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Issue 9.28 | Tuesday, July 7, 2009 | Forward to your friends! |
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FEEDBACK UPCOMING NOTABLE ALSO INSIDE _::
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Meet a sponsor |
ABOUT US GwinnettForum.com is a twice-weekly online community commentary for exploring pragmatic and sensible social, political and economic approaches to improve life in Gwinnett County, Ga. USA. Contact us today. SEARCH GWINNETT FORUM |
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TODAY'S
FOCUS LILBURN, Ga., July 7, 2009 -- The Lilburn Community Partnership (LCP) has been established to initially work towards forming a Community Improvement District (CID) in the Lilburn area. Once the CID has been formed, anticipated to be completed in March 2010, the LCP will move into its next phase of working with the CID to help make Lilburn and the surrounding area a place that values family, business and economic development.
Nash says: "We are pleased to have hired Gerald Mc Dowell to be executive director of the partnership. He brings four years of experience having worked with the formation of the Gwinnett Village CID and then serving as business development director with the Gwinnett Village Community Alliance." Forming a CID is a most powerful way for a community public-private partnership leading to an improved community. It has been used successfully all around the country to revitalize cities. It is an effective tool for financing improvements that directly enhance property values by allowing commercial property owners to determine how funds are spent in their area. CID funds can augment existing services such as public safety. They can also be used to leverage additional public and private funds. Conservatively, CID funds can be used to leverage such funds at a ratio of 10 to 1. A CID is a geographically defined district in which commercial property owners vote to impose a self-tax. To enact a CID, a simple majority of affected commercial property owners holding at least 75 percent of the assessed property value of the area must vote affirmatively. Funds are then collected by the county and forwarded to a board of directors elected by the commercial property owners. The participating commercial property owners define the purpose of the CID and elect a board of directors to represent their interests. The board is ultimately responsible for determining funding and managing the process and for identifying and retaining staffing resources necessary to conduct day-to-day operations. For the proposed CID in the Lilburn area, there is an estimated $581 million of commercial property value and a little over 430 owners. The initial focus will be:
ELLIOTT
BRACK JULY 7, 2009 -- The recent survey conducted for GwinnettForum by The Marketing Workshop of Norcross found a pent-up negative feeling toward the Gwinnett County Commission, which we've mentioned before.
Yet at the same time, the overwhelming thrust was that the survey respondents were most pleased with life in Gwinnett. Today we'll quote randomly and verbatim from some of those responses to the question "What makes Gwinnett County an excellent place to live?"
One respondent summed it up this way: "I like having easy access to great schools, hospitals and libraries. I like the combination of urban-/suburban living. I love all of the ethnic cultures and entertainment options, yet the green space and family life is also abundant."
The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today's sponsor is Howard Brothers, which has outlets in Duluth, Norcross and Oakwood. John and Doug Howard are the owners/operators of the Howard Brothers stores, which specialize in hardware, outdoor power equipment and parts and service. Major trade brands are a hallmark of Howard Brothers. And did you know that Howard Brothers is the largest seller of Stihl Outdoor Power products in the United States. Howard Brothers also carries Makita Power Tools. Visit the web site at www.howardbrothers.com.
FEEDBACK Editor, the Forum: The elimination of summer vacation is being touted mainly to provide babysitting services for children whose parents cannot or will not spend time to care for them during the summer. The long break from schooling allows kids to have many other important life and learning experiences than they can have in school. Summer jobs as lifeguards, construction workers, or camp counselors are an important way to develop skills not taught in classrooms. Family vacations are enriching and kids can learn more from a family trip to Disney World, a National Park or Grandma's than from a week in school. Summer camps such as the many sports, scout and church camps, provide many opportunities for learning either as campers or as staff. Vacation Bible Schools are extremely worthwhile. Neighborhood swim and tennis clubs are important places to develop socially as well as physically. The school system would better serve the community by offering more elective programs during the summer months such as language, arts, music, sports and let those who are interested attend at their option. Maybe let the adults come too. The school system now has very few full weeks of learning, with many breaks during the school year. It would be better if they went back to a full five days a week schedule with minimal breaks. The year should start after Labor Day and end around Memorial Day with three months of summer and parents should be encouraged to make the three months of summer as enriching as possible. Finally, a full summer vacation can be used by teachers to upgrade their skills, take courses toward advanced degrees, and travel. My experience for me and with my three children was that what we learned during summer vacations was every bit as important to our success in life as what we learned in school. I see my grandchildren spending the summer on generally learning stuff not taught in school. In short, the year round school would rob my grandchildren of these experiences and is a bad idea.
Wants far more support for trade school education in USA Editor, the Forum: I appreciate
that Anne took the time to post her article and I hope she continues to
check those labels. As to the USA products at ACE hardware stores, don't
get used to seeing those same packages. While there are some products
still made in this country, you will find as the stores replace these
with newer products, they are no longer made in the USA. I find that I
have to look in the back of the shelf for the older products (ones that
have been on the shelf for a long time) to find the one that was made
in USA. These are the same products, just not made here anymore.
UPCOMING The Gwinnett Sports Commission and Top View Sports will produce the third annual Gwinnett Bike Fest for July 22-26. This year's event has been expanded to six races over five days, building off the success of last year's event that drew over 500 participants from 11 states.
More than 600 local, regional, national and international cyclists/teams are anticipated. It is one of the largest annual cycling events in the Southeast. Racing teams from Aruba and Australia are expected to participate. This year's event will benefit the American Cancer Society and Foster Children's Foundation, and has a prize purse of $11,000. Daily and overall prizes will be presented in an effort to promote riders to participate in all events. This year's schedule of events offer diverse venues that offer excellent viewing vantage points. Saturday's race in downtown Historic Norcross will be an all-day affair, with the city of Norcross hosting a Family Fun Fest with food, music, family cycling events, a parade and more. The local venues and dates will be:
The Gwinnett Bike Fest is also the tenth stop on the newly formed Georgia points series, the Georgia Cycling Gran Prix, a 12 event race series that includes well known, established races throughout Georgia. Find out more about the Gwinnett Bike Fest by visiting www.gcvb.org/bikefest. For more information on races and scheduling, visit www.georgiacycling.net Kudzu Art Zone plans new show reception for July 10 The Kudzu Art Zone at 116 Carlyle Street in Norcross is planning an opening reception for its latest art exhibit on July 10, starting at 7 p.m.
A body
of work by members of the Kudzu Art Zone will be on display. The show
continues through Saturday, October 3. Gallery hours are Friday and Saturday
from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Kudzu Art Zone schedules workshops, sketch groups, studios, and monthly meetings with art demos and presentations. It also sponsor exhibits at its own gallery and in several other locations. NOTABLE Touchmark National Bank is opening a branch location at 3651 Old Milton Parkway in Alpharetta. Final plans for the location, which will also serve as the bank's headquarters, are subject to regulatory approval by the Comptroller of the Currency and the FDIC. These approvals are anticipated within 60 days. In conjunction with the opening of this new office in late August, Touchmark will be closing its branch at Davinci Court in Norcross, which has served as its temporary headquarters since January 2008. Bill Short, president and CEO of Touchmark National Bank, says: "We are excited to be locating our headquarters in this vibrant location in Alpharetta. It will truly complement our existing offices in Doraville and Duluth and will provide us a significant opportunity for future growth. At Touchmark, we are proud of the commitment we have made to our local communities and we very much look forward to being a contributing partner with the citizens and businesses in Alpharetta and the surrounding area." Touchmark National Bank opened for business in January, 2008. Touchmark has assets in excess of $90 million with offices in Norcross, Duluth and Doraville. Clean Tech is subject of next Gwinnett Technology Forum Gwinnett Technology Forum and the Gwinnett Economic Development Sustainability Task Force will present: "How CleanTech is Reshaping an Industry, Georgia, and the Planet" at the next meeting of the Gwinentt Technology Forum on July 21 at 7:30 a.m. The event will be at the Scientific Atlanta Auditorium of Gwinnett Tech.
Clean Technology, or CleanTech, is a relatively new term used to describe innovative technologies that reduce mankind's impact on the planet. It encompasses a broad scope of products and services that encompasses everything from green energy sources to environmentally-focused nanotechnology. This Forum will provide an overview of CleanTech and will provide insight into Biomass as a source of renewable energy. Ryan Adolphson with the Biological and Agricultural Department at the University of Georgia and Norcross-based BioMass Gas and Electric, will be talking about how to set the standard for clean, reliable and renewable energy using state of the art technology and sustainable biomass resources. Nelson Chu of Kinetic Ventures, a leading venture capital investor in high growth, industry defining communications, information and power/clean technology companies, will speak on the investment side of CleanTech. The panel will also discuss the Smart Grid, and why it is important as well.
GEORGIA
ENCYCLOPEDIA The Telfair family of Savannah was one of the most prominent in Georgia during much of the 18th and 19th centuries. The family patriarch was Edward Telfair, one of many Scotsmen who settled in Georgia during the colonial period. Today the family mansion in Savannah houses the Telfair Museum of Art, which opened in 1886.
Edward Telfair was born in 1735 on his family's ancestral estate in Scotland and in 1758 set sail for the English colonies with his brother, William Telfair, and a cousin. He settled first in Virginia, where he represented a Scottish mercantile firm, and then moved to North Carolina. In 1766 he finally joined William in Savannah, where the brothers formed a partnership with Basil Cowper, another Scotsman. Telfair eventually became one of the most successful merchants in colonial Georgia, in addition to being a planter and the owner of many slaves. He also had a water-driven sawmill in Burke County, which was supplied from his vast holdings of timberland. Telfair was a patriot in the Revolutionary struggle against England's King George III and was a member of the Sons of Liberty. During 1774 and 1775 he attended meetings held in Savannah at Peter Tondee's tavern, where revolutionaries organized and formed strategies for asserting their independence from Great Britain. In May 1775, when news of the Battles of Lexington and Concord reached Savannah, Telfair joined with other Liberty Boys to break into the royal magazine and make off with 600 pounds of powder. Telfair served in the Continental Congress from 1778 through 1785, during which time he was one of the signers of the Articles of Confederation. As a rebel against the British crown, he was declared guilty of high treason in a bill of attainder passed in 1780. Telfair was elected governor of Georgia by the legislature in 1786 for a one-year term, and he served again as governor from 1789 through 1793. Telfair married Sarah Gibbons in 1774, a year when revolutionary fervor was at its height in Savannah. Telfair was almost 40, and his bride was a girl of 16. The Gibbons family was one of the most distinguished in the Georgia colony and extremely wealthy. Sarah's father, William Gibbons, was born at Bear Bluff in South Carolina in 1726, some seven years before James Oglethorpe first sailed up the Savannah River.
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On
July 14 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., a formal kick-off will be held to
launch the formation of this fourth Gwinnett CID. Many special guests
have been invited along with speakers who include Lilburn Mayor Diana
Preston, Board Chairman Norman Nash, Gwinnett County Commission Chairman
Charles Bannister and commercial property owners and businesses who have
already demonstrated their support for this new CID.
