Blog posts by Blake Aued, Editor
-
Four Drive-Bys and a Shooting Death Happened Over the Weekend
Blog: In the Loop
A woman's ex-husband shot and killed her boyfriend during a drunken argument on Linda Avenue Sunday night.
Tommy Lee Morris, 53, had been drinking at a nightclub and started to argue about the woman with Tony Curtis Foster Jr., 43, according to police. Morris went to his car, got what police described as an "assault-style rifle" and shot Foster several times. He then moved closer to the victim and shot him again while standing over him, police said.
Foster was dead when police arrived at about 10:30 p.m.
Shortly after, police found Morris hiding in the woods near the scene. He is being held at the Clarke County Jail on a charge of aggravated assault.
In addition, Athens-Clarke County police reported four drive-by shootings over the weekend:
-
Black Leaders Criticize UGA Over Slave Graves at Baldwin Hall
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: Maxim DaPlug
Clarke County NAACP President Alvin Sheats (center) and Fred Smith, founder of the Athens Black History Bowl (right) are among those criticizing UGA's treatment of black remains found during construction at Baldwin Hall
A group of Athens African Americans is calling on the University of Georgia to reconsider its decision to reinter dozens of slave remains at Oconee Hill Cemetery.
"We are very upset by all of this," said Fred Smith, head of the Athens Black History Bowl, before the group's annual celebration Saturday at the Morton Theatre. "This is disrespectful to us as black folks."
The university discovered 27 gravesites while working on an addition to Baldwin Hall, which was built on top of Old Athens Cemetery, also known as Jackson Street Cemetery. UGA officials said in 2015 that they thought all of the remains had been removed during Baldwin's initial construction in 1938.
UGA initially thought the remains were white, but DNA analysis conducted by UGA anthropology professor Laurie Reitsema recently revealed that the vast majority were black.
-
Athens Man Attacked Downtown for Being Gay
Blog: In the Loop
Athens-Clarke County police arrested a Gainesville man downtown early Saturday morning and charged him with beating up an Athens man who was dressed in women's clothing.
Chad Andrew Weaver, 24, saw the victim on Clayton Street near Georgia Bar and called him a "faggot," according to a police report. After exchanging more words with the victim, Weaver punched him in the face. At one point, the 6' 5", 210-pound Weaver had the 5' 6" victim on the ground and was pulled off by a bystander, police said.
-
Campus Carry Bill Passes House Committee
Blog: In the Loop
Rep. Mandi Ballinger (R-Canton).
A bill that would allow people with concealed-carry permits to bring weapons onto the University of Georgia and other public college campuses cleared a key hurdle Monday.
The House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee passed House Bill 280, sponsored by Rep. Mandi Ballinger (R-Canton), according to the AJC, sending it on for a likely but yet-to-be-scheduled vote before the full House.
-
Shirley Sherrod Headlines First Thurmond Black History Lecture
Blog: In the Loop
Shirley Sherrod.
Shirley Sherrod, a U.S. Department of Agriculture official who was fired and reinstated during a bogus Obama Administration scandal, will be the first speaker in a new lecture series named for DeKalb County CEO and Athens native Michael Thurmond.
Sherrod was the Georgia state director for rural development at the USDA in 2010 when conservative commentator Andrew Breitbart posted a video online that purported to show Sherrod detailing how she refused to help a white farmer in a speech to the NAACP. Sherrod was fired; however, the video turned out to be misleading and selectively edited, and the Obama Administration apologized to her and offered her a new position, which she turned down.
-
Richie Knight Is the First Candidate in the 2018 Athens Mayor's Race
Blog: In the Loop
The presidential race feels like it's barely over, and local elections are still 15 months away, but campaign season officially arrived again when young businessman Richie Knight declared his candidacy for Athens-Clarke County mayor today, joined by a few dozen supporters at City Hall.
Knight said he wants to "see a new generation take over the helm... We've been stuck in a rut the past 20-30 years."
His top priority, he said, is economic development—high-paying jobs to alleviate the city's 30-plus percent poverty rate. He said he would focus on recruiting businesses that will pay a living wage, although he hasn't settled on a figure of what a living wage should be. (It's $10.17 an hour in Athens, according to MIT.)
"We need to have real conversations with employers, not just about coming here, but about what it means to be part of the community, whom they should be hiring, wage amounts," he said.
-
The Proposed Mixed-Use Development Across From Athens Regional Is Dead
Blog: In the Loop
A mixed-use development on Prince Avenue that actually excited the neighborhood will no longer be happening.
Piedmont Athens Regional spokesman Mike Pilcher confirmed an Athens Banner-Herald report last night that the developers behind the project—Bryan Austin, John Stamm and Trey Wallace—have abandoned it. The project was slated for six acres next to the "flying saucer" Rite-Aid that are owned by the hospital and are currently used as a parking lot.
"The developer was unable to find an anchor tenant," Pilcher said.
-
Memorial for Ex-UGA Player Quentin Moses Scheduled for Thursday
Blog: In the Loop
A memorial service for Athens native and former University of Georgia football player Quentin Moses will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at Cedar Shoals High School.
Moses, 33, was killed in a house fire in Monroe Sunday morning, along with Andria Godard, 31, and her 10-year-old daughter, Jasmine Godard.
-
ADDA Splits Downtown Job, Hires Lynn and Ford
Blog: In the Loop
Lynn.
Rather than hire a single person to replace former Athens Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Pamela Thompson, the ADDA board has opted to split the job in two.
After hours of deliberation behind closed doors Friday night and again Tuesday afternoon, the board voted to hire David Lynn as director of planning and outreach, focusing on economic development, and Linda Ford as director of business services, focusing on parking and assisting downtown businesses.
"Instead of putting the weight all on one person, we're going to have two people with two distinct skill sets," ADDA board member Richie Knight said.
-
Perdue Spokesman: Greensboro Rally Was 'Manufactured' and 'Disruptive'
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: John Buckley
Athens for Everyone pushed back today against a spokeswoman for Georgia Sen. David Perdue who called a rally in Greensboro Friday "manufactured."
A4E, along with Indivisible Georgia District 10 and other local groups, organized a trip to Greensboro to speak to staffers for Perdue, Sen. Johnny Isakson and Rep. Jody Hice about their concerns about the Trump Administration. The rally drew about 500 people, including several hundred from Athens.
Perdue's spokeswoman dismissed those concerns in a statement to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Saturday:
-
Athens for Everyone Expects 'Hundreds' at Greensboro Protest
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones/file
Protesters march through downtown Athens on Inauguration Day Jan. 20.
"Hundreds of concerned citizens" will travel to Greensboro Friday morning to "voice their opinions on current national issues and seek answers to questions surrounding the same issues," according to the local activist group Athens for Everyone.
They'll meet with staff members for Rep. Jody Hice (R-Monroe) and Republican Sens. David Perdue and Johnny Isakson from 10 a.m.–noon at the Greene County Government Office, 1034 Silver Drive.
-
No Plans to Redevelop Varsity Property, Commissioners Say
Blog: In the Loop
In spite of rumors that have swirled for months and recently intensified, Athens-Clarke County commissioners say they've been assured that the owners of iconic fast-food restaurant The Varsity have no imminent plans to redevelop the property.
The Gordy family, which owns the chain of seven restaurants, has assembled nearly the entirely block bordered by Milledge Avenue and Broad, Chase and Reese streets, including purchasing the Dairy Queen that closed last year and several homes.
Most of the rumors involve the property becoming a mixed-use development featuring a Publix grocery story, with The Varsity either becoming part of the new development or moving to Epps Bridge Parkway. Others have speculated that the Gordys merely want more parking for car shows and game days, or that the property will become student housing—which seems unlikely, given that its commercial zoning would only allow about 30 apartments.
ACC Commissioner Jerry NeSmith addressed the rumors at last night's commission meeting, saying that an agent for The Varsity and Publix called him Monday to assure him nothing is currently in the works.
-
Commission Approves Ban on New Downtown Bars and Apartments
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: Blake Aued/file
As expected, the Athens-Clarke County Commission approved a temporary ban on most new downtown bars and apartment buildings Tuesday night over concerns about overcrowding and the downtown drinking culture.
The ban covers bars with a capacity greater than 49 people, unless they open in a space that housed a bar within the past year, and apartments with more than three units. It will last for up to one year while a consultant conducts a study on downtown health and safety, and commissioners consider potential new regulations.
Mayor Nancy Denson said she placed the moratorium on the commission's agenda Monday afternoon to give officials a chance to get a handle on "crowding" and related challenges delivering services like garbage pickup, as well as "excessive drinking."
-
ACC Officials Propose Ban on New Bars and Apartments Downtown
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: Randy Schafer/file
The Standard is one of several luxury student apartment complexes to open downtown in the past few years.
Athens-Clarke County commissioners will vote on a one-year moratorium on most new bars and apartment buildings downtown at its meeting Tuesday night.
The moratorium was added to the commission agenda late this afternoon. It would cover new bars—except those that open in spaces where another bar has closed in the past 12 months—with capacities larger than 49 people. New apartments of more than three units would be temporarily banned as well.
-
Morehead Releases Stronger Statement on Travel Ban
Blog: In the Loop
University of Georgia President Jere Morehead emailed a "personal follow-up" to the UGA community this afternoon on President Donald Trump's ban on refugees and travel from seven Muslim nations.
An initial statement released this morning—taken almost verbatim from an email University System Chancellor Steve Wrigley sent to college presidents—was met with derision among some faculty and students for its stilted language. For example, one professor referred to it on social media as "weak sauce," while another called it "tepid, at best."
The latest statement reads:
-
UGA: No One Affected by Trump Travel Ban
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore
No UGA faculty or students were affected by the executive order President Donald Trump signed Friday restricting travel from seven predominately Muslim nations, according to the university.
UGA President Jere Morehead, Pamela Whitten, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Pamela Whitten and Associate Provost for International Education Noel Fallows released a statement this morning:
-
Two Ex-Commissioners Up for Downtown Post
Blog: In the Loop
Two former Athens-Clarke County commissioners are among the finalists to head the Athens Downtown Development Authority.
Linda Ford represented Five Points from 1999–2003. David Lynn represented the Prince Avenue area from 2003–2011.
A third finalist, William Herbig, is currently a program director at the Congress fort he New Urbanism in Washington, D.C., and former director of urban design for the Midtown Alliance in Atlanta. He studied architecture and historic preservation at the Savannah College of Art & Design, and holds a bachelor's degree in urban policy studies from Georgia State University and a master's in city planning from Georgia Tech.
-
ACC Restricts Parking at World of Wonder Playground
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: Blake Aued
The new World of Wonder playground that reopened in December is popular—a little TOO popular.
In response to what Athens-Clarke County officials call "dangerous situations that have been created for vehicles and pedestrians in the area, particularly children," the county government has instituted new parking restrictions at the Southeast Clarke Park playground.
Parking on the Whit Davis Road shoulder has been banned, and anyone who parks there can be towed by ACC police.
-
Photo Gallery: Athens Womens' March
Blog: In the Loop
As more than 1 million women (and men) marched on Washington, D.C. Jan. 21, Athens was having its own women's march, which drew several hundred people to the Classic Center—home of the Athena statue—in spite of being somewhat hastily organized.
Reader Brendan Vaganek was kind enough to send along photos of some of his favorite signs:
-
Gov. Deal Bet 12 Tropicalias on the Falcons Game
Blog: In the Loop
Photo Credit: courtesy of Creature Comforts
It's hard to imagine Baptist Gov. Nathan Deal kicking back with a cold one to watch some football, but if he does, he has good taste. Deal included 12 Athens-made Creature Comforts Tropicalias in a wager with Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker over this weekend's Falcons-Packers game.
Page 20 of 76, showing 20 records out of 1503 total, starting on record 381, ending on 400
latest stories
-
In the Loop | March 6, 2017 1:41pm
Four Drive-Bys and a Shooting Death Happened Over the Weekend
-
In the Loop | March 4, 2017 2:39pm
Black Leaders Criticize UGA Over Slave Graves at Baldwin Hall
-
In the Loop | February 28, 2017 2:34pm
Athens Man Attacked Downtown for Being Gay
-
In the Loop | February 27, 2017 3:40pm
Campus Carry Bill Passes House Committee
-
In the Loop | February 23, 2017 12:46pm
Shirley Sherrod Headlines First Thurmond Black History Lecture
-
In the Loop | February 20, 2017 1:28pm
Richie Knight Is the First Candidate in the 2018 Athens Mayor's Race
-
In the Loop | February 15, 2017 3:43pm
The Proposed Mixed-Use Development Across From Athens Regional Is Dead
-
In the Loop | February 15, 2017 1:19pm
Memorial for Ex-UGA Player Quentin Moses Scheduled for Thursday
-
In the Loop | February 14, 2017 6:44pm
ADDA Splits Downtown Job, Hires Lynn and Ford
-
In the Loop | February 13, 2017 12:05pm
Perdue Spokesman: Greensboro Rally Was 'Manufactured' and 'Disruptive'
-
In the Loop | February 9, 2017 5:10pm
Athens for Everyone Expects 'Hundreds' at Greensboro Protest
-
In the Loop | February 8, 2017 3:11pm
No Plans to Redevelop Varsity Property, Commissioners Say
-
In the Loop | February 7, 2017 11:04pm
Commission Approves Ban on New Downtown Bars and Apartments
-
In the Loop | February 6, 2017 6:57pm
ACC Officials Propose Ban on New Bars and Apartments Downtown
-
In the Loop | January 30, 2017 10:43pm
Morehead Releases Stronger Statement on Travel Ban
-
In the Loop | January 30, 2017 11:16am
UGA: No One Affected by Trump Travel Ban
-
In the Loop | January 25, 2017 5:14pm
Two Ex-Commissioners Up for Downtown Post
-
In the Loop | January 24, 2017 4:59pm
ACC Restricts Parking at World of Wonder Playground
-
In the Loop | January 23, 2017 2:43pm
Photo Gallery: Athens Womens' March
-
In the Loop | January 18, 2017 3:59pm
Gov. Deal Bet 12 Tropicalias on the Falcons Game