East Cobb News

Former Army Airborne Ranger running for 6th District Congress

July 28, 2021 12:28 PMJuly 27, 2021 12:21 PM by Wendy Parker

Harold Earls, 6th Congressional District candidate

Continuing our series of introductory articles about 2022 political candidates: Harold Earls, a previously announced Republican who’s filed for the 6th Congressional District seat.

(Here’s his campaign website.)

One of four who’s announced on the GOP side (profiles here of Meagan Hanson and Jake Evans) to challenge Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, Earls lives in Roswell and is a former Army officer, having served as an Airborne Ranger.

He’s a graduate Fellowship Christian Academy in Roswell and the U.S. Military Academy, where was captain of its baseball team. He also has led a group an Army combat team and veteran amputee on trips to Mt. Everest.

Those experiences were the subject of a book “A Higher Calling: Pursuing Love, Faith and Mt. Everest for a greater purpose.” He and his co-author and wife, Rachel Earls, run a digital media business in Roswell and are the parents to two sons.

He was a fellow for former Georgia U.S. Rep. Rob Woodall and was a guard commander of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery.

More on Earls and his background can be found here.

After another GOP candidate, Eric Welsh, pulled out in July, Earls said that the two of them were “not part of the Good Ol’ Boys Club.’ Welsh wanted to make a difference here in Georgia and was not a political opportunist waiting on favorable district lines.”

Earls continued that “over the last few years, there has been a growing disrespect in our government for our country and those who serve and have served to protect it. This makes me sick. Congress has become a melting pot of weak leaders who don’t care about you, me, or the United States. I am here to change that. I will lead. I will stand for our values, and I will stand up for you and your family. That is my promise.”

Earls said he will advocate for smaller government, and deplored trillions of dollars of American debt and noted that China is the country’s largest debt collector.

“That means that my two little toddlers are going to bear the burden of this generation’s failure to address balancing our budget at the behest of our biggest adversary,” he said.

On immigration, Earls said he supports a “merit-based system where the best and brightest who want to enter America have the chance to do so and allows us to keep bad actors out of the country.”

Earls said he wants to make permanent the Tax Cuts & Job Act to foster business innovation and also supports school choice options.

But he said he and his wife have had their business affected by occasional demonetizing by YouTube, where they have more than 540,000 subscribers.

Earls said he supports revisions to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to encourage “free speech, privacy, safety, competition and honesty.”

Cobb Police to hold ‘National Night Out’ event Aug. 3

July 27, 2021 11:28 AMJuly 27, 2021 8:24 AM by Wendy Parker

Submitted information:

Cobb County Police Department will host a National Night Out celebration 6-9 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 3, at Jim R. Miller Park. This fun event will feature food trucks, live music and a variety of entertainment. Other public safety departments, including Cobb Animal Services, Cobb Fire and Emergency Services, Cobb Sheriff’s Office, Cobb 911 and Cobb Emergency Management Agency.

National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. National Night Out enhances the relationship between neighbors and law enforcement while bringing back a true sense of community. It also provides a great opportunity to bring police and neighbors together under positive circumstances.

Make plans to bring your family out on Aug. 3 to spend a fun-filled evening getting to know one another in a relaxed and celebratory environment with staff from Cobb PD, Cobb Sheriff’s Office, Cobb Fire and Emergency Services, Cobb 911 and Cobb Emergency Management Agency.

Fall session of Cobb Public Safety Citizens Academy announced

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!

At prayer service, Mt. Bethel urged to ‘stand firm on the gospel’

July 26, 2021 4:40 PM by Wendy Parker

Bryant Wright, Mt. Bethel prayer service — *Former Johnson Ferry Baptist Church pastor Bryant Wright said “spiritual warfare intensifies when God’s about to do something good.”*

A number of members of the clergy, both in-person and virtually, spoke to members of Mt. Bethel Church during a special community prayer service on Sunday.

The service took place in the church’s main sanctuary on Lower Roswell Road, and lasted more than two hours (you can watch a full replay here).

Mt. Bethel organized the service after officials with the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church moved earlier this month to seize the East Cobb congregation’s assets and install denominational leadership over the church.

It was the latest move in an ongoing feud between the Conference and Mt. Bethel, which announced its intent to disaffiliate after Senior Pastor Dr. Jody Ray was reassigned this spring.

Ray resigned his UMC credentials instead and is remaining as a lay minister and CEO at Mt. Bethel, which said it would defend itself in court if Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson of the North Georgia Conference takes legal action.

Ministers as far away as Africa and Brazil as well as metro Atlanta and Georgia spoke via recorded remote messages.

Those speaking to church members from the pulpit were eagerly applauded not just for their calls for prayer and uplift, but for defiance against denominational edicts.

“Realize who your enemy is,” said Rev. Bryant Wright, the retired founding pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church. “It is not the Bishop, it is the devil.”

Mt. Bethel Church prayer service, Jody Ray — *Rev. Dr. Jody Ray*

His lengthy remarks included a call to Mt. Bethel members to prepare for “spiritual warfare,” which he said “intensifies when God’s about to do something good.”

Wright read from Ephesians 6:10, which implored Christians “to stand firm,” and after referencing Protestant dissidents Martin Luther and John Wesley, Wright told Mt. Bethel members they should be thankful for a leader in Ray.

“When a leader is accused of division, that is straight from the evil one,” Wright said.

Former Mt. Bethel member Chuck Savage, the pastor at Sardis UMC in Atlanta, encouraged the present congregation “to stand firm on the gospel.” He referenced comments from President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War that “our concern is that we always be on God’s side because God is always right.”

Ray spoke briefly near the end, saying that “courage in moments like this doesn’t come from within ourselves. It’s the presence of Christ. O, that God would find us faithful in this hour.”

He added that “what the world needs now is a courageous church that is willing to stand up for what is right, for what is true.”

Ray then led the congregation in the Lord’s Prayer and offered a benediction.

EPiCS Ignite! to offer free coding workshop for 3rd-6th graders

July 26, 2021 2:57 PM by Wendy Parker

EPiCS Ignite! coding workshop

Submitted information:

Cobb residents Natalie Ajemian, a rising Junior at Wheeler Magnet, and Elly Kang, a rising Junior at the Marist School, co-founded EPiCS Ignite! with the goals of sharing computer science resources and holding events so they can help to bridge the educational digital divide. They’re holding a free online coding workshop and project competition for rising 3rd – 6th graders on Saturday, August 7, and Sunday, August, 8 (from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. each day). Students from various local high schools will be teaching at the event. For more information and registration, go to www.epics-ignite.weebly.com.

EPiCS Ignite! coding workshop

Cobb FY 2022 budget adoption, millage rate slated for Tuesday

July 26, 2021 2:40 PMJuly 26, 2021 11:29 AM by Wendy Parker

Cobb FY 22 budget

Reminder about the final hearings for the fiscal year 2022 Cobb County government budget and millage rate, and adoption of both, on Tuesday.

The Cobb Board of Commissioners will meet at 7 p.m. (the full agenda is here), with the budget and millage rate items near the start of the agenda.

A property tax increase for the general fund (now at 8.46 mills) is not included in the proposed $496.6 million spending package, which is an increase of nearly 5 percent from the adopted fiscal year 2021 budget of $473.8 million.

But the county is required under state law to advertise that there will be a tax increase. That’s because Cobb will be collecting more tax revenue in 2022 due to a 5.5 percent growth in the tax digest, and because there’s not a corresponding rollback in the millage rate in the proposed budget.

The budget proposal includes the continuation of STEP increases for Cobb public safety personnel (police, fire, 911, Sheriff’s Office) and a 3 percent merit raise for other employees.

Four new full-time positions are being recommended, including a diversity, equity and inclusion officer who will report to the County Manager and three others in elections.

More budget documents and information can be found here.

The meeting takes place in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building, 100 Cherokee St., downtown Marietta.

They will be live-streamed on the county’s website, cable TV channel (Channel 24 on Comcast) and Youtube page. Visit cobbcounty.org/CobbTV to find your favorite streaming outlet.

The FY 22 budget takes effect Oct. 1.

Tommy Nobis Center named one of ‘Best and Brightest Companies’

July 26, 2021 7:54 AM by Wendy Parker

Submitted information:

Tommy Nobis Center, a Marietta-based nonprofit that helps individuals with disabilities enter or return to employment, has once again been named one of the 2021 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For® In Atlanta by the National Association for Business Resources. This marks the fifth consecutive year Tommy Nobis Center has won this award, which honors organizations that display a commitment to excellence in their human resource practices and employee enrichment.

“We are humbled and honored to again receive this significant recognition,” says President & CEO, Dave Ward. “We focus on leveraging our great mission in connection with our strong core values to hire people who are hungry, humble, and smart. This award is a direct reflection of that.”

“The Best and Brightest is a powerful community of elite leaders who share ideas and practices and have proven they are employers of choice. Best and Brightest winning companies have also been a voice for important actions in creating a sustainable culture that works, ensuring the wellbeing of their employees comes first,” said Jennifer Kluge, President and CEO, Best and Brightest Programs.

Winners are selected from among the nominated companies based on various categories including communication, work-life balance, employee education, diversity, recognition, retention and more. According to the NABR, only companies that distinguish themselves as having the most innovative and thoughtful human resources approach are selected.

You can view all winners here.

Rotary Club of East Cobb’s Dog Days Run returns in 2021

July 25, 2021 1:11 PM by Wendy Parker

Dog Days Run

A little less than two weeks out (Saturday, Aug. 7), the Rotary Club of East Cobb is staging its Dog Days Run this year after cancelling due to COVID-19 concerns.

Registration continues for the 16th annual event, which once again starts and ends at the McCleskey Family-East Cobb YMCA (1055 E. Piedmont Road).

Here’s more from the Rotary announcement about what’s in store, and a link to the sign up page (and we thank the club for their sponsored post on our newsletter as well):

This 16th year is a special treat – we’re back in action, in person. All participants–young/old, runners/non-runners, local/worldwide–will band together to raise money for local Cobb charities.

Our “Dog Days” 5K honors the heat and humidity of summer. Over the years, the Rotary Club of East Cobb has donated more than $500,000 from race proceeds to local and international service projects!

https://dogdaysrun.com/

Cobb to hold ‘Tomb of the Unknown Soldier’ special event

July 24, 2021 12:25 PM by Wendy Parker

Submitted information: Michael Blassie, Cobb Unknown Soldier event

Join the Honorary Commanders Association, in partnership with CobbCounty Government, for a special event featuring Col Patricia Blassie, USAF (Retired) on July 29. Col Blassie will share the story of her brother, 1st Lt Michael Blassie, a USAF pilot who was killed in action during the Vietnam War in May 1972.

In 1984, his remains became the unknown service member from the Vietnam War, buried at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. Due to the perseverance of his family, 1^st Lt Michael Blassie was restored his name on July 11, 1998, when his remains were properly identified and later reinterred at Jefferson Barrack National Cemetery.

Attendees may register for this free event at www.cobbchamber.org/events. The program begins promptly at 10 a.m. at the Cobb County Civic Center.

Thank you to Event Host Cobb County Government and Printing Sponsor Tharpe Printing. The Honorary Commanders Alumni Association is sponsored by Yearlong Presenting Sponsor Arcadis. The Honorary Commanders Association is sponsored by Yearlong Presenting Sponsors Marriott Atlanta Northwest Galleria, Blue Sky Exhibits, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and Hawthorne Global Aviation Services.

For more information about the Honorary Commanders Association, contact Joel Blockton at jblockton@cobbchamber.org or 770-859-2348.

More on Blassie can be found at the Arlington National Cemetery website.

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!

Reopened Atlanta Treatment Center to hold ribbon-cutting

July 24, 2021 11:53 AMJuly 24, 2021 8:47 AM by Wendy Parker

Submitted information:

Atlanta Treatment Center (ATC), a mental health agency, is relaunching the company with a celebration and ribbon cutting ceremony on Wednesday, July 28 at 3 p.m. ATC reopened its doors on July 1st with the goal of being a valuable partner in the community.

The agency’s celebration and ribbon cutting ceremony is open to the public. Local officials from the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce and community business leaders will attend the celebration.

“ATC’s goal is to journey with each of our clients as well as the community,” stated Ufuoma Oyibo, Chief Executive Officer. “We want to give our clients a holistic approach with them driving the treatment and our team guiding. We give our clients the opportunity to go at their own pace as we embrace the healing journey together.”

ATC is committed to providing quality treatment and services to our clients and maintain a valued partnership with the community. ATC wants the community to remember that someone cares.

Atlanta Treatment Center is located at 1755 The Exchange; click here to visit website.

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 Food Scores: Salata; Asian Express; more

July 23, 2021 4:12 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb food scores, Asian Express

The following Cobb food scores for the week of July 19 have been compiled by the Cobb & Douglas Department of Public Health. Click the link under each listing for inspection details:

Asian Express
4880 Lower Roswell Road, Suite 110
July 19, 2021 Score: 100, Grade: A

Burger 21
1300 Ernest Barrett Parkway, Suite 310, Building 500, Kennesaw
July 21, 2021 Score: 93, Grade: A

Carrabba’s Italian Grill
1160 Ernest Barrett Parkway, Kennesaw
July 20, 2021 Score: 96, Grade: A

The Cigar Cellar
2500 Cobb Parkway, Suite 3, Kennesaw
July 20, 2021 Score: 97, Grade: A

Kuroshio Sushi Bar & Buffet
840 Ernest Barrett Parkway, Suite 500
July 19, 2021 Score: 93, Grade: A

Mariscos Las Islitas
821 Concord Road, Suite A
July 21, 2021 Score: 83, Grade: B

Salata
4101 Roswell Road, Suite 1100
July 19, 2021 Score: 82, Grade: B

The Avenue East Cobb to hold July summer movie night

July 23, 2021 12:59 PMJuly 23, 2021 9:47 AM by Wendy Parker

Avenue East Cobb summer movie night

The free outdoor summer movie series at The Avenue East Cobb concludes next Thursday, July 29, with a showing of “The Greatest Showman.”

Festivities begins at 6 p.m., and entertainment events include face painting, a live DJ, inflatable slides and more, followed by the movie screening at 8:45 p.m.

No reservations are required, and you’re allowed to bring folding chairs, tables and blankets. Umbrellas and tents are not permitted.

For more information, click here.

Mt. Bethel UMC to hold community prayer event Sunday

July 22, 2021 2:16 PMJuly 22, 2021 12:50 PM by Wendy Parker

Mt. Bethel Church

Leaders of Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church have organized a community prayer event Sunday as members of the East Cobb congregation “navigate the challenging circumstances facing their church community.”

A 90-minute guided prayer session will be led by 18 leaders of faith communities in the Marietta area “and around the world,” according to a release issued Thursday morning by Mt. Bethel.

The prayer event starts at 6 p.m. in the main sanctuary at Mt. Bethel (4385 Lower Roswell Road) and is open to the public.

Wednesday marked the deadline given Mt. Bethel by the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church to turn over property and assets in a long-running dispute between the two parties.

Last Monday, July 12, Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson of the North Georgia Conference gave Mt. Bethel 10 days to make that transition in announcing that denominational leadership will be overseeing day-to-day operations of the church.

Instead, Mt. Bethel fired back three days later, saying the bishop was making a “false declaration” to seize assets, and that the church was prepared to defend its legal rights in court if she acted on the seizure.

East Cobb News left messages Thursday with the North Georgia Conference and Mt. Bethel seeking comment.

A spokeswoman for the North Georgia Conference would say only that “as I have a status update or helpful information I’ll share.”

The conference and Mt. Bethel have been feuding since Haupert-Johnson reassigned Senior Pastor Jody Ray in April, exacerbating longstanding theological issues and the prospect of Mt. Bethel disaffiliating from the UMC.

Mt. Bethel, with nearly 10,000 members, is the largest of the 800 congregations in the North Georgia Conference.

Mt. Bethel has refused to provide newly appointed Senior Pastor Steven Usry office space and his full salary, and Ray, who turned in his UMC ministerial credentials, is remaining as the church’s CEO and chief lay minister.

The North Georgia Conference said those actions, and others, violate the UMC’s Book of Discipline governing structures.

Mt. Bethel, which claims the bishop did not properly consult with Ray over the reappointment, declared in May its intent to disaffiliate.

Mt. Bethel is a charter member of the Wesleyan Convenant Association, which is aiming to form what’s being called the Global Methodist Church made up of conservative congregations.

The United Methodist Church was scheduled last year to begin implementing a “Protocol for Reconciliation through Grace and Separation.”

That’s a formal split in the second-largest Protestant denomination in the U.S. (around 12 million members), in which some churches would pull away over theological differences, including issues involving the ordination of gay and lesbian clergy and allowing same-sex marriage.

In a sermon delivered after his reappointment, Ray looked at his children and said “I want you also to remember this day, that your Daddy didn’t bow the knee, or kiss the ring, of progressive theology. . . . which is no theology.”

In her actions on June 12, Haupert-Johnson said Mt. Bethel also was not a church in good standing. Churches that are not in good standing in the UMC are not eligible for disaffiliation.

In announcing Sunday’s community prayer event, Mt. Bethel said that those attending “will focus on a particular aspect of heavenly-minded HOPE as a confident expectation and dynamic assurance of things unseen providing strength, courage and boldness for the future. ”

Nursery services will be available for those attending in person. The event also can be seen on four of the church’s streaming platforms: live.mtbethel.org, online.mtbethel.org, Mt. Bethel Church Facebook Live, and Mt. Bethel North Facebook Live.

COVID-19 vaccinations for veterans slated for VFW Post 2681

July 22, 2021 12:00 PMJuly 22, 2021 8:53 AM by Wendy Parker

Information submitted by Cobb and Douglas Public Health regarding a free vaccination event Saturday for veterans at the VFW Post 2681 (140 Powers Ferry Road):

We are partnering with the Atlanta Veteran Affairs to offer COVID-19 vaccines to veterans, their families and caregivers on July 24 from 9:00 am until noon. For more information, please call 770-977-2088. http://ow.ly/TYyq50Fujho

VFW Post 2681 COVID-19 vaccinations

According to the Georgia DPH vaccine dashboard, there have been 727,952 vaccine doses administered in Cobb County, with 350,641 of them considered “fully vaccinated.”

That means individuals have had either both of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. That figure represents 47 percent of all eligible Cobb citizens (age 12 or older).

Another 388,170 people in Cobb, or 52 percent, have received the first dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

Motorist killed, 5 injured in I-75 crash between Delk/South Loop

July 21, 2021 1:23 PM by Wendy Parker

Cobb Police said a motorist was killed and five others were injured early Wednesday morning in a three-vehicle crash on Interstate 75, and that the driver of one of those vehicles is being sought.

Cobb Police Sgt. Wayne Delk said in a release that an unidentified adult male driver of one of the vehicles was pronounced dead at Wellstar Kennestone Hospital.

Four occupants of another vehicle also were taken there with what Delk said were non-life-threatening injuries, and the driver of their car escaped on foot and remains at-large.

Cobb Police said the driver of the third vehicle, Juan Trejo, 56, of Cumming, is at Kennestone with non-life threatening injuries.

Police said that a green 2010 Chevrolet Express van was traveling northbound on I-75 between Delk Road and the South Marietta Loop around 5:21 a.m. when a tire went flat.

When the van attempted to change lanes to the right it was rear-ended by a white 2008 Ford F-150 truck, driven by Trejo. Both vehicles came to a stop in a center lane of the interstate as a result, and then a white 2006 Toyota Scion XB crashed into the rear of the truck, police said.

The Toyota came to a stop in the right lane, according to police, and the driver of that car was seriously injured and later died at the hospital.

Police said the driver of the Chevrolet left the scene on foot before the arrival of first responders, who attended to four injured male occupants of that vehicle, who were taken to the hospital.

Cobb Police said the investigation is continuing and that anyone with information is asked to call 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!

Fitz Johnson appointed to Georgia Public Service Commission

July 21, 2021 2:33 PMJuly 21, 2021 11:16 AM by Wendy Parker

Former Cobb Commission candidate Fitz Johnson was appointed by Gov. Brian Kemp on Wednesday to serve on the Georgia Public Service Commission. Fitz Johnson, Cobb Commission candidate

Johnson will replace PSC chairman Chuck Eaton, whom Kemp named to serve as a Superior Court judge in the Atlanta circuit.

Johnson, a Republican from Vinings, is a retired Army officer and business executive who was defeated in the November 2020 election by Democrat Jerica Richardson for the Cobb Board of Commissioners District 2, which includes some of East Cobb.

“Fitz Johnson’s remarkable record of service to our nation, experience as a private sector business leader, and dedication to his community uniquely qualify him to serve our state on the Public Service Commission,” Kemp said in a statement. “With his diverse background and real-world leadership credentials, I know Fitz will work hard every day to ensure Georgia remains the top state for business and the best place to live, work, and raise a family.”

In a statement issued on social media page, Johnson said “I am honored that Governor Brian Kemp has appointed me to the Public Service Commission. I look forward to serving our great State.”

Johnson is a trustee of the Wellstar Health System and the Kennesaw State University Foundation, serves on the State Charter Schools Commission and is active with the Cobb Chamber of Commerce.

The PSC is a five-member elected board that regulates utilities in the state of Georgia. They serve six-year terms, and Johnson’s appointment means that the current composition remains all-Republican.

He will serve the remainder of Eaton’s term, which expires in 2024.

East Cobb PTAs recognized at Georgia PTA convention

July 21, 2021 2:15 PMJuly 21, 2021 9:02 AM by Wendy Parker

Several PTA organizations at East Cobb public schools were recently recognized at the Georgia PTA Convention Leadership Training and Awards banquet.

The PTAs include those at Lassiter High School, Hightower Trail Middle School, Kincaid ES, Sope Creek ES, Davis ES, Mountain View ES and Timber Ridge ES.

Individually, Lassiter principal Chris Richie was honored with the Outstanding Principal Award, and Molly Henson of the Kincaid PTA was presented with the Birney Butler Outstanding Educator Award.

Tammy Andress, the co-president of the East Cobb County Council of PTAs, announced the recognitions at the July 15 Cobb Board of Education meeting.

She encouraged school board members to “embrace and invite PTAs back into your schools” with a new academic year beginning, and as COVID-19 restrictions are easing.

You can learn more about the ECCC PTA by clicking here; the organization represents six clusters of schools at the elementary, middle and high school levels.

East Cobb PTAs recognized

Cobb schools release public health protocols for 2021-22

July 20, 2021 4:39 PM by Wendy Parker

Public health protocols released Tuesday by the Cobb County School District include a masks-optional policy for all activities and self-isolation requirements for anyone testing positive for COVID-19.

The protocols also state that any student or staff member who “is identified as a close contact will be required to quarantine” in accordance with Cobb and Douglas Public Health and Georgia Department of Public Health guidelines.

The last update for that by CDPH was in December, and that can be found here.

Georgia DPH guidelines about quarantine (read them here) were last revised in May.

(You can read through all the Cobb public health protocols by clicking here.)

Cobb superintendent Chris Ragsdale last week reiterated a masks-optional policy he announced in May, but it was unclear what the extent of that measure would be.

In the guidelines issued Tuesday, the Cobb school district said face coverings that were required for in-person learning for most of the last school year will be “optional for students and staff in school buildings, on school buses, and at extracurricular activities.”

At a Cobb Board of Education meeting last week, parents and students spoke on both sides of the mask issue.

Some other metro Atlanta school districts are continuing mask mandates from last year, but Cobb and Marietta schools are allowing for a choice.

The Cobb policy allows students and staff who wish to wear masks to continue to do so.

The new protocols come out less than two weeks before the start of a new school year.

The Cobb school district said that contract/tracing team members at schools will contact the parents/guardians of students who are identified as a close contact. Parents and guardians also will be contacted via e-mail “if a positive COVID-19 case is identified in their student’s classroom, school bus, or athletic team.”

The district said it will continue to provide weekly updates on COVID-19 cases in the district as it did during the 2020-21 school year.

The Cobb policies call for social distancing indoors “when appropriate and feasible” and will provide hand sanitizer in all classrooms, common areas and school buses.

High-touch surfaces will be cleaned daily and buses will be cleaned and disinfected after both morning and afternoon runs.

In a release, the Cobb school district acknowledged that “students, staff members, or parents may have additional health questions which are unique to you. As a student, please direct those questions to your school nurse. As a staff member, please direct those questions to your supervisor. As a parent, please direct those questions to your local school.”

More details: CCSD COVID-19 information page.

Checking Cobb COVID-19 vaccination data by census tracts

July 20, 2021 4:54 PMJuly 20, 2021 2:05 PM by Wendy Parker

A new feature of the Georgia Department of Public Health COVID-19 vaccine dashboard includes figures according to census tract.

Other breakdowns include vaccination rates according to race and in age and racial groups.

Here’s the link to the census tract map, which is color-coded accordingly:

Dark purple: 3,931-10,351 people vaccinated;
Light purple: 3,072-3,930 people vaccinated;
Dark blue: 2,598-3,072 people vaccinated;
Light blue: 2,041-2,598 people vaccinated;
White: fewer than 2,041 people vaccinated.

You’ll have to then check the box of Cobb County (or any other county in the state, for that matter) to view specific census tract data.

There are eight census tracts in the East Cobb area that have some of the highest vaccination numbers in the county.

According to the Georgia DPH vaccine dashboard, there have been 727,952 vaccine doses administered in Cobb County, with 350,641 of them considered “fully vaccinated.”

Another 388,170 people in Cobb, or 52 percent, have received the first dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines.

Georgia DPH continues to update its COVID-19 Daily Status Report as the number of cases is spiking up slightly with the growth of the Delta variant.

In Cobb, the transmission rate of the virus (PCR test only) averaged 64 cases per 100,000 people over the past two weeks. That’s still considered below the “high” spread threshold of 100 cases per 100,000, but that figure was in the 30s earlier in July.

Still, the 7-day moving average of COVID-19 cases in Cobb is under 100 according to date of onset figures, similar to levels before a surge of cases in the county and state last summer.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Dr. Janet Memark, director of Cobb and Douglas Public Health, said the combined (PCR-Antigen) transmission rate in Cobb is 111 cases per 100,000, and the test positivity rate has gone up to 3.5 percent.

She said the Delta variant appears to be 12 percent of specimens in Georgia.

“We are expecting a pretty big expansion of Delta in the new data to come, considering it has been doubling at least every 2 weeks and is the most dominant strain in the United States,” Memark said in a statement.”

“The vaccines continue to show protection against this variant. Almost all hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 continue to be unvaccinated people.”

Memark encouraged everyone ages 12 and older to get vaccinated who has not already done so.

For more information about COVID-19 vaccines, visit the Cobb and Douglas Public Health website.

Self-storage facility approved at former Park 12 Cobb site

July 20, 2021 1:09 PMJuly 20, 2021 11:47 AM by Wendy Parker

Park 12 Cobb Cinema, closed East Cobb movie theater

The Cobb Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved plans to convert the former Park 12 Cobb movie theater in Northeast Cobb into a self-storage facility.

Applications by Stein Investment Group to amend the uses for the general commercial zoning category and for a special land-use plan (required in unincorporated Cobb for self-storage facilities) were included in the commission’s consent agenda.

There was no one in opposition to the request at Tuesday’s meeting.

Several changes were made before passage by Commissioner JoAnn Birrell, including a stipulation that the operating hours would be from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 1-6 p.m. on Sunday.

Stein has proposed to build 101,190 square feet of self-storage space on 5.81 acres 2925 Gordy Parkway and Shallowford Road. The former cinema building will be renovated, and a second one-story building with 33,785 square feet and a basement will be constructed next to it, according to the application.

The application also calls for a maximum of 10 parking spaces, one more than required.

Additional stipulations were filed last week by Garvis Sams, an attorney for Stein, that include regulations on what can be done during construction, including traffic access, as well as landscaping and architectural details.

The Park 12 Cobb theater closed last fall, more than three years after a community fight to keep it open as a movie theater.

Nearby residents opposed a rezoning case to turn the property into a Lidl grocery store. Some wanted to have movies nearby, and others were concerned about traffic, and the Cobb Board of Commissioners turned down the rezoning request in September 2017.

The cinema owner, Georgia Theatre Company, had expressed a desire at the time to sell the property.

Park 12 Cobb briefly reopened last fall after COVID-19 closures, but GTC made the decision to permanently shutter that cinema as well as others in its Georgia and the southeast region.

East Cobb Tokyo Valentino store ordered closed by judge

July 20, 2021 1:26 PMJuly 19, 2021 3:15 PM by Wendy Parker

East Cobb Tokyo Valentino ordered closed

A Cobb Superior Court judge has issued an order enjoining the Tokyo Valentino adult retail store in East Cobb from doing business after ruling it was operating without proper licenses.

In an order issued late Friday, Judge LaTain Kell ordered Tokyo Valentino closed after determining that the store, located at 1290 Johnson Ferry Road, did not have a business license for 2021, nor did it have a special license required for sexually oriented businesses.

(You can read the full ruling by clicking here.)

The ruling also declared that Tokyo Valentino was improperly operating within 750 feet of a residential area and within 1,500 feet of a medical facility as well as operating in a zoning category not allowed for an adult business.

The ruling also said that Tokyo Valentino was staying open past its closing time of midnight. Sexually oriented businesses in Cobb must be closed between midnight and 6 a.m.

Kell’s ruling took effect at 11:59 p.m. Friday, and Tokyo Valentino was ordered to address all of those issues before the store would be allowed to reopen. East Cobb Tokyo Valentino ordered closed

The ruling, which came after a hearing in Kell’s chambers last Tuesday, does not permanently close the store.

The county’s efforts to formally revoke its business license remains pending in Cobb Superior Court.

When we went by the store around 2 p.m. Monday, the doors were locked. An Amazon Prime truck was attempting to make a delivery and eventually drove away.

Signs located on the doors said the closure was “temporary” and referred customers to nearby Tokyo Valentino locations in Marietta and Sandy Springs.

“The Cobb County Superior Court heard evidence and argument on the County’s request for an order prohibiting Tokyo Valentino from operating without a County business license, and from violating the County’s sexually oriented business licensing and location rules, while the County’s case against the business proceeds,” Cobb County Attorney William Rowling said in a statement Monday afternoon.

“The County will continue to defend and enforce its ordinances enacted for the health, safety, and welfare of Cobb County residents.”

East Cobb News has left a message with Cary Wiggins, an attorney for Tokyo Valentino, seeking comment.

The Cobb Board of Commissioners voted last fall to revoke the store’s business license, saying it misrepresented what kind of business would be going there when it received a business license in March 2020.

The county charged that Tokyo Valentino falsely applied for a clothing store, then featured an inventory mostly of sex toys after opening in June.

After the store opened, Cobb commissioners overhauled the county code governing adult businesses.

Those provisions include some of the violations cited by the county in its motion for an injunction, including the distance and zoning requirements.

Tokyo Valentino owner Michael Morrison, who has been in lengthy litigation over his adult businesses with several other metro Atlanta jurisdictions, also filed a federal lawsuit against Cobb earlier this year, but that was dismissed in May.

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