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Gwinnett Ballot Measure Aims at Re-Development Problem
By Paul Snyder
Special to GwinnettForum.com

LAWRENCEVILLE, Oct. 24, 2006 -- When Gwinnett voters go to the polls on November 7, they will face a ballot question that reads: "Shall the Act be approved which authorizes Gwinnett County to exercise redevelopment powers under the Redevelopment Powers Law, as it may be amended from time to time?"

Voters who support giving Gwinnett County a powerful tool to revitalize declining areas, improve infrastructure and streetscapes, alleviate traffic congestion and control sprawl should vote "Yes."

Tom Andersen, chairman of Revitalize Gwinnett, the citizens group organized to educate voters on this issue, says: "Polling data shows that once voters understand what the Redevelopment Powers Law and Tax Allocation Districts are and what they are not - support for the issue exceeds 60 percent."

The Georgia legislature enacted The Redevelopment Powers Law in 1985 giving local governments a way to use private investment to pay for improvements to make declining areas safe, attractive and productive parts of the community again. These "Tax Allocation Districts" or TADs, leverage the new revenue created by the increased property values resulting from the redevelopment activities within the TAD to fund infrastructure and other improvements.

To date, 14 TADs have been created by local governments throughout Georgia. The best known example, Atlantic Station in downtown Atlanta, turned a dilapidated and environmentally hazardous former steel mill into a vibrant mixed-use residential, office and commercial development. Other examples include redevelopment around the Georgia Aquarium, downtown Smyrna and downtown Marietta in suburban Cobb County.

Gwinnett residents Jerry and Laura Moore own several restaurants in Gwinnett and support the law. Jerry said, "Any resident or business person in this area has seen problems arise through traffic congestion and deterioration, causing businesses to close. We had to close one of our restaurants on Jimmy Carter.

"Vacancies are becoming more evident and we must turn this around. Live, work and play environments work in other parts of the country and the Atlanta region. We must make it work here. We are excited about the opportunity to see this kind of change in our community. Additionally we must encourage more employers to come here and create new jobs in the area, along with new residences and retail."

Peggy Boydston, a longtime community activist and member of the board of the Gwinnett Open Land Trust, believes, "As someone who lives near the Gwinnett Place Mall area and some of the county's older subdivisions, I know that we need this to help bring those areas back to life and make them desirable again.

"But as someone who cares deeply about preserving undeveloped land, I appreciate how making those older developed areas attractive again will take away some of the pressure to build in the undeveloped parts of the County. Most people don't want to move farther and farther out. If you can make the closer-in subdivisions viable again, they won't have to."

What Approval of Gwinnett TAD Means

Massiveness of Katrina damage stuns you on visit to area
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher
GwinnettForum.com

OCT. 24, 2006 -- New Orleans was our destination, a birthday present to each other. My wife and I just returned on Monday. We wanted to get an understanding of the area after being wracked more than year ago by Katrina. And yes, we were looking forward to dining in New Orleans, always a treat.

In a word, we were "stunned." One year after Katrina, the massiveness of the way the Hurricane and the resulting flood waters of broken levees has destroyed not just homes, but entire neighborhoods, is almost beyond comprehension.

Though the Lower Ninth Ward is as bad as reports tell, many other parts of New Orleans, and the outlying suburbs, are also horribly ravaged. The flood waters seemed to invade neighborhoods with little pattern. Later you find it was a broken levee at random spots that caused the area to suffer.

Debris is stacked in front of homes on almost every block where the flood waters came, amid slums of the city, or areas of once-fine houses. Yet driving around, suddenly you would come to areas with no detectable damage, which seemed like modern suburban America.

A friend said before leaving, "Take lots of pictures." But, once seeing the destruction, I could not bring myself to snap photos. It seemed like an invasion of the soul of New Orleans, like it would be desecrating these people who had been through so much, to depict their homes or them amid their troubles. You will see no pictures from me.

Yet talking to residents, you know those who have either never left or returned, will slug through it all, and survive. They press on, putting the bad times behind.

Meanwhile, they told us that tourism, so much a part of New Orleans, is picking up. The French Quarter, on the high ground, is still vibrant, though not quite as crowded as once. Yet most of its commercial activities are up and running, though most all have "Now Hiring" signs out, since getting enough workers is a big problem.

We're glad we went. But the effects of Katrina, here a year later, are staggering. With whole neighborhoods virtually wiped out, you wonder if the city will ever be as large. But for sure, those remaining seem stronger and their spirit as vibrant as ever!

We returned via the Gulf Coast, and again, were not ready for what we found. From Pass Christian on the west, to Biloxi on the east, traveling U.S. Highway 90 along the coast, you see virtually 100 per cent of the buildings fronting the beach destroyed. Maybe one or two per cent are rebuilt. The area along the coast was hit by both wind and water damage, and the destruction is complete. Clothing still flies high in trees. Bulldozers have pushed away rubble, but only foundations and some trees remain.

Except in Biloxi. There several of the casinos are rebuilt, or in the process, and for sure, open to take your money. We passed four Waffle Houses along the beach….not rebuilt, for after all, no people nor tourists are around. But across from the Beau Rivage casino, aglitter and manicured, that Waffle House is busy, since there are people around.

Back a block or two from the beachfront, Gulf Coast houses had damage, but they were not as destroyed as they were on the coast.

It was an eye-opening three days. It showed the tremendous power of wind and water….and man's inability to build structures and systems to ward off all circumstances.

The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today's sponsor is Brand Banking Company, headquartered in Lawrenceville, where it has three offices, with additional branches in Snellville, Grayson and Flowery Branch. It is the largest privately held bank in Gwinnett, with assets of $830 million. Member, FDIC and Federal Reserve System. More: http://www.thebrandbank.com

The City of Suwanee has two community events on tap for the final weekend of October.

In a chilling twist on its typical "Movies Under the Stars" presentation, the City of Suwanee is presenting a "monster musical" Friday evening, October 27, at Town Center Park. The classic 1932, black-and-white film version of The Mummy, starring Boris Karloff, will be shown with sub-titles while a band provides a live "soundtrack."

The Mustangs, a six-member local band, will open the evening at 7 p.m. with a short concert. At about 7:45, the movie will begin, with captions, and the band will provide the live soundtrack, adding a light-heartedness to this classic thriller. Blankets, chairs, picnics, and snacks may be brought to Town Center Park for the movie, but no alcohol is allowed. Concessions will be available for purchase.For more information, go to www.suwanee.com.

On Saturday, October 28, the activities move to Suwanee Creek Park. The annual Trek or Treat event is scheduled from 11 a.m until1 p.m. Activities include a costume parade and contest, fall festival and carnival games, free hot dogs while supplies last, music, and trek or treating along the Suwanee Creek Greenway. Ghouls and boys are invited to test their skills at, among other activities, bobbing for apples and the dangling doughnut challenge.

The Southeastern Railway Museum has scheduled a road trip to visit the Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum at Calera, Ala. This trip will depart by motorcoach from the Southeastern Railway Museum at Duluth at 9 a.m. on Sunday, November 5. Plans are to arrive at the Alabama museum around 1130 a.m., for lunch, visit the museum and ride the train.

This cost is $45, including roundtrip bus fare, museum admission and lunch. For reservations contact Greg Weaver or Gragg Robinson at the Southeastern Railway Museum at 770-476-2013. Space is limited.

Another event sponsored by the Southeastern Railway Museum is the arrival of Santa on November 18 at noon. See Santa arrive and eat pizza, too. Visitors may take photos with Santa, eat, and walk through historic rail passenger cars, sleeper cars, diner and cabooses.

The Southeastern Railway Museum, in Duluth, is "Georgia's Official Transportation History Museum". The museum has over 80 other pieces of retired railway rolling stock including vintage steam and diesel locomotives, passenger coaches, private business cars, a World War II army troop kitchen, wooden freight cars, railway post office car and maintenance of way equipment. Many other items from Georgia's transportation history are also presented on the museum's 30-acre site.

A new East Precinct is now in operation for the Gwinnett County Police Department. Ribbon cutting was Wednesday for the new facility, located at 2273 Alcovy Road in Dacula. Previously the precinct was in the former Dacula City Hall.

The 18,175 square-foot East Police Precinct includes offices for sergeants, detectives, a community response team and chaplain. The motor squad, DUI and Accident Investigation units have moved into this precinct. The facility also has an Intox room, squad room, crime prevention work area, classroom, break room, evidence storage area and fitness room.

The new precinct joins four existing precincts in Gwinnett: the North Precinct opened in July 2005 and is located at 2735 Mall of Georgia Boulevard in Buford; South Precinct, 2180 Stone Drive in Lilburn; West Precinct, 6160 Crescent Drive in Norcross; and Central Precinct, 3125 Satellite Boulevard in Duluth.

Funding for the construction of the East Police Precinct was provided by funds from the 2001 Special Purposed Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST).
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Genealogy, or the research of family history, is a far different field of inquiry in the 21st century than it was in the past. Viewed as the pursuit of a great and noble heritage, genealogy was earlier treated as a hobby and a pastime, especially in the 19th and early 20th centuries. However, genealogy is also the personal history of ordinary people, and each person has a unique genealogy.

Genealogical research provides the backbone of all human history and, when carefully done, can elucidate larger historical events. Studying, for example, the War of the Roses in fifteenth-century England requires a study of the major participants' family histories. So, too, the histories of several families are of particular importance to Georgia's history: genealogy illuminates the historical links between the Marburys of Augusta, the Telfairs of Savannah, the Cobbs of Athens, and the Woodruffs of Columbus and Atlanta.

By the late 20th century, a number of strong genealogical societies existed in Georgia. These include the Georgia Genealogical Society (founded in 1964), which takes a statewide focus, and such regionally based organizations as the Southwest Georgia Genealogical Society (founded in 1968), the Central Georgia Genealogical Society (founded in 1978), and the Augusta Genealogical Society (founded in 1979). Each group publishes a journal; maintains separate research publications, guidebooks, or annals; and hosts speakers and special events. Most have ties to a larger genealogical collective, to which they donate publications or act as an informal or even an official friends' group.

The advent of genealogical societies in Georgia spurred the growth of major genealogical collections in the state's public libraries. These collections specialize in Georgia's history, but they also include a large number of books, microfilm, and periodicals representing other states and regions. Libraries in Athens, Atlanta, Columbus, Macon, Marietta, Rome, Savannah, Smyrna, and Thomasville house some of the best collections. Several individual genealogical societies, including the Augusta Genealogical Society, have created their own libraries. Private citizens fund other libraries, such as the Ladson Genealogical Library in Vidalia, which is a branch of the Vidalia-Toombs County Library, and private donations support others, including the Ellen Payne Odom

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