This year, the Cobb County Police Department has been blessed with a remarkable “baby boom,” with over 30 officers welcoming new additions to their families so far in 2024.
Among these joyful new parents, some officers even met their significant others within the department, building their careers and families together.
In the spirit of Halloween, this group photo captures about a third of these proud officers holding their newborns, each dressed in adorable Halloween costumes.
The Cobb County Police Department is honored to share this joyous time and celebrates the officers who work tirelessly to protect and serve. Congratulations to all the new parents!
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Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up and you’re good to go!
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Last week The Playroom East Cobb, a “children’s gym” catering to youngsters with developmental differences, opened to the public and held a grand opening.
The Playroom is located at 1344 East Cobb Drive, Suite 200. Among the features of the 3,600-square-foot space are a climate-controlled space with play structures, activities, toys and therapy facilities for children with autism, sensory challenges and ADHD.
Owner and founder Stephanie Fisher, an East Cobb resident, said she was inspired to create the space in response to challenges she faced in finding play spaces for her own children that weren’t overstimulating.
She and her husband Nate are the parents of two boys, Jackson and Greyson.
“We designed The Playroom for kids, but as a mom, parents were always on the top of my mind,” Fisher said. “So, we made it easy to watch your kids. We wanted a place where parents could play with their kids, but also be able to drop them off when they needed a break. And it needed to be affordable enough that they could bring their children regularly. We knew that having the therapists on site will be incredibly valuable for the families that need them.”
The Playroom also has a therapy suite and gym for professionals such as speech therapists, counselors, and occupational therapists, who will provide care and classes for children and parents.
Fisher said the age range for children are infants through elementary school, and The Playroom is available for open play, private birthday parties, special classes programs and related activities.
Play sessions last up to 90 minutes and there are various individual and family membership rates. For more information, click here.
The Downtown Pooch opens at PMV
A pet boutique shop, The Downtown Pooch, has opened at Paper Mill Village (255 Village Parkway, Suite 134), across from Hot Dogs Cool Cats.
The doors opened officially on Monday, and it’s the second location of the Roswell-based pet retailer, which provides a range of products and services, including “wholistic pet cuisine,”
A grand opening is set for Saturday, Nov. 2. For information, contact hello@thedowntownpooch.com.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
It’s starting to feel a little like the fall, with some windy weather over the weekend.
But the week of Halloween in the East Cobb area will continue to be unseasonably warm, according to the National Weather Service.
The local forecast calls for more sunny and partly sunny days with high temperatures in the mid- to high 70s, and lows around 60 most nights.
Wednesday and Thursday (Halloween) will be the warmest, with highs reaching 80 degrees during the day.
Conditions will be more cloudy toward the end of the week and through the weekend, with highs remaining in the 70s as Daylight Saving Time ends on Saturday.
According to the National Weather Service in Peachtree City, metro Atlanta has gone without rain for 29 consecutive days.
If the rain holds off through Halloween, the area will experience the first completely dry month on record, dating back to 1878.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Cobb residents can vote ahead of the Nov. 5 general this week during weekday hours at 12 locations in the county.
They include the East Cobb Government Service Center (4400 Lower Roswell Road, above) and the Tim D. Lee Senior Center (3332 Sandy Plains Road), which have been two of the most popular early polling stations in the county over the past two weeks.
The early voting hours are from 7-7 Monday-Friday; unlike the last two weeks, there will be no weekend early voting.
In addition, there will be an absentee drop box available at the East Cobb Government Service Center that’s open during early voting hours.
To check the estimated wait-times at each of the 12 locations, click here. You can vote at any location in Cobb regardless of where you live in the county.
Here are the other locations, with dropbox availability noted by an asterisk:
Ben Robertson Community Center (2753 Watts Drive, Kennesaw)
* Boots Ward Recreation Center (4845 Dallas Highway, Powder Springs)
Collar Park Community Center (2625 Joe Jerkins Blvd., Austell)
Fair Oaks Recreation Center (1465 West Booth Road Extention, Marietta)
* North Cobb Senior Center (3900 Main St., Acworth)
Ron Anderson Recreation Center (3820 Macedonia Road, Powder Springs)
* Smyrna Community Center (1290 Powder Springs St., Smyrna)
* South Cobb Community Center (620 Lions Club Drive, Mableton)
West Cobb Regional Library (1750 Dennis Kemp Lane, Kennesaw)
Voters must bring a valid photo ID with them to the polls (click here for details). For more early voting information in Cobb, click here.
More than 200,000 votes have been cast in Cobb, most of them in-person, nearly 40 percent of the registered voters, as early voting continues to set records across the state.
UPDATED, 3 p.m. Monday: The Secretary of State’s office said Monday that 2.73 million early votes have been cast, 40 percent of all registered voters in Georgia.
Voters who will be voting on election day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, will go to their assigned precincts. To check your voter registration status, and to get a customized sample ballot, visit the Georgia Secretary of State’s My Voter Page.
All absentee ballots must be received by mail at the Cobb Elections Office or at a designated dropbox by 7 p.m. on Nov. 5.
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There are still Saturday and Sunday totals to be added, but Cobb Elections is saying that through Friday, a grand total of 197,.548 ballots have been cast in the first two weeks of early voting for the 2024 general elections.
The Georgia Secretary of State’s office Election Data Hub reports that that’s nearly 40 percent of Cobb’s registered voters, with six more days of early voting plus election day on Nov. 5.
Voting continues from Sunday 12-5, but at limited locations. The East Cobb Government Service Center (4400 Lower Roswell Road) will be among them.
That will be the last weekend day for early voting. Next week, early voting will be Monday-Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m at 12 locations, including the East Cobb Government Service Center and the Tim D. Lee Senior Center (3332 Sandy Plains Road).
You can also drop off an absentee ballot at the East Cobb Government Service Center during early voting hours.
Those are also record figures statewide, as Georgia remains in play in the presidential race. Both the Harris and Trump campaigns will continue to appear in the state and metro Atlanta in the final week.
Across the state, more than 2.5 million votes have been cast, reflecting a turnout of nearly 50 percent of registered voters in Georgia.
Cobb Elections figures show that of those early votes already cast, 7,750 are absentee ballots that have been mailed in, out of nearly 12,000 returned. More than 27,000 absentee ballots have been requested as of Friday, the deadline for doing so.
Here are the individual breakdowns through Friday at each of the early voting locations.
Tim D. Lee Senior Center: 26,953
Smyrna Community Center: 23,871
East Cobb Government Service Center: 21,261
Cobb Elections Office: 21,242
Ben Robertson Community Center: 17,098
South Cobb Community Center: 16,611
Boots Ward Recreation Center: 16,108
North Cobb Senior Center: 13,715
Ron Anderson Recreation Center: 12,202
West Cobb Regional Library: 11,411
Collar Park Community Center: 6,213
Fair Oaks Recreation Center: 5,112
For more early voting information in Cobb, click here. Voters must bring a valid photo ID with them to the polls (click here for details).
To check your voter registration status, and to get a customized sample ballot, visit the Georgia Secretary of State’s My Voter Page.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
In response to the devastating impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton across the Southeast, Lutheran Church of the Resurrection (LCR) has launched a community-wide fundraiser, “Compassionate Community Response: A Fundraiser to Support Those Affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton.”
To jumpstart the campaign, LCR is seeding $20,000 from its mission fund and they are calling on the local community to join them in expanding the impact of this gift. After two weeks, a total of $25,490 has been raised with a goal of at least $40,000. Every donation will go directly to 3 trusted organizations providing on-the-ground relief for those affected by these natural disasters including Inspiritus, Lutheran Disaster Response, and the Southeastern Synod Disaster Ministry.
“This is a chance for us to come together and demonstrate the compassion and generosity of our local community. We’ve seen firsthand the destruction these storms have caused, and we want to extend tangible love and support to those who need it most,” said Andy Minard, one of the leaders of LCR.
How to Donate: Visit lcrmarietta.org/compassion to make a secure contribution, mail a check with “Hurricane Relief” in the memo, or stop by our office at 4814 Paper Mill Road SE, Marietta, GA 30067.
Together, we can extend love, support, and hope to our neighbors in their time of greatest need.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Cobb and Douglas Public Health said Friday that around 300 students and staff at Walton High School will have to undergo testing for tuberculosis next week.
Valerie Crow, director of communications for the agency, said in response to an inquiry by East Cobb News Friday afternoon that the testing will take place Tuesday at the school.
Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection that is spread by germs through the air and attacks the lungs and other parts of the body.
Crow said there is one confirmed case of tuberculosis at Walton “and not an outbreak,” but she couldn’t provide more specifics due to federal student privacy laws.
Walton has an enrollment of nearly 2,700 students, one of the largest in the Cobb school district.
Crow said her agency and Cobb County School District staff identified those who may have been exposed and will be administering a mandatory Tuberculin Skin Test (TST) on Tuesday.
She said that “even though the risk is very minimal, Cobb & Douglas Public Health (CDPH) is offering every precaution as recommended by the State of Georgia TB Guidelines.”
Cobb and Douglas Public Health is an agency of the Georgia Department of Public Health.
Crow said those individuals who need to be tested but don’t do so at school Tuesday will be required to get tested by a private doctor.
“They will be responsible to provide a written report on physician’s office letterhead verifying the test was completed, with the date, and test result before they will be permitted to return to school,” Crow said.
She said a positive test means someone has “been exposed to someone with active tuberculosis,” and that all of those who have a positive reaction “will have a chest x-ray to rule out active disease.”
Crow said that if the test x-ray is negative, “they will be offered preventative medication. If the chest x-ray is positive, they will be treated for the disease.”
She provided a link to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control that explains TB exposure in more detail, and “especially the ‘what to expect if you have been named as a contact of someone with active TB disease’ section.”
At least one private pediatric practice in East Cobb has notified patients about the matter, saying that “we understand that receiving this letter could be distressing for your family but want to reassure you that the Department of Public Health will be appropriately screening for any potential infection.
“We ask that you please cooperate with their efforts to make sure your student is properly monitored post-exposure.”
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“Rob” speaking to the Cobb Board of Education on Oct 18, is the founder of an intelligence firm working with the Cobb County School District.
The Cobb County School District’s new partner on safety issues is an intelligence firm that wasn’t identified last week when making a presentation about the new plans before the Cobb Board of Education.
The AJC on Friday revealed the company is the Servius Group, and its CEO and founder is Rob Sarver, and also reported that the district has confirmed that information.
At the meeting last week, the district wouldn’t say how much money it’s spending, but Friday told the newspaper it has has spent less than $200,000 on a non-contractual basis.
At the Oct. 18 school board meeting, four intelligence officials, including a man who identified himself only as “Rob” (above) , who said he was a former Navy SEAL, broadly outlined services they’ll be provide in what Superintendent Chris Ragsdale said would be a long-term association.
They include scraping social media accounts and using a bevy of behavioral indicators to detect possible threats and risks before they happen.
Other efforts involve counterintelligence techniques as well as employing data science and machine-learning components.
While the new partnership came about in the wake of the deadly shooting at Apalachee High School, the new measures are also designed to address gang activity, cyberviolence and other safety threats.
The AJC reported Friday that “the district said Servius would only get basic school directory information such as what schools share with the companies that produce yearbooks, textbooks and diplomas.”
The company has conducted risk assessments at three unidentified schools in the Cobb district and will be conducting others on all campuses, according to Ragsdale’s remarks last week.
The report said Sarver confirmed that information and said that Servius has worked with schools “elsewhere in the U.S. and abroad.”
Servius Group is based in Florida but there’s little other public information available. A domain name tied to the company is parked with no additional content.
Ragsdale said last week that most of the funding for the intelligence firm will come from previously budgeted sources and a state school safety grant.
The Georgia legislature this year approved an amount of $47,124 per school in state funding to be used for security initiatives.
On Thursday, State Rep. Devan Seabaugh, a Republican from Marietta, issued a release saying that after brainstorming with Ragsdale about the issue, “I was able to connect the superintendent with highly trained intelligence officials I’ve collaborated with on other projects to explore how cutting-edge technology might be utilized to proactively identify potential threats to school safety.”
“It is certainly a step in the right direction in helping keep our kids, teachers and staff safe, and along with the safety measures already in place I think this approach could serve as a model program for other school districts across the state.”
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Here’s an update to our report from last month about the temporary closure of the entrance to the Johnson Ferry North trail, due to repairs.
The entrance is at 301 Johnson Ferry Road, just north of the Chattahoochee River, and across from the entrance to Columns Drive
Reader Bob sent us the following report and the map above:
With the closure of JF North, I started running the trail from the Hyde Farm side. There was a point on the trail that linked back to the Johnson Ferry North parking lot that had been blocked off with netting to prevent anyone from using that section, but today when I ran, that netting no longer existed. I noted the section below that had been blocked off previously that is now reopened. At the point where I turned around, there was still work going on but I probably could have gotten all the way to the JF North parking lot if I had wanted to.
The closures lasted a little more than the month anticipated by the National Park Service and was to construct a new culvert.
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Cobb school superintendent Chris Ragsdale with teacher of the year recipients Jamiliah Weathersby (L) of East Cobb Middle School and Evan Howard of Mabry Middle School.
The Cobb County School District gathered school-level teacher of the year honorees this week at Wheeler High School for a celebration.
The event took place in Wildcat Arena, as students from some of the schools cheered on the teachers in a pep-rally format.
They included Karen Wright, the Cobb school district’s teacher of the year, from Big Shanty Elementary School.
Here are the individual teachers of the year from schools in East Cobb:
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Cobb government this afternoon said water service is out temporarily in some neighborhoods in East Cobb along Johnson Ferry Road due to emergency repairs.
The neighborhoods include River Hill, below Lower Roswell and near Powers Road.
There was no estimate for when water service may be restored to the area, but the message from the county said “water crews are working to make repairs as fast as possible.”
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How many times has a first responder positively impacted your life without you even realizing it? Probably more times than you can count. Recently, the Janice Overbeck Real Estate Team hosted three events in one week focused on the mental health of our local heroes to thank them for their services.
On October 9th, Janice opened her office’s front doors to all Firefighters, Police, Sheriff’s Deputy, Veterans, and local community heroes alike for the semi-annual First Responders Appreciation Lunch. These heroes were hungry for barbeque and appreciation, being the largest turnout of the semi-annual lunch in five years. Sitting down with officers who put their lives on the line every day, Janice heard their stories, laughed with them, and offered the well-deserved rest from protecting our community.
Leftover sweets from the event were not wasted, instead delivered to the Cherokee County 911 center, one of the first 911 Centers in the nation to create a foundation specifically for the mental health and overall nutritionment of the dispatchers.
The Cherokee County 911 Center has even adopted an office dog, named Ruby, to help lighten the emotional weight of the difficult conversations they face daily. Emergency operators are an often neglected aspect of crisis responding, but with this 501(c)(3) foundation, the community can give back to those on call for us 24/7. GA Senator John Albers explains that other public safety offices have established foundations for officers in times of need, which is revolutionary for the holistic health of first responders.
“Let’s say a dispatcher gets cancer, this is where we can help them out personally and internally.” The foundation acknowledges a budget gap hindering the ability to rightly serve our first responders in their times of need without additional tax burdens.
Janice also interviewed U.S. Congressman Rich McCormick about the lack of first responder mental health awareness that exists at the “Fireside Chat” on October 15th.
As an ER Doctor and a U.S. Marine, Congressman McCormick has a vital perspective on the physical and mental challenges first responders face on a daily basis. Working with community members, business owners like Janice Overbeck, and a U.S. Congressman was a great start to serve our local heroes and make lasting change in Metro Atlanta. This change can take form through policy initiative, supporting foundations, or simply saying thank you to a local hero.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Halloween really is around the corner, even if the weather feels like late summer. This weekend’s events in and around East Cobb are celebrations of the season.
They are headlined by the Boo Bash at Avenue East Cobb (4475 Roswell Road) from 11-2 on Saturday. Family-oriented fun presented by the retail center and East Cobb Church includes live music, costume party, trick or treating and all kinds of roaming entertainment. It’s free to all.
If you still want more Halloween fun, there will be a Trunk or Treat from 3-5 Saturday at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection (4814 Paper Mill Road) that’s also free and open to the public. In addition to decorated trunks, there will be games, candy, and kid-friendly spooky tunes on the church’s organ and piano.
On Friday, you’re invited to a Hispanic Heritage Festival from 4:30-6 in the courtyard at Walton High School (1590 Bill Murdock Road). Organized by the Walton Spanish Club, festivities include performances, cuisines, and booths, exhibiting different Hispanic countries. Admission is $5, payable in cash at the door.
Gorgeous weather is in store all weekend, including Sunday’s Music in the Park xoncert from 4-6 at East Cobb Park (3322 Roswell Road). It’s the last of the fall concert series, and features students from the Bach to Rock music school.
You can bring food and drink, a blanket and chairs and enjoy the sounds from the back concert shell.
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Cobb Police said Tuesday said they’re continuing to investigate the death of a man in a house fire in Northeast Cobb last week.
Police said Kevin Huff, 66, was found deceased when first responders arrived at the scene of the fire in the 4700 block of Jamerson Forest Circle on Friday night.
According to police, Cobb Fire and Emergency Services arrived at the scene, as did the Cobb Medical Examiner’s Office, and investigators found “no obvious signs of foul play.”
But the police Major Crimes Investigation Unit is conducting an investigation into the cause of the fire.
According to Cobb property tax records, Huff was the owner of the home in question, which was located in a neighborhood off Jamerson Road and near Kell High School.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Cobb Police at 770-499-3945.
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Linda Agnello dropping off donated quilts and other items at a quilting shop in North Carolina.
The East Cobb Quilters’ Guild is holding its annual community service meeting Friday at the Catholic Church of St. Ann (4905 Roswell Road), and will be announcing that more than 3,500 quilts and other items will be donated to local charities and organizations.
As this was being planned, Hurricane Helene swept through the North Carolina mountains, causing massive devastation.
Here’s how a local couple responded to help those in need in that hard-hit area, and in particular a sister quilting guild in Asheville:
“Imagine setting up our quilt show, expecting the show to open the next morning. Instead, you awake to widespread devastation for miles around. That was the reality for the Asheville Quilt Guild on September 26 when Hurricane Helene left its mark.
“Steve and Linda Agnello have been in touch with the Asheville quilt show chair. Her request was not for donations for the Guild, which she believes will be fine. The guild wants contributions ‘to go to help the people in the area, NOT [the] guild.’
“The Asheville Guild extends thanks for your care and concern. Please remember that recovery will be an extended process for the region and the people living there.
“Help is also needed here in Georgia and in our surrounding states. There are many fine organizations delivering much-needed help. One organization with a wide reach is the United Way. Online donations can be made here. You can select the state to which your funds will be sent.
“Donations of finished quilts will be collected at the October meeting. Steve and Linda will collect and arrange delivery of quilts to a quilt store or other agency in the area that is distributing quilts to those people most affected by Helene.”
If you want to help, click here for information on how to donate to the Western North Carolina area. There are links for financial contributions and information on how to donate quilts.
Here’s a brief rundown of some of the local donations to be made at Friday’s event:
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta – Bereavement Diapers, Scent Pads
Northside Hospital – Scent Pads
Cobb Schools Homeless Education Program – Flannel Blankets
Cobb County Meals on Wheels – Placemats
Ryan’s Case for Smiles – Pillowcases
Cobb Division of Family & Children Services – Quilts
Cobb Family Advocacy Center – Quilts
Barbara Crafton Center for Women at the Extension – Quilts
Quilts Across American with Tiny Stitches Quilt Shop – Quilts
For more on the East Cobb Quilters’ Guild community service work, click here.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Georgia’s largest Veteran Resource Fair will take place in less than ten days at the Cobb County Civic Center. Please take a moment and share this reminder with everyone you know.
What: Free benefit and resource fair for all currently and previously serving Veterans, families, National Guard, Reservists, Caregivers, and Survivors. Over 100 professional, vetted organizations will be on hand to answer questions and help get you the benefits you earned and the respect you deserve. The VA and GA Dept. of Veteran Services will be on hand to enroll you into VA healthcare, submit claims, file appeals, and more!
Frequently Asked Questions?
A. Admission and parking price?
Both admission and parking are free. All services are free to include free haircuts, eye exams, and lunch as supplies last. There is no selling or requests for donations.
B. Must the Veteran live in Cobb County?
All Veterans and service members regardless of where they live are invited to attend.
C. Do I need to make an appointment?
You do not need to make an appointment with any VA or GA Dept. of Veteran Services personnel. Veterans will be seen on a first come first served basis. You do need to make an appointment for legal assistance which can be done by clicking here for free estate planning (will, power of attorney, and advanced health care directive) and clicking here for an appointment with Veteran Attorneys to discuss appeals or denied claims.
D. Can families of service members or Veterans attend?
Absolutely! Join us to better understand what benefits your family or Veteran are eligible for to include aging benefits.
E. Is the Fair for current or recent Veterans only?
All Veterans who wore the cloth of the United States of America, regardless of wartime or peace time service are encouraged to attend to learn about the latest new benefits.
F. Is there anyone I can call if I have questions?
Yes! Please feel free to contact United Military Care at 770-973-0014 or email us at info@unitedmilitarycare.org – we are here to help.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
To his patients in and around East Cobb, he’s Dr. Brian Nadolne. But in Kosovo this spring and summer, Lt. Col. Brian Nadolne served with the 48th Brigade of the Georgia National Guard.
Dr. Nadolne was part of a U.S.-led NATO group at Camp Bondsteel, teaching fellow medical professionals.
“It was overall a good experience, and I think I represented Northside really well,” he said. “I think the mission, which is basically to maintain peace there, was a huge success.”
“I said, ‘What else is there? What else can I do?’” He got his answer with the Georgia National Guard, where he found a leadership position that gave him the chance to represent fellow physicians.
“They needed family docs especially,” he said. “I joined and then in ’19 I was deployed to Iraq. I was in Camp Al Asad for three months and then a couple of years later, they needed me to go to Kosovo.”
While Dr. Nadolne was at Al Asad, the airbase sustained a ballistic missile strike in retaliation for the U.S. drone strike five days earlier that killed Iraq Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Quds force.
More than 100 troops were diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries as a result.
“That was scary,” Dr. Nadolne said. “We always had our weapons with us. That was a much different deployment. We were always under threat of trauma.
“Even though it was a combat mission (to Kosovo), there was never really threat of combat.”
At Bondsteel, Dr. Nadolne taught search-and-rescue operations and the importance of speaking to patients.
“Don’t just jump to technology,” he said. “Technology’s important but I think there’s an overreliance on it.”
And he said there are lessons in return for the American medical professionals who go overseas with the military, like him.
“I think Army medical in general teaches you to think outside the box,” Dr. Nadolne said. “God forbid we have a major problem here, like a terrorist attack, you already have doctors in the Georgia National Guard that are already doing a lot of field medicine, how to deal with triaging.
“It kind of keeps you on your toes, with the importance of the true practice of medicine.”
Dr. Nadolne also served as the de facto brigade surgeon for troops in the Balkans.
“That was really nice,” he said. “Here, back at the 48th, I had been a battalion surgeon back in Cumming. Now I’m going to be the brigade surgeon out of Macon. My role’s going to change to be a little more operational.”
Outside his Guard service, Dr. Nadolne sees patients at the practice at 1121 Johnson Ferry Road, Suite 100, in Marietta. He’s accepting new patients.
He thanked Dr. Amy Fallen and Rebecca Davis, CNP, for helping carry the load at home in his absence, as well as office manager Shalonda Burks and the East Cobb Family Medicine staff.
And Dr. Nadolne said Northside was supportive of his service.
“While I was gone, I nominated Steve Hudson (Northside’s director of physician and strategic development) for a Patriot Award,” Dr. Nadolne said. “I nominated him because I could not have done this without Steve Hudson. He supported me. He’s a former Marine. He supported me 100 percent, which means Northside supports me 100 percent.”
Dr. Nadolne said his work with the Guard is about more than seeing patients, but about serving Georgia.
“I feel like I represent Northside when I’m out there,” he said, “and I mean it.
“Because I treat patients like that, we’ve had a large influx of patients who’ve come because they’ve gotten to know me at the battalion level. I could not have done it without Northside and Steve Hudson.”
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Cobb commissioners on Tuesday heard about proposed code changes regarding secondary housing units on residential properties.
At a work session, Cobb officials presented language that would create accessory dwelling units (or ADUs) that could be built in a residential backyard (you can read the proposal here).
The small units—of up to 850 square feet, with a limi of one unit per lot—are seen as a way to provide more affordable housing.
Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said that ADUs wouldn’t be a “panacea,” but what’s been proposed, she added, “are lower-bar considerations for addressing housing affordability in Cobb County.”
The proposed code changes also would alter the definition of a family, permitting up to three unrelated adults (the current limit is two) and up to six children.
The proposed Cobb ordinance would require an ADU to be permanently structured and hooked up to utilities serving the primary home. It could be detached, but it must be in a backyard area only.
The property owner also must live on the premises and the smaller unit could not be used as a short-term rental. An ADU must meet existing setback and impervious surface limits
In addition, a homeowner wishing to add an ADU would have to obtain a special-land use permit from the county, according to a revision that went out to commissioners on Monday.
Another measure would increase the maximum parking for five cars (currently limited to four) in a driveway or garage and another vehicle off-street.
But Republican commissioners JoAnn Birrell and Keli Gambrill questioned much of the language in the proposal as well as the the number of unrelated adults and vehicles on a single property.
They reflected concerns that the single-family nature of many areas of the county would be dramatically altered with ADUs.
The current code allows for such home renovations as in-law suites and converting basements into separate living units that must be permitted by the county.
The proposed code amendments are set for public hearings and possible approval in November, but Gambrill wants the county to hold off for “at least the next year” to allow homeowners associations the time to sort through how restrictive covenants may for such purposes be conflict with ADUs.
There also are issues over whether a property with an ADU would be able to claim a second homestead exemption from property taxes.
Birrell, whose District 3 in East Cobb is heavily single-family residential, called the proposal “a bad idea to do, period. We’ve been flooded with e-mails in opposition. I’m glad we’re having this discussion today but I think a lot of the perception may be wore than it is. I’m not supporting this. It doesn’t make sense.
“If somebody wants to add on to their home, they can do that now,” she said. “We get zonings all the time that are way too dense, have 10 variances, and they could still get approved.”
Gambrill, who represents District 1 in north and west Cobb, added that “a statistic was given to me that 85 percent of eligible properties for these ADUs” are in Districts 1 and 3.
Commissioner Jerica Richardson of East Cobb, who recently had a baby, was not present at the work session.
Commissioner Monique Sheffield of South Cobb said that “I appreciate that we’re having this conversation” and she also has heard from constituents concerned about the proposal.
“The belief is that we’re going to create rental units behind single-family residences,” she said. “This is not that. Hopefully the perception and the understanding will be different.”
Cupid said that “I understand the concerns but I don’t perceive the need to wait for a whole year to get some answers on some things.
“The way that people are living is changing, and housing affordability is changing,” she said. “This is one tool and I don’t know how robust of a tool this is compared to other tools.
“You keep several tools available because at some point in time one of them may be helpful for us wanting to fix something. The thing we’re trying to fix is providing places for people to reasonably live in our county.”
The hearings for the proposed code amendments are scheduled for 9 a.m. Nov. 12 and 6 p.m. on Nov. 21, with tentative approval scheduled for the 7 p.m. voting meeting on Nov. 21.
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