VIEW FROM ABOVE: See how many buildings and features of downtown Atlanta you can identify from this photo. Among the buildings are the State Capitol (lower left); Grady Hospital (lower center left); the Georgia Pacific building (stacked at center); the Georgia Dome and World Congress Center (center left); and Grant Field and Georgia Tech, upper right. And oh yes, there's half the Bank of America tower (extreme right.) Where this photo came from…..is unknown, but our thanks to whoever sent it!

Issue 11.91 | Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012

TODAY'S FOCUS
:: 2012 State of Gwinnett roundup

ELLIOTT BRACK'S PERSPECTIVE
:: What a big industry means

FEEDBACK
:: Drop us a line

UPCOMING
:: Creative therapy, tips on common cold

NOTABLE
:: GGC alum encourages; Snellville tower

ALSO INSIDE

IN THE SPOTLIGHT
:: Gwinnett Federal Credit Union

GEORGIA TIDBIT
:: Moonshine Kate

LAGNIAPPE
:: Mastering math skills

GWINNETT CALENDAR
:: Lots of events on tap

TODAY'S QUOTE
:: People and excuses

OUR SPONSORS

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.

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TODAY'S FOCUS
Nash outlines progress in annual State-of-the-County Address
By SHAUNIEKA TASTE
Special to GwinnettForum

DULUTH, Ga., Feb. 21, 2012 -- Gwinnett Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash presented the annual State of the County speech to a gathering of community and business leaders last week at the Gwinnett Center in Duluth. The annual luncheon is hosted by the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce and the Council for Quality Growth. A video recording of the speech is available on both the County's Web site and on its cable TV channel.

Nash

Nash opened her address with thanks to County and city officials for their willingness to work together and approve the service delivery strategy agreement. She pointed out how the county's firm foundation from past leadership and investments have made Gwinnett attractive to businesses. "I'm not pretending we have no challenges. However, we already have the key to continued prosperity in our hands, building on the firm foundation this community has created to this point," she said.

Nash took the time to thank businesses whose efforts have increased employment by three percent over the last year, and video testimonials from businesses that recently decided to invest in Gwinnett were shown. The firms included were:

• Hyundai Construction Equipment Americas, Inc.,
  
• Primerica,
  
• QMatic,
  
• NanoLumens,
  
• Mitsubishi Electric Cooling and Heating,
  
• Wilkes Finance; and
  
• Biscardi Creative Media.

She also mentioned the financial stability of the county. The board of commissioners adopted a balanced 2012 budget that does not use reserves nor make additional cuts in services despite the declining tax digest. The county is responding to less revenue for services by prioritizing, innovating and looking for more cost-cutting measures for all operations that have the least impact on residents, businesses and visitors, she said.

Nash announced several initiatives that the county will take on in 2012, including Operation Good Neighbor. This program is intended to combat the decline in properties and neighborhoods that the County cannot handle directly by organizing volunteer efforts. Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful has agreed to participate in this program.

Nash also launched the Volunteer Gwinnett program, which was designed to engage residents in volunteer activities to support government operations and potentially save money. The Volunteer Gwinnett program offers an easy way for interested residents and businesses to read about countywide volunteer opportunities, sign up online, track service hours and submit project requests on www.volunteergwinnett.net.

Nash also reported that county operations are leaner because of cost-cutting measures. She gave several examples:

• "How about a cool $1 million each year in savings on energy cost at the F. Wayne Hill Resources Center? We are capturing methane gas from the treatment process and using it to generate heat and electricity for plant operations.
  
  
• "Based on energy audits of all our building, we are making improvements and retrofits-and we'll recoup the cost back in energy savings of over $200,000 every year.
  
  
• "We upgraded our computer systems to make a wide variety of efficiency improvements possible, like online services and mobile ticketing technology."

At www.tvgwinnett.com, computer users can view the entire speech on demand. It will also be shown frequently on television over the County's government-access channel, TVgwinnett, which is available on cable systems in Gwinnett. Or readers can read the entire text of the State of the County talk by clicking here.

Western Electric stimulated, continued growth of Gwinnett
By ELLIOTT BRACK
Editor and publisher

FEB. 21, 2012 -- In economic development, you often hear of the term "multiplier effect." That translates into a dollar figure of the impact of the location of a new industry.

Brack

With the announcement of a new major industry in Jefferson County recently, one guy wanted to know "What did the arrival of Western Electric in Gwinnett County mean for your county?"

Western Electric announced in 1970 that a new cable manufacturing plant would be located at Jimmy Carter Boulevard and Interstate 85. The impact has been tremendous on Gwinnett, in that it (and Bell Labs) eventually became the largest single industry ever in Gwinnett, employing 3,800 persons. Wow! What impact!

But it goes much further than that. It has had impact that has lasted over the years. Its location became a prime example of just how important a major industry can be for a community.

Here are random thoughts about the impact of Western Electric moving to Gwinnett.

• It was the first big industry for the county, showing the Atlanta area that Gwinnett could compete for major industry.
  
  
• It brought to the community many brilliant minds, people with good education, who wanted and demanded an improved education for their children.
  
  
• It was the first big firm to become a "high technology" business, eventually spawning many major technical advances. (Fiber optics was patented out of the Norcross Bell Labs office.)
  
  
• It led to Gwinnett being able to tie into the sewer basin serving DeKalb County, which gave Gwinnett time to attract other industries prior to the formation of its own sewer system for the area.
  
  
• Its location led to the beginning of the Gwinnett Fire District, which eventually spread throughout the county, giving all Gwinnett homeowners lower insurance rates.
  
  
• Western Electric helped jump start the homebuilding business in the county, with its workers demanding high quality homes. The Forest Hills section of Lawrenceville especially benefitted, but so also did contractors throughout the county.
  
  
• Western Electric came at the start of the big growth spurt in the county, which meant shoppers could find more supermarkets (and eventually, more stores and even malls) closer to their homes.
  
  

• Today, the old Western Electric buildling is OFS, which is owned by Furukawa Electric North America, Inc.

  You might make a case that Western Electric eventually brought more movie theatres!
  
  
• It also led to the expansion of the Gwinnett Water and Sewer Authority.
  
  
• Western Electric helped to stabilize the fledging Gwinnett water system, which now had a big commercial customer in Norcross, and soon other industries moved here, giving it an even large base of operations.
  
  
• Gwinnett never had to declare bankruptcy of its water system, since Western Electric helped stimulate its financial stability.
  
  
• Many Western Electric workers transferring to Gwinnett were members of the Catholic church. This contributed immensely to the growing Catholic population in Gwinnett, now its second largest church.
  
  
• It took 12-14 years, but the location of newcomers from Western Electric, and the eventual growth in the county population, paved the way for a change from Democratic political domination to the arrival of a strong Republican Party, in 1984…..and since.

Perhaps you can add other significant developments from the location of Western Electric.

Interestingly, today the former Western Electric tract, now operated by OFS, is the anticipated site of a projected redevelopment, which will re-stimulate the county when it is implemented. It's only a matter of time. Eventually the site will be a multiplier once again.

ABOUT OUR SPONSORS
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FEEDBACK
Send us your letters

We welcome your letters and thoughts. Our policy: We encourage readers to submit feedback (or letters to the editor). Send your thoughts to the editor at elliott@brack.net. We will edit for length and clarity. Make sure to include your name and the city where you live. Submission of a comment grants permission for us to reprint. Please keep your comments to 300 words or less. However, we will consider longer articles (no more than 500 words) for featuring in Today's Focus as space allows.

UPCOMING
Gwinnett Parks offer creative therapy programs now underway

Pinckneyville Park Community Recreation Center in partnership with Spectrum is providing an environment where children with autism and other cognitive disabilities can experience a wide variety of Creative Therapy Programs.

These programs include music, dance, and a variety of art media taught in a safe, friendly, and structured learning atmosphere. Children will explore and discover their creative capabilities, fostering ongoing social and educational development. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to attend and siblings can also join in the fun.

Art and dance therapy programs help children with autism and other cognitive disabilities develop social skills; improve self-esteem, mental, and physical symptoms; and reduce pain, anxiety, and muscle tension. Dance and music therapy specifically can calm and stimulate, aid communication, socialization, and enhance posture and coordination as well as improve confidence and self-esteem.

To register or for more information on the various Therapeutic Recreation Programs, or if you are interested in volunteering, visit www.gwinnettparks.com or call 770-417-2200.

Creative Therapy Programs:

• Dance, all ages, Wednesday, now through March 14, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., $32/person.
  
  
• Dance, all ages, Wednesdays, March 28 - April 18, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., $32/person.
  
  
• Painting/Drawing, age 5-up, Wednesdays February 22 - March 28, 6:30 to 8p.m., $50/person.
  
  
• Pottery Wheel, age 12-up, Thursdays, April 5 - May 10, 6:30 to 8 p.m., $50/person.

Steps to take for healthier environment for cold-flu season

Cold and flu season is setting in and the close quarters of the workplace allow coworkers to easily trade germs. The Better Business Bureau recommends that business owners take a few simple steps to prevent illnesses from spreading and promote productivity throughout the workplace. ?

According to the National Institutes of Health every year there are more than one billion cases of the common cold in the United States. The flu also affects 5 to 20 percent of Americans every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Fred T. Elsberry, Jr., president and CEO of the BBB Serving Metro Atlanta, Athens and Northeast Georgia, says: "Fighting germs around the office is about keeping your employees safe and maintaining productivity throughout the peak cold and flu seasons. Encouraging proper hygiene and a liberal leave policy will help maintain a happier, healthier workplace."

BBB recommends taking the following steps to protect employees during cold and flu season:

• Build up an arsenal to fight germs. Kleenex, hand sanitizer, and products for cleaning work spaces are three basic purchases employers can make for fighting germs around the office. Also consider investing in no-touch trashcans.
  
  
• Encourage people to stay home. Sick employees may think they're being dedicated workers when they still come into work but, the truth is, they spread germs to other employees and cut down on the overall productivity of the business. Encourage employees to stay home when they are sick at least 24 hours after they no longer have a fever or severe symptoms.
  
  
• Consider instituting a flexible leave policy---and appropriate technology-that allows employees to work from home if they or their kids are sick.
  
  
• Promote good hygiene around the office. Remind everyone of the importance of hand washing and covering your mouth if you sneeze or cough. Encourage employees to regularly clean shared equipment such as phones and computers and wipe down common areas.
  
  
• Encourage flu shots. Contact your local hospital to see if they provide on-site flu shots or consider reimbursing some or all of the cost for employees to get a shot on their own time.
  
  
• Set a good example. Now that you've asked everyone to wash their hands regularly and stay home if they're sick, it's important as the business owner that you follow your own advice.

NOTABLE
GGC alumnus encourages students to make big difference

GGC alumnus Jason Lee recently visited campus to give his former classmates an encouraging message: medical school is a very achievable goal. He told them: "Six months ago, I was sitting in your seat and now I'm a medical student."

Lee

A biology major who graduated from GGC last June with a 4.0 grade point average, Lee has maintained that 4.0 average as a first-year medical student at the Medical College of Georgia. When he spoke to his former classmates, he emphasized the importance of balancing studies with personal growth.

"I used to ask myself, 'Am I good enough?' A doctor has to know so much stuff,'" he said. "But yes, you are good enough. You can learn this. I want to reassure that everyone is capable of doing this if you have the right attitude."

Lee's philosophy of study and play also hit home with the audience. "You have three choices in med school: study, have fun, or sleep. But you can only choose two. If you choose all three, you will forfeit your goal. So, choose to study and sleep," he said, laughing. "If you manage your time, you'll still have some fun."

Lee's dedication to becoming a doctor began in elementary school when he witnessed a man falling in his native Taiwan. At the time, bystanders stared at the injured man, but did nothing to help him. In spite of his young age, Lee approached the man, who was hysterical, discovered that he had a serious injury and summoned help.

After his family moved to Gwinnett County in 2000, Lee attended Mill Creek High School, where he took AP science classes and filed more than 150 hours of volunteer work, some of which were at VistaCare Hospice. Lee said this sort of volunteer work is noticed by medical school admission officials, but he emphasized the impact it can have on personal development.

"It will satisfy you to do this kind of job," he told his audience. "It will make a big difference in your life."

Eastside Hospital breaks ground on new $59 million tower

Last week Eastside Medical Center Officers, the Snellville mayor and four city council representatives convened beside a construction site to celebrate the groundbreaking of Eastside's $59 million, three story, 48 private room patient tower.

Patient rooms will be configured for comfort and include the latest innovations for clinical staff to provide optimal care. In addition, there will be plenty of space for families, who are vital to the healing process. The new patient rooms will be "adjustable acuity," which means that a patient could remain in the same room regardless of the level of care required.

From left are Russell Treadway, city manager; Diane Krause, city council; Kim Ryan, Hospital CEO; Mayor Kelly Kautz; Jane Forsythe, CNO; Dustin Greene, COO; Tom Witts, mayor pro tem; Bobby Howard, city council; Tom Jackson, CFO. Phase One of the project is scheduled for completion in December 2012.

RECOMMENDED

• An invitation: What Web sites, books or restaurants have you enjoyed? Send us your best recent visit to a restaurant or most recent book you have read along with a short paragraph as to why you liked it, plus what book you plan to read next. --eeb

GEORGIA ENCYCLOPEDIA
Moonshine Kate one of first women in recorded country music

Rosa Lee Carson, better known as Moonshine Kate, was one of the first women to record country music during the 1920s and one of the genre's earliest female comedians. Her father, Fiddlin' John Carson, made the first successful country record in 1923 and went on to become one of the most extensively recorded country stars of the 1920s.

Moonshine Kate and her father

Rosa Lee Carson sang and played guitar and banjo with her father and his band, the Virginia Reelers, first on radio broadcasts and then on more than 100 recordings for the OKeh and Bluebird labels between 1925 and 1934.

Rosa Lee Carson, born in Atlanta in 1909, was the youngest of nine children of Jenny Nora Scroggins and John Carson. She began singing and buck-and-wing dancing at stage shows and political rallies as part of her father's musical act when she was five years old. During the early 1920s she began performing with her father on Atlanta's flagship radio station, WSB, and touring with him and the Virginia Reelers at stage shows throughout Georgia and the Southeast.

Carson made her recording debut in June 1925 at the age of 15, when she accompanied her father on guitar on four songs for OKeh Records.

For the next nine years Carson accompanied her father and the Virginia Reelers on tour and on recording sessions. In 1928 Polk Brockman, OKeh's Atlanta records distributor and talent scout, gave Carson the nickname Moonshine Kate to enhance her hillbilly image, and she embraced it proudly for the rest of her life.

After the collapse of record sales during the Great Depression ended their recording contract, Carson and her father worked as campaign entertainers for Eugene Talmadge's 1932 Georgia gubernatorial campaign and in several of his subsequent campaigns. When she wasn't performing, Carson worked for the Atlanta Department of Recreation during the 1930s and 1940s.

In 1944 she married Wayne Johnson, an Atlanta machinist. After retiring, Carson and her husband ran a fishing lodge on Lake Seminole, near Donalsonville. In later years she gave numerous interviews about early-20th-century Atlanta and its old-time music scene, including a series of oral histories with Gene Wiggins for his 1987 biography of her father, Fiddlin' Georgia Crazy. In 1983 Carson and her father were among the first group of old-time musicians inducted into the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame. She died in 1992 in Bainbridge at the age of 83.

• Click here to access the Georgia Encyclopedia

LAGNIAPPE
Skills award

Beaver Ridge Elementary School in Norcross has been awarded a $2,000 grant to fully fund a new Mastering Math Skills Through Music program. The program is championed by early intervention teacher Kathy Boyer. "It's like a high-energy, music-movement math skills program," says Ms. Boyer. She added that the fun program is geared more for third, fourth and fifth graders, but it has basic addition and subtraction activities that can be used with younger students. The funds came through the Norcross Cluster Schools Partnership and the Norcross Arts Alliance. On hand to witness the presentation were Brant Aden of The Foresite Group; Arlene Beckles of the City of Norcross; Jose DeJesus, principal of Beaver Ridge; Erica Bartlett of Advanced Disposal; Malory Atkinson of Foresite Group; Ross Kaul and Craig Newton, Norcross city councilmen; and Rudolph Smith, Norcross City Manager. Seated is grant recipient Kathy Boyer.

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© 2012, Gwinnett Forum.com. Gwinnett Forum is an online community commentary for exploring pragmatic and sensible social, political and economic approaches to improve life in Gwinnett County, Ga. USA.

TODAY'S QUOTE
What else people who make excuses are good at

"I never knew a man who was good at making excuses who was good at anything else."

-- American original thinker, inventor, founder and statesman Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790).

MORE COPIES AVAILABLE
Gwinnett history book in second printing

Previously out of print, Elliott Brack's 850-page history, "Gwinnett: A Little Above Atlanta," is now available again. Since its original publication, the book was declared the winner of the 2010 Award of Excellence for documenting Georgia history by the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Board. It is also the winner of the Gwinnett Historical Society's Whitworth-Flanigan Award for 2011 for preserving the history of Gwinnett County.

The book includes 143 demographic and historic tables, with more than 4,000 names in the index, and 10,000 names in the appendix.

Two versions of the book are available. The hardback edition is priced at $75, while a softback edition is $40. Books are available at:

• Atlanta History Center, Atlanta
• Books for Less, Buford
  
• Gwinnett Historical Society, Lawrenceville
  
• Parsons Gifts and Cards, Duluth
  
• Vargas and Harbin Gallery, Norcross

You can also order books through the Internet. To do that, go to www.elliottbrack.com to place your order. For mail orders, there is a $5 shipping and handling fee. Purchases are also subject to the 6 percent Georgia sales tax.

SEARCH GWINNETT FORUM

GWINNETT CALENDAR

IN THE COMING WEEK

Capturing the Light: Open daily through Feb. 22. This new artists' show, a project of the Buford Artists' Group, will be held at George Pierce Park Community Recreation Center, 55 Highway 23, Suwanee.

Seniors Virtual Travel Club: 6:30 p.m., Feb. 23, George Pierce Park Community Center in Suwanee. Come share your travel experience at this kick-off event of the George Pierce Travel Club. Dinner included at $8 per person.

Gynecologic Robotic Surgery Presentation: 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m., Feb. 24. Free presentation Gwinnett Medical Center-Duluth at the 1818 Club, 6500 Sugarloaf Parkway to discuss gynecologic conditions that can be treated using the minimally invasive da Vinci® Robotic Surgical System. To RSVP, call 678-312-5000. Registration required.

Art, Wine and Jazz At DE Fine Art: 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., Feb. 25, 5933 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, Norcross. Sponsored by the Norcross Business Association, the event tickets are $20 and benefit the Norcross Cluster Schools Partnership.

NEXT WEEK AND ONGOING

Exhibit Continued: The Living in Space exhibit at the Gwinnett Environmental and Heritage Center will continue now through March 3. Extremely popular with visitors and school groups, the exhibit now is open for an additional two months. More.

MORE EEB PERSPECTIVE

MORE RECENT COMMENTARY

6/19: Townsend: Cars for teens 6/15: Godfrey: Seashore's pull 6/12: Ramey: GGC transforming 6/8: Myers: Fire responders 6/5: Olson: New at Hudgens 6/1: Henry: On school measure 5/30: Fowler: Greater Norcross 5/25: Stinson: Ptree Crs budget 5/22: Durant: Baldwin's service 5/18: Olson: Hudgens' art camps 5/15: Beck: More 10-minute plays 5/11: Morris: Fink championed democracy 5/8: Morriss: Honor Flight 5/4: McBrayer: Sugar Hill's new digs 5/1: Wilson: 1st Relay for Life 4/27: Stephens: Briscoe study 4/24: Gerstein: Remembering King 4/20: Summerour: Taiwan trip 4/13: Warbington: Romania 4/10: Tyler: Chamber music 4/6: Cerjan: Relay for Life 4/3: Tucker: Pug prance 3/27: Duke: Lilburn scholar 3/23: Calmes: Duluth festival 3/20: Anderson: Grant winner 3/16: Hunter: Empowering girls 3/13: Bass: Schools' training 3/9: Collins: NC casino 3/6: Stilo: Clyde 'n Bonnie to open 3/2: Stout: Unitarian minister COMMENTARY INDEX

CONTACT US TODAY

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