The Kell-Hillgrove football game won’t be played Friday after a positive COVID-19 case was reported on the Hillgrove team.
Kell athletic director Richard Norman sent a message to the “Kell Family” Thursday night saying that the school’s administration was told of the confirmed positive case earlier in the day:
“While this outcome is undesirable, our highest priority is the health and safety of our students and staff. Thank you for your patience, understanding, and continued support. Tickets purchases will be refunded from GoFan.”
GoFan is an online ticket sales hub that many high schools have been using to sell limited tickets for sports (here’s the Kell link).
The Longhorns, who are 0-1 after a season-opening loss to Walton last week, are the second East Cobb football team to have a game cancelled due to COVID.
Wheeler was to have played North Atlanta last weekend, but that opponent backed out for similar reasons. Instead, the Wildcats played Marietta, which also had an opponent cancel, and the Blue Devils prevailed 35-14.
In other games tonight, Wheeler plays at home against Dutchtown, Pope is at Walton, Sprayberry at Collins Hill and Lassiter is at Lambert.
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!
Three major holiday-season shopping events in East Cobb are a no-go for 2020.
The organizers of the Lassiter Craft Fair are the latest to announce that the event has been cancelled.
It’s typically one of the earliest events on the holiday shopping calendar, and was to have taken place on Nov. 7-8 at Lassiter High School.
The fair is a fundraiser for the Lassiter band programs, and here’s the message that was sent out Wednesday:
“All vendors who submitted an application for the 2020 craft fair should have received an email regarding the event cancellation. Thank you for supporting Lassiter Marching Band! Please reach out to[email protected] with any questions.”
The 40th annual Apple Annie Arts & Crafts Show at the Catholic Church of St. Ann also has been cancelled. That was to have taken place in early December, with proceeds supporting projects of the church’s women’s ministry:
If you are interested in applying for the 2021 show, applications will be posted at https://st-ann.org/apple-annie in early November 2020 with a deadline of March 31, 2021.
Also slated for mid-November was the Mt. Zion United Methodist Church Craft Show. The tentative dates for 2021 are Nov.12-13.
Cancellations relating to COVID-19 have affected nearly all major events in East Cobb since March. Saturday was to have been the EAST COBBER magazine’s 25th annual parade and festival, but that is not taking place.
Those behind another big holiday shopping event, the Sprayberry PTSA Arts and Crafts Show, have indicated their long-running arts and crafts show scheduled for Nov. 21-22 may also be cancelled.
They’ve organized a virtual fundraiser in partnership with Panda Express on Sept. 18, and plans are to have future monthly virtual fundraisers; you can find more information here.
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With just a couple weeks remaining until the deadline for completing 2020 U.S. Census forms, the response rate in East Cobb is among the highest in Cobb County.
According to a Cobb County government GIS map seen above, all but one Census tract in East Cobb are reporting response rates of 75 percent or higher.
That’s of Sept. 2, and that’s just the self-response rate. The Census Bureau has listings for all states in that category, and follow-up response rates that it adds to its cumulative total, that you can find here.
The Census bureau also has interactive maps that show the most recent updates for every Census tract (a screen grab is shown below), and some East Cobb census tracts have total response rates of higher than 80 percent and in some cases as high as 88 percent.
Georgia’s self-response rate is 60.8 percent as of Wednesday, and combined with the follow-up response rate now stands at 80.2 percent.
The states with the highest overall rates for the moment are Idaho (98.5 percent), West Virginia (97.7 percent), Washington (96.5 percent), Hawaii (96.1 percent) and Kansas (95.6 percent).
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Leaders of the Walton Marching Raider Band have announced that their biannual recycling event – known for accepting metal, electronics and paint – will be held this Saturday. Proceeds support the marching band program and help provide a high-quality experience for East Cobb students attending George H. Walton Comprehensive High School.
The recycling event will be held on Saturday, September 12, 2020 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Walton High School, 1590 Bill Murdock Rd, Marietta, GA 30062.
Support of the event is especially needed this year due to the novel coronavirus and its impact on regular band fundraising activities.
All residents and businesses are welcome to donate and support this Walton Marching Raider Band event. People who have cleaned their homes during the pandemic and don’t know what to do with the metal, electronics and paint they want to dispose of and local businesses who are in the same situation are all welcome to support the event.
The Walton Marching Raider Band is participating in a limited number of school events and following stringent protocols including wearing masks and being physically distanced during outside performances.
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A conceptualized possibility for the redevelopment of a corner of the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford intersection includes restoring a lake (No. 3).
A master plan for the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford area that involved citizen input over the last two years reflects strong local desires to maintain a community dominated by single-family neighborhoods.
The Cobb Board of Commissioners voted 5-0 Tuesday to adopt the recommended master plan, which will guide not only future development and land use, but also traffic, parks, stormwater issues and a sense of place.
The Johnson Ferry-Shallowford Small Area Plan recommendations were subject to public hearings over the last month, including the Cobb Planning Commission. Earlier this month the advisory board suggested removing a proposal in the final master plan to restore a lake near the “JOSH” intersection.
That’s known to some as “Maddox Lake,” behind the now-demolished home of former Gov. Lester Maddox on Johnson Ferry Road, and that has been dry for some years.
The area around the lake was part of a 30-acre assemblage for rezoning that went before commissioners as a proposed townhome and single-family residential development before the request was withdrawn in early 2017.
The JOSH recommendations include several potential mixed-use development scenarios that Commissioner Bob Ott of East Cobb said are meant only to guide possible future uses, not mandate them.
“I’m not going to take out” the recommendation the Planning Commission wanted deleted.
“This is what the community said they wanted,” Ott said. “There was not a consultant who came in and did it. These are simply possibilities to consider.”
The JOSH master plan area (boundary map here) includes the following demographics:
The adopted JOSH master plan calls for the preservation of an area dominated by single-family neighborhoods.
The options presented in the JOSH final draft include redevelopment as a community park and stormwater management facility, with multi-family residential and some retail and restaurant space.
The transportation recommendations call for improving intersections in a number of places, including Johnson Ferry-Shallowford, Shallowford-Wesley Chapel, Shallowford-Mabry and creating a roundabout at Hembree Road and Lassiter Road.
The “sense of place” suggestions include design guidelines along Johnson Ferry and Shallowford that would include streetscape amenities including decorative street lights and pedestrian lights, unified landscaped medians, wider sidewalks and street furniture.
The study also suggests the creation of a “community based stakeholder association” that would consider citizen ideas and collaboration on new development and design.
The JOSH master plan was the fourth authorized by Ott, who is retiring at the end of the year after 12 years in office.
The others include the Vinings Vision Plan, Powers Ferry Corridor Plan and Johnson Ferry Design Guidelines, the latter of which pertained to future aesthetics in the mostly-commercial area between Roswell Road and the Chattahoochee River.
The JOSH area was placed in the District 2 area Ott serves in 2017. He said this plan is similar to the Vinings plan in that it’s a “preservation” plan.
Residents of the JOSH area, he said, were very clear during the master plan process about maintaining the single-family feel of the community, which has no rental developments and limited commercial areas.
“The purpose of these master plans was to give the community a say about what they want,” Ott said, saying the JOSH plan “will be a useful tool for my successor.”
Citizens of the JOSH area look over maps during a Jan. 2019 community meeting.
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Following Superintendent Chris Ragsdale’s July 16 announcement that the 2020-2021 school year would start with a fully remote learning model, the Cobb Schools Food and Nutrition Services began preparing to provide breakfast and lunches to students in a way that best supports the remote environment.
Starting on September 14, parents will be able to pick-up free meal kits for the entirety of the week. Meal kits are available to all students ages 0-18 and children do not need to be enrolled in Cobb County School District.
Most Cobb schools will schedule meal kit pick-ups. Specific times and dates can be found on the Cobb Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) website. Families do not need to pre-order meal kits.
Food-Distribution Pricing
Meal kits are free for students, but family dinners and adult-only kits can still be ordered through the MyPaymentsPlus.com website. Families that would like to order more kits than they have students are also eligible to use their Free or Reduced-Priced benefits when ordering at MyPaymentsPlus.com.
Families who have not already applied should submit an application here to determine if they qualify for Free or Reduced-Priced benefits.
The to-go meal kits will include items that can be reheated at home. Reheating instructions and a menu will be provided in meal kits.
Food-Distribution Pickup
On the day of pickup, parents should plan to arrive at the school of their choosing at the designated time and date and let the Cobb FNS staff know how many meal kits are needed for children ages 0-18. Meal kits with breakfast and lunch meals will be provided and placed in the trunk or backseat of the car by Cobb FNS staff.
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The first round of the National Merit Scholarship process for a new school year is underway, and a number of students from East Cobb high schools have been named semifinalists.
They’re among 16,000 nationwide vying for a variety of college scholarships whose recipients will be announced in the spring:
To become a Finalist, the Semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the Semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, and write an essay.
From the approximately 16,000 Semifinalists, about 15,000 are expected to advance to the Finalist level, and in February they will be notifi ed of this designation. All National Merit Scholarship winners will be selected from this group of Finalists. Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.
LASSITER H. S.
Victoria Dutkiewicz
Aidan Payne
William Shutt
POPE H. S.
Allison D. Gentry
Ryan J. Meredith
Greg K. Park.
William G. Whitaker
SPRAYBERRY H. S.
Allison D. Mawn
WALTON H. S.
Sai Anoop Avunuri
Avi Balakirsky
Vedika Bhatnagar
Eric Brewster
Caroline Brooks
Tia Chacko
Jamison Clark
Emily Feren
Joseph Fisher
Cole Francis
Michael Fu
Nicholas Ge
Kathryn Gilk
Kamen Iliev
Alexander Krupp
Steven Liberman
Taneecia Natarajan Thirulokac
Aditya Palliyil
Emory Paul
Ronak Rana
Manuel Roglan
Shveta Shah
Banglue Wei
Grace Yan
Emily Yang
WHEELER H. S.
Vishaal Ganesh
Matthew House
Caroline Hugh
Anushka Jain
Vishaal Kareti
Dmitry Kozhanov
Oliver Long
David MacDonald
Samuel Maloney
Alexander Mena
Aryaman Mukherji
Michelle Namgoong
Nikki Nobari
Adetomi Oderinde
Elijah Reyelts
Manav Shah
Sanjay Srihari
Wesley Swanson
Aniketh Tadepalli
Rachel Toole
Erica Wu
Julie Yan
Charles Yu
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A mobile sign in front of the new Tokyo Valentino store on Johnson Ferry Road has been removed.
The Cobb Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved major changes to the county code governing the operation of sexually oriented businesses.
Commissioners adopted the new ordinance provisions on its consent agenda, and after a second required public hearing attracted no speakers.
The code amendments would limit sex shops and other adult businesses to two industrial zoning categories. All such businesses would be required to obtain a special license and employees would have to be issued a special permit.
The aim is to combat what a lawyer consulting with the Cobb County Attorney’s office calls the “adverse secondary effects” of sexually oriented businesses, including crime and loitering, to nearby areas.
The changes come after Tokyo Valentino, an Atlanta-based adult retail chain, opened a store on Johnson Ferry Road in the former Mattress Firm location across from Merchant’s Walk.
The store was granted a business license as a general retail operation under the name 1290 Clothing Co., but opened as Tokyo Valentino.
Another Tokyo Valentino store opened in Sandy Springs last year under similar circumstances.
The ordinance changes also prohibit sexually oriented businesses from operating within 750 feet of residentially zoned land, within 1,500 feet of a school, religious facility, government-owned or run building, 1,000 feet of another sexually oriented business and 500 feet of another business licensed to sell alcohol, either on premises or a package store.
While nobody spoke in favor of or against the code amendments during the public hearings, Daniel White, who began an online petition against Tokyo Valentino, told East Cobb News he was sending a written statement in support of the measures.
Here’s what he submitted for the record:
“Based on the short notice and change to live public comments vs. online comments, I am submitting this on behalf of the 2,906 people who have signed the change.org petition to reject the sex shop on Johnson Ferry. I believe good can come from this for all Cobb County residents and not just the residents of East Cobb. The well researched common sense changes to the ordinance have our support to—as well outlined—establish reasonable and uniform regulations that prevent the secondary deleterious effects of these businesses in residential areas.
“These regulations are limiting and not prohibitive. They allow for the rights to operate these businesses and take into consideration common sense conditions for operating. Since the shop has opened it has installed outdoor color changing strobe like dance lights on the front and parked a large explicit mobile sign in front as well. We are certain that these ‘near legal tactics’ will continue. The sexually oriented permanent sign is tragedy to the progress we have made in the awareness of sexualizing and exploiting women. It’s tasteless and taunting. If the owner wanted to work with the community he would not continue to lie and hide.
“In thIs meeting of Cobb County commissioners, we support the affirmative vote on the sweeping changes to the Cobb County sexually oriented business ordinances effectively putting these businesses where they belong—not out of business as it is their right—but out of our neighborhoods by effectively banning their operations near schools, residences, and churches.
“This means that the 2,906 people who have signed this that represent nearly 9,000 east cobb residents will have had a positive voice in government. In today’s day, you should not have to show up to a specific meeting to have your voices heard. There are so many listening avenues and I’m glad you have heard us, worked hard and found ways to balance business and resident input. The well researched 30 page document outlines the blight these businesses cause and the trouble they bring. It is naive and insulting to say that opponents of this ordinance are ‘just a bunch of moms.’ Because it is not a bunch of ‘moms’ that keep these places open and frequent them enough to stay open. It is people who go often. It’s the rule of any business and if you’re in a sex shop often you don’t need to be 3/10’s of a mile from a school or within a few hundred yards of kids walking to school, a Chick-fil-A or a Starbucks or for that matter directly across the street from an Old Navy.
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Cobb Police said a woman died Tuesday morning when her car collided with a dump truck near the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford intersection.
Police said Janet Muse, 62 of Roswell, was pronounced dead at the scene.
She was driving a 2010 Lincoln around 10:40 a.m. and was attempting to turn left from Chimney Lake Drive on to Shallowford Road eastbound when her car was hit by a dump truck heading west on Shallowford, according to police.
Police said the truck, driven by Keith Rosado, 50, of Cartersville, had a green light, and struck the driver’s side of the Lincoln in the intersection.
Police said Rosado was unhurt. The crash investigation is continuing and anyone with information is asked to call Cobb Police at 770-499-3987.
The Johnson Ferry-Shallowford intersection and surrounding areas were closed for a time after the accident but traffic reopened by mid-afternoon.
ORIGINAL REPORT, 1:30 P.M.
The busy intersection of Johnson Ferry Road and Shallowford Road is closed due to a fatal crash Tuesday.
According to a Cobb government message posted around 1:20 p.m., the accident vehicles have been cleared, but Cobb police and fire units are conducting an investigation into the crash. The closure is expected to last for several hours.
No other information about the incident is immediately available. Officer Shenise McDonald, a Cobb Police public information officer, said more details will be coming.
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The Cobb Board of Commissioners on Tuesday rejected a proposal to spend $2 million in federal CARES Act funding for renters facing eviction because of what some said was a lack of accountability.
But the board did pass a substitute motion to provide the same amount of rental assistance through a previously approved program that helps homeowners adversely affected by COVID-19 in making mortgage payments.
The measure turned down by a 3-2 vote was proposed by South Cobb commissioner Lisa Cupid, and would have designated three non-profit organizations—MUST Ministries, the Center for Family Resources and Sweetwater Mission—to screen applicants who could receive up to $4,800 in funding.
Those eligible for the help can earn no more than 80 percent of the area media income, and they can include renters in apartments and single-family homes.
Cupid said later in the meeting that commissioners who voted against her proposal supported the substitute that was proposed on Friday, before a long holiday weekend, without being vetted.
The proposals were considered after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a moratorium on COVID-related evictions nationwide through the end of the year.
The mortgage assistance program, called the Cobb Home Saver Program, earmarks $4.8 million. A $1.5 million rental relief program sponsored by East Cobb commissioner Bob Ott was approved in May, but it’s restricted to apartment dwellers.
“We are trying to keep people off the streets,” Cupid said. “We are trying to keep people in homes. . . All of these programs are about keeping people in housing during this pandemic.”
During a lengthy discussion, commissioner JoAnn Birrell of Northeast Cobb said she preferred only one service provider to be designated to approve applications under Cupid’s proposal.
“I know there’s a need and time is of the essence,” she said. “I still have reservations. We just can’t give away money without accountability.”
Ott said that Cupid improved the proposals but he still objects to what he he sees as tenants not having “some skin in the game.” His rental relief program requires renters to pay at least 20 percent of whatever amount they can negotiate with a landlord.
Cupid’s plan includes no such mandates, but applicants must have pursued assistance elsewhere first.
Commissioner Keli Gambrill of North Cobb claimed the memoranda of understanding (MUST, CFR, Sweetwater) lacked safeguards to prevent applicants who’ve received CARES Act funding in Ott’s rental assistance program from getting additional funds.
Cupid replied that each of the organizations would have spreadsheets indicating who’s come to them for assistance, but Ott said that’s not a guarantee.
She also said that when commissioners voted in July to approve an $8.1 million request by the Cobb County School District for online instructional content, “you said it was hands off.”
The three non-profits chosen for Cupid’s program, she said, all have strong reputations in the community.
Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce was the only other vote in favor of Cupid’s proposal, saying it’s “trying to cover a gap that’s complex and layered. I’m going to support it because the need is there.”
Ott’s substitute motion to provide $2 million in rental assistance through the Cobb Home Saver program was approved 4-1, with Cupid voting against.
Cupid, who is challenging Boyce in the November general election, said near the end of the meeting that “this is not the first time there has been a double standard” in her eight years as a commissioner.
She accused her colleagues of “underhanded” tactics, said she will continue to work with them and treat them the way she’d want to be treated, “despite today’s disappointment.”
Cobb was allotted $132 million in CARES Act funding, and has spent the largest portion—$50 million—on small business relief grants that are in a second round of applications.
After the meeting, Shari Martin, head of the Cobb Community Foundation, another leading county non-profit, said it “was a very disheartening morning for organizations that have long served this community.”
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!
Thanks to Marsha Brenner for the photos and the note below about Jane Agati, a longtime resident of Chattahoochee Plantation known to many there as the “Ole Soft Shoe Lady” and who got an incredible surprise for her 99th birthday on Aug. 31:
“Over 70 friends stopped by at staggered times, masked and socially distanced, to wish one of our communities sharpest and happiest senior citizens a ‘Happy Birthday.’
Jane served in WW2 as a Navy Wave, is known for her ‘Ole Soft Shoe’ Tap Dancing and her GORGEOUS flower gardens.
Jane and her now deceased husband Nick proudly made home made Italian sausages and served a special annual, Atlanta Country Club members gourmet Spaghetti dinner, for 54 years! Sadly COVID-19 prevented her this year from continuing this tradition—but she was ready, willing and amazingly able . . . had the pandemic not happened.
Jane’s ‘Stop by’ Birthday celebration also included a surprised visit by both Cobb County Police and Firefighters. At first she thought she was being arrested! But soon realized the wonderful men and women of our local Police and Fire departments were there to congratulate her. And, in truest form—she tap danced to say thank you for their kind well wishes!
Jane is truly an icon in East Cobb. She is blessed with amazingly good health and LOTS of great FRIENDS!
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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 Cobb Board of Commissioners will hold a final public hearing and is scheduled to vote Tuesday morning on proposed sweeping changes to the county’s ordinance pertaining to sexually oriented businesses.
Commissioners also will are slated to adopt the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford master plan that’s been two years in the making.
The meeting begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building, 100 Cherokee St., in downtown Marietta.
Socially-distanced seating will be followed for those attending in person. The meeting also will be streamed on the county’s Facebook page,YouTube Channel and public access channel CobbTV, which also can be seen on Comcast Cable 23.
The code amendments were proposed by East Cobb commissioner Bob Ott after a Tokyo Valentino store opened on Johnson Ferry Road in June in a former Mattress Firm location, without needing rezoning or any special permitting.
The new ordinance would restrict where sex shops could be located, both in terms of zoning categories and locations, limiting them to industrial areas.
The changes also would require sexually oriented businesses to get a special business license and employees would also have to get individual permits to work in them.
The aim is to combat what a lawyer consulting with the Cobb County Attorney’s office calls the “adverse secondary effects” of sexually oriented businesses, including crime and loitering, to nearby areas.
The recommended JOSH master plan, proposed after more than two years of public meetings and input, would keep the highly residential area as it is, in terms of the balance of development.
Other parts of the plan pertain to traffic improvements, community facilities, recreation and stormwater management in an area with many streams and lakes.
The proposal also includes options for the redevelopment of the southwest corner of Johnson Ferry and Shallowford and around Maddox Lake.
That’s a 30-acre assemblage for rezoning that went before the Cobb Board of Commissioners as a proposed townhome and single-family residential development before the request was withdrawn in early 2017.
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To view details by ZIP code, click here. Source: Cobb and Douglas Public Health
Although the rate of positive COVID-19 cases in Cobb County has been falling since its mid-July peak, the county crossed an unwelcome threshold on Friday, with more than 400 reported deaths due to the virus.
The Georgia Department of Public Health on Friday reported that 401 people have died in Cobb, the second-highest county total in the state, following Fulton County, which has 535 deaths.
Cobb County also has 17,476 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 104 more reported on Friday.
Those figures are according to the date of report and not the date of “onset,” or the date which an individual learns of a positive test for the virus.
That latter distinction is of importance regarding the reopening of the Cobb County School District. Superintendent Chris Ragsdale announced Thursday that the phased return to classroom instruction will start on Oct. 5, given the dropping average of cases per 100,000 people.
At one point that 14-day average was nearly 400 cases per 100,000 (100 cases per 100,000 is considered high community spread). Now, according to Georgia DPH, Cobb’s average of cases per 100,000 over the last two weeks is 219.
Cobb COVID deaths by the date of death, per Georgia DPH. Click here for details.
The number of cases and deaths in East Cobb is about one-fifth of the county total, according to the latest figures from Cobb and Douglas Public Health.
According to the ZIP Code map seen at the top (click here to view more information), 78 deaths have been reported in East Cobb, which has 3,866 positive COVID-19 cases.
That comes to 19.4 percent of the deaths and 22 percent of the cases in Cobb County.
On July 3, there were 1,034 cases and 41 deaths in East Cobb. Here’s how those numbers look today, with the July figures in parenthesis:
30062: 1,143 cases, 21 deaths (297, 12)
30066: 1,007 cases, 18 deaths (241, 9)
30067: 1,043 cases, 11 deaths (317, 8)
30068: 590 cases, 28 deaths (155, 16)
30075: 83 cases, 0 deaths (24, 0)
According to the latest figures from the Georgia Department of Community Health, 29 of those 78 deaths have taken place in long-term care homes.
In August we reported that for the most part, case and death numbers in those facilities have held relatively steady since the COVID-19 outbreak began in March. An exception is the Manor Care Rehab Center on Johnson Ferry Place, which in June and July reported three deaths and more than 30 staff cases.
As of this week, three more deaths have been reported at Manor Care, and a total of 38 employees have tested positive.
Hospitalization numbers that concerned public health officials also have gone down in recent weeks.
To view a larger map and more data, click here. Source: GEMA
Cobb is in Region N with Douglas, Paulding and Cherokee counties, as shown above in the latest situation report by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency.
GEMA is no longer updating that information, but Georgia DPH instead is moving some of that data into its expanded public Georgia COVID-19 status dashboard.
As of Friday, a total of 5,931 people in Georgia have died from COVID-19, and 279,354 have tested positive.
Cobb County Government also has its own COVID hub with data, maps and other details of deaths, cases, hospitalization and demographic information relating to the virus.
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Cobb schools have put out a 16-page PDF with safety protocols and other measures that probably won’t answer all questions parents may have, but starting on Page 5 you’ll find more about the following:
Maintenance and daily cleaning
Transportation
Food service, virtual and in school
K-12 sample schedules
The tentative breakdowns for those returns are as follows: K-5 and special ed Oct. 5; middle school Oct. 19 and high school Nov. 5.
Starting Monday at 8 a.m., and continuing through Sept. 20, parents can choose which option—remote or in-person—they want for their children.
That option will continue through the end of the fall semester, and the Cobb County School District has said remote learning will be available for the rest of the 2020-21 academic year.
Teachers will be teaching students in their classrooms and remote at the same time.
Masks are required for all teachers and employees and students returning to campus, as well as support staff like bus drivers.
The district said that anyone testing positive for COVID-19 will self-isolate for 10 consecutive days from the date of a positive test and is asymptomatic.
Students and staff also will have to go into quarantine if they have a suspected case and symptoms of the virus or were within close contact with someone who’s positive.
The district said it will inform those affected to stay home and will notify school officials if they have tested positive, have symptoms, are waiting for test results or are exposed to someone.
All schools will have designated isolation areas for anyone with COVID-19 symptoms.
Cleaning and sanitizing
The district said it’s in the process of having a fogging system put in place before students return, and each school will have fogging equipment and disinfectant.
All areas of school buildings—classrooms, administrative offices, break rooms, cafeterias, gymnasiums, etc.—will be disinfected and cleaned daily, especially “high touch points,” including countertops, desk tops, door handles and chairs.
Hand sanitizers will be provided at every school, and at numerous locations, including school entrances, and “good hygiene measures” including frequent handwashing will be practiced.
Students will be encouraged to bring their own water bottles and to avoid sharing food or snacks.
Masks, meals and buses
Social distancing measures and mask-wearing will be mandatory, although the district’s protocols indicate it will be “sensitive to needs of students/staff with medical issues that make wearing a face covering inadvisable.”
Mandatory mask use also applies to students riding a school bus. Drivers will be required to wear masks, and buses will be disinfected after every route.
As for food service, students who remain at home will be able to continue to receive prepaid weekly breakfasts and lunches. “Individual schools will determine where meals are served” for students who return to school.
Classroom schedules
As for classroom instruction, the current four-day schedule for all-remote learning will continue, both for virtual and on school campuses.
Wednesday will continue to be a day for independent study and individual and small group teacher-student meetings.
We’ll be contacting school district officials to get more information about these and other reopening issues in the coming weeks. If you have any questions you’d like us to ask, please e-mail: [email protected].
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For the first tine since the COVID-19 outbreak, the Friends for the East Cobb Park and WellStar Health System are putting on a “Sunday Funday” event this Sunday.
It’s from 4-6 p.m. at East Cobb Park (3322 Roswell Road), and the format is the same: Bring your own food/picnic fare, lawn chairs/blankets and enjoy the sounds of The Loose Shoes Band.
But you’re also asked to observe the following health protocols, as per what the Friends group, a volunteer organization, posted earlier Friday:
Attendees will be responsible for themselves to ensure they have a temperature of less than 100.4°, and/or other symptoms of COVID-19 before attending Sunday Funday.
Spacing between persons in the park should be at least six feet at all times.
Circles, placed 6 feet apart, will be painted on the lawn. This will indicate social distant sitting.
Attendees/Spectators are encouraged to bring their own chairs
Members of the same household will be allowed to sit within 6ft of each other, and inside the circles.
Face masks will be encouraged for attendees and performers, but aren’t mandatory
There will be no concessions.
Here’s an additional disclaimer to keep in mind:
“An inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present. When you visit or use the park and facilities at East Cobb Park, you voluntarily assume all risk related to exposure to COVID-19. If you have a fever or COVID-19 you are not allowed in the park.”
Typically there have been several Sunday Funday events in the spring and late summer/early fall, but nothing took place this spring.
Like other Cobb Parks, East Cobb Park was closed—literally locked down—from late March to early May following public health guidance. Pavilions reopened to the public on July 1.
Last month, Cobb Parks replaced the original roof on the concert stage with one based upon a similar design.
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The following East Cobb food scores from Aug. 12-Sept. 4 have been compiled by the Cobb & Douglas Department of Public Health. Click the link under each listing for details of the inspection:
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The Cobb County School District on Thursday announced the dates for students returning to classroom instruction, starting with K-5 and special education students on Oct. 5.
Superintendent Chris Ragsdale said in an announcement posted on the district’s website and social media channels that the tentative starting date for middle school students will be Oct. 19, and high school school students will return on Nov. 5.
Those are all tentative dates, based on any COVID-19 conditions in Cobb County. More details on the reopening plan can be found here.
Here’s more that was released by the district right before 11 a.m., and this story will be updated:
Today, we are pleased to announce that the three parameters of community spread, effective contact tracing protocol, and efficient testing timeliness impacting our decision to offer face-to-face instruction have all been trending in a positive direction. This news allows us to announce the start date for our phased plan to provide both face-to-face and remote learning environments. On the Monday following Fall break, October 5th, 2020, we plan to begin Phase One of our return to face-to-face instruction. We trust that everyone will continue to do everything we can to keep the numbers moving in the right direction.
As we previously indicated, you will be able to submit your choice for face-to-face or remote beginning at 8:00 AM on September 7th through the ParentVue portal. The choice portal will close at midnight on September 20th.
In a video portion of that presentation, Ragsdale also said the following:
“One critical aspect of our plan is that as parents choose either face-to-face or remote-learning classrooms, students will continue to be taught by their current teachers. Face-to-face and remote-learning students in the same class will receive the same instruction from the same teacher. This will prevent disruptions to existing relationships students have made with teachers and will protect teachers from being asked to do two jobs at the same time.”
Unlike Ragsdale’s original face-to-face learning plans that recommended but did not require mask-wearing, the district said today that masks will be mandatory for staff and students, in school buildings as well as on school buses.
Masks also will be required, “whenever possible, when teachers are teaching.”
Other safety protocols include social distancing when possible, hand sanitizing stations at multiple locations through school facilities, daily cleaning and limiting volunteers and visitors.
As for how breakfasts and lunches will be provided, the district is saying only for now that its food service staff “will will continue making sure our students have nutritious meals.”
The district said more details will be provided about reopening plans on Friday.
The Cobb school district was to have started the school year Aug. 1, but Ragsdale announced in June a delay to Aug. 17 as COVID-19 cases began spiking in the county and across Georgia.
The initial plan was to give parents a choice between classroom and virtual learning.
But in July, he told the Cobb Board of Education that the year would be starting online-only, due to continued high community spread of the virus.
Guidance from public health officials indicated that anything more than an average of 100 cases per 100,000 people is considered high community spread.
During mid-summer, that figure was well over 500 cases per 100,000. As of Wednesday, Cobb was averaging 235 cases per 100,000 over the last two weeks, within the range of what Ragsdale said he was targeting for a classroom return.
Those figures come from the Georgia Department of Public Health, which reported that Cobb County has 17,210 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 395 deaths, both among the highest figures in the state.
Ragsdale’s decision to switch to all-online learning angered some parents who staged rallies before the start of classes.
During the first two weeks of virtual learning, the district’s expanded online learning portal experienced several outages that further frustrated parents.
This week no seriously technology issues have been reported.
Parents will be able to select an online or classroom option starting Monday through Sept. 20.
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High school football season is starting two weeks later than first scheduled, but that’s not the only thing that’s different for the five East Cobb teams that will kick off their seasons Friday.
The Georgia High School Association instituted the delay this summer when a rash of COVID-19 cases broke out across the state.
Since then, some teams have cancelled games, and in a few cases, their entire seasons, while others are on hold because their school districts called off games.
The fluid, rapidly changing environment included a last-minute schedule change on Tuesday, when Wheeler announced it would be starting its season Friday at old rival Marietta.
That’s because the opening week opponents for the Wildcats and Marietta cancelled, due to COVID-19 issues.
Wheeler was to have played at home against North Atlanta. The school said in a message Tuesday that all tickets will be fully refunded.
Instead, Wheeler will play at Marietta, the defending state champion in Class 7A, at Northcutt Stadium at 7:30 p.m. You can purchase tickets for that game by clicking here.
In fact, online ticket-purchasing is the only way to go for most high school football teams in Georgia.
Due to physical distancing guidelines, a limited number of fans will be permitted inside stadiums. Fans will not be able to buy tickets on site, and at most places, everyone must wear masks.
That was mandated by the organizers of the Corky Kell Classic, which on Friday will include a slate of games that includes an all-East Cobb rivalry.
Kell will be playing at Walton at 5:30 p.m.—kickoff time was to have been at 8 p.m. but has been moved up.
The football seasons for Lassiter and Sprayberry varsity teams also start at home Friday, with the Trojans entertaining River Ridge and Yellow Jackets playing host to North Cobb.
Both games start at 7:30 p.m., and online ticketing and masks are also required.
Pope’s football season starts next Friday at Walton, and the Greyhounds play host to Kell Sept. 18 in their first home game.
Pope has announced that concessions will be limited and face masks also will be required. Pope is among the schools that also is selling masks with school logos.
The GHSA and the Cobb County School District is giving host schools the latitude to make such arrangements.
Cobb schools also have a mask requirement for entry to any of its facilities, including the classroom return starting in October. Those mandates also include other sports that have already gotten underway, volleyball and softball.
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After being closed for more than six months due to COVID-19, the Stem Wine Bar dining room is reopening on Friday and reservations are being “strongly recommended.”
Reservations are a new feature for the last of Doug Turbush’s three East Cobb restaurants to reopen, following Seed Kitchen and Bar next door at Merchant’s Walk and Drift Fish House and Oyster Bar at The Avenue East Cobb.
Dine-in options will be available on Friday and Saturday and ticketed tasting events Tuesday-Thursday.
The delivery and curbside pickup service also starts on Friday and will be available Tuesday-Saturday.
A temporary tastings and wine menus will be offered inside, and the hours and services are as follows:
Tuesday-Thursday takeout and delivery, 5-9 p.m.
Tuesday-Thursday dine-in Ticketed Tasting Events Only
Friday-Saturday takout, delivery and dine-in, 5-10 p.m.
One of the reasons Stem opened later was due to its small seating area, and a message announcing the reopening says that “we are adhering to social distancing guidelines and have implemented additional safety protocols.”
That includes reservations. Info: 678-214-6888. Address: 1311 Johnson Ferry Road.
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The brother of a Kell High School student who was killed last week in a bicycle crash has begun a college scholarship fund for an autistic student, and to fund autism research.
Robbie Schulz, 15, was a sophomore at Kell when he died last Wednesday after he was hit by a car while riding his bicycle on North Marietta Parkway near Interstate 75.
The boy, who also attended pre-kindergarten at Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, Timber Ridge Elementary School and Hightower Trail Middle School in East Cobb, was autistic.
Nicholas Schulz, in forming what he calls “Team Robby,” said his brother “was the smartest person I’ve ever known” and “was incredibly outgoing, sweet, and kind-hearted.” The fundraising campaign has raised nearly $25,000.
In his obituary, Robby Schulz was praised by his teachers. “He taught me compassion and that it was okay to be different,” said Andrea Cilluffo, his science and social studies teacher at Hightower Trail. “He taught me to teach from the heart because words were just words and sometimes words just didn’t explain what the heart could. Robby made me a better teacher and a better human.”
At Kell, he was a member of a Dungeon & Dragons club. “Robby was a kind soul and I will fondly remember his eruptions of delight when he cast just the right spell to save the day,” said Douglas LaVigne, the club’s faculty leader.
Robby belonged to Cub Scout Pack 795 at Mt. Zion UMC and Boy Scout Troop 713 at St. Catherine’s Episcopal Church.
In addition to Nicholas Schulz, Robby’s survivors include his parents, Jim and Alex Schulz, brother Derek Schulz and twin sister Lizzy Schulz.
A visitation is scheduled for family and friends Wednesday from 5-7 p.m. at Mayes-Ward-Dobbins Funeral Home in Marietta, and a memorial service will be held there Thursday at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that a donation be made to Team Robby, Hillside or to a charity of the donor’s choice.
Marietta Police said the accident took place around 4:20 p.m. Wednesday when a 2010 Nissan Maxima driven by Desmond Sipplin, 25, of Marietta, and heading eastbound on North Marietta Parkway, struck the bicycle near the intersection of the I-75 northbound ramp.
Police are continuing to investigate the crash, and anyone with information is asked to call 770-794-5384.
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