East Cobb Government Archives

Cobb Republicans file bill to redistrict county commission seats

February 2, 2022 3:46 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb GOP BOC redistricting map — *Most of East Cobb would be included in Cobb Commission District 3 (in yellow) in a bill filed by GOP legislators.*

Like they did regarding reapportionment for the Cobb Board of Education, Republican legislators in Cobb County have filed their own map for the redistricting of Board of Commissioner seats that are separate from the county’s legislative delegation leaders.

In HB 1154, filed Tuesday by several GOP House members—including three from East Cobb—both county commissioners representing East Cobb would be drawn into the same district.

*The current boundaries of Cobb commission District 3. For a larger view **click here**.*

(You can read through the bill by clicking here.)

The lead sponsor of the bill is John Carson of Northeast Cobb, and his lines would place most of East Cobb inside District 3, currently held by three-term Republican JoAnn Birrell.

She’s up for re-election in 2022, along with fellow Republican Keli Gambrill of North Cobb.

They both voted against a recommended map drawn by State Rep. Erick Allen, a Smyrna Democrat and the Cobb delegation chairman, that was supported by the commission’s three-Democrat majority.

Birrell said she did not support that map because it has taken out some of her East Cobb precincts.

Like the school board map, the GOP proposal would reduce representation in East Cobb.

Currently, District 2 includes East Cobb north of Powers Ferry Road and east of East Piedmont Road, reaching up through the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford area and including the area around Mabry Park.

That seat has been held since 2021 by Democrat Jerica Richardson, who succeeded three-term Republican Bob Ott, and whose term expires in 2024.

She had been living in the Cumberland-Smyrna area, but last summer moved into a new home off Post Oak Tritt Road.

Under Carson’s bill, that area would be included in the new District 3 (in yellow on the map at the top), which would stretch down to the Powers Ferry Road corridor. District 2 (in pink in the same map) would fall along the I-75 corridor from Kennesaw and through Marietta and retain most of the Cumberland-Vinings-Smyrna areas.

*The current East Cobb portion of District 2. For a larger view **click here**.*

Districts 2 and 3 were redrawn in 2014 to balance population.

Birrell lost some of her Northeast Cobb base in exchange for more areas in and around the city of Marietta. In 2018, she was re-elected with only 51 percent of the vote.

Until 2020, she had been part of a 4-1 Republican majority on the commission. But Richardson defeated GOP candidate Fitz Johnson to succeed the retiring Ott and former commissioner Lisa Cupid ousted GOP chairman Mike Boyce to create a 3-2 Democratic majority.

The Cobb Republican bills aren’t the only ones that would usurp usual county delegation deference in local redistricting.

Typically the full legislature honors the votes of county delegations to redraw local lines. But both the Cobb and Gwinnett delegations have slight Democratic majorities.

GOP lawmakers in Gwinnett have filed similar bills as that once heavily Republican county has swung toward Democrats.

The Cobb Republican bills would go through a similar process, first being heard in a House committee.

HB 1028, the Cobb GOP school board redistricting bill, was revised on Tuesday and has not yet been scheduled for committee consideration.

The Cobb commissioners redistricting bill will have a first reading in the House before being assigned to a committee.

Allen has called a press conference for Thursday morning at the Georgia Capitol to address Cobb redistricting issues.

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 Commission Chairwoman tests positive for COVID-19

February 2, 2022 2:33 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb paid leave county employees

Cobb County government said Wednesday that Lisa Cupid, chairwoman of the Board of Commissioners, is isolating after testing positive for COVID-19.

A social media posting said Cupid got tested at Jim Miller Park “after feeling ill earlier this week” and said her symptoms are improving.

“I can only imagine how people who are not vaccinated deal with this virus,” she said in a statement. “If you have not been vaccinated and boosted, I urge you to do so and if you feel ill please get tested for your sake and others.”

Cupid has been presiding over public meetings in-person at the Cobb government building off the Marietta Square while the rest of her colleagues, county staff and the public have been participating remotely.

She extended a previous emergency declaration through Feb. 22 due to rising COVID-19 transmission in Cobb.

Virtual meetings will continue through mid-February, including next Tuesday’s commission meeting.

On Monday, County Manager Jackie McMorris lifted capacity limits in larger county facilities, but she is keeping a mask mandate in place through the expiration of the emergency declaration.

According to Cobb and Douglas Public Health, the 14-day average of COVID-19 cases in Cobb County is 1,651.

That’s down from a peak of nearly 2,700 in January, but still far above the “high” transmission threshold of 100/100K.

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!

Funeral Mass for Mike Boyce to be livestreamed Wednesday

February 2, 2022 2:08 PMFebruary 2, 2022 12:07 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce

A funeral Mass for former Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce will be livestreamed Thursday morning from South Bend, Ind.

The service begins at 9:30 a.m. at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, and can be viewed by clicking here.

It’s on the campus of the University of Notre Dame, Boyce’s alma mater.

He and his wife Judy had been attending a leadership program there when he was stricken with the first of two strokes on Jan. 14. Boyce died nine days later, after undergoing surgery, at the age of 72.

A message posted Monday on Boyce’s CaringBridge page said that “Judy has been overwhelmed by your outpouring of love and prayers. May God richly bless each and every one of you.”

Another posting on Wednesday said that Boyce, a retired Marine colonel who served 30 years in the Corps, will be interred with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery at a date to be determined.

Boyce, a Republican, served as chairman from 2017-2020 after ousting former chairman Tim Lee.

Boyce, who lived in East Cobb, was an active member of Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church.

A memorial service will be held there on Feb. 18 at 10 a.m.

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!

East Cobb Cityhood bill passes House; Cobb delegation split

January 28, 2022 6:56 PMJanuary 27, 2022 12:41 PM by Wendy Parker

The Georgia House on Thursday voted to approve a bill that would allow for a referendum for a proposed city of East Cobb.

After an hour of debate, the vote was 98-63, and the bill now goes to the Georgia Senate.

East Cobb Republican State Rep. Matt Dollar, the bill’s chief sponsor, voted in favor of the bill, along with other East Cobb Republicans John Carson and Sharon Cooper.

The latter is one of three co-sponsors of the East Cobb Cityhood bill, but was the only one of the trio who did not speak during the floor debate.

(You can watch a replay of the House floor session by clicking here and on the House Chamber Day 8 tab; the East Cobb debate begins around the 1:49 mark).

Voting against the bill was another East Cobb Republican, State Rep. Don Parsons, who said he wasn’t consulted about the legislation, nor has he ever heard anything from a citizens group supporting cityhood since the issue first arose four years ago.

He also objected because doesn’t think the proposed city area—around 60,000 people centered along the Johnson Ferry Road corridor—represents a community of interest.

“There is no city of east Cobb waiting to be incorporated,” he said. “There’s nothing that draws it together as a city.”

Also opposing the bill were Cobb Democrats who wanted all four current Cobb cityhood bills—including Vinings, Mableton and Lost Mountain—to be considered together.

Cobb delegation chairman Erick Allen, a Smyrna Democrat, was among those asking for a delay in an East Cobb vote for that and other reasons.

Among the charges opponents have made against the East Cobb bill would be that its proposed services—police and fire, planning and zoning and code enforcement—would add another layer of government.

But State Rep. Ed Setzler of West Cobb, another co-sponsor, said the bill isn’t about adding more government, but “representative government.”

While the current four Cobb district commissioners represent around 200,000 people, the six city council members in East Cobb would represent around 8,000 people.

“Why do the people of Smyrna deserve that level of self-governance, and the people of my community do not even deserve the right to decide if they want it?” Dollar said in his concluding remarks before the vote.

Opponents also questioned last-minute changes to Dollar’s bill this week, including moving up the East Cobb cityhood referendum from November to May.

“People need more than a couple of months of education to learn how the city would work,” said Rep. Teri Anulewicz, a Democrat and former member of the Smyrna City Council.

A co-sponsor of the Mableton cityhood bill, she said she’s not opposed to cities, but said the East Cobb bill—a substitute of legislation first introduced last year by Dollar and Cooper—is being rushed through and is “not ready for a vote. Certainly not in May.”

Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones, a Republican from North Fulton, noted than in 15 years of new cities being formed, mostly in metro Atlanta, residents of those municipalities are generally satisfied.

They include Milton and Johns Creek in her district, as well as Peachtree Corners, Tucker and South Fulton.

“It has been a resounding success,” she said, imploring her colleagues to let the citizens of the proposed East Cobb city to have a say in how they may want local governance.

“Keep an open mind, and let the people vote,” Jones said.

East Cobb Cityhood bill goes to Ga. House floor Thursday

January 26, 2022 2:33 PMJanuary 26, 2022 10:55 AM by Wendy Parker

The Georgia House Rules Committee has scheduled the East Cobb Cityhood bill for a floor debate and vote by the full House for Thursday. East Cobb Cityhood bill, State Rep. Matt Dollar

The committee met briefly Wednesday morning to hear from State Rep. Matt Dollar, an East Cobb Republican and the bill’s chief sponsor, before voting to send HB 841 to the full House.

The committee instructions include allowing up to an hour for debate before a vote. You can watch a replay of the Rules Committee meeting by clicking here.

The House session on Thursday begins at 10 a.m. and you can watch that by clicking here.

Only a few questions were raised by the Rules Committee. One member asked Dollar if he knew the financial impact a City of East Cobb would have on Cobb County government.

Dollar said he didn’t know and since he first introduced a Cityhood bill in 2019 he has not heard anything from county officials about those concerns.

However, at a House Governmental Affairs Committee meeting Jan. 13, Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, Chief Financial Officer Bill Volckmann and Public Safety Director Randy Crider said they wanted more time to examine the possible impact of an East Cobb city.

It’s one of four bills in this legislative session that would create new cities in Cobb County, along with Vinings, Lost Mountain and Mableton.

A financial feasibility study required as part of the East Cobb legislation was released only in November, and included police and fire services that were not part of the bill Dollar and State Rep. Sharon Cooper introduced in 2021.

East Cobb Cityhood leaders commissioned the study in July and did not disclose until after the report was concluded that public safety was included in August.

Those leaders said in November that there was public feedback supporting those services, but they did not elaborate.

Critics of the East Cobb bill have said the study didn’t full provide a full financial picture of the cost and maintenance of public safety equipment, as well as financials for hiring police officers and firefighters.

On Tuesday, the House Governmental Affairs Committee voted for a second time to favorably report the bill after Dollar presented two significant changes to the legislation.

His bill would call for a referendum for eligible voters in the proposed city of nearly 60,000 people to decide whether or not to incorporate.

The latest revision to the bill would move the referendum up from the Nov. 6 general election to the May 24 general primary, and to have a mayor directly elected citywide.

Those changes can be found by clicking here; it’s version LC 47 1445S in the upper right corner.

The East Cobb bill is the first Cityhood bill taken up by the legislature this year. The a subcommittee of the House Governmental Affairs Committee was hearing the Vinings and Lost Mountain bills Thursday afternoon.

A bill to create a city of Buckhead out of Atlanta also has been filed and has drawn considerable interest and opposition.

Former Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce dies at 72

January 26, 2022 2:03 PMJanuary 25, 2022 6:56 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb budget town hall, Mike Boyce, Cobb public safety bonus, Cobb millage rate — *Former Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce conducting a town hall meeting at the Sewell Mill Library in 2019.*

Former Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce, who had been hospitalized in Indiana after suffering two strokes, died on Tuesday.

Cobb County Government and his wife Judy Boyce announced the news shortly before the Cobb Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday night.

Boyce, who was 72, underwent surgery last Tuesday in South Bend, Ind., and had been visited by family members since then.

He and his wife Judy had been attending a leadership seminar at the University of Notre Dame, his alma mater, when he was stricken.

An update on Monday morning on a CaringBridge page said that the Boyces were to meet with doctors to establish his progress.

Judy Boyce posted an update early Tuesday evening saying that her husband “was a man of God who always put other people first.”

She said he was “thrilled to return” to Notre Dame last fall to participate in the school’s Inspired Leadership Initiative program.

“He had never been happier than he was in the past few months, participating in this program, bicycling to campus and interacting with and mentoring students,” she said. “He was having the time of his life.”

Boyce, a Republican and a retired Marine officer who lived in East Cobb, served as chairman for one term, and was defeated by Democratic current chairwoman Lisa Cupid in 2020.

He was an active member of Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church.

The Cobb government statement that while in office, “Boyce garnered a reputation as a true public servant, putting the needs of those he served above anything else. Although the retired Marine Colonel often leaned on his military leadership skills, those who worked for him knew he had a soft heart for the county’s employees and often preached he needed to “take care of his troops.”

The statement also quoted Cupid as saying that “he loved the county and our country and dedicated himself to making Cobb a better and more inclusive place for everyone. My thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones during this very difficult time.”

Said Cobb County Manager Dr. Jackie McMorris: “On behalf of the leadership team, we are grateful for his leadership and he’ll be missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

The Cobb County Republican Party posted a message on its Facebook page Tuesday evening, saying that Boyce “will leave a void in Cobb County. He served his country well and was a friend to so many. Our hearts are broken. Please keep his family in your prayers.”

Judy Boyce said contributions may be made to the University of Notre Dame via the Michael H. Boyce Memorial Fund. Gifts may be made online at https://giving.nd.edu/Boyce, by phone at 574-631-5150, or by mail: University of Notre Dame Department of Development, 1100 Grace Hall, Notre Dame, Ind. 46556.

“Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers during this most difficult chapter,” Judy Boyce said in her update.

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 commissioners to consider proposed redistricting map

January 21, 2022 6:03 PM by Wendy Parker

Proposed Cobb commission redistricting map — *For a more detailed view of the proposed map, **click here**.*

The Cobb Board of Commissioners will be asked on Tuesday to vote on a redistricting map to be recommended to the county’s legislative delegation.

Lines for the four commission districts will be drawn during the current legislative session, and the map proposed for Tuesday’s meeting does not call for dramatically shifting boundaries.

But some precincts in East Cobb would be redrawn in the map proposal by State Rep. Erick Allen, a Smyrna Democrat who heads the county’s legislative delegation.

More map details can be seen by clicking here.

District 2 commissioner Jerica Richardson, a Democrat, would lose the Willeo, Shallowford Falls and Sewell Mill 1 precinct and parts of the Sewell Mill 3 and Fullers Park precincts.

See the present District 2 map by clicking here.

They would move to District 3, represented by Republican JoAnn Birrell. Click here to see the present map.

She’s up for re-election this year, as is her fellow Republican Keli Gambrill of District 1 in North Cobb.

District 2 has the largest population of the four, with a 2020 Census total of 193,175, an increase of 1,638 from the last Census, and includes much of East Cobb and the Cumberland-Smyrna-Vinings area.

District 3, which stretches to the Town Center/KSU area, has a population of 189,682; the District 1 population is 190,629; and District 4, which covers most of South Cobb, the population is 192,663.

You can view more population data by clicking here.

If the commissioners approve the map recommendation, it would be only advisory.

In December, the Cobb Board of Education voted along party lines—it has a Republican majority—to recommend a map designed to keep that GOP edge.

Democrats hold a one-seat majority in the 21-member Cobb legislative delegation, which will make the final decisions for the school board and commission boundaries.

The commission meeting Tuesday also will include the first public hearings on code amendments (agenda item and proposed changes).

Topics of note include alcoholic beverage uses, regulation of health spas and short-term rentals, and traffic plan requirements for certain zoning and land-use permit applications.

Commissioners revise code amendments every January and don’t hear zoning cases during the month.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building (100 Cherokee St., downtown Marietta), but it will be conducted in virtual format due to continuing COVID restrictions.

There will be two general comment sessions for residents, as well as the public hearing for the code amendments, that the public can participate in virtually. The details can be found in the full agenda packet by clicking here.

The meeting will be live-streamed on the county’s website, cable TV channel (Channel 24 on Comcast) and Youtube page. Visit cobbcounty.org/CobbTV for other streaming options.

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 COVID-19 emergency declaration extended to mid-February

January 20, 2022 6:01 PM by Wendy Parker

As she hinted last week, Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid has extended a declaration of emergency regarding COVID-19 until mid-February. Cobb paid leave county employees

A current emergency declaration was to have expired on Friday. A message sent out by the county late Thursday afternoon said that the new order is “for another 30 days but will be reevaluated if the surge eases.”

She cited the continuing spread of the virus, and specifically the Omicron variant, and the impact to local hospitals for her new order.

“Cases remain well above high community spread, and until we get those numbers down we need to encourage residents to take precautions; to continue wearing masks, watching their distance, and washing their hands,” Cupid said. “Those precautions are outlined in this order.”

Cobb and Douglas Health reported Thursday that the 14-day average of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people is 1,993, a drop from a figure of more than 2,500 last week.

That’s still excessively beyond the “high” transmission threshold of 100 cases per 100K.

The order keeps the county’s emergency operations plan in place and calls for continuing portions of public meetings online.

That includes a Cobb Board of Commissioners work session and regular meeting next Tuesday.

The county statement Thursday said that mask requirements and social distancing guidelines that have been in effect in county government facilities will expire at the end of the month.

But “that could also change if circumstances warrant it.”

The mask mandate applies to all indoor county facilities, including libraries and recreation centers.

It does not apply to private or non-county buildings, nor the Cobb County School District.

County courthouses continue to operate under a mask mandate ordered by the Georgia Supreme Court.

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 County to hold COVID-19 test distribution event Sunday

January 20, 2022 2:19 PMJanuary 20, 2022 10:08 AM by Wendy Parker

East Cobb rapid COVID-19 testing — *Lines have been long for COVID-19 testing around the county, including at East Cobb United Methodist Church.*

Cobb County Government said Thursday that citizens can receive a limited supply of COVID-19 test kits on Sunday afternoon.

The county will give out 1,000 free tests starting at 2 p.m. at Jim R. Miller Park (2245 Callaway Rd SW, Marietta).

The event was rescheduled from last weekend due to inclement weather.

County spokesman Ross Cavitt said in a release that more kits are expected in a few days after being delayed to an increase in demand for tests.

The kits will be available to the public at the park pavilion, with access from Al Bishop Drive.

Cavitt said individuals will receive one kit per person, with a maximum of four per vehicle.

“With such a limited supply, the distribution is not expected to take long,” Cavitt said.

He said county officials will be working with Cobb and Douglas Public Health to distribute the additional kits later in January, at designated events and with local non-profits.

“The intent is to target residents that may not be able to go to testing sites or order kits online from the federal government,” the county release said.

Residents seeking a COVID test, vaccination, or information should visit www.cobbanddouglaspublichealth.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!

Former Cobb Commission Chairman has surgery after strokes

January 22, 2022 3:26 PMJanuary 19, 2022 3:09 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce

Former Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce remains hospitalized in Indiana after having surgery Tuesday.

Cobb County Government sent a message Tuesday saying that Boyce, an East Cobb resident, suffered two strokes “in recent days.”

Boyce and his wife Judy had been attending a leadership program at the University of Notre Dame, his alma mater, when he was stricken.

An update Tuesday posted to the CaringBridge website said Boyce is on a ventilator and is being sedated as doctors obeserve how he responds.

“Needless to say, this is a very grave situation for our dear friend,” the update states. “Prayer is a powerful thing! Let’s all continue to pray for Mike and Judy.”

More than 100 people have sent messages, including Piedmont Church pastor and MUST Ministries head Ike Reighard as well as Cobb County Manager Jackie McMorris and current Cobb Commissioner JoAnn Birrell.

UPDATED, SATURDAY, JAN. 22:

Boyce remains in a hospital in South Bend, Ind., and has been visited by family members.

“They are all talking to him and he is showing signs of recognition by occasionally movement of his feet and legs,” wrote Sue Ballard Stone on the CaringBridge page.

“The doctors love the fact that they are talking with him and playing his playlist from the iPod for the time they are there.”

Boyce, a retired Marine colonel, defeated then-chairman Tim Lee in the 2016 Republican primary, then was unopposed in the general election.

He was defeated in his re-election bid in 2020 by Democratic current chairwoman Lisa Cupid.

Boyce is an active member of Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church in East Cobb.

“We know Mike is a fighter,” McMorris said in a statement issued by the county. “Our prayers are with him, as well as Judy and the family. We are hopeful of a speedy recovery and praying he can come through this. Our county family hopes to see him back in Cobb County as soon as possible.”

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East Cobb Cityhood group presses for ‘right’ to referendum

January 15, 2022 4:12 PM by Wendy Parker

East Cobb Cityhood referendum — *Members of the Committee for East Cobb Cityhood with State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick (third from left) at the Georgia Capitol this week.*

After a bill to call for a referendum about creating a City of East Cobb passed a Georgia House Committee this week, the group pushing for the legislation created a petition to build public support.

The Committee for East Cobb Cityhood on Saturday sent out an e-mail with a link to an online petition.

“The residents of East Cobb deserve the right to vote in a referendum to decide whether we should become the City of East Cobb,” states the petition, which is addressed to East Cobb-area legislators, including the bill’s sponsors.

“The decision is best left in the hands of the voters in the next election. We should not be denied our right to vote on the question of local, representative government for our community.”

HB 841, which got the approval of the House Governmental Affairs Committee on Thursday, would call for a referendum this year that would let voters within the proposed city limits decide on whether East Cobb should become a city.

If the bill fails to pass in the Georgia General Assembly, there would be no referendum, and the cityhood issue would have to begin again in the next legislative cycle.

In 2019, an East Cobb cityhood bill was abandoned by supporters and never was considered by the legislature.

At a subcommittee hearing Wednesday and the committee meeting Thursday, local officials were asked by a lawmaker if the citizens of East Cobb should be able to vote on whether a city should be created.

Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid wanted more time to examine the bill and a financial feasibility study, saying voters don’t have “clear and accurate information.”

She said she doesn’t oppose cityhood bills in general, but “I’m in opposition to a bill being passed that has not been made clear, with information that is incomplete or is inaccurate so voters can make a wise decision.”

When pressed by State Rep. Barry Fleming about whether she opposed HB 841 (a substitute to the original bill) as it is written now, she said, “at this time, yes.”

On Saturday afternoon, the East Cobb Alliance, a group of citizens opposed to cityhood, issued a response to the cityhood group’s online petition, accusing the latter’s e-mail of largely containing “half-truths” about the issue of a referendum and other topics.

In a lengthy e-mail message, the Alliance, who had a representative at the legislative meetings this week, also said “the actual ballot language is not crystal clear as to what regular voters (not legislators and lawyers, but regular people) can decipher on the ballot. It is as convoluted as the trick-polling in which the Cityhood group has engaged.”

The Alliance message also delves into the addition of police and fire services to the East Cobb financial feasibility study, after proposing a “city lite” set of services without public safety in the bill introduced in 2021.

“Right out of the gate, a City of East Cobb will be operating at a huge loss, and the city will have to take on heavy debt immediately,” the Alliance e-mail concludes.

East Cobb House Republican Matt Dollar was the only co-sponsor in 2019, but this time around got the support of State Rep. Sharon Cooper.

HB 841 also will need a local sponsor in the Senate if it passes in the full House. (A House vote will not take place before Jan. 24, since the legislature will be holding budget meetings all next week.)

In 2019, State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, a Republican from East Cobb, said she couldn’t support the bill because she got a lot of negative feedback from constituents.

She told East Cobb News on Friday that she is more receptive to the bill this time.

“The bill and the map are much different than 2019 and I am getting a lot more positive feedback on it this time,” she said. “I have said all along that if there was sufficient interest from the citizens in voting on this issue, I would support it and that appears to be the case this time. Then the community can vote it up or down.”

Kirkpatrick, however, isn’t a co-sponsor. While she represents the proposed City of East Cobb currently, her District 32 will not include any of that area in the 2022 election, due to redrawn lines during reapportionment.

Instead, the Senate co-sponsor would be John Albers, a Republican from North Fulton, whose District 56 will soon include the proposed East Cobb city area.

Among the signatories to the East Cobb Cityhood group’s petition include Scott Sweeney, a former Cobb Board of Education member who joined the group last year, and current school board member David Banks, who represents the Pope and Lassiter clusters in East Cobb.

Cobb COVID-19 emergency likely to be extended into February

January 14, 2022 6:08 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb COVID emergency likely extended — *To watch the Cobb COVID-19 virtual town hall on Thursday, **click here**.*

Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said Friday that the COVID-19 state of emergency she declared that’s set to expire next week will likely be extended into February.

During a special-called virtual meeting of the Cobb Board of Commissioners, Cupid said that unless there’s a “marked decrease” of virus transmission in the county, she’ll extend the 30-day emergency declaration she issued on Dec. 22.

That’s due to end next Friday, Jan. 21, but COVID-19 cases have spiraled since then due to the Omicron variant.

As of Friday, Cobb and Douglas Public Health reported that the 14-day average is 2,536 cases per 100,000 people, far above the “high” transmission threshold of 100 cases/100K

Friday’s number is slightly down from earlier in the week, but the transmission rates remain at record levels.

During the virtual meeting Friday, commissioners were briefed by Cobb and Douglas Public Health Director Dr. Janet Memark and WellStar’s Medical Director of Infectious Disease, Dr. Danny Branstetter (see video link at the bottom).

They appeared with Cupid Thursday on a virtual town hall, and continued to urge the public to wear masks and get vaccinated, including boosters, to protect themselves and others from infection and serious illness or worse.

Branstetter said Wellstar Kennestone Hospital is seeing fewer COVID-related hospitalizations this week, but the numbers remain especially high.

According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, Cobb has 440,378 people “fully vaccinated” against COVID-19, or 59 percent of the eligible population. Another 481,527 people, or 64 percent, have received one dose. A total of 173,931 people, or 23 percent, have received booster shots.

The Cobb emergency declaration enables the county to utilize a response plan. Cupid called for commissioners meetings to go virtual this week.

County Manager Jackie McMorris also has reimposed a mask mandate at indoor county facilities and has placed social-distancing limits in some instances, including the county’s aquatic centers.

That’s put a limit on spectators to watch high school swimming meets, prompting an online petition started by a Walton High School swimmer.

Commissioners were inundated with e-mails, but Cupid continues to defend the decision in the name of public health and safety.

Earlier this week commissioners confirmed an $813,000 Cobb Emergency Management Agency purchase of 60,000 COVID test kits with the last of its federal CARES Act funding.

A distribution event was to have taken place Monday at Jim Miller Park but is being delayed with a winter weather forecast starting Sunday.

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 delays COVID test distribution ahead of winter weather

January 13, 2022 5:19 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb winter weather — For more details of this weekend’s winter weather advisory, **click here**.

With winter weather in the forecast early next week, Cobb County government is delaying a planned COVID test distribution event that had been scheduled for Monday.

The county put out a statement late Thursday afternoon saying that Cobb DOT crews were preparing for a mixture of snow and ice that are in the forecast for Sunday morning.

Temperatures aren’t expected to reach much above freezing Sunday, with a 100 percent chance of precipitation in the forecast that includes the possibility of snow, ice or a combination.

Monday’s forecast is partly sunny with highs only in the high 30s.

That’s the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, and Cobb officials were planning the use the occasion to distribute free COVID tests at Jim Miller Park, followed by the official holiday observance with the Cobb NAACP that has been moved to a virtual setting.

But the county statement Thursday said that the distribution is being postponed to later in the week.

Cobb commissioners will be meeting Monday at 9 a.m. in a special-called virtual meeting to receive a COVID update from Cobb and Douglas Public Health and the Wellstar Health System. That meeting will be live-streamed on the county’s YouTube channel.

Cobb spokesman Ross Cavitt said DOT crews will begin pre-treating some bridges, overpasses and “known trouble spots” around the county starting at 6 p.m. Saturday.

He said crews will maintain shifts “around the clock” into Monday to respond.

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!

East Cobb Cityhood bill approved by Ga. House committee

January 14, 2022 11:09 AMJanuary 13, 2022 12:23 PM by Wendy Parker

Despite requests from Cobb County government officials for a delay, the Georgia House Governmental Affairs Committee approved the East Cobb Cityhood bill Thursday morning.

After a nearly 90-minute discussion, the committee voted 9-4 to send the bill to the full House.

The bill, if passed by the legislature, would call for a November referendum for voters in the proposed city of 55,000 to decide on incorporation.

It’s the first of four cityhood bills in Cobb County to be considered this year, and drew the attendance of Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid and two of her department heads.

(You can watch a replay of the meeting by clicking here.)

HB 841 has been revised from when it was proposed in March 2021 by East Cobb Republican House members Matt Dollar and Sharon Cooper (substitute bill as approved here).

A substitute bill was made available at Thursday’s meeting but has not yet been posted online; the bill has an additional co-sponsor in Republican Rep. Ed Setzler of West Cobb, who’s the main sponsor of a Lost Mountain cityhood bill.

On Wednesday, a subcommittee heard the East Cobb cityhood proposal, which includes police and fire, planning and zoning and code enforcement services.

Public safety services were added to a feasibility study that concluded in November that a proposed city of East Cobb would be financially viable, with an annual surplus of $3 million.

Those issues prompted remarks by Cupid to the committee that she wanted the community to have an opportunity to better understand “the merits of what’s in the feasibility study.”

She said she wasn’t opposed to cities, but “I’m opposed to persons having to vote and not having clear and accurate information beforehand.”

When pressed by committee member Rep. Barry Fleming if she would campaign against an East Cobb referendum, she said it was her role to represent all Cobb citizens on an issue that would have a financial impact on the county.

“So you’re in opposition to the bill, correct?” Fleming asked her.

“I don’t believe I stated that sir,” Cupid said.

“I’m asking,” he said.

Cupid said that “I’m in opposition to a bill being passed that has not been made clear, with information that is incomplete or is inaccurate so voters can make a wise decision.”

When he pressed her further if she opposed the bill as it is written now, she said, “at this time, yes.”

While cityhood bills in Georgia must have a financial feasibility study, they’re not required to include a study on how a new city would impact its county.

Bill Volckmann, Cobb’s chief financial officer, told the committee he wanted to have more time to examine how the city of East Cobb’s proposed major revenue mechanisms would impact the county.

The other three Cobb cityhood bills—Mableton, Vinings and Lost Mountain—do not include public safety services.

The East Cobb feasibility study includes the proposed transfer of 2.6 mills in the current Cobb fire fund to provide most of the city’s revenues.

Volckman said that would negatively affect the county’s general fund and its 911 fund and while he was not for or against East Cobb cityhood, “that is something we would like to have some time to go through and share those impacts with the citizens so they can make an informed decision.”

Cobb public safety director Randy Crider noted that the Cobb Fire Department—of which he was formerly chief—has a top insurance rating and was “curious to know how [East Cobb] residents would have a better fire department.”

Marietta also has what’s called an ISO 1 rating, and has six fire stations. Smyrna has five fire stations. They’re the only two cities in Cobb with separate fire departments, and Cobb Fire provides support for major fires and in special situations.

Crider said that given that the proposed East Cobb fire department would have only two stations serving a city with 25 square miles, “how much are we going to be relied on to provide support?”

Committee members didn’t question them, but some were concerned about another aspect of the bill, its governing structure.

According to the proposed East Cobb city charter, a six-member city council would be elected, with three members coming from three separate districts and three others elected at-large.

Council members would then choose a mayor among themselves to serve a two-year term.

Dollar said the reasoning behind that structure is that “we’re wary of one person coming in with a vision for East Cobb.

“We wanted this to be a true city council,” he said.

State Rep. Teri Anulewicz, a Democrat who formerly served on the Smyrna City Council, isn’t on the committee, but participated remotely.

She said such a structure could conceivably concentrate power to potentially having four council members from the same neighborhood, down to the level of a cul-de-sac.

“That’s not a city,” Anulewicz said. “That’s an HOA.”

But supporters of the bill from the Committee for East Cobb Cityhood reiterated points they made to the subcommittee Wednesday about the need for local representation closer to the community level.

Setzler questioned whether East Cobb residents now are getting an adequate level of police and fire services.

Craig Chapin, the cityhood group’s president, said he and other supporters don’t feel like their concerns are being heard on a Cobb Board of Commissioners whose four district members each represent nearly 200,000 people.

“This isn’t a criticism of Cobb or its leadership,” he said. “We want the ability to have local control.”

The next step for the cityhood bill will be to be placed on the calendar for the full House to consider.

Cobb Commission Chairwoman to hold virtual COVID town hall

January 11, 2022 1:33 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb health director COVID vaccines — *Cobb and Douglas Public Health director Dr. Janet Memark.*

Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid will conduct a virtual town hall Thursday to discuss the county’s response to the latest COVID-19 surge.

She will be joined Cobb and Douglas Public Health director Dr. Janet Memark and WellStar’s Medical Director of Infectious Disease, Dr. Danny Branstetter starting at 6:30 p.m.

The town hall will be live-streamed on the county’s YouTube and Facebook pages. Citizens can ask questions during the meeting or in advance by e-mailing: comments@cobbcounty.org.

On Tuesday, Memark briefed the Cobb Board of Commissioners about skyrocketing COVID-19 metrics, including a current 14-day average of 2,657 cases per 100,000 people.

That’s far above the “high” transmission threshold of 100/100K, and Memark attributed that to the fast-moving Omicron variant.

While many of the symptoms of that variant are milder than previous versions of the virus, she said local hospitalization capacity is being strained.

Cupid, who declared a state of emergency through Jan. 22, defended the county’s decision to limit attendance at county-run aquatic centers for high school swimming meets.

Commissioners have received a high volume of e-mails complaining that family members aren’t being allowed inside to watch the competition.

“We do feel for the parents who have been impacted,” she said during a virtual meeting, in which she was masked but was the only commissioner in attendance in the board’s public meeting room.

“We’re hoping to get through this and reduce that very high number. We can share numbers with you, but the most compelling are the experiences we are seeing and feeling in real time.

“People are still experiencing impacts . . . long COVID due to the Omicron variant. These are not conditions that we want anyone to experience. We’ve also got to think about our health care infrastructure.”

(You can watch Memark’s presentation by clicking here; it’s at the beginning of the meeting.)

Memark outlined extra testing efforts, including additional sites for the public to get tested. She also urged those unvaccinated to do so, including booster shots.

Cobb’s “fully vaccinated” population is only 58 percent, with 64 percent having had at least an initial dose and only 20 percent boosted.

More testing and vaccination information from Cobb and Douglas Public Health by clicking here.

Cupid said more information about 60,000 at-home test kits ordered last week by the Cobb Emergency Management Agency will be coming later this week. There will be a distribution event from 8-10 a.m. Monday at Jim Miller Park.

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 Martin Luther King Jr. celebration switched to virtual format

January 11, 2022 1:04 PMJanuary 11, 2022 7:57 AM by Wendy Parker

The Cobb government/Cobb NAACP celebration of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday next Monday will be held in a virtual setting due to the COVID-19 surge. Cobb MLK celebration virtual

The county announced that the service will still begin at 10 a.m., as initially scheduled, but will be available for online viewing only on CobbTV, the county’s Facebook page and on YouTube.

The celebration includes the introducing the 2022 Living the Dream Award honorees, who are community members who demonstrate leadership and commitment to making Cobb more diverse and inclusive.

MLK Day is a day of service, and the Cobb organizers are encouraging volunteers to find opportunities via Americorps or Hands-on Atlanta.

Marietta Museum of History to hold free MLK events

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 keeping aquatic center COVID restrictions despite protests

January 10, 2022 4:19 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb aquatic center COVID restrictions

After Cobb commissioners got an e-mail deluge from high school swimmers and their parents over the weekend about capacity limits at aquatic centers, Chairwoman Lisa Cupid isn’t budging from restrictions designed to combat a COVID-19 surge.

Cupid issued a statement Monday saying that capacity limits at indoor county facilities include the county-run aquatic centers, and that they are necessary.

“As the mother of student-athletes, I understand the frustration from not being able to watch your children compete,” Cupid said in the statement.

“However, public health leaders have impressed upon me now is not the time to have large groups gathering together in confined spaces during this record COVID surge. Our local hospitals are nearing a breaking point, and our staff has been severely impacted due to rising cases in the county.”

Charles Barry, a junior swimmer at Walton High School, began an online petition drive over the weekend to protest the capacity limits, and his campaign is approaching nearly 2,000 signatures.

Cobb high school swimming meets regularly take place at two county-owned aquatic centers that are rented by the Cobb County School District for those events.

The restrictions were to limit total capacity to 100 people, but increases were allowed for meets over the weekend.

According to county spokesman Ross Cavitt, the largest, Mountain View, was limited to 160 people, and a maximum of 125 people were allowed at the Central Aquatic Center in Marietta.

Cupid declared a state of emergency on Dec. 22 to run through Jan. 21. That includes a mask mandate at indoor county facilities and social-distancing limits, but Cavitt said the aquatic center capacity restrictions “are not directly tied to the emergency declaration.”

In a message Sunday to East Cobb News, Barry said that “multiple people are in full support of removing the capacity limits and think that they are ridiculous and put swimmers at a disadvantage.”

He said the swim teams only found out on Thursday about the limits, which he said don’t affect practices but are “dramatically affecting meets.

“The meets are limited in capacity which causes people to sit outside in the freezing cold during meets, or separate the meets by boys and girls, or even have coaches cut the amount of swimmers,” Barry said.

He added that Walton’s combined boys and girls team includes around 100 swimmers. “It is absurd that they are limiting this because it is causing our meets to not run normally and not run how they should be.”

The Cobb County varsity and junior varsity swimming championships will be contested Jan. 20-21 at the Mountain View and Central aquatic centers.

Cupid said in her statement that the county parks director “has been in contact with Cobb school athletic directors who assured him they will be able to continue holding swim meets with the social distancing requirements in place.”

In the same statement, Cobb County Manager Jackie McMorris said that “while it’s a difficult time for everyone . . . proper social distancing and reducing the number of people inside confined facilities at these events will enable us to keep the facilities’ doors open.”

A parent signing the petition complained her son, a senior swimmer, “was already cheated out a normal junior year season with all the mandates and no spectators in 2020-2021 and now he is being cheated out of having a complete normal senior season.

“He is a team captain and being a full team is what drives these kids’ spirit. Let these kids finish their season strong!”

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 government to distribute 60K at-home COVID-19 testing kits

January 7, 2022 5:34 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb County government said late Friday it plans to distribute more than 60,000 COVID-19 at-home testing kits paid for with federal CARES Act funding, and could spend more to purchase more tests.

A release sent out by county spokesman Ross Cavitt said that Cobb commissioners will be asked Tuesday to ratify a decision by the Cobb Emergency Management Agency to spend $816,480 in CARES Act funds for the tests, which cost $13.50 each (agenda item here).

He said that “the goal is to target segments of the community where people have had difficulty accessing testing” and that the aim is to have distribution events in each of the four Cobb commission districts, “along with help from nonprofits, churches, and other groups to get these COVID self-test kits to those in the county who need them the most.”

An unprecedented spike in COVID-19 cases in Cobb now stands at a 14-day average of 2,614 cases per 100,000 people, many times above the “high” transmission threshold of 100/100K.

Commissioners will be meeting in a virtual setting next week, including their Tuesday morning business meeting. That meeting, which starts at 9 a.m., will begin with a COVID-19 update from Cobb and Douglas Public Health.

Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, who switched the meetings to a virtual format due to the COVID-19 spike, has declared a state of emergency in the county through Jan. 22.

Earlier this week, Cobb Superior Court Chief Judge Robert Leonard halted jury trials through Jan. 21 due to rising COVID-19 transmission.

Also this week, Cobb and Douglas Public Health opened two new COVID-19 testing locations, but like others in existence said demand is high and wait times are long.

Cavitt said that county leaders want to receive the kits and hold a distribution event on the Martin Luther King holiday on Jan. 16.

“County and Public Health officials are working with the Cobb County NAACP chapter to finalize details of the event,” Cavitt said.

In the release, Cupid was quoted as saying that “we have the resources to be able to help many of our residents who have told us getting tested for COVID has been a challenge. So it makes sense to use these federal relief funds to help distribute test kits to help contain the spread of COVID in Cobb.”

Cavitt said the Cobb Emergency Management Agency will store the kits “while a plan to distribute them across the county comes into focus.”

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!

Cupid declares Cobb COVID-19 emergency through Jan. 22, 2022

December 22, 2021 6:02 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb COVID emergency declaration — *Long lines of vehicles backed up traffic on Roswell Road and East Piedmont Road Wednesday for COVID-19 testing at East Cobb United Methodist Church. ECN photo*

For the fourth time in recent months, Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid on Wednesday declared a state of emergency in the county due to rising COVID-19 cases.

The new order takes effect immediately and will continue through Jan. 22, 2022.

The emergency declaration allows the county to implement an emergency operations plan, hold public meetings virtually and encourage residents to take precautions.

Cobb County Manager Jackie McMorris also has reinstated a mask mandate inside county buildings (but not outdoor facilities like parks).

“This is unlike any other surge we’ve ever had before,” Cupid said in a video message after signing the declaration.

The Omicron variant has prompted COVID-19 cases in Cobb to jump by more than 150 percent over the last week.

On Wednesday, Georgia Department of Public Health data showed a reported 636 new cases in Cobb, the single-highest figure since 966 cases were reported on Jan. 8 during a winter surge.

That’s according to “date of report” figures, many of which lag from previous days and weeks; the “date of onset” category operates on a two-week lag and as of Wednesday the preliminary estimate is 417 cases.

“The stress on our hospitals is increasing, and both public and private COVID testing facilities are overwhelmed,” Cupid said in a statement issued by the county.

“Even though this is just prior to Christmas, I wanted to act quickly to help slow the spread of this new variant in our community.”

Three previous month-long emergencies were declared by Cupid August, September and October, but the oncoming Omicron variant has pushed transmission rates, hospitalizations and other metrics over the last two weeks.

There is not a mandate in Cobb for masks regarding private-run businesses or other non-county entities.

The Cobb mandate also does not affect the Cobb County School District, which has a masks-optional policy and is on a holiday break until Jan. 6.

Cobb courts have been requiring masks under a separate judicial order from the Georgia Supreme Court.

Cobb and Douglas Public Health continues to offer free COVID-19 tests and vaccines. For information and to book appointments, please click here.

Cobb COVID-19 cases rise more than 150 percent over a week

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!

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