Coming off their second Georgia High School Association state championship, the Pope softball team is ranked No. 1 in Class AAAAAA to start the 2020 season.
Many teams are starting play on Thursday, but the Greyhounds don’t have their opener until Aug. 11, when they play host to Woodstock.
Pope lost some valuable seniors from that team but return some budding new stars, including Jadyn Laneaux, a sophomore outfielder who excelled in the finals against Lee County. (Her sister Zoe, a shortstop, is one of those departed seniors.)
Also returning is the team’s top pitcher, Hallie Adams, who’s now a senior. More about the Pope team, including rosters, can be found here.
Kell, Sprayberry and Walton are starting their seasons on Thursday, while Wheeler gets underway on Saturday.
Lassiter, which reached the Class 7A Final Eight last year, also starts its season on Tuesday.
Due to GHSA reclassification, five of the six teams in East Cobb will be playing in the same region of Class 6A. Walton remains in Class 7A but is playing Wheeler and Kell during the regular season.
Softball is the first fall sport to get underway in Georgia, and it’s starting on time. The GHSA has delayed the start of football season and limited practices due to COVID-19 guidance.
Cross country season swings into action next week. Walton is the reigning Class 7A boys state champion.
Volleyball also is scheduled to get underway without delays, with most teams in East Cobb starting on or around Sept. 1. That’s when defending Class 7A champion Walton starts its season against Marietta.
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High school football season is still on—for now—but the Georgia High School Association on Thursday announced that pre-season scrimmages will be cancelled.
Competitions in cheerleading and one-act play that take place during the fall semester will be put on hold.
GHSA executive director Robin Hines made the announcement the day after officials with the state’s high school athletics governing body’s sports medicine committee met. That body discussed concerns from Dr. Kathleen Toomey, director of the Georgia Department of Public Health, over COVID-19 cases in the state.
Georgia’s case numbers rose sharply during the month of July, and vast community spread has prompted many school district’s, including Cobb County, to start the school year online-only.
In issuing his new guidance, Hines said football scrimmages are being called off due to high risk and physical contact. Practices that began in late July can still go on, but teams must follow GHSA guidelines to do so in a controlled environment.
Football teams typically have scrimmages a week or two before their seasons begin.
The Corky Kell Classic also has changed venues for its slate of season-opening football games, moving the Kell-Walton game to Walton’s Raider Valley on Sept. 4.
According to SCORE Atlanta, GHSA has received more than 600 reports of players testing positive for COVID-19 since football workouts resumed in July.
The only known positive case involving an East Cobb team was someone with the Pope program in June, but it hasn’t been disclosed if it’s a player or a coach.
Some states have delayed their football seasons to the spring, including California. High school athletic directors in Florida are urging football season to be postponed.
The GHSA has issued lengthy guidance for other fall sports. In volleyball, an indoor sport, teams may not use locker rooms, the home team must provide hand sanitizers for both teams and officials, and the visiting team must arrive already in uniform.
Face coverings are recommended but not required, and social distancing guidelines will be followed for team bench areas. Players cannot lick fingers, touch their mouths or blow into their hands while on the court.
Spectator areas also must include social-distancing measures, and the home team must regularly sanitize balls, the playing court, netting, the scorers table and referee stand.
Similar guidelines have been issued for cross country, an outdoor sport.
Hines said the indoor venues for cheerleading and one-act play do not allow for social distancing, and those were potentially high-risk activities mentioned by Toomey.
Instead, cheerleading competitions would begin in late November and conclude in February, and one-act play events are tentatively being delayed until the spring.
Toomey also was concerned about chorus and orchestra activities that are also indoors. GHSA does not oversee those events.
Last month, the directors of marching band programs at the 16 high schools in the Cobb County School District said they would not have fall competitions, following guidance from the Georgia Music Educators Association.
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Ever since Harry Kone survived wounds at Guadalcanal that reduced him to one working lung, he’s chalked up his long life to a simple philosophy:
“I never worry about tomorrow.”
It’s a mindset that served him well in 40 years as a public school teacher in Chicago, in raising three children and in staying involved with veterans groups and his church since his retirement.
In 1995, Kone and his late wife Marjorie moved to a senior-living community in East Cobb, off Johnson Ferry Road, to be closer to two of their children.
These days, one of those children, his daughter Sue Lind, is his in-home caregiver, and in recent weeks she’s been busy preparing for a very different birthday celebration for him.
It’s not just that Kone will turn 100 years old on Aug. 16. In the time of COVID-19, he’ll finally be able to see family members he hasn’t seen since the outbreak in March.
But they’ll be doing it incrementally, one family at a time.
“Everybody’s coming on a different day,” Sue explains about the need to keep gatherings small, and she notes, less hectic.
Kone’s friends from the Squire “Skip” Wells Marine Corps League also will be wishing him a happy birthday, via conference call.
Kone accepts the reality of the health restrictions.
“I feel great,” he says.
He’s met with some of his Marine League buddies in his garage, all of them sitting socially distanced.
“His social life has been more robust than mine,” says Sue, a human resources consultant who sold her home in Buckhead four years ago to look after her father. “His life is here.”
Kone also has been active at the Unity North Atlanta Church on Sandy Plains Road, where the minister is planning a special video message for his birthday.
His resilience was shaped by his younger years. The only child of a Baltimore railway clerk and a homemaker, Kone was an avid reader, the habit instilled by his mother.
In 1939, he had moved to Milwaukee to work as a welder, and attended a branch of the University of Wisconsin on scholarship to help develop children’s programming in the very early days of televison.
He was living in a boarding house there when he met the young woman to whom he would be married for 65 years.
After Pearl Harbor, Kone volunteered for the U.S. Marine Corps, and served as a machine gunner in the South Pacific.
It was at Guadalcanal that he recalls a conversation he and some of his fellow Marines had, during a lull in the combat.
“We were talking about what we were going to do when we got back home,” Kone said.
Not long after that, the Japanese began a bombardment attack, and many of those young men never made it home.
Harry Kone cuts his 99th birthday cake in 2019 with friends from the Marine Corps League.
“You never know what’s going to happen the next day,” he said, explaining how he wanted to return to service after getting wounded in that engagement.
As it turned out, his injuries were too severe, and he was honorably discharged in 1945. A bout with tuberculosis kept him in a Veterans Administration hospital for two years.
But Kone persisted with his aim of becoming a teacher, and earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from Northwestern University. He and Marjorie raised their family on the west side of Chicago, and lived there for 50 years. Kone later taught at the college level and made appearances as a public speaker.
After moving to East Cobb, Kone hooked up with the local Marine Corps League, which has met at the veteran-owned Semper Fi Bar & Grill in Woodstock. Marjorie Kone died nine years ago, at the age of 90.
“He always used to say that every day was a holiday,” Sue says.
Kone also stays engaged with books. Sue says he’s always reading something related to current affairs. On a coffee table in his living room is his current book, “So You Want To Talk About Race?” by Ijeoma Oluo.
Kone has some big plans for the near future. His grandson, who lives in London, is getting married to a British woman next summer, and he wants to make the trip for the wedding at St. Paul’s Cathedral.
Kone says he understands the anxiety many people are facing today, given the circumstances, and harkens back to memories of what he endured during World War II.
“From then on, I never worried about much. I had plans, but I didn’t worry about what I’m going to do tomorrow,” he said.
“This is what worries a lot of people,” Kone said, but “if I’m dead tomorrow, I don’t have to worry.”
He lets out a bit of a laugh and a big smile, and then offers up what he claims is the real secret to a good, long life.
“The three ‘S’s,” he said. “[Get] lots of sleep. [Do] lots of stuff. [Have] lots of sex.
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One of the former owners of the Burger’s Market in East Cobb are starting one of their own, starting this Saturday. It’s been almost two years since the market closed on Canton Road, after 45 years in business.
Tina Burger Berry, daughter of the Burger’s Market founder Truman Burger, is taking online orders through 10 a.m. Thursday (details below). The pickup spot is the Daily Bread Cafe (531 Roselane St. in Marietta, near Kennestone Hospital, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.
She and her sister Sharilyn have kept the market’s Facebook page alive, and on Monday, that’s where Tina announced the news about the pop-up market:
“I’ve been thinking and praying on a way to serve our loyal customers and community with the freshest, most local produce available like our family did for over 45 years every since we shut our doors and sold almost 2 yrs ago. When God closes one door, he always opens another. So, after much prayer and anticipation….HERE it goes!! We will not have a storefront, consider us more of a local mobile market of sorts.”
What they’re offering are fixed bags of vegetables ($25) and fruit ($20) and a make-your-own bag with a $15 minimum. Each Monday by 2 p.m. they’ll list the available items for that weekend’s market, with the deadline for ordering by 2 p.m. Thursday by e-mailing burgersmkt@gmail.com or by filling out this form.
Payment is cash or Venmo, which is becoming the standard for some other pop-up stands that have emerged recently.
Orders will come in brown paper bags, but you’re free to bring your own bags or boxes. The first weekend items are as follows:
Fruit bag: Tree ripened peaches, Cantaloupe, Watermelon, Muscadines or Scuppernongs
Make your own bag (items also sold individually): Okra, Vidalia onions, Red tomatoes , Fresh shelled lady finger peas or white butter beans, Zuchini Silver queen corn, Cantaloupe, Heirloom tomatoes, Watermelon, Green boiling peanuts.
Tina asked for patience us as we navigate through this new endeavor . . . We sure have missed you!! I can’t wait to see you beautiful people!!”
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Late Tuesday afternoon the Cobb County School District released what it calls a “phased model” outlining the steps for reopening schools for classroom instruction.
What it doesn’t include are any dates.
According to information contained in the outline, those dates:
“Will be determined by analyzing public health data specific to Cobb County provided by the Department of Public Health and the Cobb/Douglas Board of Health including the level of community spread, effective contact tracing, and efficient COVID-19 test timelines. When we are able to safely offer a face-to-face classroom option and a remote classroom option, we will use the following phased model.”
Phase One: All kindergarten through fifth-grade students for full-day instruction. ASP will resume for students in face-to-face classrooms. All kindergarten through twelfth-grade low incidence special education classes will have a face-to-face option starting in phase one.
Phase Two: All sixth through eighth-grade students for full-day instruction. Phase two will begin two weeks after the start date of phase one.
Phase Three: All ninth through twelfth-grade students for full-day instruction. Phase three will begin two weeks after the start date of phase two.
Before each phase, parents can choose to send their children back to schools or stay with online-only.
The district hasn’t said how social distancing guidelines might factor into those plans. Before a switch to online-only learning was made, district leaders said mask-wearing would be expected and recommended but not required.
Other metro Atlanta school districts have begun announcing how and when they’ll reopen their schools, including Fulton County and Gwinnett County, which on Tuesday also outlined steps and included targeted dates.
Gwinnett, the largest school district in Georgia, starts online-only Aug. 12, a few days earlier than Cobb, and then adds several grade levels a week, as well as special-education tiers, on Aug. 26, Sept. 2, and Sept. 9.
What Gwinnett schools haven’t acknowledged, but that was reported on Monday, is that 260 staffers have tested positive for COVID-19 or who have been exposed to someone who’s been infected and are not at work.
Gwinnett teachers and staff, like those in Cobb, reported for preplanning activities last week.
Gwinnett has the second-highest number of virus cases in Georgia, with 18,201 as of Tuesday. Cobb is fourth with 12,135.
Last month, Cobb school superintendent Chris Ragsdale cited community spread and rising case numbers of COVID-19 for starting the school year online-only.
One of the metrics Ragsdale is looking at is the number of COVID cases per 100,000 population, with anything more than 100 considered “significant community spread.”
Cobb’s population is more than 760,000.
After a sharp increase in July in Cobb, that figure is 1,535 cases per 100,000, but it’s dropped to 361 per 100,000 over the last two weeks.
Gwinnett’s figures are 1,835 per 100,000 and 418 per 100,000 over the last two weeks. The population is 970,000.
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For a larger view and to hover over map areas and get further details, click here. Source: Cobb GIS.
Following up last week’s post on the growth of COVID-19 cases in Cobb County, there are some updated figures now posted breaking down how that looks by ZIP Codes for the month of July.
In East Cobb, the surge in positive cases matches what’s been happening in the county, with 60.6 percent of all cases in our five ZIP Codes being reported in July.
At the start of last month, there were 912 cases in all. In July, 1,404 cases were reported, for a total of 2,316. That’s per the latest figures compiled by the Cobb County GIS unit, which updated the map seen above and that you can hover over here.
The figures indicated below are cases reported on July 1 and at the end of the month, with the number deaths in parenthesis:
30067: 287 to 689 (10)
30062: 252 to 672 (12)
30066: 217 to 551 (11)
30068: 140 to 360 (19)
30075: 24 to 44 (0)
To view a hover map and details of day-by-day case totals for each ZIP Code, click here. Source: Cobb GIS
Included in those hover maps are details tracking the progression of COVID-19 cases day-by-day; keep in mind those cases are tallied by the date they are reported, and not the day a test is taken.
The blue icons in that map represent public school locations.
As we noted in a post last week, the Georgia Department of Public Health is now reporting date of case and date of death figures, statewide and by county, in its Daily Status Report that is updated at 3 p.m. daily.
The “date of onset” case figures for Cobb peaked in July in the first half of the month, both by date and by a 7-day moving average. Those figures were a downward trend by the end of the month and as August began.
Cobb GIS also has updated that map, which shows the location of long-term care homes. Of the 52 deaths in East Cobb ZIP Codes, 25 have been in those homes
Testing has gone up dramatically in Cobb County and Georgia. In July, there were more than 700,000 COVID-19 tests in the state, with the positive case numbers jumping from 104,423 to 194,804.
Cobb testing data has been limited; at the end of July Cobb and Douglas Public Health reported that it had conducted 27,650 tests at Jim Miller Park.
But that doesn’t include those tested at private labs and doctor’s offices, and there is no testing data available by ZIP Code.
Cobb DPH also is no longer tracking “test positivity” rates, meaning the number of people who test positive out of those getting tested. As of late July, that figure had hovered around seven percent, with 5 percent being considered an acceptable rate.
Across the state, positivity rates surged to nearly 15 percent at times during July, and are now around 10 percent.
Those figures reflect the level of “community spread” that has caused concern as schools prepare to return, and that prompted the Cobb County School District, among many in metro Atlanta, to start the school year online-only.
Cobb and Georgia public health agencies began tracking COVID-19 data in mid-March, from the time Gov. Brian Kemp declared a public health emergency that he has extended several times, including last week.
UPDATED:
As of 3 p.m. Tuesday, there were 12,135 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Cobb County, and 304 deaths. A total of 2,855 of those cases have come in the last two weeks.
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A rezoning request to build 81 homes on Wesley Chapel Road, near Garrison Mill Elementary School, is being continued to September.
The Cobb Planning Commission voted Tuesday to delay the case at the request of the applicant, Brooks Chadwick Capital LLC.
The East Cobb developer wants to build the new subdivision on two slabs totaling nearly 50 acres on either side of Wesley Chapel Road that’s undeveloped, except for two older homes.
The request has generated some community opposition. A group of nearby homeowners and homeowners associations posted an online petition objecting to the proposal’s density, along with concerns over school capacity, traffic close to a school and stormwater and wildlife issues
Those individuals and groups weren’t identified, by Catherine Kommer, a nearby resident, told East Cobb News that the homes in the proposed development are “very close and leave little room for trees. It is an unhealthy plan. I would hope that air quality and health would be in the forefront of everyone’s minds with respect to the corona virus. It’s hard to understand accepting a plan that would hinder air quality in the middle of a pandemic.”
She’s written a letter to that effect to Cobb Commissioner JoAnn Birrell (the rezoning also includes Cobb Commissioner Bob Ott’s district).
Also delayed until September is a request by Site Partners LLC, the owner of the Sandy Plains Village Shopping Center, to convert part of that retail center for townhomes and retail space.
Cobb Zoning Staff is continuing the request after the applicant revised its site plan last week. The case was initially delayed from July, after staff recommended denial, saying the townhomes were incompatible with nearby single-family communities and traffic concerns.
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Cobb Commissioner JoAnn Birrell sends along word this morning that she’s scheduled a virtual town hall meeting for the Sprayberry Crossing rezoning case that’s coming up in September.
She said the town hall will take place on Wednesday, Aug. 12, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., and will include Judy Williams, her appointment to the Cobb Planning Commission, and representatives from the Cobb Zoning Staff.
Although citizens will be invited to comment and ask questions, Birrell said she and Williams will not be offering opinions. That’s standard procedure in zoning cases.
Atlanta apartment builder Atlantic Residential is planning a mixed-use development on 18 acres where blighted shopping center has stood for years.
At a July virtual town hall, the developer offered its latest revisions to a proposal that would include 178 general and 122 senior-living rentals, 50 townhomes, a major grocery store, other retail, an outdoor entertainment and food hall and community greenspace.
The rezoning request can be found here; it’s an application for what’s called a redevelopment overlay district category. What that means is that the kind of development contained in the request—especially five-story residential buildings that have generated some community opposition—shall not establish a precedent for future land use or rezoning matters in the nearby area.
The Cobb Zoning Staff has not yet produced an analysis or made a recommendation.
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You can cast a ballot close to home this week before next Tuesday’s runoff elections as advance voting continues.
The East Cobb Government Service Center (4400 Lower Roswell Road) is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Friday. Other locations will have the same days and hours:
Lines are expected to be long due to social-distancing guidance and you’ll be asked to wear a face covering.
On the ballot for East Cobb voters is a Republican runoff for Cobb Board of Commissioners District 2 between Andy Smith and Fitz Johnson. There also are two judicial runoffs that will be determined county wide.
There won’t be and advance voting Saturday or next Monday. If you vote on Tuesday, you’ll go to your assigned precinct. Those hours are also 7-7 and social distancing and masks will be requested.
Here’s more from the Cobb Board of Elections and Registration:
There is NO VOTING on Sundays, Saturday, Aug. 8, or Monday, Aug. 10. On Election Day, Tuesday, Aug. 11, voters must go to their assigned polling locations, open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. To confirm your eligibility to vote for this election, please visit the Secretary of State’s “My Voter Page.”
Georgia law allows for absentee by mail ballots to be requested up to 180 days before an election. No excuse is required to vote before election day. Voters are encouraged tovote by-mail using the absentee application found on the absentee voting page.
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Dr. Jinen Shah got in touch to announce that he’s opened Luminary Eye Care at the Woodlawn Point Shopping Center (1100 Johnson Ferry Road, Suite 120).
It’s an independent practice that sees adult and child patients with standard examinations, as well as emergency care, ocular disease management, LASIK consultations and glasses and contact lenses.
Most vision and medical insurance is accepted. Hours are Monday & Wednesday 9-5; Tuesday & Thursday 10:30-6:30; Friday 9-3; and Saturday by appointment only.
Not far away in Woodlawn Point, Suzanne and Monte Jump, owners of Roll On In Sushi, said that starting this Sunday, Aug. 9, they’ll be closed on Sundays.
“We feel this will allow more time for faith, family and fellowship for our family and our employees. Thank you so much for your support, East Cobb. It means the world,” they said on Monday.
Monday-Saturday hours remain from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The Avenue bounces back
The Chain Store Age publication is scrapping its annual listing of top retail experiences for one explaining those centers that are recovering from closures due to COVID-19. Fifth on its list is The Avenue East Cobb, where special outdoor events like Dinner & Drive-In movie and fitness workshops are tied to stores reopening.
As we noted previously, there will be a fundraising event Aug. 22 for the Box of Balloons non-profit that gives disadvantaged kids a special birthday celebration.
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If you’re interested in meeting other business women for lunch in the outdoors, the East Cobb Women in Business Group is doing that on Thursday, Aug. 13 at Mabry Park, from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.:
“Bring a lawn chair and meet under the big Pavilion. Space is limited and registration is required. We are a non-industry exclusive networking group for local women and invite you to join us for support and education to help build your business relationships and invest in the growth of others.”
The limit on this gathering is 15 people, first-come, first-serve, due to COVID restrictions. The group has been meeting at Paradise Grill, and plans on going back there in the fall.
Let East Cobb News know what your organization is doing, or share news about what people are doing in the community—accomplishments, recognitions, milestones, etc.
Pass along your details to: editor@eastcobbnews.com, and please observe the following guidelines to ensure we get everything properly and can post it promptly.
Send the body of your announcement, calendar item or news release IN TEXT FORM ONLY in the text field of your e-mail template. Reformatting text from PDF, JPG and doc files takes us longer to prepare your message for publication.
We accept PDFs as an accompaniment to your item. Images are fine too, but we prefer those to be JPG files (more than jpeg and png). PLEASE DO NOT send photos inside a PDF or text or any other kind of file. Of course, send us links that are relevant to your message so we can direct people to your 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!
The Art Place-Mountain View is getting a new roof, so classes during the month of August have been moved to the Sewell Mill Library and Cultural Center (2051 Lower Roswell Road).
Some of those classes start Monday, and here’s a full list of offerings for The Art Place and Sewell Mill, for kids as well as grown-ups, with information and registration links.
A new course is Handbuilding at Home, for youths and adults (see flyer at right; there’s a “supersize” course that costs $81), and it takes place between Aug. 10-24.
And here’s your COVID safety message to observe, and the limitations on classes that will be very different from usual as a result:
This summer our in-person classes will be operating with a 5-student maximum, all classes will enforce social distancing, and it is recommended students wear masks in the classroom.
Cobb PARKS has also instituted a screening process to enter the building. When you arrive for class your temperature will be checked, and you will be given a wristband. Parents will not be able to wait in lobby for students to finish classes – as lobbies are closed to the public.
We also have several virtual options for students this session. Please note that all classes are taught by PARKS employees, and each center will have more limited offerings than a typical semester. We hope you use this opportunity to explore classes and workshops in different art centers across the county. If you are interested in a class that is not listed, please email your ideas to info@artplacemarietta.org.
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Reader Theresa lets us know that every Saturday and Sunday from 12-3 fresh produce and homemade goods are being sold in the parking lot at the Coastal gas station (Day Brothers Automotive) at 2011 Lower Roswell Road, next to the Sewell Mill Library.
The food comes from Smyrna-based produce proprietor Lee Harvey of Fat Iguana Produce, and items include fruits and vegetables he buys at the State Farmers Market, as well as baked goods.
Harvey started operating on the weekends from the Day Brothers business last month, and it’s among a number of “pop-up” farmers markets that have been springing up in the East Cobb area.
Another is Holland Botanical, which takes online orders during the week for Saturday delivery of boxed fruits and vegetables in the parking lot of the Shallowford Falls Shopping Center. Updates and details about Holland Botanical can be found here; they’re also beginning a Tuesday pickup time and you’ll have until noon Monday to place an order.
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On the second Saturday of the month the Cobb Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department conducts walking tours of Hyde Farm, which dates back to 1840 and is now 42 acres of greenspace and serves an educational and recreational facility
It’s located at 726 Hyde Road, off Lower Roswell Road and east of Johnson Ferry Road and here’s what you’ll find:
Natural features include the Chattahoochee River, the forests that are found in both the lowlands adjacent to the river and the uplands near the home site. Man made features consist of the terraced agricultural fields, lowland pastures/old fields, the orchard, the home site, the meadows, and the farm outbuilding sites. Enjoy the pond that was built on Mulberry Creek in the 1980’s, featuring geese, ducks, herons, turtles, beaver, and stocked with catfish and bass.
Next Saturday, Aug. 8, free tours will take place at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. and take 45 minutes to complete. You must register by clicking here. For information call 770-528-8840
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His latest extension expired at midnight Saturday, and Kemp has now extended that until 11:59 p.m. Sept. 10.
Kemp also extended another executive order that restricts public gatherings of more than 50 people without social distancing measures (at least six feet between persons), outlines mandatory criteria for businesses and requires the medically fragile to shelter-in-place.
That order continues through Aug. 15.
“As our state ramps up testing, expands hospital surge capacity, and provides staffing, supplies, and resources to cities and counties throughout Georgia, we urge local officials to enforce the rules and restrictions detailed in these orders,” Kemp said in a statement.
Kemp’s extended orders come at the end of a month with around half of all of Georgia’s confirmed COVID-19 cases having occurred and with growing concerns about hospitalizations due to the virus.
On Friday another 4,149 cases were reported by the Georgia Department of Public Health, for 186,236 in all. At the end of June, there were 104,423 cases in Georgia.
In Cobb County, there were 6,329 cases in July, 56 percent of all of the county’s cases since tracking began in February. The county’s current total is 11,206, up from 4,877 on June 30.
Another 286 cases were reported in Cobb on Friday, the fourth day in a row in which at least 200 cases were reported.
Cobb’s death total stands at 297, which is unchanged from Tuesday.
UPDATED, Saturday, 4:30 p.m.:
Georgia’s COVID case on Saturday afternoon was 190,012, up by 3,709 from Friday, and 3,825 deaths. Another 308 new hospitalizations also were reported.
Cobb’s case total is up to 11,436, up 236 from Friday, with a new death reported, bringing that total to 298.
A total of 2,851 new cases have been reported in Cobb the last two weeks.
ORIGINAL REPORT CONTINUES:
But critical-care hospital beds in the Cobb area are in short supply. According to the latest COVID Situation Report issued by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (read it here), only 14 critical-care bends are remaining, out of 226, for the region that includes Cobb, Douglas, Paulding and Cherokee counties.
Hospitalizations also have grown during July, and GEMA reports that there are 3,155 people currently admitted for COVID-19 across the state; but those don’t include figures for Cobb, and Wellstar Kennestone Hospital.
Kemp has announced that a surge hospital will be opened at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta on Monday. It will start with a capacity of 60 and could hold up to 120 patients.
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Several of the first recipients of small business relief grants issued by SelectCobb via the federal CARES Act were recognized last week by the Cobb Board of Commissioners.
They include Leah Cozzo, a co-owner of Marietta CrossFit on Canton Road, whose business received $20,000, seen above with Cobb Commissioner JoAnn Birrell and below with all commissioners and Cobb Chamber of Commerce and SelectCobb leaders.
Birrell said in her weekly newsletter that “the owner was so appreciative of the grant and that it allows her business to remain open and her employees to work The grant helps her stay in business.”
Here’s more from SelectCobb, the economic development unit of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce, about the program and the initial grantees:
The grants, designed to help businesses mitigate the financial impact of COVID-19, ranged from $20,000 to $40,000. The funding was made possible through a portion of the County’s disbursement of The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, an economic stimulus bill passed by the U.S. Congress in response to the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. The local grants are designed to help area businesses pay for rent, utilities, personnel payments and personal protective equipment.
Approximately 56 percent of grant recipients are minority-owned businesses, while 53 percent are women-owned, and 8 percent are veterans.
“These grants are essential in providing some measure of hope and relief to the business community,” said Mike Boyce, chairman of the Cobb County Commission. “We thank the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and members of the selection committee led by Steve Ewing for their hard work in evaluating the applications. They all truly reflect what is best about the Cobb community.”
More information, criteria and eligibility requirements can be bound at https://selectcobb.com/grants/. Applications are open until August 21 at 5 p.m.
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When the new Sope Creek Bridge opened on Paper Mill Road in 2013, it included widened sidewalks that have been heavily utilized by residents and pedestrians using the trails at the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.
They’re wide enough for vehicles to park, and a recent rash of those illegal parkings has prompted Cobb Police to put up barriers that still give pedestrians enough room.
It’s a safety issue, and the reminder and photo come from the office of Commissioner Bob Ott, who said in his weekly newsletter said police are working with Cobb DOT “to design a solution that works with the surroundings.”
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With online-only classes beginning on Aug. 17, the Cobb County School Disrict is rolling out more digital features to help students and parents.
The district has released a smartphone app called CTLS Parent—after the district’s Cobb Teaching and Learning online portal—enabling parents to use their mobile devices to get the same information and communications as they would on a desktop computer.
Parents will be able to access information using their ParentVue login details.
Those materials include learning content, grading, attendance, report cards and other academic features and more are coming.
For now, it’s available for those with an iPhone or an iPad. The district says it’s applied to make CTLS Parent available to Android users vis Google Play, but is waiting for Google’s approval.
Here’s more from the district on the CTLS Parent app, and a video run-through of the features:
The one-stop-shop features of the CTLS platform also provides multiple ways to stay connected with schools and teachers. Parents will have the option to message their student’s teachers and track messages from their school. Parents will no longer have to hunt through their emails to find a message from their child’s school. All the messages will be saved in a centralized location on the app.
The same goes for Districtwide messages and alerts. Parents will also be able to set up push notifications, select language preferences, and indicate the frequency in which they would like to receive messages.
Parents will also be able to access a directory of teachers and important contact information for the school in one location. They’ll even have the option to add the contact numbers from the directory to their phone contacts, so they easily know who is calling them.
Elsewhere in the app, the parents will be able to access over 700,000 vetted and aligned educational resources. The Resource Library will help families stay engaged in their child’s learning at home.
Other app features include student schedule, grade book, report card, mass notifications, calendars, conferences automated attendance, lunch balance notifications, polls, school signups, and more.
The student schedule section will not only provide a list of student classes, but also a list of standards for each class and grade level. This will help parents stay informed of expected academic progress.
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!
Wellstar Health System, one of Georgia’s largest and most integrated healthcare systems, is inviting the community to attend its first-ever Wellstar Foundation virtual gala and interactive online fundraiser on Aug. 1, from 6 to 7 p.m. WSB-TV award-winning anchor Fred Blankenship will serve as the emcee of the Wellstar Starlight Grand Gala and joins celebrities, community members and healthcare heroes in raising vital donations for the Wellstar Foundation’s COVID-19 relief fund. Sponsored by ApolloMD and Bank of America, the benefit will feature performances, a live silent auction and wine wall, and a virtual photo booth.
“Our hope is to make the virtual gala just as fun as our annual live event is each year, with the bonus of being able to invite and engage with many more people on the online platform,” said Lisa Mello, Wellstar Foundation director of Strategic Giving. “What a unique opportunity to share how donations to the Wellstar Foundation are helping make Georgia well, now and in the future!”
The initial line-up of performers includes rock singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer Michelle Malone; Atlanta Braves opera singer Timothy Miller; and country music group Brian Collins Band. Attendees will also enjoy heartfelt messages from celebrities and community members showing appreciation to Wellstar team members for working on the frontlines throughout the pandemic.
The COVID-19 relief fund supports Wellstar’s 11 hospitals, six health parks, pediatric centers, hospice facilities, and other medical offices. The fund also offers supplies and educational materials to members of the community, procures tablets that connect patients with loved ones, and provides aid to Wellstar team members in need due to the pandemic.
There are multiple ways to participate during the virtual event that include wine wall purchases starting at $25, a silent auction featuring exciting experiences, and the opportunity to donate directly to the COVID-19 relief fund. As a not-for-profit, Wellstar relies on community support to fund hospital enhancements, community programs, and resources for individuals in need. Contributions to the Wellstar Foundation support our vision of delivering world-class healthcare to everyone in our service area.
The virtual gala is free and open to anyone who would like to attend. Register now by visiting wellstar.org/gala.
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One of the last rural outposts on Wesley Chapel Road could soon be plowed under for a new subdivision.
Brooks Chadwick Capital LLC, an East Cobb developer, has filed a rezoning request for nearly 50 acres that will be heard Tuesday by the Cobb Planning Commission.
The undeveloped land owned by Glennis F. Willis is zoned R-30 and R-20, lower-density categories. But the applicant is seeking R-15 density to build 81 single-family homes on those tracts.
The properties, which are fronted by older homes, are just above Garrison Mill Elementary School (at the bottom of the aerial map above) and just below Mabry Park.
According to Cobb Tax Assessor’s records, the two parcels of Willis land have appraised values of $1.5 million and $1.3 million.
There is R-15 zoning in nearby subdivisions, and the Cobb Zoning Staff is recommending approval of the application with some modifications.
They include providing left-turn lanes onto either side of the subdivision, and for deceleration lanes for right-hand turns.
Brooks Chadwick’s attorney, Kevin Moore, submitted a stipulation letter earlier this week that calls for homes to be at least 3,000 square feet.
The developer also will conduct sediment studies before and after the development of the downstream lake at the nearby Loch Highland community, and provide copies to the homeowners association.
Another stipulation would limit construction hours to 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday.
However, Moore contends that his client shouldn’t be required to build left-turn lanes because of a lack of right-of-way needed for that, and that deceleration lanes “shall only be required to the extent public-right-of way is available.”
The Willis homestead that faces Wesley Chapel Road.
The developer didn’t indicate a price range, but newer homes in that area are generally valued in the $700,000-$900,000 range.
In recent years that part of Wesley Chapel Road has begun to build out with similarly-priced developments. That includes Mabry Grove, which was once included the homestead of the expansive Mabry Farm, and whose first homes opened last year.
Across the road, there’s still a little more than 40 acres surrounding Mabry Park that’s in Mabry family hands, and that like the Willis property, contains a single-family home on largely conservation land.
In another East Cobb case Tuesday, the Planning Commission will hear a delayed request to rezone part of the Sandy Plains Village Shopping Center for a 41-townhome development and a freestanding restaurant/retail space.
That proposal was shelved last month by planning staff, and the retail center owner, Site Centers Corp., has submitted revised plans (see below) and produced a traffic study.
The Planning Commission also is expected to make its recommendation for the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford master plan, which has been in development for the last couple of years.
Tuesday’s meeting begins at 9 a.m. in the second-floor board room of the Cobb government building, 100 Cherokee St., in downtown Marietta. It will be livestreamed on Cobb TV, the county’s public cable access channel (also on Channel 24 on Comcast) and on Facebook Live.
Like its zoning cases, the planning commission’s votes are advisory, and the Cobb Board of Commissioners will make final decisions on Aug. 18.
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!
