It’s been feeling and looking like spring in Cobb, but winter’s not quite finished.
The first official day of spring is Tuesday, but a freeze watch will be in effect from midnight Tuesday to 10 a.m. Tuesday as low overnight temperatures could drop to the high 20s.
A cold front will be moving through North Georgia (freeze watch area shown in turqouise) that will linger into Wednesday.
High temperatures will be only in the mid-50s Monday and Tuesday, but warmer weather will return by Wednesday, with highs in the high 60s and low 70s expected for at least another week.
Lows during that time will rise to the high 40s and low 50s, and sunny weather is in store for most of the rest of the week.
More details, and an extended forecast from the National Weather Service, can be found by clicking here.
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Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
The following East Cobb residential real estate sales were compiled from agency reports. They include the subdivision name, high school attendance zone and sales price:
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!
A Republican candidate who qualified to run for the District 2 seat on the Cobb Board of Commissioners has been disqualified.
The Cobb Board of Elections voted 4-1 on Friday, along partisan lines, to have Alicia Adams removed from the May 21 ballot.
During a special-called meeting of the board, East Cobb resident Mindy Seger, an ally of outgoing District 2 Democratic commissioner Jerica Richardson, said in her formal challenge that Adams didn’t live in District 2.
The Cobb Elections Board is honoring “home rule” maps approved by commission Democrats instead of maps approved by the Georgia legislature as a legal dispute over those lines continues.
The former maps include some of East Cobb in District 2, while the latter placed most of East Cobb in District 3, represented by Republican commissioner JoAnn Birrell.
Cobb Superior Court Judge Ann Harris ruled last month that the home rule maps violate the Georgia Constitution, but the county is appealing, and the Georgia Court of Appeals scheduled to hear oral arguments April 17.
In the meantime, the Elections Board announced it would be following the home rule maps.
In her challenge, Seger said that under those maps, Adams—a member of the Cobb Republican Women’s Club—actually lives in District 3, at a residence with a Kennesaw address.
“There is no factual dispute,” Seger said. “She’s either in the district or she isn’t.”
Chuck Boring, an attorney for Adams, said she qualified according to a map that was deemed by Harris and an opinion of the Georgia Attorney General’s office to be the “lawful Constitutional map.
“The Board of Commissioners has substituted their opinion . . . . and because of that I don’t think it’s appropriate.”
Cobb GOP chair Salleigh Grubbs called the issue “a hot mess express” and said she’s been asking for clarification on which maps were to be used, adding that the election board’s decision to use the home rule maps came “at the 11th hour.”
After an executive session, the elections board cast its vote, with the four Democratic appointees voting in favor of disqualifying Adams.
Debbie Fisher of East Cobb, the only Republican appointee, voted against the motion to disqualify.
The decision leaves Pam Reardon of East Cobb, also a Republican activist, as the only GOP candidate to qualify.
Five Democrats qualified. They include Kevin Redmon of East Cobb, a former Richardson community advisor; former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard; and former State Rep. Erick Allen, who as Cobb legislative delegation chairman drew the home rule maps.
During qualifying, former Marietta City Council member Reggie Copeland and Don Barth, a resident of East Marietta, attempted to qualify as Democrats in District 2 but were told they did not live within the home rule map boundaries and were turned away.
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A motorcyclist was killed Wednesday after his bike collided with a Porsche on Holly Springs Road, near the Davis Road roundabout, Cobb Police said.
Officer Aaron Wilson said in a release that Trevion Oglesby, 27, of Marietta, was pronounced dead after being taken to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital.
Police said Oglesby was riding northbound on Holly Springs south of the roundabout on a 2017 Honda CBR500R at 7:40 a.m. Wednesday when he tried to avoid a vehicle in front of him that had slowed down to turn right into a construction site.
Wilson said Oglesby lost control of the motorcycle and it veered into the southbound lane, where Edward Dunphy, 47, of Roswell, was driving a 2017 Porsche 911.
According to police, Dunphy pulled into a driveway to avoid a collision but the motorcycle struck the front left side of the Porsche.
Wilson said Dunphy was not injured and that anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Cobb Police at 770-499-3987.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
The polls have closed and the votes are being counted in Tuesday’s Georgia presidential primaries.
All of the major challengers to Democratic President Joe Biden and Republican former President Donald Trump have suspended or ended their campaigns, but some of those candidates’ names were on the ballot.
The Georgia Secretary of State’s office is compiling the results, and you can find the statewide results by clicking here; if you’re looking for Cobb County results, you can click here.
Later in the week, we’ll break down how East Cobb precincts voted.
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 citizens spoke out on Tuesday against a proposed stormwater fee they said unfairly burdens homeowners and is being rushed with limited time for public input.
During a public hearing following presentation of proposed code amendments, a number of East Cobb residents turned out to oppose a proposed fee based on impervious surfaces, generally ranging from $2 to $12 for residential customers, and typically more for commercial customers.
Some called the charge, added to their water and sewer bill and that would go into effect in August, a “rain tax,” although proponents of the measure have been calling it a fee.
The fee has been suggested since damaging floods in 2021 that affected many homeowners in East Cobb, some of whom were saddled paying for expensive repairs.
Cobb Water and Sewer pays for stormwater maintenance to the tune of $8 million a year, but says it lacks staffing and resources to handle demands on an aging and growing stormwater system.
“The county is going forward with this burdensome rain tax without committing these future funds properly,” East Cobb resident Jan Barton said during the public hearing. “We have an aging infrastructure that the county is requiring homeowners to remedy.
‘”This is wrong on so many levels.”
One of the code amendments would transfer responsibility for maintaining retention ponds in new subdivisions to that development’s homeowners association, and away from the county.
Richard Grome of the East Cobb Civic Association said that some homeowners will be paying twice if they live in a subdivision where they already are paying for private stormwater measures.
He said the proposed solution to stormwater upkeep seems “rather dictatorial and heavy-handed in its language” and asked that some of the code amendments be held for further study.
That was a sentiment echoed by others.
“I think you’re rushing through this very, very fast,” Marietta resident Don Barth said. “The little time we have to get involved is not enough.”
Hill Wright of East Cobb, who organized citizens over the flood damage in 2021, spoke at the hearing. He also sent out a release later saying that “while Cobb County is collecting its rain tax from residents, Cobb County will mandate homeowner associations collect money from the same homeowners to maintain the stormwater infrastructure in their neighborhood. Not Fair.”
Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said during the hearing that citizens are already being charged for stormwater expenses through their water bills, “based on how much you drink, instead of how much your property may be contributing to stormwater.”
She said the new fee would be a “more equitable way to charge.”
Cobb Commissioner JoAnn Birrell will holding a town hall on the stormwater issue Thursday from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Tim D. Lee Senior Center (3332 Sandy Plains Road).
She and commissioner Keli Gambrill have said they oppose a new fee, calling it a tax, and Birrell objects to new charges as long as the water department transfers some of its revenues (around 6 percent) to the county’s general fund.
Commissioners will hold another public hearing and a vote on the code amendments March 26.
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Cobb Police said a man who is suspected of stabbing another man to death on Monday has turned himself in.
Officer Aaron Wilson said in a release that Randy Graham, 50, of Smyrna, is charged with attacking Herman Robinson, 40, of Marietta, with a knife in the 2600 block of Windy Hill Road at 3:25 p.m. Monday.
Police said Graham fled the scene, and when police arrived, they found Robinson with multiple stab wounds. He was taken to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital but died there, Wilson said.
Police said Graham contacted 911 several hours later and turned himself in. According to the Cobb Sheriff’s Office, he was booked in the Cobb Adult Detention Center early Tuesday morning.
Police said Robinson’s next of kin have been notified.
Graham is charged with murder, possession of a knife while committing a crime, and aggravated assault and is being held without bond.
Police said the investigation continues, and anyone with information contact Cobb Police at 770-499-3945.
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
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There’s not much suspense attached to Tuesday’s Georgia presidential primaries, but the polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. for those casting election-day votes.
All of the major challengers to Democratic President Joe Biden and Republican former President Donald Trump have suspended or ended their campaigns, but some of those candidates’ names will still be on the ballot.
Cobb Elections said that advance voting for the primary has been very light, with fewer than 30,000 votes cast.
But the results figure to be heavily watched as a harbinger for the general election to come in November, especially since Georgia is among the key swing states in the nation, and given the results from 2020.
Biden won by less than 12,000 votes after multiple recounts, but Trump and his supporters have claimed those results were rigged.
That ultimately led to indictments of Trump and 18 others by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis on charges of racketeering, conspiracy and other charges.
How Tuesday’s voting plays out will be especially watched in metro Atlanta, and in suburbs like Cobb which once were Republican strongholds but have been trending Democratic in recent election cycles.
The Cobb Board of Elections announced several precinct changes that will be in effect for the presidential primaries, and three of them are in East Cobb:
Addison: From Legacy Church (1040 Blackwell Road), to Kulture Event Center (2933 Canton Road, Suite 290)
East Piedmont 01: From Elizabeth Baptist Church (315 Kurtz Road), to Shady Grove Baptist Church (1654 Bells Ferry Road)
Roswell 01: East Cobb Church of Christ (5240 Roswell Road), to Catholic Church of St. Ann (4905 Roswell Road)
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!
The following East Cobb residential real estate sales were compiled from agency reports. They include the subdivision name, high school attendance zone and sales price:
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 residential and commercial water and sewer customers would be assessed an additional fee for stormwater management under a code amendment proposal to go before the Cobb Board of Commissioners this month.
Cobb Water System director Judy Jones.
The proposed code amendment would change a dedicated fee based on the amount of impervious surface of a property. Cobb currently doesn’t charge for that, but has funded stormwater maintenance through water and sewer revenues.
The county has admitted it lacks staffing and resources to adequately handle demands on the system, which include older and failing pipes and maintenance of several hundred detention ponds.
Those concerns were accelerated following floods in East Cobb and elsewhere in the county in 2021, and prompted commissioners to explore the possibility of stormwater fees.
The first hearing on the proposed stormwater fee is Tuesday at 9 a.m., with a second hearing and a scheduled vote on March 26 at 7 p.m.
Commissioner JoAnn Birrell of District 3 in East Cobb is holding a public meeting next Thursday, March 14, at the Tim D. Lee Senior Center (3332 Sandy Plains Road) from 6-7:30 p.m., along with Cobb Water and Sewer director Judy Jones.
The proposed code amendment (you can read it here) doesn’t specify a rate structure for the stormwater fees, which would be collected from what’s referred to as an “enterprise fund.”
The Cobb water system currently spends $8.4 million a year on stormwater costs, including capital improvement projects. In November, Jones presented nine options for expanded services that would increase that total to $19 million annually if they were all approved, by collecting $5.01 a month in stormwater fees from individual customers.
Birrell has previously expressed opposition to the stormwater fee, which she considers a tax.
The proposal has been criticized by East Cobb resident Larry Savage, a former candidate for Cobb Commission Chairmain, who makes the same argument.
In an e-mailed message to media and others sent out last week, Savage said while the intent of moving stormwater costs to the water department was to free up the county’s general fund, the current proposal is a tax that that is unlawful because all taxation in Georgia is under the legislature.
“The idea now is to turn stormwater into a cash cow by charging EVERY PROPERTY OWNER a tax based on the area of land covered by impervious surface,” Savage wrote. “Note that I referred to it as a tax. Under the leadership of Chairwoman Cupid, the BoC agreed to call this a ‘fee’ instead of a ‘tax.’ Anyone who would do this clearly believes the people of Cobb County are stupid.”
The full agenda for Tuesday’s meeting can be viewed by clicking here; the meeting begins at 9 a.m. in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building (100 Cherokee St., downtown Marietta).
You also can watch on the county’s website and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.
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!
Qualifying for the 2024 primaries in Georgia ended Friday, and several incumbents in Cobb will be facing challengers in those May elections.
They include members of the U.S. House and Georgia legislature and countywide officials.
In East Cobb, there will be contested primaries for the Republican nomination for the 11th Congressional District as well as two state Senate seats.
In the 11th, GOP incumbent Barry Loudermilk is being opposed by Michael Pons of Woodstock and Lori Pesta, head of the Republican Women of Cherokee County.
The Democrats to qualify are Antonio Daza of Atlanta, whom Loudermilk easily defeated in the 2022 general election, and Woodstock attorney Katy Stamper.
Loudermilk, of Bartow County, has been in office since 2015. The 11th was redrawn by the Georgia legislature earlier this year under a court order, and includes most of East Cobb.
Cobb commissioner Jerica Richardson on Friday qualified for the 6th Congressional District, which includes some of South Cobb, in a field of Democrats that 7th District incumbent Lucy McBath.
Although she lives in East Cobb, Richardson opted to run for Congress after sbe was redrawn out of her commission seat, and as a legal dispute over that action continues.
Ga. State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick
State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick of East Cobb has Republican opposition in District 32. Her challenger is Ben Fremer, a first-time candidate from Cherokee County.
In District 33, which includes some of the East Cobb area, longtime Democratic Sen. “Doc” Rhett will face Euriel Hemmerly of south Cobb, a member of the Cobb school board’s facilities and technology oversight committee, in the Democratic primary.
Rhett defeated her in the Democratic primary two years ago with 68 percent of the vote.
Five Cobb countywide office holders, all Democrats, also have primary opponents.
They include Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, a Democrat who is seeking a second term in that office.
On Friday, Shelia Edwards of South Cobb, who unsuccessfully tried to succeed Cupid as District 4 commissioner in 2022, qualified in the Democratic primary.
The sole Republican qualifier for chairwoman is realtor Kay Morgan of West Cobb.
Edwards, who lost to current District 4 incumbent Monique Sheffield in a Democratic runoff, is the publisher of a news site covering the South Cobb area, and has been highly critical of Cupid in that publication.
Sheffield is facing a challenge from Yashica Marshall, a former candidate for Mableton City Council.
Democratic District Attorney Flynn Broady is being challenged by Sonya Allen, an assistant prosecutor in Fulton County who lives in Cobb.
Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid
Greg Gilstrap, who has run unsuccessfully for Cobb Sheriff five previous times, qualified for the Democratic primary along with incumbent Craig Owens.
The Republican qualifiers are David Cavender, a Cobb police officer; Ricci Mason, a candidate for Cobb Commission Chair in 2020; and Antaney Hogan.
Cobb Tax Commissioner Carla Jackson, elected twice previously as a Republican, switched to the Democratic Party, and is facing opposition from Jan Becker, a former director in the tax commissioner’s office who retired in 2021.
Democratic incumbent Cobb Superior Court Clerk Connie Taylor, who has come under fire for fire for personally pocketing passport fees far exceeding her salary, has drawn three primary opponents: Brunessa Drayton, a former aide to Cupid; Nick Simpson, a candidate for the clerk’s office in 2020; and Carole Melton, an assistant to Cobb Superior Court judges.
Deborah Dance, a former Cobb County Attorney currently serving as a member of the Cobb Planning Commission, qualified for Cobb Superior Court Clerk as a Republican.
No Republicans qualified for District Attorney or Tax Commissioner.
The Cobb Board of Commissioners qualifying was marked by controversy when two Democrats who attempted to qualify in District 2 were ruled ineligible due to residency issues.
Former Marietta City Council member Reggie Copeland and Don Barth, a resident of East Marietta, were told they did not live within the District 2 boundaries that are being observed by the Cobb Board of Elections.
Pam Reardon, GOP Candidate for Cobb Commission District 2
The “home rule” maps approved by Commission Democrats are being challenged in court, with some of District 2 in the East Cobb area.
Five Democrats qualified. They include Kevin Redmon of East Cobb, a former Richardson community advisor; former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard; and former State Rep. Erick Allen, who as Cobb legislative delegation chairman drew the home rule maps.
A Cobb judge ruled the use of the home rule maps violates the Georgia Constitution since they were not approved by the legislature. But the county is appealing that to the Georgia Supreme Court, which will hold oral arguments on April 17.
Two Republicans have qualified in District 2: Pam Reardon, an East Cobb realtor and GOP activist, and Alicia Adams of the Cobb Republican Women’s Club.
There will be no contested primaries in four Cobb Board of Education races on the ballot this year, but three of them will be highly watched in the general election in November.
Those three offices are held by Republicans, who hold a 4-3 majority.
In Post 5 in East Cobb, the qualifiers are Democrat Laura Judge and Republican John Cristadoro, both Walton zone parents. The winner of that general election campaign will succeed retiring four-term GOP member David Banks.
In Post 7 in West Cobb, Republican Brad Wheeler has qualified to seek a third term, as has Democrat Andrew Cole, who has been a critic of GOP leadership on the school board.
Deborah Dance, candidate for Cobb Superior Court Clerk
In Post 1 in North Cobb, Republican chairman Randy Scamihorn also is seeking a third term, and his Democratic opponent once again is Vickie Benson, whom he defeated in 2020. She has been a teacher and is a technology entrepreneur.
Democratic incumbent Tre’ Hutchins of South Cobb was the only candidate to qualify in Post 3 and is seeking a second term.
In State House races, all incumbents with East Cobb districts qualified, but none will have primary opponents.
Democratic Rep. Mary Frances Williams (District 36), and GOP House members Don Parsons (44), Sharon Cooper (45) and John Carson (46) will have November general-election opponents.
Democratic Rep. Solomon Adesayna of District 43 was the only candidate of any party to qualify for that race.
In District 56, which includes some of East Cobb, Republican Sen. John Albers will face Democrat J.D. Jordan, a designer from Roswell, in the general election.
A separate post will detail the candidates who have qualified for non-partisan judicial races in Cobb County.
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!
Before going to bed Saturday night, remember you’ll lose an hour of sleep due to the return of Daylight Saving Time.
So set your clocks ahead an hour, and get ready to enjoy eight months of later sunsets.
DST officially begins at 2 a.m. Sunday, and lasts through Nov. 3, with sunrises beginning an hour later, and sunsets an hour later accordingly.
Standard Time is still the norm in 48 states from November-March—Arizona and Hawaii observe it year-round.
But a bill in Congress would make DST an annual thing.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is the sponsor of the Sunshine Protection Act, would make DST “the new, permanent standard time” except in states where it’s exempt.
His bill passed the Senate in 2022 but hasn’t been up for a vote in the House.
Rubio renewed his call for passage this week, in light of 45 states—including Georgia—considering similar legislation.
“We’re ‘springing forward’ but should have never ‘fallen back,’ ” he said.
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Cobb, metro Atlanta and much of north and central Georgia will be getting heavy doses of rain from Friday night through most of Saturday.
The National Weather Service in Peachtree City has issued a flood watch for those areas from 7 p.m. Friday through 10 a.m. Sunday.
The advisory states that the affected areas could receive between 2 to 5 inches of rain during that period, especially overnight Friday into Saturday, with the possibility of flooding of roads, creeks and streams, lakes and other low-lying areas.
Early Friday, the NWS issued a flood warning for Sweetwater Creek in South Cobb for Sunday. Thus far, no advisories have been issued for the areas of the Chattahoochee River near East Cobb and for nearby streams and creeks.
High temperatures Saturday will reach into the high 60s with lows around 40.
The weather will get cooler on Sunday and Monday as the rain moves out, with sunny skies and highs from the mid-50s to the low 60s and low dropping to the mid 30s.
Similar weather is in the forecast for the middle of next week, with sun and highs around 70 and lows in the mid-40s.
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Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
The property owner of a 13-acre tract of land eyed for a high-density townhome development in Northeast Cobb didn’t appear for a first hearing before the Cobb Planning Commission Tuesday.
But the five-member zoning advisory body didn’t hesitate to recommend denial of the plans near the end of a long meeting.
Ashwani Kumar Kaura wants to rezone the undeveloped track at Alabama Road and Lindsey Way from single-family residential (R-20) to fee-simple townhome (FST).
The land is completely surrounded by detached single-family homes, and some neighbors turned out to oppose the request.
Kauna wasn’t in attendance due to what Cobb zoning staff said was an out-of-state medical emergency, but the planning board decided to hear the case since opponents were in attendance.
“There’s nothing like this in our area at all,” said one. “It’s completely out of place.”
Tom Ganschow, who lives next to the Kaura property on Fitts Drive in the Bernham Woods subdivision, said his neighborhood is diverse and is “a nice place to come and it’s quiet.”
He said Kauna proposed a 50-home subdivision on the land 20 years ago, and wondered how more than 70 homes would fit, especially since there isn’t sewer service in that area.
Zoning staff recommended denial on a number of fronts, including density, land-use, sewer and transportation.
Planning commissioner Deborah Dance quickly made a motion to recommend denial, and the vote was 5-0.
The case goes before the Cobb Board of Commissioners for the final say on March 19.
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Two candidates who announced their campaigns for the Cobb Board of Education from East Cobb nearly a year ago qualified for the 2024 primary elections on Monday.
Republican John Cristadoro and Democrat Laura Judge filed qualifying paperwork and fees at their local party offices on Monday.
They’re both parents in the Walton attendance zones, and are seeking the Post 5 seat on the school board being vacated by David Banks, a four-term Republican who is not seeking re-election.
The primary election is on May 21.
Post 5, which includes the Walton, Pope and some of the Wheeler attendance zones, is one of four school board posts on the ballot this year.
Three of those seats are held by Republicans, who have a 4-3 majority on a Cobb school board that has been strongly divided along partisan lines in recent years.
In a statement released by his campaign, Cristadoro said that “I am honored to have the opportunity to represent Walton, Wheeler, and Pope High Schools. I believe that maintaining common sense leadership for Cobb schools is paramount to the continued success of all Cobb students.”
After qualifying, Judge announced that she will be holding a fundraiser Thursday hosted by Dr. Dahlia Levine of Dentistry at East Piedmont.
Here are the respective campaign websites for Cristadoro and Judge; and you can find our at-length interviews with both candidates from last spring here and here.
They are the only announced candidates to have qualified thus far. Qualifying continues through noon Friday for Congressional, legislative and local offices across Georgia.
In Cobb, there are three seats on the Board of Commissioners on the ballot—all three currently held by Democrats.
That includes District 2, where first-term Democrat Jerica Richardson has announced her candidacy for the 6th Congressional District.
The Cobb Board of Elections announced Friday it would be honoring “home rule” maps that include some of East Cobb in District 2 while a legal dispute is played out before the Georgia Supreme Court.
The legislature included most of East Cobb in District 3, represented by GOP member JoAnn Birrell. But the county is appealing a ruling by a Cobb judge that said the “home rule” maps preferred by Democrats violates the Georgia Constitution.
Oral arguments before the court are scheduled for April 17, but on Monday Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger blasted the Cobb Elections map decision.
“The Cobb County Commission’s irresponsible decision to proceed with commission-drawn maps jeopardizes candidate qualifying and puts Cobb County voters at risk for disenfranchisement,” Raffensperger said in a release. “The court has already ruled that the commission must use the maps enacted by the General Assembly. Their unilateral decision will add confusion, likely errors, and unnecessary burdens on election officials at the 11th hour. This decision does not serve the people of Georgia.”
On Monday, two previously announced Democratic candidates for District 2 qualified. They are former State Rep. Erick Allen, who drew up the home rule maps that the county is using, and former Cobb school board member Jaha Howard.
William Costa of the Kennesaw area also qualified as a Democrat for District 2.
The other seats up this year include District 4 in South Cobb and the countywide-elected chair.
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!
The following East Cobb residential real estate sales were compiled from agency reports. They include the subdivision name, high school attendance zone and sales price:
Feb. 12
589 Spring Creek Way, 30068 (Spring Creek, Wheeler): $455,000
1250 East Piedmont Road, 30066 (Sprayberry): $360,000
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!
A 13-acre parcel of land near the corner of Northeast Cobb where it meets Roswell and Cherokee C0unty is being proposed for a 74-unit townhome development.
The request by Ashwani Kumar Kaura to rezone the property from single-family residential (R-20) to fee-simple townhome (FST) is on the agenda of Tuesday’s Cobb Planning Commission meeting.
But the Cobb Zoning Office is recommending denial, saying the land at Alabama Road and Lindsey Way is completely surrounded by single-family detached homes.
The 13-acre parcel is located off Alabama Road, north of Sandy Plains Road.
“It isStaff’s opinion that the applicant’s rezoning proposal will not permit a use that is suitable in view of the use and development of adjacent and nearby properties,” the staff analysis concludes. “There are single–family uses on all four sides, developed at much lower densities. The proposed homes would be out of scale and out of character with the existing single–family houses in the area.”
According to the site plan for what’s being called “Kaura Village,” the density would be 5.72 units per acre. The homes would be developed on 11.75 acres, with the rest for amenities.
There’s also no room for guest parking, which was noted by the Cobb Fire Department in its comments on the case, and other remarks indicate that sewer service is not available.
Rezoning to FST also would defy the county’s Future Land Use Map designation for medium-density residential development, according to the zoning analysis.
“For these reasons, Staff believes it appropriate to deny the request rather thandelete to a more appropriate zoning district until such time as these issues can be worked through,” the analysis stated.
According to Cobb property tax records, Kauna, the property owner, is in California.
The Cobb Planning Commission is a five-member body appointed by the Cobb Board of Commissioners that makes recommendations on zoning cases.
Its decisions are advisory; the BOC has the final say on zoning cases.
The Planning Commission meeting begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building (100 Cherokee St., downtown Marietta), and the full agenda can be found by clicking here.
You also can watch on the county’s website and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.
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!
Dr. Dhaval Desai, author of “Burning Out on the COVID Front Lines: A Doctor’s Memoir of Fatherhood, Race and Perseverance in the Pandemic,” will speak about his memoir Tuesday at the Sewell Mill Library and Cultural Center (2051 Lower Roswell Road).
Dr. Dhaval Desai
He will be in conversation from 6:30-8 p.m. with veteran broadcaster Jeff Hullinger about his book.
Desai, who is director of hospital medicine at Emory St. Joseph’s Hospital and as a pediatric hospitalist at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, writes about life during the pandemic.
“As a new father, frontline physician and healthcare leader on the brink of burnout, and a member of an ethnic minority in the South, his tale is marked by chaotic intersections,” the Cobb Public Library System said in a release. “Throughout, his commitment to fostering and advocating for caring and compassion in the practice of medicine shines as Desai shares his unique perspective.
The event is sponsored by Cobb County Public Library and Cobb Collaborative, which focuses on its Mind Your Mind mental health initiative, literacy and civic engagement.
Copies of the book will be available at for purchase from The Book Worm Bookstore and signing by the author. Dr. Desai will donate all proceeds to theDr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation, which focuses on the de-stigmatization of mental health for healthcare workers and suicide awareness.
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!
