalk on Shell Bark Road

• $100,000 for a sidewalk on Idlewood Road from Tucker Middle School to Lawrenceville Highway

• $100,000 for a sidewalk on Briarcliff Road from Clif-ton Road to LaVista Road

“With this action we are serving the needs of citizens all over DeKalb County, but I am especially proud of the new Tobie Grant Recreation Center in Scottdale and the brand new public library in Stone Mountain, which has been a need for a long while,” Sutton said.

Millions approved for parks, libraries and sidewalksPedestrians walk along an area of Glenwood Road that has no sidewalk. DeKalb commissioners just approved $600,000 for sidewalks in the area. Photos by Andrew Cauthen


DEKALB COUNTY SCHOOL 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Real & Personal 22,184,019,392 19,310,211,337 17,578,034,324 17,512,942,085 18,945,661,424 21,084,298,895Motor Vehicles 1,254,986,790 1,225,978,410 1,265,293,750 1,359,311,440 1,135,212,830 781,124,040Mobile Homes 656,584 510,171 440,056 396,572 355,333 358,733Timber - 100% 0 0 0 0 0 0Heavy Duty Equipment 65,347 82,712 77,829 34,308 57,864 2,208Gross Digest 23,439,728,113 20,536,782,630 18,843,845,959 18,872,684,405 20,081,287,451 21,865,783,876Less M& O Exemptions 3,039,974,697 2,913,503,127 2,847,239,428 2,826,254,552 2,923,178,437 3,089,898,865Net M & O Digest 20,399,753,416 17,623,279,503 15,996,606,531 16,046,429,853 17,158,109,014 18,775,885,011State Forest Land Assistance Grant Value 0 0 0 0 0 0Adjusted Net M&O Digest 20,399,753,416 17,623,279,503 15,996,606,531 16,046,429,853 17,158,109,014 18,775,885,011

Gross M&O Millage 22.98 22.98 23.98 23.98 23.98 23.98Less Rollbacks 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00Net M&O Millage 22.98 22.98 23.98 23.98 23.98 23.98

Total School Taxes Levied $468,786,333 $404,982,963 $383,598,625 $384,793,388 $411,451,454 $450,245,723

Net Taxes $ Increase ($18,084,407) ($63,803,371) ($21,384,338) $1,194,763 $26,658,066 $38,794,268Net Taxes % Increase -3.71% -13.61% -5.28% 0.31% 6.93% 9.43%

NOTES:1. THE NET LEVY DOES NOT REFLECT ACTUAL REVENUE RECEIVED OR AVAILABLE DUE TO VALUE ADJUSTMENTS RESULTING FROM APPEALS, DELINQUENT TAXES, COLLECTIONS FROM PRIOR YEARS, AND A FEE OF 1.25% PAID TO THE COUNTY FOR BILLING AND COLLECTIONS.2. THE 2015 MILLAGE RATE IS THE PROPOSED RATE. THE PROPOSED SCHOOL OPERATIONS MILLAGE IS 23.98 MILLS.3. 2015 DIGEST FIGURES ARE AN ESTIMATE.

CURRENT 2015 TAX DIGEST AND 5 YEAR HISTORY OF LEVY

The DeKalb County Board of Education does hereby announce that the millage rate will be set at a meeting to be held at theDeKalb County School District Administrative & Instructional Complex, 1701 Mountain Industrial Boulevard, Stone Mountain, Georgia

on Wednesday, June 17, 2015 at 7:00 p.m., and pursuant to the requirements of O.C.G.A. 48-5-32, does hereby publish the following presentation of the current year's tax digest and levy, along with the history of the tax digest and levy

for the past five years.

by Ashley [email protected]

Move a piece, capture a piece, drop a piece, promote a pawn, castle, take a move back–the game of chess is demanding.

United States Chess Federa-tion certified tournament direc-tor and chess instructor Beau Hardeman, in collaboration with Unconditional Love for Children (UCL) held his 20th annual in-vitational chess tournament on May 2 at Gresham Park recreation center.

UCL, a nonprofit organiza-tion aimed to provide opportuni-ties for disadvantaged children and promote critical thinking, launched CheckMate Chess Acad-emy in 2012 and recruited Har-deman to assist in coaching the students.

Hardeman first began teach-ing chess in 1992 and held his first tournament in 1995. He said his goal is to “teach kids to com-pete early.”

He added, “Students need to know how to compete in a posi-tive and constructive way early and the very nature of what’s go-ing on, on the chessboard teaches management. You’re managing

time, materials and your goals.”He added, “My approach

has been to engage the student. I try to show them what their bad moves are and how to improve because while the child is play-ing they don’t get any coaching, they are completely on their own,” Hardeman said.

Director of CheckMate Chess Academy Barry Gray said the most rewarding aspect of working with coach Hardeman and UCL has been the commitment and support for the children.

“This is another pathway of learning. It’s amazing to see young kids, who are adults now, in col-lege, out of college, doctors, law-yers, and in many other profes-sions who have gone through our chess program, received private lessons and to see how successful they’ve become,” Gray said.

He added, “When you get a kid interested in chess, especially younger kids, after a while their self-esteem is out of this world. They feel confident about them-selves and that’s something re-warding to see.”

For additional information on ULC and CheckMate Chess Acad-emy, visit facebook.com/uncondi-tionalloveforchildren.

CheckMate Chess academy members compete in tournament

Students strategize and formulate tactics to use in the game in order to beat their opponents.


local


Fannie Mae, one of the largest owners of foreclosed homes in the country, has been accused of housing discrimination in DeKalb County and metro Atlanta in addition to 33 other met-ro areas around the nation.

“What we’re alleging in this complaint against Fannie Mae is that they have neglected properties in neighborhoods of color, failing to properly maintain and market in the same way that they have marketed in White neighborhoods,” said Joyce Catrett, director of enforcement for Metro Fair Housing Services Inc., dur-ing a news conference in Decatur May 13.

At various news confer-ences around the nation, the National Fair Housing Alli-ance (NFHA) and 19 local fair housing organizations announced the filing with HUD of a housing discrimi-nation complaint against Fannie Mae.

The groups allege that “Fannie Mae maintains and markets its foreclosures (also known as real estate owned or “REO” properties) in White neighborhoods consistently better than in middle- and working-class African-American and La-tino neighborhoods, a prac-tice that violates the federal Fair Housing Act,” according to a news release.

“Fannie Mae properties

in communities of color had broken doors and windows, unlocked doors and win-dows allowing access to the home, excessive litter, dead or overgrown lawns, dead animals or live animals on the property, and other ma-jor deficiencies. Conversely, most Fannie Mae properties in predominantly White communities did not. These problems are simple to fix and are the responsibility of Fannie Mae and its contrac-tors,” stated a news release.

The problem is “per-vasive,” Catrett said. “One, our vacancy rates are still high, lingering from the housing bust. Secondly, it’s pervasive because REOs being received by banks in their portfolios are being left without appropriate market-ing.”

The complaint is the result of a five-year investi-gation. In the metro Atlanta area, a study by the National Fair Housing Alliance shows that in “communities of col-or,” 38 percent of the REO properties had overgrown or dead shrubbery, compared to 12 percent in White com-munities. Approximately 30 percent of the REO prop-erties in communities of color had broken or boarded windows, versus 16 percent in White communities. Thirty-two percent of the REO properties in minority communities had a damaged fence, compared to 4 percent in White communities.

In minority communi-

ties, 50.7 percent of the REO properties in communi-ties of color had peeling or chipped paint. The number was 28 percent in White communities. Twenty-three percent of the REO proper-ties in minority communi-ties had no professional “for sale” sign marketing the home, compared to 4 per-cent in White communities.

Catrett said that “any real estate related transac-tion that is administered or delivered or serviced in a discriminatory manner vio-lates the Fair Housing Act.”

The complaint against Fannie Mae was made to urge “HUD to bring Fannie Mae to the table to answer why [does] this discrimina-tory practice [exist] and to

seek a remedy,” Catrett said.“With a previous bank

that did step up early we set up a remedy that includes some more emphasis on homebuyer priority and also monies that are funneled back into these neighbor-hoods for rehabilitation of this type of housing,” Catrett said.

Mortgage giant Fannie Mae accused of racial discrimination in DeKalb

CITY OF DORAVILLE PUBLIC NOTICE

Fiscal Year 2016 Budget Notice is hereby given that the proposed budget for the City of Doraville shall be available for public inspection beginning May 22, 2015, in the City Clerk’s office from 8:30 to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at City Hall, 3725 Park Avenue, Doraville, GA.

A Public Hearing shall be held on the 1st day of June at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall, 3725 Park Avenue, Doraville, GA before the Mayor and Council of the City of Doraville at which time public comment pertaining to the Fiscal Year 2016 (July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016) budget shall be sounded. All citizens of Doraville are invited to attend.

A Public Hearing shall be held on the 8th day of June at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall, 3725 Park Avenue, Doraville, GA before the Mayor and Council of the City of Doraville at which time public comment pertaining to the Fiscal Year 2016 (July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016) budget shall be sounded. All citizens of Doraville are invited to attend.

A Regular Meeting shall be held on the 15th day of June at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall, 3725 Park Avenue, Doraville, GA before the Mayor and Council of the City of Doraville at which time the Fiscal Year 2016 (July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016) budget shall be approved and the budget ordinance adopted in accordance with O.C.G.A. 36-81-5. All citizens of Doraville are invited to attend.

NOTICE OF PROPERTY TAX HEARING

The Mayor and the Atlanta City Council will adopt a millage rate which will require no tax increase.

All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearing to be held at the Atlanta City Hall Complex, 55 Trinity Avenue, Atlanta, Georgia in the City Council Chamber located on the Second Floor on Thursday, May 28, 2015 at 11:00 a.m.

Mortgage financier Fannie Mae has been accused of neglecting properties in minority neighborhoods. Photos provided


On May 15 just after dusk, hundreds gathered at Color Wheel Studio on E. Howard Avenue in Decatur for the annual Decatur Lantern Parade. Parade artist Chantelle Rytter, center image, taught lantern-making workshops at Color Wheel. The handcrafted, illuminated lanterns and other whimsical creations floated, hovered and danced through Decatur streets to the square, led by music from the Black Sheep Ensemble. Photos by Travis Hudgons

Decatur Lantern Parade


local

Ethics board will investigate complaint

Discover DeKalb’s Reunion Specialist will teach you everything you need to

know to plan the perfect Family Reunion in DeKalb County!

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Professional trainer, Donna Satchell of STARR Consulting & Training,

will teach you the importance of providing outstanding service and help you enhance

your service skills in this motivating and invigorating free class.

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1957 Lakeside Parkway, Suite 510Tucker, GA 30084


DeKalb County’s ethics board will look into an al-legation that Commissioner Stan Watson violated the ethics code when he voted for Panola Slope Resort while he was a consultant for the developer, APD So-lutions.

From 2012 to 2014, Wat-son was a paid consultant for APD Solutions, earn-ing approximately $500 a month, said Robert Brown-ing, an investigator for the ethics board. In 2012, Wat-son received $6,800. In 2013 and 2014, he received $6,500 each year. He ended his em-ployment with the company early in 2014.

“On April 10, 2012, …there was a vote to award $1M to APD solutions and National Property Institute,” Browning said. The motion passed with Watson voting in favor of the award.

On Jan. 8, 2013, the Board of Commissioners “took up an agenda item to award an additional $500,000 to APD Solutions to continue with the same project,” Browning said.

“Commissioner Watson was there at the meeting,” Browning said. “Commis-sioner [Sharon] Barnes Sutton makes the motion to give the money to the com-pany and Commissioner Watson seconded the mo-tion.”

The motion passed unanimously.

Browning said when he interviewed Watson about the vote, Watson said “he missed it. He had been busy. He said he’s been trying to cover District 5, along with his district and he’s been a little overwhelmed. And he just missed it.” Watson also told the investigator that Watson said he did not ask for the item to be put on the agenda.

“Watson wanted me to stress that he owns no stock

in APD Solutions and that he did not receive a bonus or anything for his vote on this agenda item,” Browning said.

“This would probably…be a violation of ethics being that he was a paid consul-tant and he did vote on the contract,” Browning said.

Ethics board member Clara Black-Delay did not think there was a need for an ethics investigation.

“Whether or not he should have voted is a ques-tion,” she said. “Whether or not the vote gave ADP an unfair advantage over any other company is to me a different issue. Based on the fact that the vote, though probably improper and should have not occurred, I don’t think it rises to the lev-el of…an ethics violation.”

Ethics board member Edwinett Perkins-Murphy said, “There needs to be more investigation concern-ing this. There’s a need for that.

“If…he abstained from voting…this wouldn’t be on the table concerning him,”

Perkins-Murphy said. “If he had refrained from voting altogether, then he would not be involved in the ethics violation. He voted twice…knowing that he had some connection to the company.”

The ethics board dis-missed two other parts of the complaint against Watson made by DeKalb resident and government watchdog Rhea Johnson, who asked that Watson be removed from office.

One dismissed com-plaint alleged that the cell-phone Watson was using was a personal cell phone that he had prior to being elected as commissioner, Browning said.

Because he had number already out there he contin-ued to use that one,” Brown-ing said. “While I think there were some personal phone calls on that, and he admits there were, a large majority of his…cellphone use …was for county busi-ness.”

“It was his personal cell-phone, but I don’t believe it was any violation,” Brown-ing said. “He has, as a sign of good faith, repaid those cell phone bills.”

Other commissioners, Browning said, have used their personal cellphones just as Watson did.

Another dismissed eth-ics complaint alleges that he violated the use of his county-issued purchasing card to pay for his website, Browning said.

“Other commissioners do the same thing when they pay out of their county budget an independent web-master to handle their own website,” Browning said. “They contend that the IT [information technology de-partment] within the county is not capable of keeping up in a timely manner the

amount of information that comes in.”

Browning said the coun-ty’s IT department agrees that “due to the level of information from each inde-pendent commissioner that they cannot keep up and put things out in a timely man-ner on the DeKalb County website.”

The problem cited in the allegation against Watson is that on his website he had two portals—one for dona-tions to community events and projects, and one for campaign contributions.

The portal for campaign donations “would probably be in violation, however, after speaking to [Watson’s webmaster], there was never any information given to him to set up a PayPal portal for anybody to donate mon-ey,” Browning said.

Watson’s webmaster asked for the information but never received it; thus, the donations portal was never live, Browning said.

“The portals themselves being there would techni-cally be a violation,…but no money ever exchanged hands through those por-tals,” Browning said.

The portals were only on Watson’s website for approx-imately three days, Brown-ing said.

DeKalb County Commissioner Stan Watson will have to answer to an ethics complaint. Photo by Travis Hudgons


WEEK PICturEsIn

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Ariane Preston and LaTasha Smith helped pick up trash along DeKalb Medical Parkway. Photos by Carla Parker

LaTasha Lewis (right), founder of Tadda’s Fitness Center, unveiled the center’s DeKalb Adopt-a-Road sign May 16 on DeKalb Medi-cal Parkway in Lithonia. The Adopt-a-Road area is approximately a mile from Snapfinger Woods Drive from Panola Road to DeKalb Medical Parkway.

Members of the Chinese Qipoa Society wore the colorful, traditional Chinese dress as part of a worldwide event to set a Guiness world record. More than 150,000 participated in the event organized by the China Qipoa Association. Photos provided


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Words HURTStop the Bullying


A great way to spend a summer day is enjoying mu-sic with family and friends and binging on food truck treats.

On May 13 from 5 to 9 p.m., the Doraville Food Truck Rally took place on Park Avenue in Doraville.

Mayor Donna Pittman said, “We were extremely pleased with the turnout for this first-time event and feedback from our citizens has been very positive.

“We are proud of our diverse community and we will continue to try to bring in trucks that appeal to a wide audience.”

She added, “I felt the choice of trucks and the variety of menus provided a terrific selection… every-thing from New Orleans fare, to island conch fritters and shrimp tacos to Indian specialties. Mixed in was solid American fare such as burgers and cheesecake, to name a few.”

The event was held in

partnership with the Atlanta Street Food Coalition and featured music from the local band, the Chamblee Tuckers.

The event will continue to be held on the second Wednesday of each month.

Pittman said, “We will pass suggestions from residents along to the food truck coalition and rely on them to continue to provide a wide variety of menu op-tions.”

She said, “They do plan to rotate the different trucks each month so there is always something new to sample.”

Pittman said, “The wonderful thing that I noticed last night was the sense of community that resonated throughout the evening. Any time we can provide the opportunity for our citizens to gather and socialize, I believe, of-fers everyone the chance to get to know neighbors they may have never met or make new friends. It also gives the leadership of the city the opportunity to get to

know people and hear their thoughts and input in a re-laxed atmosphere.”

The food trucks com-mitted to the event included: C’est Bon Tout (New Or-leans fare including po’boys, Bayou Burgers, and Garden Dogs); On Tapa the World (Spanish tapas empanadas, carne asada and sliders); Linkz Express (American fare including salads, chees-esteaks and burgers); Five Finger Philly (cheesesteaks and desserts); Tracy’s Tasties (mini cheesecakes and push pops); Loaded Burger (load-ed burgers, unique sides and desserts); and Bollywood Zing (authentic Indian food).

Other participants in-cluded Incrediball Falafel (serving Israeli favorites: falafel, humus, pita, beef ka-bobs, shawarma, and crispy fries); Refuge Coffee (cof-fee, tea, and espresso); and Island Chef Mobile (island conch fritters, lobster tacos with mango salsa, grilled Snapper and more).

Food trucks rally in Doraville


On May 7, Dunwoody officials announced Sep-tember Guy, the city’s mu-nicipal court senior solicitor has been appointed as a DeKalb County magistrate court judge.

Mayor Mike Davis said, “Dunwoody’s municipal court system has attracted phenomenal talent over the last six years, and while we hate to lose exemplary personnel, we are proud to provide an environment that fosters and produces judi-ciary leaders.”

Guy attended the Uni-versity of Georgia for her undergraduate studies and graduated in 2001 from Georgia State University law school.

“I worked in a small private practice my first year out of law school in Rossville, Georgia, then moved back to At-lanta where I worked at the DeKalb County Public De-

fender’s Office from 2002 until 2012. At that point, I went to work at the DeKalb County Solicitor General’s Office in the Diversion Unit handling the G.O.A.L.S pro-gram for youthful offenders and the Phoenix Diversion Program. I left that office in 2013 and became a solicitor in the city of Dunwoody.”

Guy added, “I am excit-ed to continue to serve the people of DeKalb County as a magistrate court judge.”

Other solicitors elevated from their positions in Dunwoody include Judge Candice Howard, Sandy Springs Municipal Court; Judge Leigh Dupree, Atlan-ta Municipal Court; Judge Warren Atkinson, Fulton County Magistrate Court; Judge Sharon Dixon, San-dy Springs and Dunwoody Municipal Courts.

Dunwoody’s current assistant solicitors include Ladonya Horton, Josie Stevens, Chuck Rooks and Victoria Aronow.

Dunwoody solicitor to become court judge

Dunwoody Municipal Court Judge Sharon Dixon, Mayor Mike Davis, Judge September Guy and City Attorney Bill Riley pose in front of the official seal of the city.

Attendees shop food trucks provided by the Atlanta Street Food Coalition on Park Avenue.

PDK Continued From Page 1A

Center Continued From Page 1A

The Champion Free Press, Friday, May 22, 2015 AloCal

In September 2012, on a return flight to Memphis, Little’s pilot posed the question “why don’t you start selling seats on this plane and make some money?”

That one simple question put Little’s mind in motion thinking of the possibilities of offering the experience of flying in a private plane to the public. He began to research flight patterns in the South to determine the most popular routes and literally how to get an airline off the ground and flying.

Nine months later, in June of 2013, the airline received Department of Transportation approval. On June 4, they began taking reservations and were sold out by the end of the day. Two days later Southern Airways first flight left Olive Branch Airport in suburban Memphis bound for Destin.

Little said the choice of PDK was an easy decision. PDK’s central location makes it easily accessible to the entire metro area and with Hartsfield Jackson being the world’s busiest airport and PDK being the second busiest airport in Georgia; Little said DeKalb was their first choice when selecting an Atlanta airport. He expects PDK to be the company’s greatest area of growth over the next two years and is eyeing an additional 23 potential cities to include in their routes.

“DeKalb’s large demographics and diverse population are the ideal combination for Southern’s expansion. Atlanta’s traffic patterns make it inconvenient for business and leisure travelers to use Hartsfield for short flights

Destinations from PDK currently include Destin, New Orleans, Chattanooga, Knoxville and Memphis in addition to Jackson, and Oxford, Miss. Fares begin at $88 with a maximum of $298. Southern’s fleet includes customized Cessna 208 Caravans and 208-B Grand Caravans, all of which feature nine passenger seats and space in the cabin for one carry-on item such as a briefcase or purse.

Southern Airways’ flat fares include complimentary valet parking, no TSA checkpoints, no baggage fees, plenty of legroom, leather upholstered seating and every seat has a window view and aisle access. The corporate slogan is “Everybody flies first class”.

Little said his company wants to “bring back the old days of flying”. While Little was being interview at PDK, passengers were waiting in the uncrowded, luxurious Signature Flight lounge in the North Terminal and leisurely boarding the Memphis-bound flight.

For a full list of destinations and additional information on Southern Airways, visit www.IFlySouthern.com.

nicipal Center.The $38 million project includes buildings

that house City Schools of Decatur’s administra-tive buildings, Decatur Police Department and the Ebster Recreation Center. The center is built on the site of the historic Black Herring Street, Beacon Elementary and Trinity High Schools. The center includes a museum that features ex-hibits on the history of the Beacon community.

Decatur Mayor Emerita Elizabeth Wilson, who spearheaded the project, said she was hap-py to see the complex opened.

“It’s been a very long time coming,” she said.The site, known as Beacon Hill, was home

to several schools, a library and the Ebster Rec-reation Center in the 1960s. After schools were integrated, the city took ownership of the school buildings and recreation center, and operated it as a recreation center. It also housed the police department.

Wilson said she began collecting informa-tion on the old community to celebrate it during Black History Month.

“I did a lot of interviews with family mem-bers who lived here long ago and I was like, ‘We’ve got to do something with all of this,” she said. “Even though we don’t have the houses and we don’t have the buildings and business, we have the spirit, it’s in our hearts.”

Wilson said she asked city officials about what the city could do to reserve the history of the community.

“They [were] willing [and] decided that they would help,” she said.

The exhibit includes pictures of former stu-dents and provides information about their ac-complishments. The exhibit also includes facts about the Trinity High School 1965 football state championship team. Bobby Pierce, who graduated from Trinity High School in 1965, said the people of the old Beacon Hill commu-

nity needed the historic element of the commu-nity in the center.

“We truly needed some of it because…I’ve seen all of it removed, all of it,” he said. “It was nothing left but the apartments—Gateway, Allen-Wilson and Swanton Heights. Everything else was whipped out.”

Decatur Mayor Jim Baskett said the center has been a dream of the city’s for a long time.

“When we talked about it, and I looked at plans and so forth, I never imagined it was go-ing to look this wonderful and be this beautiful,” he said.

Most of the structures of the complex include portions of the old buildings, according to An-drew Rutledge of Rutledge Alcock Architect.

“It was a modern building for its time, so we wanted to pull the rest of the building—the work that we did off of that,” Rutledge said.“We saved the front of the building on Electric Av-enue as well as W. Trinity Place, three quar-ters of the structure in the new gym is the old structure. In the school building, every bit of the structure is existing structure from the old building. We tried to save as much as we could.”

Baskett said all residents could benefit from the center.

“We haven’t done any real capital improve-ment projects in 50 years, and the police depart-ment was just in the old school building and they had really poor digs,” he said. “The school board [building] is a big improvement, a real ac-cess for city schools. We all benefit from it.”

“We’re very proud of the building that we have and we hope that it’s very warm and in-viting to the community,” said Decatur Police Chief Mike Booker. “We can hold [community] meetings in here now, it’s very functional. We’ve been patiently waiting and we’re very excited that it’s here.”

Residents and many who grew up in the historic Black Beacon community gathered May 16 to celebrate the dedication of the new Beacon Municipal Center. Photos by Travis Hudgons


local

NOTICE OF PROPERY TAX INCREASE

The DeKalb County School District has tentatively adopted a millage rate which will require an increase in property taxes by 10.47 percent.

All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearing on this tax increase to be held at 6:15 p.m. June 1, 2015, DeKalb County School District J. David Williamson Board Room, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, Georgia

Times and places of additional public hearings on this tax increase are at:

11:30 a.m. June 17, 2015, DeKalb County School District J. David Williamson Board Room, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, Georgia

6:15 p.m. June 17, 2015, DeKalb County School District J. David Williamson Board Room, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, Georgia

This tentative increase will result in a millage rate of 23.98 mills, an increase of 2.272 mills. Without this tentative tax increase, the millage rate will be no more than 21.708 mills. The proposed tax increase for a home with a fair market value of $175,000 is approximately $130.64 and the proposed tax increase for non‐homestead property with a fair market value of $275,000 is approximately $249.92.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS ON THE 2015-2016 PROPOSED BUDGET

FOR THE CITY OF DECATUR, GEORGIA

There will be public hearings on the proposed 2015-2016 budget for the City of Decatur at 7:30 p.m. on June 1, 2015, at 6:00 p.m. on June 8, 2015, and at 7:30 p.m. on June 15, 2015 in the City Commission Meeting Room at City Hall, 509 N. McDonough Street, Decatur. The proposed budget is summarized below and is available in its entirety for public inspection at Decatur City Hall and at the Decatur Library on Sycamore Street. After May 20th, the budget will be available on the City’s website at www.decaturga.com/budget. All citizens are invited to attend the public hearings, to provide written and oral comments, and ask questions concerning the entire budget.

FY 2015-2016 PROPOSED GENERAL FUND REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES

REVENUES Taxes 19,171,750 Licenses, Permits & Inspections 1,207,310 Penalties, Fines & Forfeitures 1,318,500 Interest 500 Charges for Current Services 1,535,350 Intergovernmental Revenues 490,120 Miscellaneous Revenue 137,820 Sale of Fixed Assets 10,000 Operating Transfers (382,310) Appropriation From (To) Fund Balance (271,800)

TOTAL REVENUES $23,217,240 EXPENDITURES Governmental Control Department 187,100 General Government Department 1,808,540 Community & Economic Development Department 1,913,610 Administrative Services Department 3,356,330 Police Department 5,541,350 Fire & Rescue Department 3,567,570 Public Works Department 2,964,840 Design, Environment & Construction Division 2,028,990 Active Living Division 1,848,910

TOTAL EXPENDITURES $23,217,240


LaVista Hills will have a surplus of more than $1.7 million, according to the pro-posed city’s new feasibility study.

The Carl Vinson Institute of the University of Georgia released its study of the pro-posed city of LaVista Hills May 15. According to the re-port, LaVista Hills can provide public safety, parks, planning, zoning, business development and road maintenance with no tax increase and a “substantial” annual surplus of more than $1.7 million.

“The UGA analysis con-firms what we already knew, that LaVista Hills will provide increased services with no new taxes,” said Allen Venet, co-chair of LaVista Hills YES. “UGA completed as conserva-tive and accurate a study as possible, and they still project a surplus of more than a mil-lion and a half dollars every year.”

The Georgia General As-sembly passed the LaVista Hills cityhood bill April 2, and Gov. Nathan Deal signed the bill May 12. The bill was intro-duced before a new feasibility study was done.

Forming a new city in Georgia is a two-year process that includes a financial feasi-

bility study. When the House DeKalb County Cityhood Sub-committee held a hearing in December 2014, it decided to waive the rule and not require LaVista Hills and the proposed city of Tucker to do a new fea-sibility study, despite changes in each map.

LaVista Hills was previ-ously using the Lakeside feasi-bility study.

According to a press re-lease from LaVista Hills YES, the new study adopted more conservative spending projec-tions.

“It assumes an increased police force of 104 officers, which will represent a three-fold increase in the number of officers on patrol in LaVista Hills,” the statement read. “The study also assumed much lower HOST tax credit revenues for the city, consis-tent with new HOST legisla-tion and the reduction in HOST proceeds allocation.”

The feasibility study pro-jected annual revenues to be more than $36 million and total annual expenses of more than $34 million. The city will have an estimated population of more than 67,000 residents, 439 lane miles of roads and more than 50 acres of parks.

Voters will vote on the LaVista Hills referendum Nov. 3.

Report: LaVista Hills is feasible


General Fund Special Funds Nutrition Fund Capital FundsESTIMATED REVENUESLocal Taxes 30,931,292$ 3,480,000$ Local Other 2,687,287 1,001,100$ State General 21,510,183State Other 700,000$ 37,000 Federal 1,581,656 651,000 Transfers from Other Funds 264,072General Fund Balance Obligated 2,168,528Capital Fund Balance Restricted 16,467,385Total Revenues 57,297,290$ 2,545,728$ 1,689,100$ 19,947,385$

ESTIMATED EXPENDITURESInstruction 37,185,924$ 2,215,545$ Pupil Services 1,871,607 34,404Improvement of Instructional Services 1,563,979 197,926Educational Media Services 1,289,049Federal Grant Administration 78,719General Administration 1,337,817School Administration 4,191,539Support Services - Business 419,521Maintenance and Operation of Plant Services 4,960,846Student Transportation Service 1,373,944Support Services - Central 1,033,598Other Support Services 7,000 19,134School Nutrition Program 999,912 1,689,100$ Community Services Operations 87,010Facilities Acquisition and Construction Services 16,388,521$ Transfers to Other Funds 264,072Debt Service 711,472 3,558,864 Total Expenditures 57,297,290$ 2,545,728$ 1,689,100$ 19,947,385$

Board Room of the Central Office at 125 Electric Avenue.

City Schools of DecaturBudget for Fiscal Year 2016

July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016

The Fiscal Year 2016 Tentative Budget will be considered for final adoption by the Board of Education at 6:30 PM at the regular board meeting scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2015. The meeting will be held in the

DEKALB COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION

PUBLIC BUDGET HEARING

FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2016

Monday, June 1, 2015 TIME LOCATION 5:45 p.m. J. David Williamson Board Room Administrative & Instructional Complex 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd. Stone Mountain, GA 30083 The DeKalb County Board of Education will hold a public budget hearing to solicit feedback from the public regarding the 2015-2016 school system’s budget.

FOR INFORMATION, CALL THE OFFICE OF THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT 678-676-0133.


When suspended DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis goes back to court June 1 for his retrial, he will be facing new allega-tions of perjury.

Superior Court Judge Courtney Johnson ruled May 11 that prosecutors could introduce evidence of Ellis’ alleged perjury related to his involvement with the bid process for an ambu-lance contract.

Ellis is accused of strong-arming vendors to donate to his reelection campaign. His first trial in October 2014 ended in a hung jury.

According to the judge’s order, prosecutors plan to present evidence that Ellis “falsely testified to the spe-cial purpose grand jury that an RFP [request for propos-al] committee member nev-er disclosed to him details of an RFP evaluation process during an active RFP.”

The order states that prosecutors plan to show that Ellis conversed with former DeKalb fire chief Edward O’Brien about the RFP while it was active and while O’Brien was on the RFP committee. Prosecutors also plan to present evidence of Ellis conversations with Kevin Ross, a representative of Rural Metro, an ambu-lance company competing

for the RFP.Additionally, the District

Attorney’s Office intends to show that Ellis “testified falsely that he never had a conversation with a ven-dor…about the RFP process during an active RFP,” court documents show.

While Ellis’ attorneys argued in motions that the “alleged perjury constitutes a distinct, actual alleged of-fense which [prosecutors] failed to charge [Ellis] with,” the court said a defendant’s

“uncharged bad acts is ad-missible when it is intrinsic to the crime charged.”

The court states “there is sufficient proof that the jury can find that [Ellis] com-mitted the act” because “the conversations at issue are recorded.”

In motions, Ellis’ at-torneys asked the court to reconsider and reverse itself on 28 rulings that the “defendant deems were det-rimental to his defense and violative of his constitutional

rights,” according to court documents.

The ruling denying the motions states there was nothing new that would warrant such a reversal. The judge ordered that Ellis’ le-gal team cannot:

Argue that the special purpose grand jury which investigated Ellis legally exceeded the scope of its authority or that the DA’s Office “did not disclose that [Ellis] was the subject of an investigation” when he testi-

fied before the grand jury.• Make “any examination or

argument or [present] any evidence concerning his powers or duties as CEO or his belief of the same under the DeKalb Organi-zational Act, as that act is irrelevant as a defense to the unauthorized acts of bribery, extortion, etc., as detailed in the indictment.”

• Describe “how [the] de-fendant interacted with other vendors that are not the subject of the indict-ment” because this is ir-relevant.

• Argue the Ellis was “urged” by Kelvin Walton to take “certain actions.”

Ellis’ team can, the judge ruled, present “relevant spe-cific instances of conduct related to [Ellis’] good char-acter and good reputation.”

According to the judge’s order, Ellis’ legal team is barred from making any reference about Ellis “leav-ing a ‘lucrative’ legal career for public service.” The de-fendant’s attorneys are also barred from making any reference to the punishment and possible effects of Ellis’ conviction.

A motion to resched-ule the start of the trial was denied. Ellis’ attorneys pre-sented “various concerns and commitments” of at-torney Dwight Thomas, but the court found that Ellis is represented by multiple counsel.

Suspended CEO to face new perjury allegations in retrial

Suspended DeKalb CEO Burrell Ellis will have to defend against new perjury allegations during his retrial. A judge also ruled that Ellis’ team can mention his “good character and good reputation.”

the champion Free Press, Friday, May 22, 2015 Abusiness

by Kathy Mitchell

Three years ago when the Ewe family opened a bakery on Buford Highway, they weren’t sure whether Atlan-ta area diners would like the Asian baked goods the shop offers. “Most of them are lighter than the baked goods you usually find in America. The sweet items are less sweet and there’s less fat,” explained Howie Ewe, one of the owners.

“We already owned this property and we all had experience in the restaurant business, so we decided to take a chance,” he said.

The family needn’t have been concerned; Sweet Hut was an immediate success. The owners report dine-in customers often are unable to find a seat and at times there are long lines, espe-cially on weekends. As a result, they have opened a second location in midtown and have plans to expand the Buford Highway shop and open additional Sweet Huts in Cobb and Gwinett counties.

“Asian people love being able to find authentic baked goods like the ones their mothers used to make,” Howie Ewe said. “That’s our specialty—home-style treats more like what is baked at home than what you usually find in a bakery or restaurant.”

The items are a hit out-side the Asian community as well, he added. “We have a very international clientele. Americans and people from non-Asian countries like them as well. People are very health conscious these days, but they still enjoy sweets. The lighter baked goods are especially appeal-ing to young people.”

Customers come not only from all across the metro-politan Atlanta area, but also from other Georgia cities and from neighboring states. “There’s nothing like this in most of the Southeast,” Howie Ewe said. “People drive from Alabama, Ten-nessee and other states to shop here.”

His niece Rachel Ewe, who manages the midtown store, said young people like

having places to hang out and have snacks while visit-ing with friends or work-ing on personal computers. “This is an alternative to the coffee shops,” she said, noting that Sweet Hut offers more than 50 tea, milk and fruit drinks in addition to a wide variety of coffee op-tions.”

She said young custom-ers also like the atmosphere. “The chairs are comfortable and the tables are perfect for a computer. The décor and colors are relaxing and inviting.”

The dozens of baked goods at the Buford High-way store are sold in a self-serve cafeteria format. Cus-tomers take a tray covered with a sheet of waxed paper then use tongs to place their selections on the tray. At the end of the line, a cashier to-tals the order which is boxed for the customers.

The most popular items are buns stuffed with sweets such as coconut or fruit or with such savories as barbecued pork or curried chicken. “The Portuguese egg tart is very popular, too. We sell about 800 of those a day,” Howie Ewe said of the cupcake-sized custard baked in a pastry shell.

After expansion of the Buford Highway store is complete, it—like the mid-town store—will offer sand-wiches, salads and burgers. Many items familiar to Americans are prepared with an Asian influence such as the Bulgogi burger, which is a ground beef patty topped with Bulgogi sauce and vegetables not usually found on American burgers, including cucumbers, baby spinach and pickled carrots.

“We are Malaysian,” Howie Ewe said, “but we offer foods influenced by China, Japan and other Asian countries.” Some, he added, have an Ameri-can twist, such as the bun laced with hot dog bits and cheese.

The products are baked fresh daily at a central loca-tion, using locally sourced ingredients, when they are available, according to Howie Ewe. “We choose our bakers carefully. Even

those from outside the fam-ily must know Asian baking techniques.”

Family members say they have been approached by several national and in-

ternational companies that are interested in creating a Sweet Hut franchise. “We’re not ready to do that right now,” Rachel Ewe said. “We may do it at some time in

the future, but it’s very im-portant to us to control the quality of our products and we can’t consider franchis-ing until we’re sure that we can do that.”

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

asian bakery a hit in atlanta and beyond

Millage Rate Public Hearing

The City of Doraville has tentatively adopted a millage rate of 8.5 mills.

All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearing on this tax increase to be held at the Doraville City Hall located at 3725 Park Avenue, Doraville, GA 30340 on June 1, 2015 at 6:30pm.

Times and places of additional public hearings on this tax increase are at the Doraville City Hall on June 8, 2015 at 6:30pm and on June 15, 2015 at 6:30pm.

NOTICE OF PROPERY TAX INCREASE

The DeKalb County School District has tentatively adopted a millage rate which will require an increase in property taxes by 10.47 percent.

All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearing on this tax increase to be held at 6:15 p.m. June 1, 2015, DeKalb County School District J. David Williamson Board Room, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, Georgia

Times and places of additional public hearings on this tax increase are at:

11:30 a.m. June 17, 2015, DeKalb County School District J. David Williamson Board Room, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, Georgia

6:15 p.m. June 17, 2015, DeKalb County School District J. David Williamson Board Room, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd., Stone Mountain, Georgia

This tentative increase will result in a millage rate of 23.98 mills, an increase of 2.272 mills. Without this tentative tax increase, the millage rate will be no more than 21.708 mills. The proposed tax increase for a home with a fair market value of $175,000 is approximately $130.64 and the proposed tax increase for non‐homestead property with a fair market value of $275,000 is approximately $249.92.

Seated from left are Rachel Ewe, Amy Ewe, Howie Ewe and Patrick Ewe, who all have a role in the family busi-ness. Standing behind them is another family member who also works at Sweet Hut. Photo by Kathy Mitchell

the champion Free Press, Friday, May 22, 2015 PAGe 19AEducation

New county schools superintendent named by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

The five-month search for a successor to Super-intendent Michael Thur-mond is coming to an end.

DeKalb Board of Edu-cation chairman Melvin Johnson announced on May 13 that the board had selected Kansas City, Mo., school superintendent Dr. R. Stephen Green as the finalist to lead the DeKalb County School District.

Green is currently in a five-year contract with Kansas City Public Schools (KCPS). He started with the district in August 2011 as interim superintendent. He took the job permanently in 2012. A formal contract is expected to be offered on May 27.

Thurmond is scheduled to step down in June but has agreed to be a consultant for the new superintendent to assist in a “smooth transi-tion.”

Johnson said Green is expected to join the DeKalb County School district on July 1.

“After a comprehensive nearly six-month search, the board has selected an experienced, well-suited educational leader to move the district forward under his successful innovative approaches to teaching and learning,” said Johnson. “Dr. Green brings an im-pressive record to DeKalb not only from Kansas City, but also from New York, New Jersey and Indiana. He was a stabilizing force in Kansas City and will do the same here in DeKalb County.”

“Dr. Green is excited to come here,” Johnson said. “He has children and grandchildren here so for his family it is sort of a home-coming.”

Green is credited with leading KCPS back to pro-visional accreditation within two years of being named

superintendent in 2012. He had previously served as KCPS interim superinten-dent for several months.

Johnson said, “We feel in terms of his leadership style,

his ability to work with board members and super-intendents in a collaborative way and certainly his exper-tise in finance resulting in the last three years having an audit with no recommen-dations – that’s impressive.”

Under Green’s leader-ship, KCPS earned 92.5 points toward Missouri’s school achievement stan-dards in 2014. That was 8.5 points more than the school district earned in 2013, and a 54.5-point increase from the 2012 results.

In August 2014, Mis-souri’s board of education recognized the district’s gains by granting KCPS

provisional accreditation.Earlier this year, he was

recognized for his achieve-ments by being named Mis-souri’s 2015 Pearce Award winner–“Best Superinten-dent of the Year”–by his peers in the Missouri As-sociation of School Admin-istrators.

Green said in a press conference, he had a great experience serving the stakeholders of KCPS, which makes the decision to leave for DeKalb difficult.

“I have had a unique and wonderful opportunity to make a difference for a deserving community and work with a great team at

KCPS,” Green said. “I wish them all the best as they rise to success. I know they have the talent, focus and grit to make it happen.”

KCPS Board of Direc-tors Chair Jon Hile thanked Green for his service and wished Green well moving forward.

Green said, “I am look-ing forward to helping lead DeKalb schools to new elevations and to being able to spend a lot of quality time with my children and grand-children,” Dr. Green said. “These opportunities don’t come around very often, and I simply could not pass it up.”

1

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

The Mayor and City Council of the City of Chamblee, Georgia will hold a public hearing on Thursday, June 11, 2015, at the Chamblee Civic Center, 3540 Broad Street, Chamblee, GA 30341 at 6:00 p.m. to receive public comments regarding the following matters:

1. The Chamblee Mayor and Council will consider adopting policies and procedures for calling and conducting public zoning hearings consistent with O.C.G.A. Sect. 36‐66‐5 (Georgia Zoning Procedures Law).

2. The Chamblee Mayor and Council will consider adopting standards governing the exercise of zoning power consistent with O.C.G.A. Sect. 36‐66‐5 (Georgia Zoning Procedures Law).

3. The Chamblee Mayor and Council will consider approval of an ordinance adopting a new “Unified Development Ordinance” (UDO) for the City of Chamblee, dated March 17, 2015, along with three Addenda that shall be known as “UDO Addendum 1 ‐ Design Guidelines For Multi‐Family Districts, Infill Development and Adaptive Reuse”, “UDO Addendum 2 ‐ Buffer, Landscaping, And Tree Preservation Administrative Guidelines“, and “UDO Addendum 3 ‐ Streetscape Guidelines.” The ordinance adopting these documents will repeal conflicting ordinances including Chapter 34 – Environment; Chapter 93 – Development Regulations; Appendix A ‐ Zoning Ordinance; Appendix B – Subdivision Regulations; Appendix C: Airport Related Provisions; Tree Preservation Ordinance Administrative Guidelines; Streetscape Guidelines and Street Designations Map, as well as other conflicting provisions of the City of Chamblee Code of Ordinances.

4. 2015V‐09: Darron Kusman, on behalf of Roma Ventures, LLC requests a stream buffer variance pursuant to Sect. 310‐3(c) of the City of Chamblee Code of Ordinances, Appendix A, Unified Development Ordinance in order to develop a subdivision consisting of 4 single‐family residential lots on 1.4 acres of property zoned Neighborhood Residential ‐1 (NR‐1) located at 3062 Park Lane and 3114 Skyland Drive being DeKalb County tax parcels 18‐278‐03‐127 and 18‐278‐03‐125 in Chamblee, GA.

5. 2015V‐09: Darron Kusman, on behalf of Roma Ventures, LLC requests a floodplain variance pursuant to Section 330‐4(c) in accordance with Section 330‐6 in order to develop a subdivision consisting of 4 single‐family residential lots on 1.4 acres of property zoned Neighborhood Residential ‐1 (NR‐1) located at 3062 Park Lane and 3114 Skyland Drive being DeKalb County tax parcels 18‐278‐03‐127 and 18‐278‐03‐125 in Chamblee, GA.

6. 2015V‐09: Darron Kusman, on behalf of Roma Ventures, LLC requests a floodplain variance pursuant to Section 330‐5(f) in accordance with Section 330‐6 in order to develop a subdivision consisting of 4 single‐family residential lots on 1.4 acres of property zoned Neighborhood Residential ‐1 (NR‐1) located at 3062 Park Lane and 3114 Skyland Drive being DeKalb County tax parcels 18‐278‐03‐127 and 18‐278‐03‐125 in Chamblee, GA.

7. 2015V‐09: Darron Kusman, on behalf of Roma Ventures, LLC requests a floodplain variance pursuant to Section 330‐4(c) in order to develop a subdivision consisting of 4 single‐family residential lots on 1.4 acres of property zoned Neighborhood Residential ‐1 (NR‐1) located at 3062 Park Lane and 3114 Skyland Drive being DeKalb County tax parcels 18‐278‐03‐127 and 18‐278‐03‐125 in Chamblee, GA.

8. 2015PUD‐04: Mr. James Jacobi, on behalf of JEH Homes and property owner Atlanta Animal Alliance, Inc. requests approval of a modification of an existing Planned Unit Development on 5.03‐acres located at 3550 Chamblee‐Dunwoody Road pursuant to Section 280‐6(c) of the City of Chamblee Code of Ordinances, Appendix A, Unified Development Ordinance in order to construct a residential subdivision consisting of 41 townhomes on private streets on property being DeKalb County tax parcel 18‐249‐11‐008 in Chamblee, GA.

9. 2015PUD‐06: Mr. Neville Allison, of Acadia Homes and Neighborhoods, requests approval of a major modification of an existing Planned Unit Development on a 19.84‐acres zoned Corridor Commercial (CC) located at 4251 North Peachtree Road, 2215 Perimeter Park Drive, and 4250 Perimeter Park South pursuant to Section 280‐6(c) of the City of Chamblee Code of Ordinances, Appendix A, Unified Development Ordinance in order to construct a mixed use development consisting of 123 townhomes, 33 single‐family detached residences, and a 2.1 acre commercial tract on DeKalb County tax parcels 18‐334‐05‐001, 18‐334‐01‐169, and 18‐334‐01‐001 in Chamblee, GA.

10. 2015V‐10: Mr. Harry Patel, on behalf of Global Hotel Group, requests approval of variances from the following provisions of the City of Chamblee Code of Ordinances, Appendix A, Unified Development Ordinance in order to construct a principal freestanding sign with a height of 25 ft. and area of 64 sq. ft. on property consisting of 1.838 acres zoned Corridor Commercial (CC) at 5280 Peachtree Boulevard, being DeKalb County tax parcel 18‐291‐01‐003 in Chamblee, GA:

Section 260‐7(b)(3) that limits height of a principal freestanding signs to 8 ft. Section 260‐7(b)(5) that limits the area of a principal freestanding sign on properties with less than 200 ft. of street frontage to 40 sq. ft. 11. 2015Z‐03: The Chamblee Mayor and Council will consider approval of an ordinance amending the Official Zoning Map of the City of Chamblee to change the

zoning classification of the following parcels from Village Commercial (VC) to Corridor Village Commercial (CVC): DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐277‐02‐006, also known as 4761 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐277‐02‐005, also known as 4775 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐277‐02‐004, also known as 4783 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐277‐02‐003, also known as 4805 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐277‐02‐002, also known as 4829 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐277‐02‐001, also known as 4839 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐278‐02‐012, also known as 4847 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐278‐02‐011, also known as 4849 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA DeKalb County Parcel ID: 18‐278‐02‐010, also known as 4865 Peachtree Road, Chamblee, GA.

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DEKALB COUNTYBOARD OF EDUCATION

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It was a historic day for the boys track teams of Ce-dar Grove and Southwest DeKalb high schools at the 2015 Georgia High School Association Boys Track and Field State Championships.

For the Cedar Grove Saints, the team won its first state track and field title in program history. The Saints won the Class AAA state title, outscoring Decatur 67-45. The Saints were led by the relay teams, with both relay teams winning gold.

The 4x100-meter relay team of Andre Burrell, Dar-ius Freeman, Adrian Green and Isreal Spivey won gold with a time of 41.77 seconds. The 4x400 relay team of Burrell, Freeman, Green and Jessie Reverio finished first in a time of 3:18.98.

Freeman also won gold in the 400-meter dash with a time of 48.21, and won silver in the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.80.

Decatur was led by Sam Ellis, who won the 800-meter (1:55.91) and the

1,600-meter (4:21.03). Southwest DeKalb end-

ed the “farewell” season for coach Napoleon Cobb win-ning the Class AAAAA state championship trophy. Cobb is retiring after 50 years of coaching.

The Panthers won their ninth state title, outscoring Banneker 58-44. It was the 11th state title for Cobb, who won three titles with Gordon.

The 4x100-meter relay team of Travis Bacon, Terry Conwell, Terryon Conwell and Justin Tomlin brought home Southwest DeKalb’s only gold medal with a time of 41.26. The 4x400-meter relay team of Terry Conwell, Terryon Conwell, Tomlin and Raymond White came in second with a time of 3:14.74.

Terryon Conwell picked up two more medals in the 100-meter dash (silver) and 200-meter dash (bronze). His twin brother Terry won silver in the 400-meter.

Montavious Cole-man picked up a silver medal in the discus throw (162.01.00).

Stephenson finished fourth in Class AAAAA with Denzel Harper lead-ing the way with two gold medals. He won the long jump (23-03.50) for the second consecutive season, and the 300 meter hurdles (37.81). Stephenson also got a bronze medal in the 4x100 meter relay with a time of 41.88.

Abbas Abkar led Clarkston to a 13th place

finish with a gold medal in the 800-meter run (1:54.43).

In Class AAAAAA, Lakeside’s Davis Stockwell took silver medal in the 1,600-meter run (4:15.91).

In Class AAAA, Marist tied for second with 40. Kenneth Brinson won his third consecutive state title in the discus throw (185-06). He also won silver in the shot put (52-06.50). Frank Pittman won the

1,600-meter (4:16.38) and the 3,200-meter (9:23.27).

St. Pius finished fifth with 32 points behind Coo-per Metzler, who bronze in the 800-meter (1:55.50), and helped the 4x400-relay team won bronze (3:19.79).

Chris McBride led Re-dan to a ninth place finish with his second consecutive state title in the long jump with a leap of 23-11.00.

SwD champions again, Cedar Grove wins first state title

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The Cedar Grove Saints boys’ track and field team won its first state title in program history, winning the Class AAA title with 67 points.

Southwest DeKalb boys’ track team won the Class AAAAA state title, the program’s ninth overall title.


Perfect season St. Pius boys win state soccer title, go undefeated


Cross Keys was in the way of a perfect season for St. Pius boys soccer team.

Behind the leg of Louie Aponte and good defense, the Golden Lions ended a perfect season with a 1-0 win over Cross Keys May 14 at Mercer University’s Five Star Stadium.

St. Pius coach David O’Shea was pleased with how his young team came together for this perfect run.

“We lost a good group of seniors last year, so we got a pretty young team with a few sophomores,” O’Shea said. “All season we had Fedo Ceccagnoli, who is a freshman who started as the center midfielder all the way through the game. So, we had a different balance of players in there. We came together and that was a perfect season. We’ve won every game that we’ve played this season. You can’t ask for more than that.”

Aponte scored the only goal in the first half from nearly 30 feet out of left field. He said his goal was due to the right spacing.

“I knew they were going to have me tight the whole time…so I was trying to get as much space as I

could, and I got a little space, I got my head up and I saw some guys in the box and I just tried to loft it in there,” he said. “Luckily it went in.”

Cross Keys goalkeeper Alexis Briceno tipped the ball, but it hit the cross bar and fell into the net,

giving St. Pius a 1-0 lead.“We knew if we put pressure

on the goalkeeper that we’d have a chance it could go in and, [Aponte] is a guy that can create anything,” O’Shea said. “He got that goal there and it ended up winning us the state championship.”

St. Pius had other opportunities to score, but Briceno and Cross Key’s defense stalled those opportunities.

“We knew they were going to be a strong team and they were,” O’Shea said. “They put a lot of pressure on us. We had some chances where we could’ve put it away there in the second half, but they were a good opponent and they gave us a great game today. It was good game.”

The boys completed the Class AAAA sweep, joining the girls’ team in winning the state title. It was the boys’ 10th title in program history. As with the girls team, this is Golden Lion third consecutive title.

“It’s a great thing for the program,” O’Shea said.

St. Pius girls and boys soccer teams each won the state title for the third consecutive year.

St. Pius celebrates after receiving the Class AAAA championship trophy.

St. Pius’ Allen Morgan (No. 24) jumps up to head-butt the ball.

St. Pius’ Nick Jones kicks the ball up field. Photos by Travis Hudgons

Cross Keys goalie Eduardo Ca-brera (right) goes up to block a goal attempt.

St. Pius coach Davis O’Shea congratulates his team after the win.


Three-Peat St. Pius girls win state soccer title on penalty kicksby Carla [email protected]

Before St. Pius freshman goal-keeper Emory Wegener took her position in front of the net for penalty kicks, she did one thing.

“I was just asking God to look over me,” she said.

Wegener went on to block three kicks to help the Lady Golden Lions win the Class AAAA 2-1 in penalty kick over their rival Marist May 14 at Mercer University’s Five Star Stadium.

It was the Golden Lions third con-secutive state title, eighth in program history.

The two teams battled through 80 minutes of regulation and two five-minute overtime periods, yet neither team could get the ball in the next.

“I think we were able to hang with them and slowly build [momentum],” St. Pius coach Sara Geiger said after the game. “I don’t think either team got into the momentum…I thought it was a well-fought battle.”

Both teams had their first pen-alty kick attempts blocked. Wegener blocked Katie MacGinnitie’s kick on Marist’s second attempt. St. Pius took a 1-0 lead when Nicole Rodriguez made her penalty kick.

Kelsey Carrier tied the score, but St. Pius regained the lead after Rachel Heard’s made kick.

Marist and St. Pius missed on their fourth attempts, with Wegener blocking Caroline Chipman’s at-tempt. Marist goalkeeper Carlin Za-prowski was Marist’s last chance, but her kick went wide right, sealing the win for St. Pius.

Heard, who ended kicking the winning penalty kick, felt no pressure walking up to the net.

“I just had to be confident and just place it where I picked the side and go there,” Heard said. “That’s what I did.”

Heard also played a big role defen-sively, keeping Marist out of scoring position for the majority of the game.

“Rachel has been a steady point in our center backfield,” Geiger said. “I don’t think you’ll find a girl that’s fast-er than her. She catches people from 10 yards [out], and it’s a nice comfort for the rest of the team. Sometimes it gets us in trouble because we watch her instead of closing the gaps. But

for the most part you’re not getting by her.”

Geiger also praised Wegener for her performance stepped.

“She was a huge addition to the team,” Geiger said. “She step up dur-ing the game, but she had great saves in the PK and as a freshman. We have a lot of potential there, and I can’t wait

to keep having her in the net for three more years.”

St. Pius players came into the game with revenge on their minds. St. Pius lost to Marist 2-1 March 30.

“We lost to them in the season, and it never really left us,” Geiger said. “We knew that if we could get to the final game that would probably be our

match-up, and it was time to get right back at them.”

“I was excited,” Wegener said. “They beat us the first time we played them, and we all came in here so pumped to play the game. We were just so excited, but we had to play our game, control the game and play our game.”

St. Pius goalie Emory Wegener blocks a penalty kick attempt. St. Pius goalie Emory Wegener celebrates after Marist misses its final penalty kick attempt.

St. Pius celebrates with the Class AAAA championship trophy. Photos by Travis Hudgons

St. Pius’ Rachel Heard (left) defends a Marist player. St. Pius won its third consecutive state title.


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