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championnewspaper championnewspaper champnewschampionnews

thechampionnewspaper.com

FRIDAY, june 5, 2015 • VOL. 18, nO. 10 • 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.

F REE P RESS

See Trash on page 15A

DeKalb launches once-a-week trash pickup

DeKalb County Policeremind drivers about safety

by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

Beginning July 6 all residents inDeKalb County will switch to one-day-per-week trash and recyclingpickup.

Interim CEO Lee May said itwill save the county millions of

dollars and prevent homeowners’rates from going up.

DeKalb County Sanitation Divi-sion launched the Rolling Forwardto One program on May 28 withthe reveal of their website, a releaseof an implementation timeline andfeatured speakers May, AssociateDirector of the sanitation division

Billy Malone and commissionersKathie Gannon, Stan Watson andNancy Jester.

May said it will be more sus-tainable to move away from thetraditional four-days-a-week trashpickup to one day a week.

Residents’ garbage, yard trim-mings and recyclable materials all

will be collected on the same day.“We were delivering Rolls-

Royce service in the sanitationdepartment, but our constituentswere paying Ford Focus rates,” saidMay.

He added, “It was a difficult rec-ommendation to make… becausepeople had gotten so accustomed

DeKalb County officers had a visiblepresence along Candler Road May 28 forOperation Click It or icket, Georgia’s seat

belt enforcement program. Every year during theMemorial Day and Tanksgiving holiday periods, lawenforcement agencies in Georgia join forces for anenforcement blitz that delivers that message.

Te officer mobilization is supported by paidadvertising campaigns on the national and localevels, as well as earned media campaigns aimed ataising awareness of the importance of seat belt use

and law enforcement’s commitment to enforcingGeorgia’s seat belt laws. Te campaign helps create aeat belt usage rate of approximately 90 percent.

Colonel Bill Hitchens, commissioner of theGeorgia Department of Public Safety and GeorgiaState Patrol commander, said troopers and stateofficers will be conducting concentrated patrolsand road checks during holiday period to remindmotorists to buckle up and take the time to properlyestrain children. “Sadly, each holiday period morehan one-half of the people killed in motor vehicle

crashes are not using seat belts,” Hitchens said.Many would be alive today had they taken the twoeconds to buckle up before their trip.”

Adults 18 years of age and older must use seat

belts while driving or while riding in the front seat ofpassenger vehicles, including sport utility vehicles.

At the Candler Road checkpoint drivers withchildren in the vehicle received extra attention.

Georgia law requires that children 6 years andyounger be restrained at all times in a child passengerrestraining system while traveling in a car, van orpickup truck. Children 6 years and younger who aremore than 4 feet, 9 inches in height or weigh morethan 40 pounds are exempt from child restraintseats but still must be in a safety belt. Children ages

6 through 17 must be restrained by a seat belt at alltimes in all types of vehicles. Volunteers check the expiration date on a childrestraint seat.

There was a special station designated toinspect child restraint seats for proper usage

and expiration dates. Expired or improper childrestraint seats where replaced on site at no cost.

DeKalb County Police set up a safety checkpoint along Candler Road May 28 for Operation Click It or Ticket. Photos by Travis Hudgons

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Education .....................19A

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Opinion ...........................5A

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Page 2A The Champion Free Press, Friday, June 5, 2015

LOCAL

by Andrew [email protected]

Eight o the 10 candidates orhe District 5 seat on the DeKalb

County Board o Commissionersparticipated in the irst o severalorums planned or the group.

“DeKalb County is blessed tohave so many ine candidates romwhich to choose,” said Steen Miles,

moderator o the orum sponsoredby the Restore DeKalb advocacygroup.

Beore ielding individualquestions rom Miles and thenhe audience, each candidate hadhe opportunity to give a brientroduction.

Gregory Adams, a pastor andormer police oicer, said, “I amcommitted to serving the people oDeKalb County.

“I am committed to bringingntegrity, honesty, ethics, moral

behavior and I intend to serve thepeople,” he said.

“I’m not running or position or

a name,” Adams said. “I already havehat. I’m running to serve. DeKalb

County has a black eye, and I wanto change…the image o DeKalb

County. I want to bring about apositive change.”

Adams said he is against thecityhood movement in the county.I will continue to ight to bring

DeKalb together,” he said.Harmel Deanne Codi, an

educational consultant and ownero Codi & Associates BusinessSolutions, said she is “an unusualcandidate.”

“I am not a household name.

am not a politician. I am just aconcerned and engaged citizen,” sheaid.

Because she has worked orDeKalb County, Codi said she is “the

only candidate that understands theissues rom inside out.”

Codi also said she was the onlycandidate who stood up at Boardo Commissioners meetings anddemanded “air and ree electionsor District 5.”

“I’m here because I’mconcerned,” she said. “I’m a childadvocate. I am very engaged inthe community. We have highunemployment, high crime and ourchildren need better schools.”

Jerome Edmondson, businessconsultant and senior partner oEdmondson Associates, said hesupports the “values o restoringDeKalb, building a strongereconomy [and] making DeKalbsae.”

“I’m a parent that has a son that

has a bullet 1 centimeter rom hisheart,” Edmondson said. “Unlessit hits you that close to home, youwon’t know how important it is tohave a sae DeKalb.”

Edmondson said, “I’ve lookorward to talking with you andlearning more about your need or abetter DeKalb.”

Edmondson is the CEO o a callcenter with 1,100 employees aroundthe world, including a new oice inDeKalb. his is an example o his

vision or “economic empowermentand creating new jobs,” he said.

Gwendolyn R. “Gwen” Green,writer and school media specialist,said, “I am in this race because Ibeen in DeKalb County or 33 yearsand have raised as a single parentthree children.” Additionally, sheworked in the DeKalb CountySchool District.

“I am very clear [about] someo the problems that exist in ourcommunity,” Green said. “When

we have an opportunity to serve Ibelieve…[we should] contribute orshut up.

“I am here to contribute and Iwant to oer mysel or service [and]

give you an opportunity to have arepresentative who is not traditionalbut deinitely one who has in mindsome things I would like to see inDeKalb County,” Green said.

Gina Mangham, attorneyand local activist, is running orthe second time. She ran in 2012“mainly around the biomass acility,”she said.

“I want to continue to do what

I’ve been doing,” Mangham said. “Iwill continue to do that.”Mangham said economic

development is a goal o all District5 residents.

“We all want a better DeKalb, butI urge you to look at what people aretruly about,” Mangham said. “It’s allabout integrity. It’s all about cleaningup DeKalb. We all want to do that.

“When you make your choice, …look at who’s done the work, look atwho’s served with integrity, and lookat the uture o DeKalb,” Manghamsaid.

Kathryn T. Rice, ounder othe South DeKalb Improvement

Association, said, “Many o youknow me because o the workI’ve done in the community.I’m an advocate or economicdevelopment.”

Rice said she ounded theConcerned Citizens or Cityhoodin South DeKalb in 2014 “becauseI believe that cityhood is thebest way…or getting economicdevelopment in our area.

“We have two big issues thatwe are acing,” Rice said. “One isintegrity, character, ethics o ourelected oicials in DeKalb County.he second big issue is economic

development.”Rice said she wants residentsto know “my background, myeducation, my experience, but

County commission candidates face off

See District 5 on page 17A

Candidates for the District 5 seat on thecounty’s Board of Commissioners bowtheir heads in prayer before their rstforum. Photos by Andrew Cauthen

Jason Lary, Stonecrest cityhood proponent, asks the candidates a question.

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The Champion Free Press, Friday, June 5, 2015 Page 3ALOCAL

NOTICE OF

PROPERTY TAX INCREASE

Te City o Brookhaven has tentativelyadopted a millage rate or the General Fundwhich will require an increase in propertytaxes by 15.78 percent over the RollbackMillage rate. Tis increase is due solely to therevaluation o real property tax assessments.All concerned citizens are invited to thepublic hearings on this tax increase to be heldat Brookhaven City Hall at 4362 PeachtreeRoad, Brookhaven, GA 30319. Te first publichearing will be held at 7:00 p.m. on June 9,2015.

Te second public hearing will be at specialcalled meeting on June 16, 2015 at 6:00 p.m.A final public hearing will be held July 7, 2015at 7:00 p.m. Afer the final public hearing, themillage rate will be ormally adopted.Te tentative increase will result in a millagerate o 2.795 mills, a millage rate equivalentincrease o .381 mills. Without this tentativetax increase, the millage rate will be nomore than 2.414 mills. Te proposed taxincrease or a home with a air market value

o $300,000 is approximately $43 and theproposed tax increase or non-homesteadproperty with a air market value o $200,000is approximately $31.

County Family ProtectionCenter opens in Tuckerby Carla [email protected]

Victims of any type ofphysical abuse can seek helpn DeKalb County through

the county’s new Family Pro-tection Center.

County officials cut theribbon May 28 to celebratethe opening of the cen-ter, which is housed in theDeKalb County Fire andRescue’s central office inTucker. Officials also signeda memorandum of under-standing.

The center will be a safeocation for victims of sexual

assault, domestic violence,

child abuse, elder abuse andhuman trafficking to receiveassistance and critical ser-vices.

“Finally there is a safehaven in DeKalb County,and we call it the Family Pro-

tection Center,” said DeKalbCounty District AttorneyRobert James.

The center will providesexual assault examinationsand counseling services forchildren and adults. Victimswill receive counseling services, forensic interviews andother services.

“The victims of domestic violence, child abuse, elderabuse or human traffickinghave to go several places be-fore justice is served,” Jamessaid. “Oftentimes, these vic-tims are burned out and theygive up. Even the ones thatstay the course end up being victimized by the process.

“The idea behind theFamily Protection Centeris that you take as many re-sources as possible and youput them in one place,” Jamesadded. “They call it a one-stop shop.”

First responders will un-dergo training to help themunderstand the process of

referring victims of crimes tothe center.The center is equipped

with donated supplies from various companies through-out Georgia, includingCrossville Tile and Stone, At-lanta Office Liquidators Inc.,Kimball Office, Deljou ArtGallery and Creative Busi-ness Interiors.

The center partners in-clude DeKalb County Dis-trict Attorney’s Office, theoffice of CEO, DeKalb Boardof Commissioners, DeKalbPolice Department, DeKalb

Fire and Rescue, GeorgiaCenter for Child Advocacy,Day League, InternationalWomen’s House, Adult Pro-tective Services, Departmentof Family and Children Ser- vices, DeKalb TRIAD and

more.CEO Lee May said the

partnerships shows “that weas a family in DeKalb Countyare committed to doing theright things where our most

vulnerable are concerned.“We are proud to be the

first to offer a Family Protec-tion Center of this nature inour state,” May added.

James signs a memorandum of understanding.

DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James (center) cut the ribbon onthe new center.

DeKalb County Commissioners Larry Johnson (left), Kathie Gannon and Nancy Jester celebrate the opening ofhe county’s Family Protection Center. Photos by Carla Parker

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The Champion Free Press, Friday, June 5, 2015 Page 4AOPINION

John Hewitt

[email protected]

Chief Operating Officer

Why waste time and money on second Ellis trial?DeKalb Chie Executive

Officer Burrell Ellis has beenn limbo since June o 2013.

He was removed rom officeby Gov. Nathan Deal aferhe district attorney presentedvidence to a grand jury and

got a recommendation or anndictment.

Ellis was charged withour counts o criminal at-empt to commit thef byxtortion; three counts ohef by taking; two counts oriminal attempt to commitalse statements and writ-ngs; three counts o coercion

o other employees to giveanything o value or politicalpurposes; and a count each oonspiracy in restraint o ree

and open competition, and oonspiracy to deraud a po-itical subdivision.

Te main crux o theharges against Ellis werehat he attempted to solicitampaign contributions romounty vendors and threat-ned them with the possi-

bility o not doing businesswith the county in the uturei they did not contribute;however, the validity o thesecharges was questioned nu-merous times. “I never askedanything in exchange or a

campaign contribution,” Ellissaid during the trial. “I neverpromised anything.”

Hundreds o thousands odollars and countless hourswere spent trying to get a

conviction against Ellis dur-ing the first trial and it didnot happen. Afer more thansix weeks o testimony and11 days o jury deliberations,a mistrial was declared byJudge Courtney Johnson.A consensus could not bereached by jurors on any othe original charges.

During Ellis’ absence romthe DeKalb Board o Com-missioners, the commissionhas ailed to unction prop-erly due to stalemates thatcould have been settled werethere someone to break tie

votes on issues o importance,and the residents o District 5have been without represen-tation and a voice because oLee May being named inter-im CEO to fill Ellis’ position.

One would think that

with a case o this magnitudethat is based or the mostpart on testimony o ormerDeKalb County employeesKelvin Walton and NinaHall, who both have been

proven repeatedly to be lessthan credible witnesses, thatthe resources o the DistrictAttorney’s office may be moreeffective i it ocused its e-orts on issues that are knownto have taken money directlyrom taxpayers.

Tere is substantialevidence to warrant inves-tigations into issues such asquestionable repairs doneon officials’ private homes,questionable expenditureson county-issued purchas-ing cards, allegations o theexistence o alse consultinginvoices submitted by riendsand amily o elected officialsand paid or with countyunds, questionable land ac-quisitions that involved pur-chase prices at greatly inflatedlevels. In other words, there

seem to be bigger fish to ryand ones that could be caughteasily the first time around.

I the most Ellis ever didwas put pressure on ven-dors to support his political

campaign, this pales in com-parison to money actuallymisallocated or gross spend-ing o county unds, unethicalawarding o contracts.

I, however, do not believeEllis did what he is accusedo; he is too smart o a man todo that and is o moral char-acter that would not allowthis behavior. I do believe thathe did just what he admittedto—ask county vendors tocontribute to his campaign—which I also believe is doneby virtually every elected o-ficial around the globe. It’s anintegral part o the politicalprocess. I do not believe heattempt to extort money rom

vendors.We are now back at square

one with the pending secondtrial o Ellis. Unless there is

overwhelming new evidence,it is unlikely that there will beconviction this time aroundeither.

In inally resigning his commis-ion seat ater 23 months as interim

chie executive, Lee May has mademuch o the resistance o “three

commissioners” o the BOC to hiseorts to install a hand-picked suc-cessor to represent District 5. As thethree commissioners” he reerredo, we think the public might beneitrom a broader perspective on thessue.

First, the upcoming electioncould have occurred ar sooner, ineither o the general elections inNovember o 2013 or 2014, i onlyMr. May had earlier resigned thecommission seat he could not oc-cupy while serving as the interimCEO. Not only would DeKalb haveavoided the $100,000 expense o

a special election, but voter par-icipation would have been greatlyncreased over the lonely, single-ssue ballot turnout we can expect

on June 16. In act, until a new lawwas hastily passed in April o 2014,

his resignation was the only meansto ill the seat. In reusing to resign,May prioritized keeping his politicaloptions open over representation or

the citizens he is sworn to serve.Second, when the legislature did

pass the new law to deal with thisunprecedented vacancy, May thentook control o the process andspent another three months tryingto anoint an ally or the commissionseat. He could not prevail, and theninsisted, or another ive months,that no one else would do, untilhe inally allowed the commissionto make nominations in February2015.

Finally, ive nominations camerom the commission. Every com-missioner voted or some o the

candidates, but none could achieve victory. In breaking a tie vote, May voted against Gina Mangham theonly candidate that he could havepushed over the top.

During these many months when

May would not resign, he also aban-doned his responsibility to DistrictFive constituents. He closed the dis-trict oice, taking his sta with him,

and would not allow district undsto be used or a constituent servicesassistant. Represented by the interimCEO, District 5 should have hadthe best constituent services in thecounty; instead services remained aspoor as ever.

Now, ater all o these monthsthat he delayed, May chooses toresign with only a ew short weeksbetween his resignation and a lowturnout June 16 election. his ishardly a coincidence. here is notenough time to raise money andlaunch a campaign with early vot-ing on May 26. his seems to be the

very deinition o the “petty per-sonal politics and clear obstruction”that he attributes to us. In addition,he apparently avored a candidatewith knowledge o his plans, be-cause only Vaughn Irons had cam-

paign material ready to mail out theday o May’s resignation.

We have consistently said the voters o District 5 should be able to

elect their own representative to thecounty commission. We have alwayssupported an open and air elec-tion and we are glad or that longoverdue outcome. We regret thatMr. May’s singular ocus on his ownpolitical advantage made the waitso long, and that the snap electionscheduled or June 16 may attractso ew voters. We hope that District5 candidates and voters will rise tothe occasion and ill the seat with acommissioner who has their inter-est, not his own, at heart.

Respectully,

Commissioners Kathie Gannon,Nancy Jester and Jeff Rader

Commissioners respond to interim CEO’s criticism

Stop bullying nowstand up • speak out

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OPINIONThe Champion Free Press, Friday, June 5, 2015 Page 5A

L us Know Wha Yo think!

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

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

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

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

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F REE P RESS

STATEMENT FROM THE

PUBLISHERW sinrly aria hdisssion srronding his and anyiss of inrs o DKalb cony.The Champion was fondd in 1991xrssly o rovid a form fordisors for all ommniy rsidnson all sids of an iss. W hav nodsir o mak h nws only oror nws and oinions o ff

a mor dad iiznry ha willlimaly mov or ommniyforward. W ar hay o rsnidas for disssion; howvr,w mak vry ffor o avoidrining informaion sbmid os ha is known o b fals and/orassmions nnd as fa.

ONE MAN’S OPINION

“I am pleased that weeached an agreement that

will help long-term job cre-ation, business expansionand community investment

n Fort McPherson and itsurrounding communities,”aid Atlanta Mayor

KasimReed.

I am a an o TylerPerry. His most amouscreation, Madea, remindsme more than a bit o twowomen who helped raise myiblings and I.

Perry has given a tremen-dous boost to the Georgiaand Atlanta ilm productionndustries, long beore it wasashionable (in Hollywood

circles) or tax advantageous

o do so.He is both an aggressiveentrepreneur and a philan-hropist—regularly investing

and giving back to the com-munity which so stronglyupports his work. For these

and many other reasons, Iam glad that he still calls At-anta, Ga., his home.

All that said, I believehe city o Atlanta is under-elling and perhaps under-

estimating the value o the330-500 acre parcel we allnow know as the closedArmy base, Fort McPhersonon Atlanta’s southside. heoriginal parade grounds,gol course and historic oi-cers’ row houses at the base’scenter remain maintained inpristine condition, and I canalready envision how thosewill become ertile grounds

and settings or Perry’simagination.

Perry plans to constructup to 16 ilm productionsound-stages as well as

post-production acilitieson the large and now encedcompound, relocating romhis existing acilities nearGreenbriar Mall in south-west Atlanta, and not lee-ing to an OP site he wasconsidering in DouglasCounty. According to ylerPerry Studios, Perry has to-date invested $200-millionin Georgia.

hough the Pentagonand Army decommissionedFort Mac ollowing BaseRealignment and ClosureCommission (BRAC) hear-

ings and recommendationso the prior decade, and thebase has been largely de-militarized, millions in realestate assets and technologyinrastructure remain inplace.

U.S. Armed Forces Com-

mand (FORSCOM) ranOperation Desert Shieldand Operation Desert Stormrom Fort Mac during 1990-1991.

he base was successullydeended and maintainedthrough three rounds oBRAC hearings and the U.S.Veteran’s Administration(VA) still operates a clinicon post.

Perry’s plan will leavethe ences surrounding thecompound in place and maywell serve as a catalyst orre-development o nearbyEast Point, Hapeville andCollege Park. However, thenearby Screen Gems re-de-

velopment at the old Lake-

wood Fairgrounds has yet todeliver on its promise or thesame area.

he nature o ilm, Vand motion picture produc-tion is seasonal and transi-tory. he majority o actorsas well as technical crew arestill being imported.

Perry does make an eortto cast locally, but a closelook at one o television’smost popular programs,AMC’s The Walking Dead also produced here in Geor-gia, shows a stellar ensemblecast with nary a native Geor-gia accent (the now deunctcharacter o Herschel didhave southern roots).

But Fort Mac has morethan 300 useable acres, in-cluding signiicant existinginrastructure, and this dealis both under-priced and

could have easily been sub-divided. Give Perry the cen-ter campus, parade grounds,gol course (he is reportedlyand avid goler) and the

existing warehouse space(somewhat easily convertedinto sound-stages), and splito another 100+ acres intoone or two more parcels.

Yes, there are some is-sues with chemicals andlikely some old ordinancesburied on property, as is thecase with many ormer mili-tary installations, but thosechallenges are no more in-surmountable than remov-ing multiple heavy metalsand other toxins rom thesoil underneath what has

now become Atlantic Sta-tion. he base site is onMARA, minutes rom theworld’s busiest airport andwell-located or becoming asubstantive re-developmentcatalyst on Atlanta’s south-side.

For purposes o compari-son, more than $32-millionhas been privately raisedto relocate the Cycloramarom Grant Park to a newbuilding on the grounds othe Atlanta History Centerin Buckhead, with the cityo Atlanta receiving a sub-stantial portion o that total.Atlanta has also long hadthe Atlanta Civic Center andits ew surrounding acres inBedord Pines listed or saleat a price o only hal whatPerry is paying or morethan 300 acres ($15-mil-

Bill Crane

[email protected]

Columnist

The Fort Mac attacklion).

I want Perry and hiscompany to be successul,his ilms are well-produced,wonderully cast and enter-

taining. I know his legacyhere will be long...I just don’twant olks to later believethat Madea helped the tal-ented Perry steal this dealwith the help o her silver-plated 357.

Bill Crane also serves as a political analyst and commen-tator for Channel 2’s ActionNews, WSB-AM News/Talk750 and now 95.5 FM, as wellas a columnist for

The Cham-pion, Champion Free Pressand Georgia Trend. Crane isa DeKalb native and business

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

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LOCAL

If you would like to nominate someone to be considered as a future Champion of the Week, please contact Andrew Cauthenat [email protected] or at (404) 373-7779, ext. 117.

ATIRA ROCHESTER

Group promotes Chineseculture through dress

y Andrew [email protected]

For the Chinese Qipoa Society, it’s allbout the dress.

“I love qipao,” said Jinghong Ma, an or-anizer o the one-month-old Atlanta chap-er o the Chinese Qipoa Society. “Since Iame to the U.S., I love qipao. All my dress-s are qipao —lots and lots o qipao.”

A qipao, also called a cheongsam, is araditional Chinese dress. It is a stylish, o-en body-hugging dress irst designed in the920s.

With approximately 300-400 chaptersworldwide, the society, based in China, “isrowing very, very ast,” Ma said.

At 10 p.m. on May 15, which was 10.m. May 16 in China, more than 150,000eople around the world simultaneously

wore qipaos in an attempt to “make theWorld Guiness record [o] 100,000 peo-

le…wearing the same Chinese traditionaldress at the same time,” Ma said.

In Chamblee, more than 100 peopledonned the dresses as a part o the event,which was video-recorded. Along with

chapters around the world, the Atlantachapter sent the recording to the societyheadquarters in China.

For the event, the society “invited localartists to show us how to walk [and apply]

the makeup,” Ma said. “hat’s very specialbecause a lot o people love the dress butnever have a chance to wear the dress.”

While some members own qipoas, oth-ers had to borrow the dress.

Some “actually went to Chinatown herein Atlanta [to buy the dresses],” Ma said.

Ma started the organization in Atlantaater meeting “a lady rom China [who said]Atlanta never had a chapter.” Now the chap-ter has approximately 175 members whoconnect on a WeChat Chinese social mediagroup.

“We have lots o news, and posts andexcitement,” Ma said. “We’re talking abouthow to…establish the qipoa society.”

In the uture, Ma said, the group will

sponsor various activities such as ield tripsand seminars on women’s beauty, dress andhealthy eating.

“We will promote the Chinese culturethrough the national dress,” Ma said.

For Atira Rochester,volunteering is an avenue tobe o service to others.

he 30-year-old romDecatur serves othershrough a couple o organi-

zations, including the JuniorLeague o DeKalb County.She has been volunteeringwith the organization or ayear.

“My riend was involvedn the Junior League in her

community and encour-aged me to join,” Rochesteraid. “I was also interested in

working with a group o vol-unteers who invested their

energy, time and resourcesinto the community whereI live.”

Junior League o DeKalbCounty is an organizationo women “committed topromoting voluntarism,developing the potentialo women, and improving

communities through theeective action and leader-ship o trained volunteers.Its purpose is exclusivelyeducational and charitable.”

he organization hasmore than 300 women in-

volved.With the Junior League,

Rochester has participatedin a class project on clean-ing, redecorating and

“sprucing” up the Interna-tional Women’s House, ashelter or immigrant andreugee women and childrenwho are victims o domes-tic violence and abuse. he

Junior League ounded In-ternational Women’s Housein 1997.

Rochester also serveson the board o directors oYouth V.I.B.E., an organi-zation in DeKalb County,which exposes youth to theskills and experiences thatteach and encourage busi-ness leadership.

Youth V.I.B.E. provides

ree academic enrichment inmath, science and readingat owers High School andhe Mohammed Schools oAtlanta. he organization’sprograms provide teens with

interactive components tobusiness mentoring includ-ing guest speakers and cor-porate tours, according to itswebsite.

Rochester said volun-teering is important to herbecause “I think we all havesomething to positively con-tribute to others, and I haveto start where I am withwhat I have.”

Members of the Atlanta chapter of the Chinese Qipoa Society use the traditional dress to promote Chinese culture. In May, many donned the dress as part of a worldwide attempt to makeinto the Guiness Book of World Records. Photos by Andrew Cauthen

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Atlanta

County opens Rutledge Park with ribbon-cutting celebration

DeKalb County oicially opened the newRutledge Park last month with a ribbon-cuttingceremony with residents and park stakeholders.he latest addition to the DeKalb Department o

Recreation, Parks and Cultural Aairs portolios located at 1812 Ridgewood Drive.

“here are ew parks out there that are asoved as this one is,” said District 2 Commis-ioner Jeff Rader. “It is an outpouring o love

and support or the park that made it all pos-ible. his is the culmination o our rigorousmplementation o what the community saidhey wanted in this park.”

he 1.5-acre park includes entry landscap-ng, a walkway into the park, playground and

walking trail. he total cost o the project was$108,000, which was raised through a collabora-ive eort. he Friends o Rutledge Park put a

visual plan together and raised $13,000 or theproject, and also received a $50,000 grant rom

Park Pride. Rader added $45,000 toward theproject through a park bond.

Avondale

EstatesAvondale Woman’s Club selling posters

The Avondale Woman’s Club is selling aDoors of Avondale Estates 2015 poster for $10,and all proceeds support the club’s charities. Formore information or to purchase a poster, email [email protected].

DecaturCity to host youth baseball parade

Decatur will hold an Opening Day o YouthBaseball parade June 6 at 11 a.m. beginning atMcKoy Park and ending at Oakhurst Park or aspecial ceremony and games. For more inorma-tion, visit www.decaturga.com.

City sets tentative 2015 millage rate

At its regular meeting on May 18, the Deca-tur City Commission adopted a tentative millagerate o 12 mills or general operations, capitalimprovements, bonded indebtedness and down-town development authority operations. hisis a reduction rom the 2014 millage rate o 13mills; however due to property reassessments,this will represent an average increase o 5.03

percent in property taxes.his increase is consistent with new devel-opment and home sale data tracked by the cityor the past three years. he state’s taxpayer billo rights requires that this increase be adver-tised. For property that was not reassessed thereshould be a decrease in property taxes.

he Decatur City Commission will holdpublic hearings regarding this issue on Monday,June 1, at 7:30 p.m.; Monday, June 8, at 6 p.m.;and, Monday, June 15, at 7:30 p.m. he inalmillage will be set at the Decatur City Commis-sion meeting scheduled or Monday, June 15.

All meetings are held in the city commissionmeeting room, Decatur City Hall, 509 N. Mc-Donough Street, Decatur. For more inormation,contact Meredith Roark , budget & perormancemeasurement manager, or Andrea Arnold, as-sistant city manager, at (404) 370-4102, or visitthe city’s website at www.decaturga.com/budget.

Doraville

Doraville presents movie under the stars

On June 5, the annual touch-a-truck eventwill give children the opportunity to get up closeto a collection o emergency vehicles such as po-lice cars and ire trucks. he event will take placerom 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Park avenue and will beollowed by the amily ilm Home—Worlds Col-

lide. Both events are ree and open to the public.

Dunwoody Dunwoody boy in need of life-savingtransplant

With the cost of a transplant often exceeding$500,000, many transplant families are unableto afford such a procedure.

The Children’s Organ Transplant Association(COTA) is a national charity dedicated toorganizing and guiding communities in raisingfunds for transplant-related expenses.

In Dunwoody, volunteers are raising fundsfor COTA in honor of transplant patients such aslocal boy Tyler Johnson.

Tyler is the son of Chaunte and JermaineJohnson. Born Sept. 9, 2004, Tyler was

diagnosed with sickle cell anemia. Doctorsat Egleston Children’s Hospital in Atlantahave recommended a lifesaving bone marrowtransplant. An estimated $90,000 is being raised by Dunwoody volunteers.

Volunteers are needed to assist withfundraising activities that will help withtransplant-related expenses.

Individuals and groups interested in moreinformation can contact community coordinatorAwa Patton at (770) 896-7948 or [email protected].

Donations may be mailed to the Children’sOrgan Transplant Association, 2501 West COTADrive, Bloomington, Indiana, 47403. Checksor money orders should be made payable toCOTA, with “In Honor of Tyler J.” written onthe memo line of the check. Secure credit carddonations are also accepted online at www.COTAforTylerJ.com.

COTA’s priority is to assure that no child oryoung adult is denied a transplant or excludedfrom a transplant waiting list due to lackof funds. One hundred percent of all fundsraised are used for patients’ transplant-relatedexpenses.

Stone MountainMountain Shadow Garden Club to host event

Kurt Straudt will be the eatured speaker orMountain Shadow Garden Club (MSGC) June6, with a program on “Succulents.” A succulentis any plant that has adapted to dry, arid cli-mates by storing water in its leaves, stems, and/or roots. Mountain Shadow Garden Club is opento men and women o all ages who enjoy learn-ing about a range o garden topics. he meetingand program activities begin at 7:30 p.m. heree event will be held at Eastminster Presbyte-rian Church, 5801 Hugh Howell Road in StoneMountain. For more inormation or directions,contact MSGC president Jeff Raines at (404)641-8633.

AROUNDDEKALB

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LOCAL

Junior League: 80 years of training women

REPORT OF STONE MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENTDISTRICT OF PROPOSED MILLAGE RATE

In compliance with O.C.G.A. §48-5, the Stone Mountain Community Improvement

District (“CID”) reports that at its meeting on June 26, 2015, beginning at 7:30 A.M. at the

Pierre Construction Group, 1677 Lewis Way, Stone Mountain, DeKalb County, Georgia

30083, the Stone Mountain CID Board of Directors will vote upon a proposal to levy an ad

valorem taxation rate of 5 mills, and will set its millage rate for the lawful purposes of the

District for the current calendar year. Set forth below are the assessed taxable values of the

properties subject to taxes for the current year and the immediately preceding four calendar

years, the total dollar amount of ad valorem taxes proposed to be levied for the current year

and levied in the immediately preceding four calendar years, as well as the percentage and

dollar increases or decreases with respect to each immediately preceding calendar year. All

property levied upon is real property. Because this CID was created in 2011, there are only

four preceding years of assessed taxable values, taxes, and changes to report.

Assessed Value Taxes Levied % Change $ Change

2011 $99,233,165 $496,165 100% $ 496,165

2012 $95,086,670 $475,433 - 4% - $ 20,732

2013 $125,777,273 $628,886 32% $ 153,453

2014 $136,005,547 $680,028 8% $ 51,142

2015proposed $142,246,645 $711,233 5% $ 31,205

J. Lynn Rainey, PC, 358 Roswell Street, Suite 1130, Marietta, Georgia 30060; (770) 421-6040. Attorney for CID - State Bar No. 592350


For Renee Bazemore,

he best part o JuniorLeague o DeKalb County ishe relationships.

“I will have made someielong relationships once Ibecome a sustaining mem-

ber],” said Bazemore, vicepresident o community orhe Junior League’s board o

directors.“I have enjoyed the part-

nerships that we’ve beenable to build with other or-ganizations within DeKalbCounty,” said Bazemore,who joined Junior League

n 2011. “Junior Leagues a great organization orwomen to get involved ando grow individually and

proessionally.”In its 80th year in

DeKalb County, JuniorLeague is a women’s vol-unteer organization with amission “to promote vol-unteerism and develop thepotential o women and tomprove our communitieshrough the eective action

and leadership o trainedvolunteers,” said AngelaTurk , president o Junior

League o DeKalb County.he league currently

has 52 active members andmore than 265 sustainingmembers, or league alumnaewho served seven or moreyears.

With 292 chaptersaround the country, “JuniorLeague has been a great ex-perience,” Bazemore said. “Ithas helped me to urther de-velop my proessional skills,my leadership skills as wellas being able to bond withother women who have like

goals. We all want to bettererve our community.”Bazemore said she en-

oys “seeing the excitemento the organizations that we

help, as today with our com-munity garden and Partnersin Action or Healthy Liv-ing, knowing that we can

help with the garden andthey harvest this ood anddeliver it to senior citizens. Ithink it’s a really rewardingexperience.”

One o the main orga-nizations Junior League iscurrently helping is eacupGirls, a nonproit mentoringorganization.

Its mission is to “providehealthy sel-esteem activitiesor girls who are ages 8-13,”urk said. “We’ve hostedtheir mother-daughter tea.We go one Saturday a month

and we do healthy cookingdemonstrations with them.We do physical activitieswith them as well.”

Junior League is alsopartnering with Interna-tional Women’s House,which provides shelter andassistance to women whoare suering rom domes-tic abuse, and Day League,ormerly the DeKalb RapeCenter.

“We’re very ond othose two organizations theywere ounding projects othe Junior League o DeKalb

County,” urk said. “heystarted as projects, and wesupported those projects un-til they were able to becomesel-sustaining in their own[nonproit] organizations.”

urk said the mission oJunior League is multiac-eted.

“Being a volunteer…youget to learn so much aboutthe community that you areliving in,” urk said, add-ing that all Junior League oDeKalb County memberslive or work in the county.

“his gives us an oppor-tunity to….meet inluentialleaders” in the county, urksaid.

Volunteers also perorm

needs assessments “to seewhere we can be o assis-tance,” she said.

Junior League brings

in speakers to talk aboutcommunity activism andpolitical issues. “Advocacy isa huge part o what we do,”

urk said.“he main thing that

you get out o being a mem-ber o Junior League is the

training to be a communityleader,” urk said. “We aretraining women to be able toserve in leadership positions

on other nonproits.“he way we measure

the success o Junior Leagueis we have now trained a

woman who is now serv-ing on another communityboard,” urk said.

unior League’s Angela Turk and Renee Bazemore take photo break from their volunteer work.

Valencia Breedlove of Junior League works the groundaround a community garden’s sign.

Members of the Junior League helped Partnership for Healthy Livingwith its garden. Photos by Andrew Cauthen

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Group uses gardento grow community

City of Decatur Georgia Ad Valorem Tax Digest History

Decatur - Digest2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Assessment Ratio 50% 50% 50% 50% 50% 50%

Real Property 1,157,883,900$ 1,149,844,600$ 1,137,427,809$ 1,168,516,500$ 1,326,596,200$ 1,594,612,800$Personal Property 20,069,600$ 21,146,700$ 22,174,136$ 23,211,680$ 22,248,300$ 22,322,600$Public Utilities 11,673,700$ 18,933,750$ 14,297,200$ 14,639,953$ 15,152,700$ 17,209,600$

Motor Vehicle 46,119,000$ 46,119,000$ 49,311,000$ 52,979,900$ 47,331,600$ 35,521,587$

Total Digest $1,235,746,200 $1,236,044,050 $1,223,210,145 $1,259,348,033 $1,411,328,800 $1,669,666,587

City Operations

General Fund Exemptions $122,579,000 125,075,000$ 126,914,000$ 126,332,000$ 125,393,000$ 130,639,000$

Net City Operat ions Digest $1,113,167,200 $1,110,969,050 $1,096,296,145 $1,133,016,033 $1,285,935,800 $1,539,027,587

City Operations Millage 13.035 13.000 13.000 13.000 13.000 12.000

City Operations Levy $14,510,134 $14,442,598 $14,251,850 $14,729,208 $16,717,165 $18,468,331

Percent Change -1.50 -0.47 -1.32 3.35 13.50 10.48Dollar Amount Change ($220,310) ($67,537) ($190,748) $477,359 $1,987,957 $1,751,166

The Decatur City Commission announces that the 2015 tentative millage rate was adopted at their meeting on Monday, May 18, 2015.Hearings on the budget and millage rate will be held on:

Monday, June 1, 2015 at 7:30 p.m.Monday, June 8, 2015 at 6:00 p.m.Monday, June 15, 2015 at 7:30 p.m.The hearings will be held at Decatur City Hall, 509 N. McDonough Street, Decatur, GA. Final adoption of the 2015 millage rate andfiscal year 2015-2016 budget is scheduled for consideration at the Decatur City Commission meeting on Monday, June 15, 2015. Theabove table is presented pursuant to O.C.G.A. 48-5-32 showing the estimated current year's digest and proposed millage rates along


A nonproit group in theBelvedere community is us-ng a garden to bring neigh-

bors together, improve thecommunity and train neweaders.

Partners in Action orHealthy Living (PAHL) is anonproit that started a ewyears ago; it came out o agroup called the HealthyBelvedere initiative.

“hat initiative wasooking at increasing im-

provements in diet andexercise with the goal oeducing diseases like heart

disease and diabetes thatwere much at much higherates in the Belvedere neigh-

borhood as compared to theurrounding area,” said Lili

Crymes, community gardenprogram manager or PAHL.

“Our ocal point and thecenter o our activities is our50-plot community gardenhat serves neighborhoodesidents, both by provid-ng space where they can

garden,” Crymes said. “Youdon’t have to be an expert

gardener to come. You canget a lot o direction romother gardeners.

“I you have a shadybackyard we provide aunny space or people to

be able to garden withinhe context o the larger

community,” she said. hegarden is located on theproperty o Peace LutheranChurch, 1679 ColumbiaDrive, Decatur.

Additionally, PAHL o-ers a children’s education

program, a ood securityprogram, and the deliveryo resh produce to senioresidents—all provided by

volunteers.“We also encourage

healthy activities by hav-ng walking groups…just to

make healthy exercise morevisible in the community,”Crymes said. he group alsoponsors a 5K walk/run.

Beore PAHL could en-

courage healthy activities, ithad to address community

issues in the area, Crymessaid. “When we startedworking the neighborhood,people [said], ‘I want togo out walking but it’s toodangerous.’ hen we hadto…bring the communitytogether so we can addresssaety and crime issues.”

PAHL has increasedcommunity communica-tion through orums severaltimes a year on issues suchas code enorcement.

he garden is “a saespace” or “neighborswho might not see eachother regularly otherwise,”Crymes said.

“It’s a place where youcan show up, and you willprobably ind somebodyhere,” she said.

he organization has“increased awareness anddialog about what is healthyeating” and has been “a new

venue or new leadership ex-periences to be developed,”Crymes said.

“I don’t tell [the garden-ers] what to do. We get to-gether. We decide whether

there are issues that needto be addressed,” Crymessaid. “here has been a loto leadership developmentthrough the garden.”

o accomplish its mis-

sion, PAHL has several part-ners, including area elemen-tary schools, Atlanta Com-munity Food Bank, PeaceLutheran Church and JuniorLeague o DeKalb County.

Angela Turk , presidento Junior League o DeKalbCounty, “It’s amazing what[PAHL] has done with a

very small sta and witha very small but dedicatednumber o volunteers. Weelt that it was very appro-priate or the work whatwe’re doing to be able tosupport what they’re doingin south DeKalb.”

Emma Burrus, a mem-ber o Peace LutheranChurch and resident oConyers, volunteers at thecommunity garden and withPAHL.

“his is my church com-munity, and we are a part othe community,” she said.

PAHL “is involving alot o the community thatdidn’t know that they werea community,” Burrus said.“It helps me just by knowingthat people care about eachother.

“It’s a great organiza-tion,” Burrus said aboutPAHL. “I wish it could havebeen done sooner, but it’shere now, so that’s the greatthing.”

Partners in Action for Healthy Living gets help from Junior League ofDeKalb County.

Paul Grant and his 7-year-old daughter Sydney planting at the commu-nity garden.

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LOCAL

wordshurt

stop

the

bullying

y Carla [email protected]

Brookhaven Mayor J.Max Davis ended the city’sown hall meeting May 28y announcing his bid toun or Georgia House Dis-rict 80.

“It’s been a distinct hon-r to serve as your mayor orhe last two and hal years,”

Davis told those in atten-dance. “Many o you knowhis, but I will be resigning

next week as your mayor.’ll be running or anotherice vacated by State Rep.

Mike Jacobs.“I enjoyed being your

mayor,” Davis added. “hisublic service is ulilling to

me.”Jacobs vacated the Dis-

rict 80 seat ater he wasppointed by Gov. Nathan

Deal as State Court judge oDeKalb, replacing EleanorRoss, who is now a ederaludge or the Northern Dis-rict o Georgia.

“Mike Jacobs has pro-ided excellent representa-ion or District 80, and I

will build on that tradition.

am excited to have thepportunity to continue

my service to the people Brookhaven and now oandy Springs and Cham-lee at the state level,” Davisaid in a released statement.We have, as a community,otten Brookhaven started

right. Police are protectingour streets, which are be-

ing paved, so amilies cango to our improving parks.In just two and a hal years,through eicient local con-trol, we have elevated ourcommunity.”

A special election willbe held July 14 or the seat.Davis, a Republican, will runagainst Brookhaven residentand Republican CatherineBernard, and Democrat andattorney Taylor Bennett.

Davis’ ather, MaxDavis, served in the StateHouse o Representatives or

more than two decades. Da- vis said he wants to take his

“proven reorm agenda andbring it to the state level.

“We have been suc-cessul in Brookhaven ol-lowing those ideas.” Davissaid. “We cut taxes twice,enhanced services, and havea $4 million dollar reserve.Brookhaven will be let ingood hands and on the rightpath.”

“Our community needsa leader with common senseand a demonstrated trackrecord,” Davis continued. “Iwill ocus on reorming andimproving education. I willalso work to get traic mov-ing through better coordi-nated actions among all area

jurisdictions. Protecting tax-payer dollars and preservingneighborhoods will continueto be my priority.

Davis’ last day as mayorwill be June 3. According tothe city’s charter, “Vacancyin the oice o mayor shallbe illed or the remaindero the unexpired term by aspecial election i such va-cancy occurs 12 months ormore prior to the expirationo the term o that oice. Isuch vacancy occurs within

12 months o the expirationo the term o that oice, the

city council or those mem-bers remaining shall appoint

a successor or the remain-der o the term.”Davis’ term as mayor

had been scheduled to endthis year, meaning the citycouncil will vote June 9 onone o the councilmembersto ill the vacancy. Council-woman Rebecca Chase Wil-liams is also mayor pro tem

and will serve as mayor June3-9.

I Williams or anothercouncilmember is voted bycouncil to serve as mayoruntil the end o the year, thatcouncilmember will nomi-nate someone to ill his orher council seat and coun-cilmembers will then voteon whether to approve thenominee.

Brookhaven City 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Real & Personal 2,261,071,691 2,691,060,034 3,160,338,872

Motor Vehicles 82,633,320 67,891,300

Mobile Homes

Timber - 100%

Heavy Duty Equipment

Gross Digest 0 0 0 2,261,071,691 2,773,693,354 3,228,230,172

Less M& O Exemptions 254,997,596 437,879,638 655,645,230

Net M & O Digest 0 0 0 2,006,074,095 2,335,813,716 2,572,584,942

State Forest Land

Ass istance Grant Value 0

Adjusted Net M&O Digest 0 0 0 2,006,074,095 2,335,813,716 2,572,584,942

Gross M&O Millage 2.850 2.850 2.795

Less Rollbacks 0.055

Net M&O Millage 0.000 0.000 0.000 2.850 2.795 2.795

Net Taxes Levied $0 $0 $0 $5,717,311 $6,528,599 $7,190,375

Net Taxes $ Increase #REF! #REF! #REF! $811,288.00 $661,776.00

Net Taxes % Increase #REF! #REF! #REF! 14.19% 10.14%

NOTICE

The City of Brookhaven City Council does hereby announce that the millage rate will be s et at a meeting to be

held at the Brookhaven City Hall on on July 7, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. and pursuant to the requirem ents of O.C.G.A. Section

48-5-32 does hereby publish the following presentation of the current year's tax digest and levy, along with the his tory of the tax

digest and levy for the pas t five years.

CURRENT 2015 TAX DIGEST AND 5 YEAR HISTORY OF LEVY

DEKALB COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION

FINAL BUDGET ADOPTION

FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2016

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

TIME LOCATION7:00 p.m. J. David Williamson Board Room

Administrative & Instructional Complex

1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd.

Stone Mountain, GA 30083

Citizens interested in reviewing a detailed copy of the program

based budget may do so by visiting the DeKalb County School

District website at www.dekalb.k12.ga.us.

FOR INFORMATION, CALL THE OFFICE OF THECHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT 678-676-0069.

Brookhaven mayor announcesbid for District 80 seat

Davis

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by Kathy Mitchell

Not long afer the first aviatorstook to the skies in the earlydays o the 20th century, the

public started flocking to air showso see what the new invention—the

flying machine—could do. Accordingo inoplease.com, “Dubbed the ‘glo-ious year o flying,’ 1913 was marked

by races, competitions and demon-trations. By flying upside-down and

doing loops and other stunts, dare-devil pilots proved the maneuverabil-ty o airplanes.”

DeKalb Peachtree Airport’s Good

Neighbor Day on May 30 demon-trated that public enthusiasm or

airborne acrobatics hasn’t dimmedover the past century. A well-attend-ed annual event or decades, GoodNeighbor Day is now so popular thatheme-park type trams are used tohuttle visitors rom makeshif park-ng lots created on what are normallyunways.

In addition to those arriving incars, many walked to the ree five-hour show, making up crowds ohousands o visitors over the afer-

noon. Te event attracted a broad ageange that included young couples

pushing babies in strollers and seniorcitizens moving about on walkersor in wheelchairs. Te crowd alsoeflected Chamblee’s broad ethnic di-

versity as a wide variety o languages

could be heard among the attendees.Good Neighbor Day is so named

because it is designed to provide arearesidents an opportunity to learnmore about what goes on at the air-port on a day-to-day basis and to letthose who work at the airport meettheir neighbors, according to Com-

missioner Kathie Gannon, who tookthe microphone briefly to welcomethe crowd. Te other commissionerin whose area the airport is located,Nancy Jester, called the airport “a

gem o an asset” and said it’s “where jobs land in DeKalb County.”

Te air show was a flying historyo the airplane with aircraf romWorld War I-style bi-planes to WorldWar II military planes and the newestin small private aircraf. Perorm-ers such as pilots Larry King , Greg

Koontz and 75-year-old Gary Ward demonstrated such aerial maneuversas outside loops, barrel rolls, snapsand tumbles and inverted passes. Jer-ry McCart was there with “Wicked

Willy,” which he calls his “jet unnycar.” eam AeroDynamix, which billsitsel as “the world’s largest air showteam,” was on hand to demonstrateprecision ormation flying and or-mation aerobatics.

Tere were demonstrations o skytyping, an updated orm o skywrit-

ing in which puffs rom a movingairplane orm block letters. One skytypist wrote “DEKALB COUNY

Greatest show above the Earth returns

See Airshow on page 24A

Stunt pilots perform aerobatic maneuvers from loops to rolls to inverted approaches similar to the “daredevil” tricks from the early days of aviation. Photos by Travis Hudgons

There was a show on the ground as well as visitors explored aircraft, including planes from the First and Second World Wars.

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LOCAL

Upcoming Seminars at DeKalb Medical

For a referral to a DeKalb Medical physician or to reserveyour space for these free seminars, please call 770.415.2386.

Light refreshments will be served. Parking is free.

Doc Talks

www.dekalbmedical.org dekalbmedical

Men’s Health Panel

Tursday, June 18, 2015

6:30–8:00 p.m.

DeKalb Medical at Hillandale

Community Room

June is Men’s Health Month!

Men and their loved ones

are invited to join us at one

of our Men’s Health Panels

to heighten the awareness

of preventable health

problems and encourage

early detection of disease

among men and boys.

Panelists will address the

importance of annual

check-ups, solutions to

joint pain, heart health

and healthy sleep.

Our event include a

complimentary blood pressure

screening and BMI assessment

at 6 p.m.

Dunwoody officials open

two summer favoritesby Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

Big things are happening or Dunwoodyparks.he city hosted a celebration and ribbon

cutting at Dunwoody Park on May 15 torecognize the grand opening o a new play-ground, the remodeled Dunwoody NatureCenter acilities and reurbished ball ields.

Dunwoody Mayor Mike Davis said,“his is a great year or parks in Dunwoodyn general. We’re spending millions o dol-ars on our parks, and we’re just thrilled to

have partners like Dunwoody Nature Cen-er.”

Davis said, “It’s all about the partner-ships we have in the city; being able to getgroups o citizens to envision this…that’swhat’s so great about the city o Dunwoody.”

Dunwoody Nature Center has been parto the park or more than 20 years.

Dunwoody Nature Center ExecutiveDirector Alan Mothner said, “We’ve had agreat history with the city o Dunwoody the

past several years. hey’ve helped us withlots o capital improvement projects that Ithink have transormed the nature center.”

He added, “We provide the program-ming and other various things that we’reable to do with the center, but it’s the citythat helps us with the improvements to thebuilding and the grounds, and that goeshand-in-hand with our programs. We’reable to oer the type o quality program-ming that our community expects rom usbecause we know that the city has our backsand will support us in whatever it is that wewant to do. It’s a great relationship.”

Oicials also added another children’splayground midway between the naturecenter and Dunwoody Seniors baseballield.

Parks and Recreations Director BrentWalker said, “We’ve been working on thispark or the past ive years, we still have alittle bit more to go. It’s not done, but it’scome a long way. I’m really proud o myguys and the sta we have in the city oDunwoody.”

Dunwoody Mayor Mike Davis, his grandson and other youngsters stand in front of the newly built children’s

playground at the grand opening event.

City ofcials cut a vine to commemorate the opening of the recently renovated nature center in DunwoodyPark.

Dunwoody Nature Center is set for additional renovations includingbenches and a paved parking lot according to Parks and RecreationDirector Brent Walker. Photos by Ashley Oglesby

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WEEKPICTURESIn

Photo brought t you by DCTV

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

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

For more info, call or visit:

(404) 294-2900

www.rollingforwardtoone.com

The YMCA Early Learning Academies of Snapnger/Lithonia and The South DeKalb Family YMCA presented The Polly Meriwether-Lewis Champion Award Luncheon May 29. The programonored Meriwether-Lewis’ life and legacy and her community service impact on DeKalb County. Many in attendance knew her on personal and professional levels. DeKalb County

District 3 Commissioner Larry Johnson and recently retired DeKalb County Community Development Department director Chris Morris were among those who gave remarks, stating thatMeriwether-Lewis was part of the “non-non club” non-political and nonpartisan. Photos by Travis Hudgons

Aerial views of the former General Motors production plant show demolition progress making way for a new mixed use development. Photos by John Hewitt

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LOCAL

Decatur Arts FestivalThe Decatur Arts Alliance held its the 27th annual Decatur Arts Festival om May 23. The festival held on the square in downtown

Decatur was bursting with colorful artistic works and included an artist market, live musical performances, improvisational andstand-up comedy, a children’s festival and parade, literary events and dance performances. Photos by Travis Hudgons

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Trash Continued From Page 1A


o this tremendous servicedelivery. We knew that levelo service was unsustainable.We knew that we could notcontinue to deliver that levelo service or such a lowate.”

Te new collection modelaims to reduce the cost orash pick-up services while

maintaining the county’sanitation ees at $265 a

year, the same rate it’s beenince 2006.

May said the new pro-gram will “make garbagecollection more efficient,more effective, cleaner andmost o all saer or our em-ployees.”

Door hangers with resi-dents’ new collection daywill be delivered or the nexthree to our weeks.

Residents also will re-ceive direct mail correspon-dence about the programimelines.

Last year, the countytarted a pilot program toest the once-a-week trash

pickup with 28,000 house-holds.

Jester, who is a pilot pro-gram participant, said, “It’sbeen a great aesthetic in thecommunities, the standard-zation o the can looks great

and when you only have thebin at the street once a week

think it makes or a nicer

looking neighborhood.”Jester said, “I expect that

there will be hiccups as ev-erything rolls out, but i thepilot program is indicativeo the success that we willhave with this, I eel verypositive about it.”

Cart distribution willbegin by July 6 and will con-tinue throughout August.

Each home will be issueda green 65-gallon garbageroll cart. Homeowners also

are given the option o

downsizing to 35-or 45 gal-lon carts at no extra chargeor switch to a 95-gallon cartor a one-time $15 upgradeee.

Te county will also dis-tribute an 18-gallon recy-cling bin and blue recyclingbags. Residents can also up-grade their recycling bin to a65 gallon recycling cart or aone-time $15 ee.

Each cart has a radio re-quency identification waer

that identifies the household

the cart was assigned to.Te Sanitation Departmentagreed to repair any dam-aged lids, wheel or handles.

May said the countyalso has added a tipper, amechanical lif operated byhydraulics to the trucks toassist with emptying rollcarts since the majority othe county’s workers com-pensation cases are reportedrom sanitation departmentemployees.

Te sanitation division’s

current collection methodrequires collectors to pickup, on average, two 32-gal-lon containers or bags ogarbage each day rom 1,000households. May said gar-bage bags ofen contain hid-

den sharp objects.With the tipper installed,the drivers can operate arobotic arm rom inside thetruck that retrieves the cart,unloads the contents andreturns the cart to its origi-nal location.

Despite reduction otrash pickup days, May said,“All Sanitation Division em-ployees will keep their jobs.”

He said the departmentwill reassign 55 employeesto litter pickup.

“Tis allows us to makeour public spaces more at-tractive,” May said.

For additional inorma-tion or to address concernsabout the program, contactthe department at (404) 294-2900 or [email protected].

Malone said the depart-ment is “dedicated to cus-tomer service.”

He added, “I you call us,we will fix it. All o our resi-dents are important to us.”

Associate Director for the Sanitation Department Billy Malone ensures homeowners that the sanita-

tion department’s customer service agents will be available for anyone with questions about the newprogram.

Gang member pleads guilty to two deaths

Judge Gail Flake sentenced alleged Bloodstreet gang member Oslusha Smith to lie plus 40

years in jail or the deaths o Michael Phillips andAlexis Malone.

According to the indictment, a fight erupted

nvolving Malone and another emale at aStone Mountain apartment complex on May3, 2014. Fellow members o the Bloods streetgang arrived to assist Malone. Te altercationntensified and the gang members opened fire,

ultimately shooting and kil ling an unarmed andnnocent bystander, Michael Phillips.

“Tis senseless and reckless act o violencended with the loss o two lives,” said District

Attorney Robert James. “Tis sentence sends aoud message that gangs are not welcome here in

DeKalb County.”Days afer Phillips’ murder, Smith became

oncerned that Malone would reveal details abouthe shooting to authorities. On or about May

9, Smith lured Malone to a wooded area where7-year-old Malone was killed by strikes to the

head and ace with a rock.According to James, gang violence is a major

oncern in DeKalb and surrounding areas. “Tegang issue is no longer just a concern o the innerity. Gangs have permeated not only to large cities,

but also surrounding suburbs and communities,”James said. “My office works closely with local lawenorcement agencies to actively combat the threato gang-related activities and crimes.”

Smith pleaded guilty to various elonycharges including malice murder, elony murder,aggravated assault and violation o the street

gang terrorism and prevention act. Smithand codeendant Cutrez Johnson were laterapprehended at an Atlanta hotel afer an extensivestandoff with Atlant Police’s SWA. Johnson waspreviously sentenced to 20 years to serve 15 incustody.

Te remaining codeendants, Kemontay Cullins and Kayla Dixon, are scheduled or trialon June 22 in Judge Flake’s courtroom.

Volunteer found guilty of bilking thousandsfrom local charity

Earl Pizzarelli pleaded guilty to

misappropriating $49,000 rom a local nonprofithe volunteered with or eight years. Charged

with 18 counts o thef by taking, Pizzarelli wassentenced by Judge Hilton Fuller to 15 years withsix months to serve behind bars. Pizzarelli alsowas ordered to pay restitution to St. Vincent dePaul or the total amount misappropriated.

Pizzarelli served in various volunteer andfiduciary roles with St. Vincent de Paul, includingcase worker, treasurer and president. Tis casecame to the attention o the Chamblee PoliceDepartment in 2012 afer the CEO o thenonprofit organization reported a call rom a debtcollection agency inquiring about St. Vincent

de Paul’s payment o Pizzarelli’s personal debt.Upon urther inspection, it was determinedthat additional payments were made directlyto Pizzarelli as well as nine other companiesincluding 3 Options Realty, A&, Georgia Powerand Georgia Natural Gas.

“Tis man abused his fiduciary position orhis own personal greed and benefit,” said DistrictAttorney Robert James. “Tis case should serveas an alert to other area nonprofits and charities toimplement saeguards to prohibit thef and abuseo charitable unds. I Pizzarelli ails to repay themoney he syphoned rom St. Vincent de Paul,then he will potentially be serving additional timebehind bars.”

According to the St. Vincent de Paul website,the mission o the organization is to help

individuals achieve stability and sel-sufficiencyby offering financial, material, educational andspiritual support. St. Vincent de Paul has operatedin Georgia since 1903.

NEWS BRIEFS

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LOCAL

Words HURT Stop the Bullying

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

GEORGIA,

DEKALB

COUNTY

A petition has been filed with the Board of Commissioners of DeKalb County, Georgia,

for the construction of a sewer infrastructure in Land Lot(s) 375 of the 18th

District of

DeKalb County, Georgia, description of which is as follows:

Sewer Main shall run along Carnaby Court and Yarmouth Court and impact

properties located at 1471, 1472, 1475, 1478, 1479, 1487, 1492, 1495, 1502,

1503, 1511, 1512, 1519, 1520 Carnaby Court, and 5240, 5241 and 5244

Yarmouth Court.

Same to be constructed and the costs assessed against the abutting property. Said

Petition has been set for hearing before the Board of Commissioners at 9:00 a.m. on

Tuesday, August 11, 2015 in the Auditorium of the DeKalb County Maloof Center, 1300

Commerce Drive, Decatur, Georgia.

All persons, whose interests are affected by the proposed sewer, desiring to be heard,

are

hereby

notified

to

appear

in

person

or

by

attorney

at

said

time

and

place

and

present such objection or evidence therein as their interests require.

by Ashley [email protected]

DeKalb County SchoolDistrict oicials voted to ireQuentin Wright, a science

and math teacher at Cham-pion Middle heme Schooln Stone Mountain ater he

admitted to allowing stu-dents to have sex in a stor-age room in his classroom.

he district held a tri-bunal hearing on May 29where a three-memberhearing tribunal votedunanimously to airm Su-perintendent Michael Thur-

mond’s recommendationthat Wright’s employmentcontract with the DeKalbCounty School District be

terminated.A copy o the tribunal’s

recommendation was alsosent to the Georgia Proes-sional Standards Com-mission which could strip

Wright o his l icense toteach in the state.

DeKalb Schools Pub-lic Saety oicers arrestedWright, 25, on May 18 aterparents complained o “in-appropriate text messages”rom the teacher to their14-year-old son about ar-ranging or the teen to usethe storage closet in class-room or sex with a emale

student.he parents said Wright

suggested times and oeredto provide condoms. Wrightaces our counts o con-tributing to the delinquency

o a minor and is ree on a$16,000 bond.

Wright was arrested onMay 20 and charged withour misdemeanor countso contributing to the delin-quency o a minor.

Michael Walker, theschool district’s executive le-gal counsel said investigatorshave identiied 10 studentswho knew about Wright’s al-

leged oenses and our usedthe room or sexual activity.

Wright admitted toschool oicials on May 19that he allowed student touse the room or sex and o-

ered to resign. hurmondreused to accept the resig-nation so that the districtcould gather acts and holdthe tribunal.

he DeKalb Board oEducation voted on June 1to ratiy the recommenda-tion o the ribunal.


2nd PUBLIC

MILLAGE RATE HEARING


TIME LOCATION11:30 a.m. J. David Williamson Board Room




Citizens interested in reviewing a detailed copy of the programbased budget may do so by visiting the DeKalb County School


FOR INFORMATION, CALL THE OFFICE OF THE

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT 678-676-0133.

Teacher fired for allowing students to have sex

by Ashley [email protected]

Clarkston Police haveeleased a sketch of the manhey said tried to abduct aeenager earlier this month.

The incident happenedhe rst week of May.

Clarkston Police Sgt.Amanda Pritchett saidhe suspect approached a

16-year-old as she got offher school bus and walkedalong Brockett Way towardher home.

The victim worked witha sketch artist to create acomposite of the suspect,described as a black man inhis 20’s.

Anyone with informationin this case is encouraged tocall Crime Stoppers GreaterAtlanta at (404) 577-TIPS. Since the incident,Clarkston investigatorshave received numerousCrime Stoppers tips andare following up on them,Pritchett said.

Sketch released of Clarkston attempted kidnapper


3rd PUBLIC

MILLAGE RATE HEARING


TIME LOCATION6:15 p.m. J. David Williamson Board Room




Citizens interested in reviewing a detailed copy of the program

based budget may do so by visiting the DeKalb County School


FOR INFORMATION, CALL THE OFFICE OF THE

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT 678-676-0133.

Wright

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City 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Real & Personal 157,295,925 158,471,976 133,021,745 141,146,248 148,072,403 178,050,508

Motor Vehicles 7,917,420 7,854,350 8,014,980 8,451,460 7,456,190 5,564,760

Mobile Homes

Timber - 100%

Heavy Duty Equipment

Gross Digest 165,213,345 166,326,326 141,036,725 149,597,708 155,528,593 183,615,268

Less M&O Exemptions 119,131 102,456 231,089 138,061 268,311 371,490

Net M&O Digest 165,094,214 166,223,870 140,805,636 149,459,647 155,260,282 183,243,778

State Forest Land Assistance Grant Value

Adjusted Net M&O Digest 165,094,214 166,223,870 140,805,636 149,459,647 155,260,282 183,243,778

Gross M&O Millage 11.000 10.957 10.957 10.957 10.957 10.957

Less Rollbacks

Net M&O Millage 11.000 10.957 10.957 10.957 10.957 10.957

Total City Taxes Levied $1,816,036 $1,821,315 $1,542,807 $1,637,629 $1,701,187 $2,007,802

Net Taxes $ Increase $5,279 -$278,508 $94,822 $63,558 $306,615

Net Taxes % Increase 0.29% -15.29% 6.15% 3.88% 18.02%

NOTICE OF TAX INCREASEAnd 5 Year History of Levy

The Governing Authority of the City of Avondale Estates has tentatively adopted a 2015 millage rate which willrequire an increase in the property taxes by 16.53 percent. All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearingson this tax increase to be held at City Hall, 21 North Avondale Plaza, Avondale Estates, GA 30002 on Tuesday,June 16, 2015 at 5:30 P.M., Monday, June 22, 2015 at 7:30 P.M., and Wednesday July 1, 2015 at 6:00 P.M.This tentative increase will result in a millage rate of 10.957 mills, an increase of 1.56 mills. Without this tentativetax increase, the millage rate will be no more than 9.403 mills. The proposed tax increase for a home with a fairmarket value of $200,000.00 is approximately $312. The proposed increase on non-homestead property with a fairmarket value of $200,000 is approximately $312. The proposed tax increase for a property with the county basichomestead exemption is $312.

dekalbsymphonyorchestra

a Free Community Concert

Tuesday, June 9First Baptist Church308 Clairemont Avenue

Decatur: 8:00 P.M.No tickets required

Featuring Soloist

Susan Welty playing

Horn Concerto

No. 1 by Strauss.

Presents

Also on the program: Serenade No. 10 for Winds by Mozart and Toccata & Fugue in D Minor by

Bach (arranged Stokowski)

For addional informaon call (678) 891-3565

or visit DeKalbSymphony.org

Sponsored in part by:

more than anything,my compassion, mycommitment, my caring tohis area to making it better.”

Kenneth Saunders III,a technology consultant andormer DeKalb Community

Council member, describedhimsel as a product oDeKalb County.

“Many o you all do notknow who I am, but that’sine,” he said.

“My commitment tohis county runs deep,”

Saunders said. “he reasonwhy is because this is myhome. Even though there areproblems that this countyand] this district has, I amhe voice or the uture. I

have the vision o whereDeKalb County needs to go,

not only or my generation,but or everyone.

“his is a critical timethat we have.”

George Turner, District5 Community Councilpresident and a retired

MARA manager, said“here are some things weneed to ix to make [DeKalb]better—that’s going to bein our education, publicsaety, code enorcement—to attract economicdevelopment to this area.

“hese are the things Iwant to see happen to ourDeKalb and the DeKalb Iwant to see passed on to mychildren and your childrenso they will have a brighteruture,” urner said.

“We know what needs

to be ixed,” he said. “Ithink I’m in the positionto communicate with theaverage citizen and deal withthe government oicialsto correct some o theproblems.”

Mereda Davis Johnson, attorney and wieo Congressman Hank

Johnson, did not participatein the orum because oa amily emergency. Shebriely spoke to the audiencebeore the orum started.

“I want you to know, andI came here beore I went

to the hospital because…Ido not take your vote orgranted,” Johnson said

Vaughn Irons, DeKalbCounty DevelopmentAuthority chairman andCEO o APD Solutions, wasa no-show.

he special election toill the District 5 vacancy

will be held on Tuesday,June 16.

District 5 Continued From Page 2A

CITY OF DORAVILLEPUBLIC NOTICE

Fiscal Year 2016 BudgetNotice is hereby given that the proposed budget for the City of Doraville shall be available forpublic 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 ParkAvenue, Doraville, GA before the Mayor and Council of the City of Doraville at which time publiccomment pertaining to the Fiscal Year 2016 (July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016) budget shall besounded. 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 ParkAvenue, Doraville, GA before the Mayor and Council of the City of Doraville at which time publiccomment pertaining to the Fiscal Year 2016 (July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016) budget shall besounded. 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 ParkAvenue, Doraville, GA before the Mayor and Council of the City of Doraville at which time theFiscal Year 2016 (July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016) budget shall be approved and the budgetordinance adopted in accordance with O.C.G.A. 36-81-5. All citizens of Doraville are invited toattend.

NOTICE OF MEETING OF THE ATLANTA CITY COUNCIL TO ADOPT ATLANTA’S FISCAL

YEAR 2016 BUDGET

Notice is hereby given that the Atlanta City Council will meet on Monday, June 15, 2015 to

consider and adopt the City of Atlanta’s fiscal year 2016 budget (15-O-1136). The meeting will be

held at the Atlanta City Hall Complex, 55 Trinity Avenue, Atlanta, Georgia in the City Council

Chamber located on the second floor beginning at 1:00 p.m. All concerned citizens are invited to

attend. A copy of the proposed budget legislation (15-O-1136) is on file in the Office of the

Municipal Clerk, Suite 5100, Fifth Floor, 68 Mitchell Street, Atlanta, Ga. 30303 for public

inspection.

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The Champion Free Press, Friday, June 5, 2015 PAGE 18AEDUCATION

NOTICE OF PROPERTY TAX INCREASE

The Decatur City Commission has tentatively adopted a combinedmillage rate of 12.00 mills which will require an increase in propertytaxes of 5.08% for fiscal year 2015-2016. This is a reduction from the

millage rate of 13 mills adopted for the current fiscal year 2014-2015which generates revenue necessary to fund the City of Decatur’sgeneral operations, bonded indebtedness, downtown developmentauthority and capital improvements.

All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearing on this taxincrease to be held at the City Commission Meeting Room, DecaturCity Hall, 509 N. McDonough Street, Decatur, on Monday, June 15,2015 at 7:30 p.m. This tentative increase will result in a millage rateof 12.00 mills, an increase of 0.58 mills over the rollback millage rate.Without this tentative tax increase, the millage rate will be no more

than 11.42 mills. The proposed tax increase for a home with a fairmarket value of $400,000 is approximately $104.40 and the proposedtax increase for a nonhomestead property with a fair market value of$425,000 is approximately $111.65.

by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

For the past ninemonths chemist Dexter

Johnson has led ScienceSaturday at E.L. Bouie El-ementary School.

On May 16, Johnsonended the irst year o theprogram and held a un dayto celebrate.

Johnson partnered withBig hinkers, a scienceexploration company thatprovides entertainment andinteractive science shows to“urther expose students toun ways to use science.”

Johnson said, “his isour irst year with this pro-gram and the response has

been tremendous.”“When we irst started

talking about this program,we just wanted to get kidsexcited about science at ayounger age, and I eel likewe’ve done that,” he said.

At the event Johnsonhosted a rale or ive sci-ence kits that he createdor the students to recreateprojects they worked onduring the school year.

Parents o students whodid not win a science kitwere emailed instructions

and supply lists or assign-ments to do with their chil-dren throughout the sum-mer break.

“We’re really just trying

to promote literacy in sci-ence and get them excitedabout science. I think theearlier you can reach themthe better it’s going to be

or them. I try to ind unthings or the kids to do,but I’m also trying to teachthem something. I’m kindo sneaky in the teachingpart. I’m getting them ex-cited about the un part, butthey’re also learning. I’mimpressed with them everytime I come out,” Johnsonsaid.

Johnson started theprogram ater participatingin his son’s career day. He’sworked or Georgia-Paciic’spaper chemicals divisionor 18 years and thought it

would be interesting to con-duct a paper-making dem-onstration.

Johnson’s career-daydemonstration was such ahuge hit, teachers asked himto come back to present tothe entire school over thecourse o three days.

Johnson contacted andrequested support rom theGP Foundation, Georgia Pa-ciic’s organization designedto support community-based programs, volunteerservice projects, disaster re-

lie and other initiatives.he oundation evalu-ates proposals and deter-mines an amount to donateto each program.

Students have fun learning at Science SaturdaysJohnson and his col-

league volunteers decidedto dedicate one Saturday amonth and were awarded$5,000 to buy supplies, and

provide lunch or the stu-dent.Parent Gina Sullivan

said her son has thoroughlyenjoyed Science Saturdays.

She said, “His interestin science has grown even

more, and I didn’t think thatcould happen.”

he irst Science Satur-day was attended by 65 stu-dents. he inal event o the

school year was attended byapproximately 55.In its irst year the pro-

gram has partnered with en-gineer instructors at GeorgiaInstitute o echnology,Emory University students

and participated in AtlantaScience Festival.

he GP Foundation hasincreased Science Saturdayunding to $7,500.

Johnson said next yearhe plans to partner witheven more organizationsand add a session on robot-ics.

Students gather in the auditorium for a science demonstration by BigThinkers.

Volunteers grilled burgers and hotdogs for the science fun day event.

A science kit with a step-by-step instructionsmanual created by chemist Dexter Johnson forthe kids to practice science concepts during thesummer.

Students from Bouie Elementary School participatedin this year’s Atlanta Science Festival and receivedawards at the science fun day for their commitment toscience

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The Champion Free Press, Friday, June 5, 2015 Page 19ABUSINESS

Partners raise the bar on local fitness options

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

by Kathy Mitchell

Katy Bayless Gibson said she believes that the it-ness industry is continuingo grow as it changes to meet

consumer needs.“We’ve seen that cus-

omers are losing interest inhe year-long contracts with

mega gyms and are insteadooking to boutique itness

studios that oer a custom-zed workout in a small

setting,” said Gibson who,with partner Ashley Goot,recently opened Pure BarreDecatur, one o more than300 studios in the Spartan-burg, S.C.-based Pure Barrenational chain.

“Our studios allow amaximum o 25 clients per

class, and this ensures thatour teachers are able to geto know our clients person-

ally and work with them toachieve their itness goals.Our teachers circulate theroom, ensure our clients aren proper orm, and push

our clients with hands-onadjustments so that they aregetting the most out o everyworkout,” Gibson continued.

Barre-based workoutsuse a ballet bar along withsmall isometric movementso music. However, not all

barre-based workouts arehe same, Gibson explained.

“Pure Barre is dierentrom other such programsbecause o the techniqueand the environment. PureBarre technique ocuseson the arms, abs, seat andhigh areas o the body.

We work each area to thepoint o exhaustion, andhen we stretch the muscleso ensure tha

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