Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Yet another placeholder bill is filed for a proposed municipality in unincorporated DeKalb County.
Decatur state Sen. Jason Carter filed a bill in the legislature Thursday that would set up a proposed City of Lavista Hills. The 45-page "placeholder" bill lays out the city's structure in detail except for its boundaries. (A small part of the proposed city would need to be part of Carter's district, however.) Much of the bill seems to mirror another "placeholder" cityhood bill filed by Dunwoody state Sen. Fran Millar on behalf of the Lakeside City Alliance last month. It is not clear how Carter's bill would conflict or coordinate with other cityhood bills in the area, including one from Decatur state Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver that would include the Druid Hills and Briarcliff areas. Catch up on cityhood news: Oliver Files Cityhood Bill for…
Monday, March 25, 2013
The bill, which does not include a map, would allow for discussion among Mary Margaret Oliver's constituents, the state representative said.
State Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver filed a bill in the state legislature Monday that she said allows residents in the Druid Hills and Briarcliff areas to discuss and study cityhood over the next year – the first official step toward creating a new city. Oliver's bill, HB 665, does not include a map of a proposed city, and it's short – about two sentences. It does not name a specific area, including Druid Hills, and says it intends only to create a city in DeKalb County. Oliver, D-Decatur, said she did not want to specify an area because she didn't want to limit options. She has been a critic of cityhood movements and new incorporation, particularly in nearby Brookhaven, but said she didn't want her constituents to be "buffaloed into a new …
The state representative said she would file the bill Monday so residents could spend the next year considering it.
State Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver said she will file a "placeholder" bill Monday on behalf of Druid Hills and other communities so they can decide over the next year whether to pursue cityhood. In a legislative newsletter to constituents over the weekend, Oliver, D-Decatur, did not say what other neighborhoods would be included in the bill or what the boundaries for the proposed city would be. From the newsletter: On Monday March 25, MMO will file a “place holder” bill to allow residents of Druid Hills and other neighborhoods the opportunity to decide whether they wish to be consider a new DeKalb County City in the 2014 Session. We anticipate other groups in the Lakeside and Tucker areas will also file similar bills in order to have ongoing …
Sunday, March 24, 2013
The alliance said Tuesday it planned to have the bill filed by Friday. A separate proposal would include the Emory University area and much of Druid Hills.
A bill that would officially start the two-year process of creating a new city around the Lakeside High School area has been delayed, the Lakeside City Alliance said Friday. Mary Kay Woodworth, the alliance's chairman, said Tuesday the placeholder bill was to be filed with the state legislature by Dunwoody state Sen. Fran Millar by the end of the week. But the filing has been delayed, Woodworth said Friday in an email to Patch. She said she wasn't sure about the reasons for the delay because the bill has been handled by former state Rep. Kevin Levitas, another member of the alliance's organizing committee. Levitas and Millar could not be reached for comment. The placeholder bill, if filed by the end of this year's legislative session, …
Friday, March 22, 2013
An alternate proposal for a city of Briarcliff would include the Emory University area and part of Druid Hills.
A bill that would officially start the two-year process of creating a new city around the Lakeside High School area will be filed this week, the Lakeside City Alliance says. The bill, to be filed by Dunwoody state Sen. Fran Millar, will act as a "placeholder" bill and could not be considered by the legislature until next year, said Mary Kay Woodworth, chairman of the alliance, which is studying the creation of a new city of 60,000 residents that would reach from North Druid Hills to western Tucker. The bill could be changed over the next year as the alliance, local officials and other groups debate the merits of cityhood. The process mandated by state law would include a study by the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University …
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Much of Druid Hills and the Emory area are included in the boundaries of the proposed City of Briarcliff.
For two months, many residents in the North Druid Hills-Briarcliff area have been considering a cityhood proposal from the Lakeside City Alliance, which begins in North Druid Hills between I-285 and I-85, runs north to the Mercer University area and east to parts of western Tucker across the Perimeter. But a second group, The North Druid Hills Study Group, has released a second map proposal, now dubbed the "City of Briarcliff" that would include much of the Emory University area and Druid Hills – all the way to the borders of Atlanta and the city of Decatur. The City of Briarcliff proposal would not include any parts of Tucker. [See the attached map for details.] Druid Hills and Emory area residents - what do you think? Do you support …
Sunday, March 17, 2013
The group claims its appeal of a construction permit for the project on North Decatur Road was wrongly dismissed by DeKalb County officials.
Good Growth DeKalb, the group fighting the construction of a Walmart Supercenter in North Decatur, sued DeKalb County on Friday for granting the international retail giant a construction permit. The suit, filed in DeKalb County Superior Court, contends that the county violated its own ordinances when it heard the group's administrative appeal of the permit issuance in January with the Zoning Board of Appeals rather than the Technical Board of Appeals, which Good Growth DeKalb claims is required by county law. The county does not currently have a Technical Board of Appeals. At the February hearing, attorneys with Good Growth DeKalb also said county ordinances related to trucking, trees and hydrology were not followed when the permit was …
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
The new members will be sworn in at 1 pm on Wednesday.
Gov. Nathan Deal announced six new DeKalb school board members on Wednesday morning: Deal announced that the new school board members will be sworn into office at 1 pm on Wednesday afternoon at the DeKalb Board of Education offices. “I have reminded these individuals that we were brought to these circumstances because of issues of governance,” Deal said. “I have implored they work together cooperatively. I’ve also reminded them that we have a new school superintendent and I have every confidence that he will lead the school system forward.” Deal said he examined whether to reinstate any of the six suspended board members, but decided “it would be best to enter into this new process with a clean slate.” Deal also said Interim School …
Saturday, March 9, 2013
The Lakeside City Alliance and the North Druid Hills Study Group will meet on March 19.
Two groups investigating the creation of a new city in the North Druid Hills-Briarcliff area will hold a joint meeting later this month. The Lakeside City Alliance and the North Druid Hills Study Group will answer questions from residents of the Sagamore Hills and Briarcliff Woods civic associations regarding their proposed city plans. From the Briarcliff Woods Civic Association: The Briarcliff Woods Civic Association is joining with Sagamore Hills Civic Association to hold a joint information session where residents may address their questions to the two separate groups who are working toward a city in North DeKalb County. Both the Lakeside Alliance Group and the North Druid Hills Study Group will be present to answer questions on their …
Sunday, March 3, 2013
The sequester officially began Friday night when Congress failed to reach a budget-cutting deal. Are you or somebody you know going to be affected?
Ralph
9:10 pm on Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Leaders in Tucker should wake up and realize it is time oi incorporate, either by joining the purposed city or forming another one. Forming a separate city will result in at least a two year delay with a vote taken in 2016 instead of 2014. A lot can happen in that two years. Time to wake up and make some realistic decisions before matters are tken out of your hands and made for you. You may … more ›