East Cobb News Archives

Cobb COVID deaths surpass 800; East Cobb’s total nears 200

February 21, 2021 1:50 PMFebruary 20, 2021 3:13 PM by Wendy Parker

While the case and hospitalization rates for COVID-19 in Cobb County continue to drop, the number of deaths attributed to the virus continues to lag behind those metrics.

The death toll in Cobb County as of Saturday afternoon was 814, the third-highest in Georgia behind Fulton County, which has 1,022 deaths, and Gwinnett, with 864.

Since the middle of January, there have been six separate days in which double-digit death totals were reported in Cobb County, according to the “date of report” category.

Those include Wednesday and Friday, when 12 new deaths were confirmed each day.

According to the “date of death” category, those figures also have been higher in recent weeks—including 10 deaths on Jan. 26, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health—are starting to come down.

That category is subject to a 14-day window in which statistics are likely to be updated.

Thus far in February, there have been 52 deaths in Cobb County. In January, there were 154 deaths, the most for any month since COVID-19 data began to be compiled in March 2020.

The newest figures come as state of Georgia COVID figures have reached milestones. As of Saturday there have been 803,349 cases and 14,629 deaths.

Cobb’s case total stands at 54,441. But those case rates have been coming down substantially in February, according to Dr. Janet Memark, director of Cobb and Douglas Public Health.

Community spread figures that shot up to a 14-day average of more than 1,000 cases per 100,000 people also have fallen rapidly in Cobb, to October levels when the Cobb County School District resumed in-person classes.

The spread figure now is at 282 cases per 100,000. A “high” figure is 100 per 100,000.

In East Cobb, there have been 14,046 COVID-19 cases since last March, and 187 deaths, according to data compiled by Cobb and Douglas Public Health.

Those figures break down as follows via ZIP Codes:

30062: 4,070 cases, 46 deaths;
30066: 3,874 cases, 51 deaths;
30067: 3,334 cases, 32 deaths;
30068: 2,223 cases, 55 deaths;
30075: 536 cases, 3 deaths.

Among the deaths in East Cobb are 31 residents of long-term care facilities, according to Georgia Department of Community Health figures.

While the countywide case and death figures are broken down by age, sex and race, the ZIP Code figures are not.

In Cobb, more than 87 percent of the fatalities are people ages 60 and older. Only 45 are ages 49 and under.

Those ratios have been fairly consistent over the last 11 months.

Cobb COVID deaths surpass 800

Cobb 4-H accepting plant sale pre-orders for March pickup

February 20, 2021 1:37 PM by Wendy Parker

Submitted information and photo:

Cobb 4-H staff is hosting its annual plant sale to raise funds for 4-H youth development, programming, supplies and scholarships. The quote “To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow” by Audrey Hepburn is this year’s plant sale theme. Not only is gardening therapeutic, but many of the plants offered will get your yard ready for spring by adding color and vibrancy to brighten your days.

Plant sale pre-orders are being accepted through March 5 at the UGA-Cobb Extension Office. There are limited quantities of all varieties, so plants are sold on a first come, first serve basis. You can pre-order by stopping by the Extension Office 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday, and placing your order in person with a Visa/MasterCard/Discover Card, cash, check or money order. You can also mail your plant sale order form with a check or money order to: 678 South Cobb Drive, Suite 200, Marietta, GA 30060. Make all checks payable to Cobb Extension/4-H.

Plant sale pick up will be held 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturday March 20, at the Jim Miller Park covered arena. For more information, call 770-528-4070.

Birney Memorial Rose Garden in Marietta honors PTA founder

February 20, 2021 1:31 PMFebruary 20, 2021 9:20 AM by Wendy Parker

Birney Memorial Rose Garden

Wednesday was PTA Founder’s Day, and in Marietta, those behind the Birney Memorial Rose Garden, which honors the work of Alice Birney, one of the co-founders of the national organization, had their own celebration.

The Marietta Daisies Garden Club, which looks after the Garden, is seeking donations, and sent along the following information about the work they do:

“The Birney Memorial Rose Garden, originally named ‘The Sun Court,’ was dedicated in 1942 to honor Alice Birney as the co-founder of National PTA. This historic garden is situated on the, now, Marietta Middle School campus. At the center of the court there is a sun dial and it is surrounded by square, stone slabs representing each of the 50 state PTAs. Outlining the courtyard are garden beds showcasing 40 varieties of roses.

“The Birney Memorial Rose Garden is maintained by Marietta Daisies Garden Club volunteers, known as the ‘Daisy Darlings.’ Collectively, the Daisy Darlings donate more than 130 man-hours/year to prune, plant, and nurture this community treasure.

“ ‘Our members are extremely dedicated to preserving the memory of our Marietta PTA legacy — Alice McLellan Birney,’ states Carol Fey, Marietta Daisies president. ‘Our membership has a passion for gardening, but also education. Many of our members are former/current teachers and PTA members.’

“Donations are accepted to help with the maintenance and repair cost. Most recently, Daisy Darling/artist, Melissa Snyder, created a beautiful illustration which has been made into notecards and will also be sold as a limited-edition print to help offset expenses of stone replacement. Notecards are available for sale through Marietta retailers, White Rabbit Cottage and Market with a B.

“Founded in 2015, the Marietta Daisies Garden Club is an organization of women committed to beautification, education, service and leadership in our community. The organization is a member of the Laurel District, within the Marietta Garden Council, Inc, which is overseen by the Garden Club of Georgia.

“Visit mariettadaisies.wixsite.com/gardenclub for more information or to make a donation.”

Jim Miller Park COVID-19 vaccines cancelled due to shortages

February 19, 2021 4:59 PM by Wendy Parker

Jim Miller Park COVID vaccine appointments

Cobb and Douglas Public Health on Friday cancelled all scheduled COVID-19 vaccine appointments at Jim Miller Park for Saturday and Monday because of more supply shortages.

Crippling winter weather elsewhere has interrupted the supply chain of vaccine shipments, according to the agency, which indicated it was already running out of vaccine doses on hand before the week was out.

“Please be assured that you will be first in line for vaccination appointments next week when we receive vaccine. We will communicate by email, text or phone to reschedule,” the Cobb and Douglas Public Health message states.

For the last three weeks Cobb and Douglas Public Health has not been accepting new appointments for its drive-up venues at Jim Miller Park and Arbor Place Mall in Douglasville.

In Cobb, only a few hundred vaccine doses were available to distribute per day.

Cobb and Douglas Public Health Director Dr. Janet Memark has said that sufficient vaccine supplies may not be available until March or April.

Until then, only people with previously booked appointments will be able to get vaccines.

She’s scheduled to brief the Cobb Board of Commissioners on Tuesday night with more updated information.

Cobb and Douglas Public Health is resuming COVID-19 testing at Jim Miller Park starting Monday. You must pre-register online by clicking here. The test is free (your insurance will be billed), and once you sign up, you can come by at your convenience from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Friday.

If you don’t have access to a computer, smartphone, or internet, you can call 844-625-6522, then press 1 and ask for registration help.

Those individuals eligible in the A+1 category to receive vaccines have been struggling to find any place to book an appointment.

The state of Georgia gets close to 200,000 vaccine doses a week from the federal government, but it’s not coming close to filling the demand.

The Georgia Department of Public Health recently unveiled a new vaccine dashboard that shows that more than 1.6 million vaccines have been administered in the state. Of that total, 1.1 million are first doses.

In Cobb County, more than 110,00 vaccine doses have been administered, with 71,000 of those being first doses. An average of just under 15,000 vaccines a week have been given per 100,000 people in Cobb, according to the dashboard.

Those figures include vaccines provided by public health agencies as well as private providers, including physicians and at pharmacies.

Georgia DPH has created a vaccine locator service indicating where vaccine supplies are available.

However, many of those locations say they are out of vaccines, or all available appointments have been booked.

Like other states, Georgia is working to secure more supplies of the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines that became available in January.

Gov. Brian Kemp announced Thursday that the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security agencies will open four mass COVID-19 vaccination sites in underserved areas of the state, starting on Monday.

They are near the Atlanta airport, as well as in Albany, Clarkesville and Macon, and will be offering drive-up vaccinations Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. They will be able to distribute more than 20,000 vaccines per day combined.

Appointments will be necessary and are available to people categorized as A+1 under the state’s tiered priority list. That includes seniors 65 and older and their caregivers, long-term care residents, health care workers and first responders.

The state has created a new website, MyVaccineGeorgia.com, for booking appointments and for related information about vaccine appointments.

Those who aren’t yet eligible also can sign up at that site and receive updates.

The new mass vaccination sites are open to any legal residents of Georgia, but they must book an appointment at the link above and fall into the A+1 category:

Delta Air Museum, 1220 Woolman Place, Hapeville
Albany Forestry site, 2910 Newton Road, Albany
Habersham County Fairgrounds, 4235 Toccoa Highway, Clarkesville
Macon Farmers Market, 2055 Eisenhower Parkway, Macon

East Cobb Food Scores: Red Curry Thai; Hibachi & BBQ; more

February 19, 2021 3:34 PMFebruary 19, 2021 12:31 PM by Wendy Parker

Red Curry Thai, East Cobb food scores

The following East Cobb food scores from Feb. 15- have been compiled by the Cobb & Douglas Department of Public Health. Click the link under each listing for inspection details:

Goiano Restaurant and Catering
1475 Terrell Mill Road, Suite 103
February 16, 2021 Score: 75, Grade: C

Hibachi & BBQ
2856 Delk Road, Suite 305
February 15, 2021 Score: 100, Grade: A

Jameric
3349 Canton Road, Suite 201
February 17, 2021 Score: 74, Grade: C

Mr. Wok
1750 Bells Ferry Road, Suite B
February 17, 2021 Score: 87, Grade: B

Red Curry Thai
4724 Lower Roswell Road, Suite 500
February 16, 2021 Score: 88, Grade: B

Wingstop
2900 Delk Road, Suite 100
February 15, 2021 Score: 91, Grade: A

Grand jury clears Cobb officer in deadly shooting of black teen

February 18, 2021 7:47 PMFebruary 18, 2021 7:14 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb grand jury clears officer — *“As an African-American, you hate to see an African-American shot down,” Cobb District Attorney Flynn Broady said Thursday. “But the fact is we have to follow the law.”*

Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady said Thursday he will not prosecute a Cobb Police officer who fatally shot a black teenager last summer after a grand jury declined to return an indictment.

Broady said at a press conference at the Cobb Police Training Academy in Austell that as far as he is concerned, the case involving the officer who shot and killed Vincent Truitt, 17, last July 13 after a traffic chase, is closed.

Broady’s remarks came after the grand jury deliberated all day Thursday to review police reports from the officers and video camera footage taken from police vehicles and body and surveillance cameras.

A video from one of the pursuing police cars was shown during the press conference, including the shooting of Truitt. He was a passenger in a car that was suspected of being stolen, and whose driver took police on a high-speed chase in South Cobb, and ultimately behind an industrial building off Riverside Parkway.

The death was ruled a homicide by the Cobb County Medical Examiner’s Office, and after a probe by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation—which investigates all officer-involved shootings—the case was turned over to the Cobb DA’s office.

Truitt’s family said earlier this month it is planning a $50 million lawsuit against Cobb Police, alleging he was running away from police and wasn’t armed.

They also have been asking for months for the release of camera footage of the shooting, accused former DA Joyette Holmes of not properly investigating the case and demanded the resignation of Cobb Police Chief Tim Cox.

Broady and deputy chief assistant DA Jason Salibi said the footage seen by the grand jury on Thursday clearly showed Truitt brandishing a weapon. He suffered two gunshot wounds and died 12 hours later at Grady Memorial Hospital.

Broady said the unnamed officer followed all proper departmental procedures for use-of-force as well as state law.

“As an African-American, you hate to see an African-American shot down,” Broady said. “But the fact is we have to follow the law. And the law says the officer is within his rights.

“If you see the the video, you see plenty of places where that young man could have hid and presented an opportunity to ambush the officer or the officers who were chasing the other assailant.”

Salibi said Truitt’s family was called to the Cobb court chambers Thursday and briefed in a separate room about the grand jury proceedings, including the decision not to indict.

Broady said footage that wasn’t shown to the grand jury, out of deference for Truitt’s family, was when a wounded Truitt asked police why he had been shot.

“Because you had a gun,” Broady quoted the police officer as saying.

Salibi said that in the aftermath of the shooting, police rendered aid to Truitt, who lived in Fulton County.

The week before he defeated Holmes in the November elections, Broady appeared with Truitt’s family at a Cobb Board of Commissioners meeting that involved a group called Movement 4 Black Lives.

According to the Cobb County Courier, Truitt’s family’s attorney has been critical of Broady since he took office, and said that they “will be presenting Truitt’s case to the United Nations as an example of the ‘police brutality epidemic’ in the United States.”

Broady said Thursday that although the officer was never charged with a crime, the grand jury was presented evidence as though it were a criminal case, as part of a policy of his office to have a grand jury review any officer-involved shooting.

When asked what message he may have for those in the community still troubled by the shooting, Broady said that “we cannot let emotions dictate how we see things, that we have to look at the facts.”

Quoting Malcolm X, Broady said, “I am for justice, no matter who it’s for or who it’s against. It’s my job as district attorney that I look out for everybody. Not just for the victims but also the offenders, to make sure that they get a fair hearing based on the evidence, and that’s what we did today.”

At a later media briefing, Cox said that “I recognize that the loss of life is tragic. I pray for that family every day.”

He said that the police officer who shot Truitt has been under heavy stress, “and I pray for that officer” as well.

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!

Update: Willeo Creek bridge replacement closures, detour map

February 18, 2021 4:32 PMFebruary 18, 2021 3:12 PM by Wendy Parker

Some initial lane closures got underway this week for the upcoming Willeo Creek Bridge replacement project we noted a few weeks ago, when final funding was approved.

Cobb County Government and the City of Roswell announced this week more of the timetable for the joint project, which which close the bridge entirely for four months.

The 60-year bridge will be replaced with a wider bridge that will include room for cyclists and pedestrians, linking existing sidewalks and trails between Willeo Road and Lower Roswell Road.

The full project, which has been delayed a few years due to amendments with an intergovernmental agreement, will take a year to complete.

Another such amendment will come before the Cobb Board of Commissioners on Tuesday. Another cost increase has pushed the final tab from $2.3 million to $3 million with Cobb and Roswell paying for an equal share.

According to Tuesday’s agenda item (details here and here) the additional funding is necessary for environmental mitigation purposes.

According to a video released by Cobb on Wednesday, the bridge closing is expected to begin sometime in the late spring or early summer, although a specific date has not been determined.

That means that East Cobbers using the bridge that connects the roundabout at Lower Roswell Road and Timber Ridge Road with Willeo Road for riverfront recreation and other activities in Roswell will have to use an alternate route while the bridge is closed.

The City of Roswell has drawn up a map of that detour above, and the Cobb video said further updates on when that alternate route will begin will be provided on the city website.

That includes taking Timber Ridge to Roswell Road (State Route 120) and heading east as it becomes the Marietta Highway in Roswell, then turning right on Willeo Road.

Wright Center Eagle Scout projects celebrated at court of honor

February 18, 2021 3:34 PMFebruary 18, 2021 1:12 PM by Wendy Parker

Thanks to Janis Hylton of the Cobb Master Gardeners and the Wright Environmental Education Center, for the information and photo:

The Master Gardeners and Volunteers at Wright Environmental Education Center are proud of and grateful to the recently-awarded Eagle Scouts who accomplished their Eagle projects on the property. Ryan Dean, Brooks Hess, and Dominic Krueger received their Eagle Awards at the Boy Scout Troop 1011 Court of Honor at Mt. Bethel UMC on Sunday, January 31, along with Marlowe Elmiger and Austin Jordan. All completed very meaningful projects.

The Eagle projects at Wright Center are:

Ryan Dean expanded the Frog Pond and installed a new liner. His team caught the frogs and tadpoles, drained the pond, excavated a new section and replaced the old liner with a new one. New pond plants were added along with a ton of large rocks laid around the perimeter on which the frogs can sun themselves. The project helps facilitate the growth of the frog population.

Brooks Hess and his team built a Plant Jail – four walls rising above a raised platform floor with bars installed in two of the walls. The structure is an invasive plant exhibit designed as a display area for the “dirty dozen” most prevalent invasive plants at Wright and to teach others about the damage that invasive plants do.

Dominic Krueger made several improvements at Wright. He built and installed rustic benches and a swing to provide convenient seating on the front porch of the education center. He and his team also planted native plants.

Judy Beard, Master Gardener Chair at Wright Center, and MG Janis Hylton attended the ceremony to honor the Scouts and their families.

For more info on Wright Center, go to www.cobbmastergardeners.com

Click on “Where We Dig,” then “Wright Environmental Education Center.”

Marietta Museum of History to hold black women’s history event

February 18, 2021 3:54 PMFebruary 18, 2021 9:48 AM by Wendy Parker

Marietta History Museum hours

Submitted information:

The Marietta Museum of History will be hosting its monthly Pop-In event on Saturday, February 20th from 10:30am-3:30pm. Pop-Ins provide children and their families the opportunity to interact with the Museum through themed activities and crafts. Join us in February for crafts and activities geared towards women in black history, currently these will be “Make and Take” so families may enjoy them at home while the Museum adheres to current health guidelines. Our “Black Women’s History” crafts are included with admission! The Museum’s new health policies and procedures are posted on our website.

When: February 20th, 2021
10:30am-3:30pm

Where: Marietta Museum of History
1 Depot Street, Marietta, GA 30060

Cost: Admission to the Museum during the Pop-In will be $5 per person with a family cap of $20!

The Museum uses ordinary objects to tell the extraordinary stories of Marietta and Cobb County. Current temporary exhibits include: The Man with the Camera: Photographs by Raymond T. Burford, Made by Her Hands: The Beauty, Warmth and Stories of Local Quilting, and Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence which is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery. This project received support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative.

For more information, call 770-794-5710 or visit www.MariettaHistory.org.

Cobb NAACP Black History Month events continue

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 included in flash flood watch through Friday morning

February 17, 2021 6:56 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb County flash flood watch

After avoiding icy conditions on Tuesday and drying out with warmer sunshine Wednesday, Cobb County and much of Georgia are in for rain and possible flash flooding through Friday morning.

The National Weather Service in Peachtree City issued a flash flood watch from 7 p.m. Wednesday to 7 a.m. Friday.

Rainfall between one and two inches could take place within the watch area, which extends south of Americus and east of Athens.

The flash flood threat, the NWS said, is due to soil being wet from previous rain this week.

There is a 90 percent chance of rain Wednesday night and that is expected to dissipate into Thursday.

Temperatures reached into the low 50s Wednesday, but highs will drop into the mid 40s Thursday through Saturday.

Lows Wednesday and Thursday are expected to be in the mid 30s as the chance of rain decreases.

There could be some snow showers Friday morning, followed by mostly sunny skies and a low in the mid 20s.

Saturday also will be sunny with highs in the high 40s and lows also in the mid 20s.

Slightly warmer weather moves in on Sunday, with sun and highs in the low 50s and lows in the high 30s, including a 30 percent chance of rain.

Next week starts with rain on Monday and gradually will be sunny with highs forecast to be in the 60s.

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!

Wheeler group advocating name change to hold town hall

February 17, 2021 2:33 PM by Wendy Parker

Wheeler name change town hall

Wheeler High School students and others who are organizing to change the school name are having a virtual town hall meeting next week.

The Facebook group Joseph Wheeler Name Change said the town hall will take place next Tuesday, Feb. 23, starting at 8 p.m.

Students, parents, staff and the school community are invited to attend, and can register by clicking here.

The group was formed after a petition was created last summer to change the name of Wheeler. The school, which opened in 1965, was named after Joseph Wheeler, a Confederate Civil War general.

Students have been speaking during the public comment period before the Cobb Board of Education in recent months (see video clip below), but said school board leadership has not responded to their requests to meet, or to have the issue placed on meeting agendas for discussion.

School board member Charisse Davis of Post 6, which includes the Wheeler cluster, signed that online petition.

In December, the board’s four-member Republican majority voted along partisan lines to require a majority vote for members other than the chair to add agenda items.

“We fully value the time and work they put into serving the community but that does not mean we aren’t willing to hold them accountable in instances such as this,” the group said in a recent post.

“Not only do we want the board to hear what we have to say, we truly want to hear what they have to say as well. Ignorance is NOT the answer to building a better community nor a better Cobb.”

The group has said having the school named after Wheeler “does not reflect the values of our students today.”

They’ve said their research shows that the Cobb school board named the then-new high school on Holt Road at a time when the school district was beginning racial integration.

During its early years, Wheeler was a nearly all-white school, but as the area began to diversify, it’s become a majority-minority school.

According to the Georgia Department of Education, Wheeler had an enrollment of 2,038 students in October, with 861 black students, 478 Hispanic students and 308 students of Asian descent.

The Joseph Wheeler Name Change group, which said last fall it wanted to spark a “community dialogue” about the issue, said next week’s town hall will be open to anyone regardless of their point of view, and that the event was designed to have a “constructive conversation.”

Atlanta law firm alters scholarship program for HS seniors

February 17, 2021 1:31 PMFebruary 17, 2021 10:22 AM by Wendy Parker

Atlanta law firm scholarship program — *2019 Winners (Left to Right: Eric Rogers, Aditi Madhusudan (Second Place), Michael Goldberg, Joe Fried, Sherrod Crum (First Place) and Tanner Freise (Third Place).*

Submitted information and photo:

Twelve years ago, the personal injury law firm of Fried Goldberg in Atlanta, Georgia started the Scales of Justice Scholarship to provide scholarships to three high school seniors from the metro Atlanta area to help offset the costs of going to college. “At the time, we had middle school and younger children but could see how hard it was for high school kids to get into college and how stressful it was to pay for it,” said founding partner Joe Fried.

The scholarship is for high school seniors who are attending high school in Fulton, Gwinnett, Cobb, Clayton, or DeKalb county and has traditionally been based on an essay contest addressing a current legal issue with the top three applicants receiving awards ranging from $1,000 to $500. This year, applicants will submit a video entry, and the first-place winner will
receive $2500 and the second and third place winners $1000 each.

“We decided to bring the contest into the 21st century by taking video entries instead of essay contests. I think kids nowadays express themselves through videos and social media more than anything else, and we wanted to tap into that trend. We also increased the amount of the scholarships as the price of everything has definitely gone up over the past 12 years,” explained Fried.

Over the years, the winners have been seniors attending colleges ranging from Harvard to Kennesaw State. “It is always amazing to see the quality of the entries and to see where the winners will be going to college. We have had the first-place winner attend college at a local school and had them go to the biggest and most prestigious colleges in the country. It goes to show you how smart people are from all walks of life,” commented partner Michael Goldberg.

To apply for the scholarship, applicants should go to www.friedgoldberg.com/scholarship. The deadline for applications is March 19, 2021.

Leading COVID-19 metrics continue fall in Cobb; deaths lag

February 16, 2021 5:17 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb COVID metrics fall — *PCR test positivity rates continue to fall in Cobb County; for more **visit the Georgia DPH Daily Status Report**.*

Many of the key COVID-19 metrics that have been on the decline in Cobb County over the last two weeks or so continue falling, although death rates are continuing to lag those figures.

We’ve been noting in particular the steep drop in case rates, generally in the county, and reported by the Cobb County School District (which is on winter break this week).

Other numbers that have been receding including community spread, hospitalizations and test positivity rates.

According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, as of 3 p.m. Tuesday, there were 160 new confirmed COVID-19 cases in Cobb County, according to the “date of report” category. There were also 12 more deaths reported on Tuesday in the same category, continuing a trend of double-figure death reports over the last month.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020, there have been 53,826 cases in Cobb County and 791s death, per Cobb and Douglas Public Health.

On Monday Dr. Janet Memark, director of Cobb and Douglas Public Health, offered a snapshot update of those and other indicators in the two-county region.

The community spread figures continue to move down, with Tuesday’s 14-day moving average of 322 cases per 100,000 people, a drop of more than 100 from the end of last week.

After surging past 1,000 cases per 100,000 in early January, that number is now close to returning to what it was in October, when Cobb school district students were returning to campuses.

A two-week average of 100 cases per 100,000 is considered “high” community spread.

Hospitalization numbers also are doing down, with the Cobb and Douglas region falling to around 92 percent of general inpatient beds in use, after hovering near full capacity.

Also trending in a more positive direction is the COVID-19 test positivity rate. After peaking at around 20 percent in January, that figure in Cobb County is was at 8.9 percent on Tuesday, The seven-day moving average is 6.9, the closest is had been to the ideal 5 percent range since late November.

But vaccine distribution in Cobb remains very limited. Cobb and Douglas Public Health is in th second week of halting new appointments at Jim Miller Park as it honors previously booked appointments and second doses.

On Tuesday, no vaccines were distributed due to the cold weather, but those with appointments were to be notified about rescheduling.

For more Cobb COVID information, click here.

Golden K Kiwanis Club honors student with Silver Pen Award

February 16, 2021 4:08 PMFebruary 16, 2021 12:57 PM by Wendy Parker

Golden K Kiwanis Silver Pen Award

Submitted information and photo:

The Silver Pen Award is presented by the Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K to an elementary school student in Cobb County for completing and submitting a creative writing response to a writing prompt. The 2020 Silver Pen winner is Jeremiah Perry from Rocky Mount Elementary School with the Cobb County School District in Marietta, GA. Jeremiah won the award last year when he was a 4th grader, but the pandemic delayed the recognition ceremony until February 2021.

As explained by Jim Perry, Past President of the Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K (no relation to the winner), “The Silver Pen Award is designed to encourage creative writing.” Students read the beginning of an interesting short story, create an engaging end to the story, then submit it to their 4th grade teacher for review. Each homeroom teacher selects the top three entries from the class and the Assistant Principal chooses one finalist from each class. The four finalists are given “a numbered score” by former educators who are now members of the Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K. All the stories are submitted without names throughout the selection process, so the judges do not know which student wrote the story.

Jeremiah received the following special gifts: A Kiwanis Club Pen, a Silver Pen, twenty one-dollar coins, and an engraved plaque from the Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K recognizing Jeremiah for his writing accomplishment.

Jim Perry spoke for all present (at the socially-distanced, outside awards ceremony on February 10, 2021) when he told Jeremiah, “We hope you will take that writing skill and put it to use throughout your life, because our whole purpose is to encourage good writers to be better writers. You did well.” Assistant Principal Dr. Sage Doolittle added, “Rocky Mount is so proud of Jeremiah! We are thrilled that he has embraced a love for creative writing and that writing passion will serve him well in the future.”

Pictured above representing the Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K are: Jim Perry (Past President), Jim Farley (Past Kiwanis District 15 Lt. Governor), Aimee Mendel (President-elect), Margy Rogers (President), and Gene Schumacher (Committee Co-chair). Also pictured are: Dr. Sage Doolittle (Assistant Principal at Rocky Mount Elementary); Shani Childress (Jeremiah’s Teacher at Rocky Mount Elementary) and Marika Perry (Jeremiah’s mother). Not pictured is John Kone (Club Vice President).

East Cobb Weather Alert: Black ice advisory issued for Tuesday

February 15, 2021 5:32 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb black ice advisory

The National Weather Service has issued an advisory about the chance of black ice into Tuesday morning in much of north Georgia as temperatures are headed below freezing following rain on Monday.

Temperatures in metro Atlanta and Cobb County could dip into the low 20s Monday night, and highs on Tuesday are expected only to be in the mid-30s, according to the NWS in Atlanta.

Cobb County Government issued a statement late Monday afternoon saying all of its offices will open Tuesday on a delayed basis, starting at 10 a.m.

The Cobb Board of Commissioners zoning hearing will start at 10:30 a.m. instead of the usual 9 a.m. time.

The Cobb and Douglas Public Health drive-up vaccine service at Jim Miller Park will be closed Tuesday, as that’s an outdoor set-up.

The statement also said that Cobb DOT road crews will arrive early and inspect the roads, treating any ice areas, and pre-treating bridges.

The Cobb County School District and most private schools in the East Cobb area are on winter break this week. Annual CCSD staffers will be working remotely Tuesday, according to a message the school district issued late Monday afternoon.

The message said that employees whose jobs require them to be on-site will be contacted by their supervisor.

The chance of rain Monday night is 100 percent, with between a quarter and a half inch possible in some areas.

Tuesday’s forecast calls for partly sunny skies, but it will be cold, and low temperatures Tuesday night also will be in the mid-20s.

The weather will get warmer as the week goes on, into the 50s by Thursday, but also with rain and subfreezing temperatures in the forecast Thursday night.

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 to issue state of the county addresses

February 15, 2021 5:48 PMFebruary 15, 2021 3:46 PM by Wendy Parker

Submitted information:

On Monday, March 8, Chairwoman Lisa Cupid will hold two events to share our 2021 State of the County address:

State of the County address at Cobb ChamberDuring the Cobb Chamber’s Marquee Monday luncheon at the Coca-Cola Roxy, Cupid will discuss how Cobb continues to provide outstanding customer service despite the challenges of a global pandemic, address community concerns, support the business community and maintain fiscal stability. She will also highlight the county’s biggest successes and milestones from 2020, as well as our goals for 2021 to continue moving Cobb forward. Registration is open now through March 3 for those attending in person. To attend virtually, register for the event by selecting the virtual attendance option. For more information, or to register, click here.
State of the County community eventCupid will also host a State of the County address for the community on the evening of Monday, March 8. This will be an excellent opportunity for residents to learn about progress and goals in our community and to ask questions. Due to socially-distanced protocols, the event will be open to a small number of interested attendees who will be randomly selected. If you would like to attend in person or know someone who would, please email the names to comments@cobbcounty.org. Everyone is also invited to attend the address virtually. More information will be shared soon about this event.

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Wellstar honors ‘Vital Valentines’ employees for pandemic care

February 13, 2021 1:11 PM by Wendy Parker

Wellstar Vital Valentines

Submitted information and photos:

Wellstar Health System, one of Georgia’s largest and most integrated healthcare systems, is celebrating team members as “Vital Valentines” for providing extraordinary and compassionate care during the pandemic. The systemwide appreciation campaign honors all team members with special customized and heartfelt messages of support from Wellstar leaders.

When: From Feb. 10 to Feb. 14, Wellstar will distribute appreciation notes to all team members, including Valentine’s Day cards and candy hearts with customized Wellstar messages. Employees will also have the opportunity to share and acknowledge co-workers with notecards or recognize a team member by making an online donation to the Employee Assistance Fund in the honoree’s name.

Wellstar has launched a systemwide appreciation campaign to honor all team members as “Vital Valentines.”

Community Participation: Wellstar also encourages the public to join in celebrating Wellstar team members by following Wellstar social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day. The community is invited to share photos, words of encouragement, and other appreciation items on social media by using the hashtag #vitalvalentines. Also, we’ve partnered with the Wellstar Foundation for anyone who would like to make a donation honoring a Wellstar physician, caregiver or team member by visiting www.wellstar.org/wccg. 100% of the donation will support the Foundation’s Emergency Assistance Fund, which offers emergency financial support to our healthcare workers and team members who experience unforeseen catastrophic events.

Wellstar Vital Valentines

Cobb schools COVID-19 case rates drop to pre-holiday figures

February 13, 2021 1:46 PMFebruary 13, 2021 10:14 AM by Wendy Parker

As the COVID-19 case rates have declined dramatically in Cobb County, they also have gone down significantly in the Cobb County School District.

The district’s weekly COVID update on Friday reported 232 newly confirmed cases of the virus among students and staff. That’s the lowest single-week tally since there were 106 new cases the week of Nov. 20, right before the Thanksgiving holiday.

For the first time in many weeks, any schools that reporting cases have 10 or fewer, even in high schools, which have had occasional double-digit numbers over the last few months.

The schools in East Cobb with the highest number of cases this week are Addison Elementary School and Walton High School, with 7 each.

Since July 1, there have been 3,731 cumulative COVID cases reported in the Cobb school district, which doesn’t break down numbers among staff and students.

High schools have the most total cases, led by 98 at Walton and North Cobb.

Since students returned for a phased reopening of in-person classes in October, weekly case rates climbed steadily, to 470 the week of Jan. 15, after the start of the spring semester.

The following week, all classes were held online, and two Cobb teachers who had been hospitalized with COVID died, including Cynthia Lindsey, a paraprofessional at Sedalia Park Elementary School.

This week’s figures were a steep drop from the 331 reported last week, which had been the lowest since mid-December.

COVID cases in Cobb have been falling since February. This week there have been 829 cases reported according to date of report, with only Thursday having more than 200 cases.

According to date of symptom figures, there have been 337 cases in Cobb, as some of those daily numbers are falling below triple digits for the first time since late October.

Earlier this week Dr. Janet Memark of Cobb and Douglas Public Health was encouraged by those figures, as well as community spread numbers that show a declining 14-day average of 371 cases per 100,000 people. That number had been above 1,000 per 100,000 last month.

Public health officials said 100 cases per 100,000 is considered “high” community spread.

They also say anything below a 5 percent test positivity rate is ideal. In Cobb that metric also has been falling, to a current 7-day moving average of around 9 percent. That number had been 17.8 percent on Jan. 1.

Cobb school superintendent Chris Ragsdale urged students, parents and staff to take precautions during the winter break week next week to continue to reduce the spread of the virus.

Cobb NAACP Black History Month events continue

February 13, 2021 12:55 PMFebruary 13, 2021 7:50 AM by Wendy Parker

From the Cobb NAACP, information on its Black History Month events, virtual and in-person, including a Profiles in Black and General Membership meeting on Feb. 23 at The Strand Theatre in Marietta:

Cobb NAACP Black History month 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 schools to seek SPLOST extension referendum in November

February 13, 2021 1:13 PMFebruary 12, 2021 4:32 PM by Wendy Parker

Eastvalley ES parents — *A portable classroom at Eastvalley ES, which is slated for a replacement facility in the current Cobb Ed-SPLOST V collection period.*

Cobb school superintendent Chris Ragsdale said Thursday he will be seeking an extension of the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax with a referendum in November.

What would be Cobb Ed-SPLOST VI would begin in 2024 and for five years would continue to collect a one-percent sales tax for school facility, maintenance and technology expenses.

Local legislation will be required this year to call for a referendum, which would take place in a light election year.

Ragsdale said a project list, called a “notebook,” and details about the process throughout this year will be coming soon.

That process includes public hearings about the project list. A total estimated cost of the five-year collection period, which would also raise funds for similar needs for Marietta City Schools, is to be announced.

At a Cobb school board work session Thursday, Ragsdale said there will be an even higher emphasis on technology, given the expanded remote learning options the Cobb school district has been providing this year due to COVID-19, and that figures to continue on a long-term basis.

“The pandemic has brought a new focus on technology,” he said.

That may include what Ragsdale calls a “one-to-one” initiative for devices, which Cobb students have received since the end of the last school year for remote learning.

The current SPLOST V collection period began in January 2019. The major facility projects include a new campus for Osborne High School and a rebuild of Eastvalley Elementary School in East Cobb.

An architect was hired last February to design the new Eastvalley campus, which will be relocated to the former site of East Cobb Middle School on Holt Road. A construction timeline has not been announced.

The process of developing a SPLOST notebook—with public as well as staff and school board input—will take place throughout the rest of the year, leading up to a referendum.

“No other district creates a notebook like we do,” Ragsdale said. “It’s about prioritizing needs.”

The current $797 million SPLOST V was passed in March 2017. This year, the only elections in Cobb County are in its six municipalities.

“This District could not survive without Ed-SPLOST because that is what allows us to build the school buildings, school improvements, athletic fields, and technology our students and staff need,” a Cobb schools spokeswoman said in a statement to East Cobb News.

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