The Cobb Board of Education on Thursday voted to call for a November special election to extend the Cobb Ed-SPLOST sales tax and approved spending $307,000 to bring the Walton Robotics Lab back to campus.
On a 6-1 vote, the school board adopted a resolution calling for the SPLOST referendum, which if approved by voters would collect a one-percent sales tax from 2024-29, an estimated $894 million.
The funds would be used for facility construction and maintenance, similar to the Cobb government SPLOST.
Among the major projects of SPLOST VI would be a rebuild of the main Sprayberry High School classroom building and new annexes at Kincaid, Mt. Bethel, Murdock, Sope Creek and Tritt elementary schools in East Cobb.
The board did vote to remove another major project on that list, a special events center for the school district designed for graduations and proms.
For the last two years the Cobb school district has held graduations at McEachern High School due to COVID-19 restrictions. Most graduations in recent years have taken place at the Kennesaw State University Convocation Center, but that facility was not available for the last two years.
During a work session Thursday afternoon, board members Charisse Davis of Post 6 (Walton, Wheeler clusters) and Jaha Howard of Post 2 (Campbell, Osborne), pointed out that district officials have said there are at least $2 billion in facilities and maintenance needs, and a new SPLOST would fund less than half of that amount.
Marc Smith, the district’s chief technology and operations officer, said in response to a question from Howard that the estimated cost for a special events center would be $40 million.
Howard said of the special events center that “I love it, but not now” and urged his colleagues “to do the fiscally conservative thing.”
He said the district has numerous schools that are in disrepair, and that there are more important facilities priorities.
Board chairman Randy Scamihorn countered by asking “if not now, when?” regarding the issue of whether the Cobb school district would “ever control our own destiny.”
He voted for the resolution (David Banks of East Cobb’s Post 4 was the only vote against). The board voted 7-0 for a contract to have the referendum included in the November elections, which in Cobb this year are in municipalities.
The cost for the SPLOST special election is to be determined and will be acted upon later.
The board was unanimous in a 7-0 vote to spend $307,000 to create space at Walton High School for a robotics lab. That lab has been located in recent years at East Cobb Middle School after the Walton campus underwent a rebuild.
Several robotics parents spoke to the board at the start of Thursday night’s board meeting to request approval of the project, which will take place during the renovation of practice gymnasium space at Walton.
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Music Director and Conductor Timothy Verville leads the Georgia Symphony Orchestra’s return to live performances.
Submitted information and photo:
The Georgia Symphony Orchestra is thrilled to announce its 71st concert season with a return to the stage beginning late September 2021.
The GSO’s Classics series, led by Music Director and Conductor Timothy Verville, features three artistically captivating and musically challenging classical performances at either the Marietta Performing Arts Center or the Bailey Center for the Performing Arts at Kennesaw State University. In an effort to continue its focus on diversity and inclusivity in classical music, the series features the works of two American women composers and two women soloists.
On Sept. 25, 2021, the orchestra will kick off the season with Mahler, smahler, a reduced orchestration of Gustav Mahler’s Fourth Symphony. This work often is referred to as Mahler’s most “chamber-like,” due to the intricacies and interplay between instrumental sections. Soprano and Marietta native Maria Valdes, who has received acclaim on the stage from San Francisco to Chicago and New York, is the featured soloist.
The GSO’s performance of Beethoven at the Beach, scheduled for Feb 26, 2022, features Amy Beach’s Symphony No. 2, the first symphony written and published by an American woman composer, and Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D Major. The award-winning violinist, Minami Yoshida, joins the GSO for her American debut. Yoshida was a major prize winner at the Montreal and Sibelius competitions and has performed with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra and others.
The Classics series concludes on May 21, 2022, with a concert entitled The Firebird and Music of Remembrance. The performance includes American composer Jennifer Higdon’s Blue Cathedral, one of her most performed works, and Igor Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite (1919), which is a collection of music from the ballet of the same name. This concert also will feature the GSO’s phenomenal 90-voice GSO Chorus.
In addition to the Classics series, the GSO’s season also includes its Holiday Pops, Sensory Friendly and GSO Jazz! concerts.
Two shows of the GSO’s beloved Holiday Pops concert will be held at the Marietta Performing Arts Center on Dec. 4, 2021. In addition to a traditional sing-along and great holiday favorites, the concert also will feature the winner of its Virtual to Center Stage competition, opera vocalist Lainie Ewers. And a special guest each year is a man in a distinctive red suit— a favorite for all ages whom you are sure to recognize.
GSO Jazz!, led by Music Director Sam Skelton, once again welcomes fans of this uniquely American music genre to the historic Earl and Rachel Smith Strand Theatre on Feb. 12 and April 2, 2022, to enjoy jazz small ensemble and classic Big Band repertoire.
And once again, the GSO will hold its annual Sensory Friendly performance on March 12, 2022, at the Marietta Performing Arts Center. Funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts and designed specifically for individuals with sensory sensitivities and their families, the concert features a range of enjoyable musical selections. Audience members are free to be themselves; change seats, move about the auditorium, sing, vocalize, even yell out “BRAVO!” after their newly discovered classical favorites.
To ensure the health and safety of its patrons, musicians and staff, the GSO will follow all recommended CDC COVID-19 protocols at its partner venues.
GSO season subscription renewals will begin on July 21, 2021, followed by general admission season subscriptions Aug. 1 and individual concert ticket sales on Aug. 16.
For more information on season subscription packages or individual concert tickets, visit georgiasymphony.org/all-events.
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Mt. Bethel leaders are asking members to update their social media accounts to show their support for the church.
The leadership of Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church has provided a lengthy update to members about the decision by the Bishop of the North Georgia Conference to seize the East Cobb church’s property and assets.
In an FAQ format posted on the church website, Mt. Bethel claimed that Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson made a “false declaration” in declaring that “exigent circumstances” were present in order for her to seek an asset seizure, and for the conference’s board of trustees to take over church operations.
The decision was announced late Monday, and Mt. Bethel issued a heated response via a press release.
In the FAQ posted Wednesday, Mt. Bethel said that declaration “has been refuted in complaints that are presently under review by a higher authority,” a reference to the Southeast Jurisdiction College of Bishops of the United Methodist Church.
“As such, her actions are in disobedience to the order and discipline of the UMC,” read the Mt. Bethel update.
It continued that there are three complaints before the College of Bishops, and that Mt. Bethel has been seeking a “civil mediation process” that Haupert-Johnson has ignored.
In her announcement Monday, Haupert-Johnson said while the asset seizure and management takeover are immediate, Mt. Bethel has 10 days to make the transition.
In its update Wednesday, Mt. Bethel said that if the bishop “chooses to take legal action, we are prepared to defend our rights through the Georgia courts.”
The statement concluded:
“Mt. Bethel’s leadership remains undeterred in their trust of the Lord’s providence and protection, and faith in the protocols and processes of due process afforded the Church by the UMC Book of Discipline, and are grateful for the prayerful support of members, local ministry partners and community faith leaders,” read the statement.
East Cobb News has left messages with North Georgia Conference and Mt. Bethel leaders to get more information about some of these issues and others.
But neither side has responded to requests for interviews or information. Both continue to issue competing, strongly-worded statements, through the media and, in the case of Mt. Bethel’s Wednesday statement, directly to its membership.
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Cobb school superintendent Chris Ragsdale said Thursday the Cobb County School District will unveil updated protocols related to COVID-19, including revised quarantine guidelines, next week.
He wasn’t specific about those measures except to reiterate that the district will have a masks-optional policy for students, teachers and staff.
“Our intent is going to be to back normal as much as possible,” he said during a Cobb Board of Education work session.
“But it’s not going to be back to normal.”
He cited continuing virtual learning options for students whose parents do not wish for them to attend in person “as we look forward to a more traditional school year.”
Ragsdale said the updated protocols will go out via e-mail, social media and other regular district communications channels by the middle of next week at the latest.
The Cobb 2021-22 school year begins Aug. 2, one of the earliest returns for a school district in metro Atlanta.
Ragsdale said Cobb wants to work in tandem with other school districts about the measures.
Some nearby districts are continuing mask mandates that they used all of the last school year, including Atlanta, Clayton Decatur and DeKalb, regardless of vaccination status. Fulton and Gwinnett have announced masks-optional policies.
Cobb had a mask mandate for most of the 2020-21 school year, dropping the requirement for “fully vaccinated” individuals in the final weeks.
Students and staff who wish to wear masks on campuses will be allowed to do so.
The Cobb school district was briefly sued by parents opposed to the mask mandate but they dropped that suit when the masks-optional policy was announced.
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The owners of the retail center The Avenue East Cobb have entered into a joint venture partnership with North American Properties, a commercial real estate company that owns the Avalon development in Alpharetta.
The partnership with present owners PGIM will “reposition the open-air retail community,” according to a statement issued Thursday.
According to a release, NAP plans to add upscale dining, create a central lawn, provide a concierge service for guests and conduct more events at the 230,000-square foot shopping center on Roswell Road.
NAP officials said in their announcement Wednesday that plans for The Avenue East Cobb center around creating a “downtown” atmosphere that the area has lacked.
A statement from Adam Schwegman, an NAP partner and senior vice president in Atlanta, said that “our plan is to create a socially magnetic place that pulls people together to hang out and connect with community. Utilizing best practices from our other projects, we’re excited to elevate this already great shopping and dining destination into a modern gathering place.”
The Avenue has held regular events for a number of years, including Santa rides during the Christmas holiday shopping season, outdoor movie screenings and car shows.
The restaurant additions at The Avenue will be “chef-driven” featuring patio space; the NAP announcement did not specify its plans for events and entertainment.
NAP will oversee leasing and management of the property, but a sale did not take place. A timeline for the renovations was not announced.
In the release, NAP managing partner Tim Perry said that “lifestyle centers like The Avenue East Cobb were designed to fill gaps in the market—the retail deserts between regional malls—by providing outdoor shopping for the community.
“As these communities have matured around them, they became the center of the community and while The Avenue East Cobb has remained a high-performing asset over the years, NAP sees an opportunity to elevate the destination into a true third place with a modern mix of retailers and restaurants.”
NAP is a Cincinnati-based retail developer with offices in Atlanta, and is currently overseeing a lengthy renovation to Colony Square in Midtown Atlanta. NAP also overhauled Atlantic Station, also in Midtown Atlanta, before selling it off.
Last year Chain Store Age named The Avenue East Cobb one of its “Top 10 Comeback Centers” after weathering closures due to COVID-19.
Created by Atlanta real estate developer Tom Cousins, The Avenue opened in 1999 on nearly 30 acres of land that once housed a golf driving range.
It was among the early models of an outdoor, pedestrian-friendly mall created as an alternative to enclosed suburban shopping centers, and attracted a mix of national retailers and locally-owned shops.
Currently The Avenue features Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Bed, Bath and Beyond, Eddue Bauer; Gap, High Country Outfitters, Lululemon, Michael’s, Pottery Barn, Talbot’s and Williams-Sonoma.
Established local businesses include Olea Oliva, Drift Fish House & Oyster Bar, Stockyard Burgers, Ansley Atlanta Real Estate and K Squared Artisan Boutique.
NAP puts on more than 200 events annually at Avalon, according to Chain Store Age.
Avalon is a much bigger development than The Avenue East Cobb, with more than 2.3 million square feet of space on more than 80 acres. That includes office and luxury apartment space in addition to nearly 600,000 square feet of retail space.
PGIM purchased The Avenue in 2006 for more than $94 million, according to Cobb Tax Assessor’s records. A PGIM subsidiary, Poag Shopping Centers, still manages The Avenue West Cobb.
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The Cobb Board of Education will consider a resolution to establish a November referendum for another Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax extension when it meets on Thursday.
The board also will be asked to fund more than $300,000 toward the completion of a robotics lab at Walton High School in East Cobb.
The board has two public meetings Thursday, a work session starting at 12:30 p.m., and a voting meeting at 7 p.m.
Public comment periods will take place at the start of both meetings.
There also will be a closed executive session and public tax digest hearing starting at 6:30 p.m.
All the meetings will take place in the board room of the Cobb County School District central office (514 Glover St., Marietta). They also will be live-streamed on the district’s BoxCast channel and on CobbEdTV, Comcast Channel 24.
Earlier this year Cobb schools superintendent Chris Ragsdale announced he wanted the board to call for a SPLOST extension, Cobb Ed-SPLOST VI.
If a resolution is adopted and voters approve a referendum in November, the current one-percent sales tax that would begin anew in 2024 and collect nearly $900 million over five years.
Among the major projects would be a rebuild of the main Sprayberry High School classroom building, the construction of a special events center for the Cobb school district and new annexes at Kincaid, Mt. Bethel, Murdock, Sope Creek and Tritt elementary schools in East Cobb.
An addition and modifications are being proposed for Bells Ferry Elementary School on the draft project list released in May.
Ragsdale also is recommending an expenditure of $307,007 in current SPLOST V funds for the construction of a robotics lab at Walton High School to Prime Contractors Inc. of Powder Springs. The completion date is slated for November.
The board also will hear more details about the American Recovery Plan.
Thursday’s meetings will be the first for the Cobb school board in which the public will be fully invited to attend in-person.
The board has been meeting in person since last fall, with only superintendent’s cabinet staffers allowed to attend, and only one person speaking during public comment at a time.
Thursday’s meetings also will be the first in which members of the public wishing to speak during public comment will be required to sign-up online in advance.
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Jake Evans, the former chairman of the Georgia Ethics Commission, is seeking the Republican nomination for the 6th Congressional District seat.
Evans is an attorney who said he is running “to usher in the great comeback to retake America.”
He describes himself as a “conservative trailblazer” and mentioned the 1994 Republican resurgence that led to former Congressman Newt Gingrich becoming Speaker of the House when he represented the 6th District.
“The Northern Arc of metro Atlanta is a thriving, dynamic region that cares about education, public safety, national defense and fair trade,” Evans said in a statement.
“But we’re stuck with a member of Congress who only cares about one issue – taking away the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans and leaving them defenseless against out-of-control crime. We need change, and I’m here to offer bold, conservative leadership that delivers an America First agenda to restore the values that make this country exceptional.”
That’s a reference to current Democratic U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, whose main priorities include gun control.
They both have employed strong conservative language in a 6th District that includes East Cobb, North Fulton and Sandy Springs and North DeKalb. Those political dynamics figure to be affected by reapportionment later this year.
The East Cobb area remains a GOP stronghold in a 6th District that has been trending Democratic elsewhere.
Most recently Evans has advocated for counting “only legal votes” during the 2020 presidential election. He also supports and defends election reforms passed by the Republican-led legislature that led to Major League Baseball moving this year’s All-Star Game away from Truist Park.
Evans resigned from the ethics commission on June 30 after five years amid speculation of a Congressional run.
He’s from Lithia Springs and earned a bachelor’s and law degree from the University of Georgia.
A newlywed, he and his wife Bayley, also an attorney, live in Cobb County.
“As the representative for the 6th District, I’ll fight for Georgia, not against it like the radical Left,” Evans said, “and we’ll once against have a conservative voice in Congress who has the courage to stand up to the Woke Mob and Cancel Culture and to fight for the conservative principles that made America the greatest country on earth.”
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The Board of Trustees of the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church has voted to seize the assets of Mt. Bethel UMC and will operate the church effective immediately, the latest move in an escalating crisis with the East Cobb congregation.
In a statement issued late Monday, North Georgia Conference Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson said that “exigent circumstances” prompted the move, after Mt. Bethel strongly and publicly refused to accept the appointment of a new senior pastor, and made other moves she said violated the denomination’s Book of Discipline governing document.
Other details of the “exigent crisis” were explained at this Q & A, which include claims that Mt. Bethel leaders signed a 20-year lease of property to its Mt. Bethel Christian Academy “without complying with the policies outlined in the Book of Discipline” and planned “to use credit lines, transfer interests in assets, and sell property” without getting proper approval from the Conference.
The North Georgia Conference statement said that Mt. Bethel leaders and attorneys were notified Monday by Conference attorneys that the property seizures are immediate, and that the church has 10 days to complete the transfer.
According to UMC policies, individual congregations do not own properties or assets but are held in trust for the denomination.
The Monday decision means, according to the Conference, that it holds title to real, personal, tangible and intangible property.
“Unless this crisis is resolved by that time, the annual conference in June 2022 will decide whether to formally close the local church,” the Conference said. “In the meantime, the conference Board of Trustees will control all of the assets.”
Mt. Bethel church activities and operations will continue under the management of the trustees, according to the statement. This is the first time the North Georgia Conference has undertaken such a seizure.
Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson
“The Trustees are mindful of the concerns of employees, families, and members of Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church and the families connected to the Mt. Bethel Christian Academy,” according to the statement, which you can read in full here. “Employment, instruction, activities, and worship at the church and Academy will continue, but under the direction and control of the Conference Board of Trustees.”
A Mt. Bethel statement issued Tuesday accused Haupert-Johnson of “engaging attorneys to go to civil court to seize assets that the faithful people at Mt. Bethel have freely and joyfully given for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed: assets which will become property of Mt. Bethel once it completes a process for disaffiliating from the United Methodist Church, initiated in April 2021. The Bishop is purposely delaying that process.”
The Mt. Bethel statement said the bishop “continues to escalate a crisis of her own” and that the church “will do all in their power to resist the aggressive actions against their church, and they will do all they can to restore the reputational damage Haupert-Johnson is inflicting on many local United Methodist churches that simply want to do ministry without the drama of her intrusive and threatening actions.”
The Mt. Bethel statement also said that she “hastily initiated an ill-timed and an ill-considered move that not only jeopardizes great ministry and missions at Mt. Bethel but also the health and reputation of her entire annual conference.”
East Cobb News has contacted the Conference and Mt. Bethel for further comment and information on the transition process.
The Conference statement Monday said that Mt. Bethel was notified on June 18 to resolve the issues surrounding the appointment of Rev. Dr. Steven Usry as the new senior pastor, effective July 1. They included the church’s refusal to provide office space and pay him a full salary.
In addition, Mt. Bethel retained senior pastor Dr. Jody Ray, who had been reappointed by the bishop to a non-ministry role with the Conference on racial reconciliation issues.
He refused, turned in his UMC pastoral credentials and was named the Mt. Bethel CEO.
In a pastoral letter sent out in late June, Haupert-Johnson said these moves were not in accordance with the Book of Discipline.
The Conference statement on Monday said Mt. Bethel leaders did not respond to the June 18 letter.
The Mt. Bethel Q & A prepared by the North Georgia Conference said Mt. Bethel also has been notified that it is not a church in good standing.
Mt. Bethel held a press conference in April announcing its intention to disaffiliate from the United Methodist Church, but that action cannot happen until after the UMC General Conference in September 2022.
UMC churches not in good standing are not eligible for disaffiliation, according to denominational policies.
The UMC, the nation’s second-largest Protestant denomination, has been roiled by theological disputes in recent years.
That vote was to have taken place in 2020, but due to COVID-19 concerns the UMC General Conference has been delayed until next year.
Mt. Bethel, with 10,000 members, is the largest church in the 800-church North Georgia Conference and is a founding member of the Wesleyan Covenant Association, which is made up of more theologically conservative congregations.
Should Mt. Bethel disaffiliate, it is likely to join the Global Methodist Church, a theologically conservative organization that is not an official denomination but that is planning to begin operations after the Protocol is approved.
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The Lassiter PTSA said Sunday that a July 22 memorial service has been scheduled for Libby Rountree, a Lassiter student, and her father Chris.
They were killed in a car crash on June 26 near Dublin, Ga., in what the Georgia State Patrol said was a wrong-way driver hitting their vehicle.
Erica Rountree, Libby’s mother and Chris’ wife, and Cate Rountree, another daughter, were seriously injured in the crash.
The memorial service begins at 1 p.m. July 22 at Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church (4385 Lower Roswell Road) and it will be live-streamed here.
Here’s more from the PTSA on sending donations and condolences to the family:
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Libby Rountree Memorial Scholarship Fund by clicking here or by sending checks payable to Trojan Soccer Booster Club to 2601 Shallowford Rd, Marietta, GA 30066 with Libby Rountree Scholarship in the memo line. https://www.lassitersoccer.org/libby/.
To share a memory of Libby or send condolences to big sister, Cate, and Mom, visit the obituary links below:
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Former Georgia State Rep. Meagan Hanson on Monday announced her campaign for the 6th District Congressional seat.
Hanson, an attorney who represented Brookhaven in the legislature from 2017-18, is a Republican who said in a release she’s running on a conservative platform to counter a House Democratic majority that includes two-term 6th District incumbent U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath.
The 6th District includes East Cobb, North Fulton, Sandy Springs and North DeKalb.
“With the direction our country is going, the America I had growing up will not be the same America my kids will live in. I’m not content to watch this nation’s promise slip away,” Hanson said in a campaign release. “We need a Congresswoman who will fight for Georgia’s families, not Nancy Pelosi’s radical agenda. I’ll work every day to lower taxes, end out-of-control government spending, and get America back on track.”
Hanson is an attorney who is the executive director of Georgians for Lawsuit Reform, an arm of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, and is a conservative commentator and lobbyist.
She said her priorities include curbing government spending, strengthening border controls, boosting law enforcement resources and fighting what she calls “the radical left agenda and cancel culture.”
“Conservative values aren’t just a talking point for me. They are what I’ve been fighting for my entire life,” she said in the statement. “With liberals like Lucy McBath in office, our communities have felt the full force of the left’s wish list: higher taxes, bigger government, more crime, a crisis at our border, and a radical cancel culture movement that has cost our local economy over $100 million. I’ve never backed down—and I’m ready for this fight because my family’s future, and the future of those in our community, depend on it.”
McBath is one of two Congressional Democrats from metro Atlanta who are targets for GOP pickups in the 2022 elections.
She unseated Republican U.S. Rep. Karen Handel in 2018, then defeated Handel again in 2020.
But a major factor factor in 2022 figures to be Congressional redistricting. The East Cobb area remains a GOP stronghold in a 6th District that has been trending Democratic elsewhere.
For now, Hanson, a resident of Sandy Springs, is the only Republican specifically running in the 6th District. Eric Welsh, a retired Army officer and former Coca-Cola Co. executive, announced his candidacy in May, but on July 1 announced his withdrawal.
No Democrats have announced for the 6th District seat.
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Marietta Police Officer Sgt. Foster is served by Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K members Aimee Mendel and Randy Pettit.
Submitted information and photos:
For the past 18 years the Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K has served the city of Marietta 1st Responders a BBQ lunch on the “Fourth of July.” Due to the Covid 19 epidemic, the event did not take place last year, however, the Kiwanis Club of Marietta Golden K resumed the tradition this year. First Responders of the City of Marietta enjoyed a delicious “4th of July” BBQ lunch, with all the trimmings, on the 3rd of July served at Atherton Square in front of the Marietta Welcome Center.
In addition to the 1st responders, a special guest was treated to a BBQ lunch. Miss Georgia’s Teen, Megan Wright stopped by to have lunch with the First Responders.
1st responders Chase Robinson Alvin Cummings and Vernon Jackson.
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KIDSCARE & the Cobb County Police Department present our team effort called “Backing the Need.” We are requesting and accepting new backpacks, non perishable snacks & new school supply donations for elementary, middle & high school aged students. These donations will be given for use for the 2021/22 school year. Monetary Donations are also being collected for direct purchase of school supplies at: https://kids-care2018.org/%24-donations
Drive by & Drop off your donations at the Cobb County Civic Center on July 17th and July 23rd from 8 am – 12 pm. All donations received will be given to students in need in the Cobb County area.
DROP BOXES: New school supplies can also be donated & dropped off July 9th – 23rd during business hours at the following locations:
LOCAL BUSINESS DROP OFF BOXES: *The School Box: 425 Ernest W Barrett Pkwy NW, Kennesaw *West Cobb School of Rock: 1600 Kennesaw Due West Rd NW, Kennesaw *Burn Boot Camp: 1000 Whitlock Ave NW, Marietta *Burn Boot Camp: 2851 Cobb Pkwy NW, Kennesaw
COBB COUNTY POLICE PRECINCTS DROP BOXES: *Precinct 1: 2380 Cobb Parkway NW, Kennesaw *Precinct 2: 4700 Austell Rd, Austell *Precinct 3: 1901 Cumberland Parkway SE, Atlanta *Precinct 4: 4400 Lower Roswell Rd, Marietta *Precinct 5: 4640 Dallas Hwy, Powder Springs *Headquarters: 545 South Fairground St, Marietta
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE on July 17th & July 23rd at the Cobb County Civic Center. To RSVP a volunteer spot please email: kc2018org@gmail.com.
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East Cobb residents (L-r) Stacy Efrat Butler, Heather Tolley-Bauer and Kris Hale before a Cobb Board of Education meeting in June.
Several emotionally wrenching issues facing the Cobb County School District sparked parents, teachers and others into action, or at least to speak out, during an unconventional 2021-22 school year.
Many of those issues revolved around the district’s COVID-19 response—including the deaths of three educators—as well as continuing battles over racial and cultural matters.
However, for five women who didn’t know each other previously, the red flag that caught their attention was an emergency request last December to spend $12 million for UV disinfecting lights and handwashing stations.
That money was part of the district’s COVID response as cases were on the rise, and just before the tragic deaths of three of its educators.
It wasn’t just spending the money on such short notice that bothered them, said Heather Tolley-Bauer, whose son is a rising 7th grader at Hightower Trail Middle School.
“We were outraged at how the school board works,” Tolley-Bauer said.
On social media, she found another East Cobb parent, Stacy Efrat Butler, who expressed similar concerns, and wanted to organize around monitoring school board activities.
Three other women signed on at the start, including East Cobb resident Kris Hale, who had recently retired as a teacher in Fulton County Schools.
They decided to focus on following the money—the Cobb school district budget is roughly $1.5 billion—and created a group they call “Watching the Funds—Cobb.”
Their main means of communication is a Facebook group with nearly 1,500 followers, and group members have spoken frequently during public comment sessions at school board meetings.
“We’re a rag-tag group of amazing women,” Tolley-Bauer said.
Butler stressed the broader appeal the group is trying to make, regardless of political views or where people live in Cobb County.
“Our issues should matter to everybody,” she said.
Tolley-Bauer said that while “the money is not always that exciting, it is something that unifies people who might not agree on other things.”
More importantly, Hale said, “by having somebody looking at the money, they can’t ignore the community.”
The UV lights malfunctioned at Argyle Elementary School in March. The district quickly canceled that portion of the contract that represented roughly $6 million of the purchase.
A month before, Watching the Funds—Cobb questioned the district’s purchase of AlertPoint, an emergency alert system, that was set off at all schools and prompted a brief lockdown.
Like the UV lights and handwashing stations, AlertPoint was purchased by the school board with little discussion from a sole vendor that had not sold that product previously.
“We did a deep dive and asked, ‘Why did we approve this?’ ” Tolley-Bauer said. “What was the vetting process. We got zero answers.”
The information they had assembled and their vocal comments at public meetings garnered media attention, especially when a former AlertPoint employee was indicted for alleged bid-rigging for a technology contract at a school district in Florida.
The $12 million COVID-related purchases are among the 50 complaints against the Cobb school district directed at Cognia, its accrediting agency, which is conducting a special review next month.
Tolley-Bauer and Butler said that no one from Watching the Funds—Cobb filed any of those complaints.
‘It’s not a functioning board’
They describe the group as non-partisan, although Tolley-Bauer was part of a fundraiser last fall for Democrat Julia Hurtado, who unsuccessfully challenged Republican incumbent board member David Banks of Post 5 in East Cobb.
“It’s all about sharing facts and not opinions,” said Butler, who also lives in Post 5 and who has children attending East Side Elementary School, Dodgen Middle School and Walton High School.
A risk manager in the financial industry, Butler expressed the same frustration as Tolley-Bauer, saying that “it doesn’t seem like anybody was doing anything to hold the school board accountable.”
She said in starting such a group, the original intent wasn’t financial, “but it seemed like everything kept coming back to the money.”
AlertPoint was installed in all Cobb schools starting in 2017, but Watching the Funds—Cobb began asking about the system’s effectiveness.
“It might not be a waste of money if it worked,” Butler said. “We are pushing for transparency and communication, but board members don’t respond much. It’s not a functioning board.”
Cobb school board chairman Randy Scamihorn acknowledged Watching the Funds—Cobb’s public comments, “and I don’t have a problem with what they’re saying. I’m a fiscal conservative, so I’m willing to work with them.”
But he defended the board’s $12 million emergency purchase, saying the district needed to act fast to address a strong surge of COVID-19 cases as the Cobb school district returned to in-person learning last fall.
“How do we keep our students, faculty and staff safe?” he said. “Hindsight is always 20/20, but there was nothing nefarious going on.”
Scamihorn said the UV lights “had to be failsafe,” and when they malfunctioned at just one school, “they violated the contract. I told the superintendent that there’s no way I can continue to support this.”
He also said the board majority’s decision to limit the placing of meeting agenda items was a good one, because “we have some board members who want to have endless conversation. We would be there forever.”
(Scamihorn has clashed openly several times at school board meetings with Jaha Howard, who along with Charisse Davis of Post 6 in East Cobb voted against the $12 million UV lights/handwashing contract.)
Heather Tolley-Bauer and other members of Watching the Funds—Cobb have been addressing the Cobb Board of Education in recent months.
Continuing to ‘provide a watchful eye’
After retiring as a Fulton County teacher last fall, Hale wanted to get involved in her community, especially as COVID-related actions gained more scrutiny than usual.
“Not many people were paying attention to the school board until COVID,” she said. “COVID brought it all out.”
Watching the Funds—Cobb did a teacher survey, and got 213 responses from educators on such subjects as safety, resources, CARES ACT funding, technology, equity issues and support from the district (you can read the details here).
“One of the things that I know is that teachers have no voice,” said Hale, who taught in Fulton for nearly 30 years. “I wanted to be that voice.”
Hale said the differing backgrounds and perspectives within the group have been beneficial.
“We can use our strengths,” she said. “I know what’s going on in the classroom.”
Tolley-Bauer said Watching the Funds—Cobb is continuing to look over the finances in other areas of the school district’s finances, and most recently posted about its “Fueling Student Success” food program providing meal kits to families in need.
How the district might address American Rescue Plan funds also figures to be part of the group’s focus in the coming months.
At last month’s school board meeting, Tolley-Bauer said her group “will continue to provide a watchful eye” not only on the budget, but federal funding sources, SPLOST spending “and every single expense.
“Because no matter what, funds used to make purchases all come from the taxpayers, many of whom support our work.”
Scamihorn pointed out that the district’s entire budget is posted on its website, and that he’s willing to listen to anyone in the public.
“We are so transparent that some people can’t believe it,” he said. “All they have to do is call us. I’ll listen to anybody.”
He said he approached Tolley-Bauer after the June school board meeting to have a formal discussion, and she’s accepted.
The experience has been an illuminating one for Tolley-Bauer, who among her other activities is a stand-up comedian.
“I don’t make many jokes about what’s going on in our schools,” she said. “We love our schools at the local level. With leadership [at the district level], there’s room for improvement.”
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The following East Cobb food scores for the week of July 5 have been compiled by the Cobb & Douglas Department of Public Health. Click the link under each listing for inspection details:
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Kendra Ledlow, operations manager at the Good Mews no-kill cat shelter in East Cobb (3805 Robinson Road), sends along word that they’re resuming walk-in adoptions starting this weekend, after conducting appointment-only visits through the COVID-19 pandemic.
The hours are what they had been previously—Saturdays from 10 am. to 4 p.m. and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.—and for the month of July adoption fees have been reduced to $50 per animal.
The fee includes spay/neuter, microchip, age-appropriate vaccinations, deworming and all other pre-adoption medical care.
She says that “there are A LOT of cats needing homes right now. And, every adoption allows room for us to intake and help a future cat. Folks can visit our website to see available cats! https://www.goodmews.org/catalog-search.”
If you wish to visit during the week, you’ll still need to make an appointment, since that’s usually been the process on weekdays.
Good Mews is holding a book sale fundraiser next Saturday, July 17, during regular opening hours (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.). From 1-4, guests can purchase popsicles from King of Pops, with a portion of the proceeds to benefit Good Mews.
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A man wanted for the shooting deaths of three men at Pinetree Country Club on Saturday has been arrested, Cobb Police said early Thursday evening.
A spokeswoman for the Cobb Sheriff’s Office said that agency, the U.S. Marshall’s Office Southern Regional Task Force and Chamblee Police arrested a man identified as Bryan Rhoden in Chamblee at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
The spokeswoman said the suspect was being questioned by Cobb Police.
Cobb Police Chief Tim Cox held a brief press conference Thursday evening, but said little about the details of the triple homicide or a motive, citing an ongoing investigation.
He said Rhoden has been charged with three counts of murder, three counts of aggravated assault, and two counts of kidnapping.
Cox said police investigators obtained an arrest warrant Thursday afternoon for Rhoden, whom he said has ties to metro Atlanta, and whom they believe is “the lone shooter.”
Gene Siller, 46, the director of golf at Pinetree Country Club, was pronounced dead at the 10th hole of the golf course Saturday afternoon after suffering gunshot wounds, police said, adding that he had been alerted to a white Ram pickup truck that was located on the green.
Police said two other men, Paul Pierson, 76, of Kansas, and Henry Valdez, 46, of California, were found shot to death in the back of the truck. Police said Pierson was the registered owner of the vehicle.
Police said Wednesday that they believe that Siller was killed because he witnessed a crime in progress, but did not elaborate.
Cox declined to answer questions Thursday evening about how police identified Rhoden as a suspect, saying only that “his name came up within a few days” of the shooting.
He also would not describe the chain of events that took place at Pinetree on Saturday, saying that “at this time I’m not going to release any information about that.”
He said only that the discovery of the bodies of the two men in the pickup was made “in a pretty rapid time frame.” But when asked to provide details of the kidnapping, Cox declined to take any more questions.
He said citizens have been helpful in providing tips, and said he understood why “some members of the public have felt some frustration” about the lack of information about a triple murder.
But Cox said that a successful arrest and prosecution in this case is the primary objective in a homicide investigation that remains active.
UPDATED:
At his first court appearance Friday night, Rhoden was ordered to be held without bond by a magistrate judge. His next court date is July 27.
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The Cobb Board of Commissioners on Tuesday will be presented with a proposed fiscal year 2022 budget and will conduct its first public hearing on the county millage rate.
They will take place starting at 9 a.m. Tuesday. This will be the first budget process under Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, and here’s a summary of the budget presentation, which does not include dollar figures.
The public hearing will take place beforehand and will include information about the Cobb tax digest for 2021.
Earlier indications showed tax digest growth of around 5.5 percent; at Thursday’s Cobb Board of Education tax digest public hearing, school district finance officer Brad Johnson said that estimate is now at 5.7 percent.
A property tax millage rate increase is not is being planned for FY 2022 for Cobb government. But additional tax revenues that aren’t offset by a corresponding rollback in the millage rate constitute a tax increase, and state law requires three public hearings.
Cobb’s adopted FY 2021 budget of $473 million kept the general fund millage rate at 8.66 mills. The Cobb Finance Office is saying that tax digest growth this year is equivalent to 0.430 mills (more information can be found on the county finance page).
The other hearings are July 20 at 6:30 p.m. and July 27 at 7 p.m., with a final vote on budget adoption and setting the millage rate on July 27.
The Cobb County government fiscal year begins on Oct. 1.
A full agenda of Tuesday’s meeting can be found here; the meeting takes place in the 2nd floor board room of the Cobb government building, 100 Cherokee St., in downtown Marietta.
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It’s been more than a year since we’ve done this: rounded up selected weekend events from our calendar listings.
While we’ll be rolling out our full calendar listings over the next few weeks, below we’ve linked to some coverage of things going on that we’ve placed on our main news channel.
That’s how we’ve been posting about the rare events that have taken place during the COVID-19 pandemic; gradually this news will shift over to our main calendar listings page.
For the time being, that listings page is under reconstruction of sorts; shortly we’ll get it back to where it was before March 2020.
Something different with this revival of the calendar is to include concerts and other special events from beyond East Cobb, but that aren’t too far away.
Now, on to some community happenings this weekend:
Starting Friday and continuing through July 18, the 183rd edition of the religious revival takes place at the Marietta Campground (2300 Roswell Road). All services and other events are free and open to the public.
Take the kiddos (ages 3-16) out to Hyde Farm (726 Hyde Road) or Ebenezer Downs Park (4057 Ebenezer Road) Saturday morning for some competitive fun. The cost is $5 per child and you’ll need to bring your own gear and bait.
Town Center at Cobb (400 Barrett Parkway) will distribute free COVID-19 vaccines from 1-7 Saturday with Emergent Testing. Members of the public can get their choice of the Moderna, Pfizer or Johnson & Johnson vaccines by coming to mall’s upper level food court next to the Smoothie King. You’re asked to pre-register here:bit.ly/TCCEmergentTesting and will need to bring a photo ID. If you’re getting a second dose, you’re asked to bring proof of the first shot.
Big Shanty Park (2050 Kennesaw Due West Road) is the venue for Saturday’s 8 p.m. screening of The Sandlot as part of the Kaiser Permanente Movie Series. Bring your own food and snacks after registering at the link above.
The Mable House Barnes Ampitheater is kicking off its 2021 schedule on Saturday with “Remember When Rock Was Young,” a tribute event in honor of the retiring pop music legend. Award-winning, singer/actor/pianist Craig A. Meyer is the host. Tickets start at $25 and can be ordered at the Ticketmaster link above.
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Dylan Paul Nekrasas, 19, who graduated from Lassiter in 2020, was killed in a motorcycle crash on Saturday near the Kennesaw State University campus.
Cobb Police said he was riding a motorcycle eastbound on Big Shanty Road at Hidden Forest Court Saturday around 2:30 p.m. when it crashed into a BMW heading northbound on Hidden Forest Court and that was trying to turn left onto Big Shanty.
Nekrasas was thrown from the motorcycle and landed on Big Shanty Road, then was hit by another BMW, according to police.
Police said Nekrasas was given medical attention but was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to police, the driver of the first BMW, Olivia Swanigan, 27, of Tylertown, Miss., was taken to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital with chest pains and a shortness of breath, and the driver of the other BMW, Walter Leeper, 68, of Acworth, was not injured.
Police said that speed was a factor in the crash and they don’t expect to file charges.
The Lassiter PTSA linked to an online tribute page. Nekrasas was a student at KSU, where, according to a family message, he was studying “to be a marketer just like his dad.
“Dylan was our free spirit and was always up for an adventure,” the message read. “He loved hockey, lacrosse, and the outdoors, and lived his life to the fullest. He was shy yet a deep thinker with a heart of gold. Dylan had a loving heart and would always help a friend in need. His loss is devastating to those who knew and loved him.”
A celebration of life service is scheduled for Saturday at 3 p.m. at Northside Chapel (12050 Crabapple Road, Roswell).
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project or the Arbor Day Foundation. Links and more information can be found on the tribute page.
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Pulte Homes reduced the size of its proposed subdivision on Ebenezer Road from 112 to 99 homes, but opponents have other concerns about the request.
The Cobb Planning Commission was in a holding mood Tuesday when it came to the three major cases on its agenda for July.
In addition to the East Cobb Church mixed-use proposal that’s been delayed several months now, the planning board also voted to give another month for a proposed 99-unit residential development on Ebenezer Road.
Pulte Homes had revised its application on Ebenezer Road application seeking an R-15 OSC designation from 112 to 99 homes, on nearly 50 acres of property that would hold 17 acres in an open space conservation category.
The land is located on the western side of Ebenezer Road, between Maybreeze Road and Blackwell Road, in one of the largest remaining undeveloped tracts of land in the East Cobb area.
Rob Hosack, the former Cobb County manager who’s Pulte’s representative, said the proposed density of 2.03 units per acre is consistent with nearby subdivisions, including Blackwell Chase, Dylans Glen and Princeton Grove.
The homes would be a minimum of 2,500 feet and start at $500,000 in what Hosack called a “modern farmhouse” style.
But Chris Lindstrom of the East Cobb Civic Association said that the lot sizes are small—10,000 square feet compared to the minimum of 15,000 for R-15 OSC—and noted a lack of amenities that would be within the development.
Tom Milbeck, a nearby resident, said what Pulte has proposed “isn’t terrible. It needs to be brought up to standard [code] and it needs to be better.”
He recommended the case be held, and planning commissioner Deborah Dance did just that, saying that “I feel the deal has not been made.”
That case will go back on the Planning Commission’s Aug. 3 agenda.
The planning board also ecommended approval of a special land-use permit by Stein Investment Group to convert the former Park 12 Cobb movie theater into a self-storage facility.
That case will be heard by the Cobb Board of Commissioners July 20.
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