Blog Topic: Breaking News
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In the Loop: ACC Announces Plans to Redevelop Bethel
Athens-Clarke County announced plans late Friday afternoon to spend $39 million redeveloping the affordable housing complex Bethel Midtown Village if voters opt to extend a 1 percent sales tax for construction projects in November.
The project, in partnership with the Athens Housing Authority and private developers Columbia Residential and Jonathan Rose Companies, would also include surrounding ACC and AHA properties, in addition to the 190-unit complex off College Avenue just north of downtown.
“This project would truly transform not only this site and the lives of its residents, but it also has the potential to provide reinvestment into the surrounding area, including downtown Athens,” Mayor Kelly Girtz said in a statement. “This partnership presents a great opportunity to expand the number of affordable and workforce homes downtown and create a healthy, sustainable and well-maintained environment for residents.”
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In the Loop: ACC Police Warn of THC Tainted Vape Cartridges
Photo Credit: courtesy of ACCPD
Athens-Clarke County police issued a warning today about homemade vape cartridges that have been "tainted" with THC and other chemicals.
Earlier this week, police executed a warrant and seized 2,370 of the homemade cartridges. They were nearly identical to those produced by a company in California—where THC, the compound in marijuana that makes you high—is legal, but several other chemicals that carry health concerns were added, too.
In addition, THC remains illegal in Georgia, and shipping THC to Georgia from a state where it's legal is against the law, as well.
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In the Loop: BOE Member John Knox Responds to Superintendent Means' Allegations
John Knox.
Tuesday Flagpole published a story about Clarke County School Superintendent Demond Means' response to a complaint filed with accreditation agency AdvancED in which he alleged that three school board members attempted to micromanage and usurp his authority.
The story did not include the full response from one of those board members, John Knox. He has provided an 11-page account of his interactions with Means, which you can read here. An excerpt:
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In the Loop: BOE Approves Early Learning Center at West Broad
Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones/file
The Clarke County Board of Education voted Thursday night to approve Superintendent Demond Means' controversial plan for an early learning center at the West Broad School.
Means' $10 million proposal includes five to 10 Head Start, Early Head Start and/or pre-K classrooms in a new building, as well as community meeting rooms, an office for students to fill out job and college applications, and a school-based health clinic in the historic portion of the school facing Minor Street.
The vote was 4–2, with Kara Dyckman, Charles Worthy, Linda Davis and LaKeisha Gantt in favor, and John Knox and Greg Davis opposed. Frances Berry was out of town. Patricia Yager abstained. Tawana Mattox, who works for the Athens Land Trust, recused herself—a crucial distinction, because she was counted as not present, meaning only four votes were required to pass Means' plan instead of five.
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In the Loop: Commissioner Andy Herod Won't Run for Re-Election
Andy Herod, who’s represented the Eastside on the ACC Commission since 2007, won’t run again in 2020, he announced in his monthly newsletter to constituents.
“Although I have enjoyed the work tremendously, there are some things I would like to pursue in my professional life that I have put on hold for several years,” the UGA geography professor wrote.
Andrea Farnham, a sex and relationship therapist, announced her candidacy for the District 8 seat in June, running on a social justice platform.
Longtime local activist Carol Myers, the retired dean of general education at Athens Tech, told Flagpole after Herod’s announcement that she also plans to enter the race. Myers has worked on several local campaigns, served on the SPLOST committee, is active in BikeAthens, helped write ACC’s bike and pedestrian master plan and now chairs a committee overseeing implementation of that plan.
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In the Loop: Commission Votes Today on Asking State to Restrict Guns, Let Undocumented Immigrants Drive
Photo Credit: Chris Dowd
Mayor Kelly Girtz (right) and Beto Mendoza read a resolution in support of undocumented immigrants at the Aug. 20 commission meeting.
Once a year, the ACC Mayor and Commission has an opportunity to sit down with the Athens state legislative delegation to make requests for the upcoming legislative session. Requests that progressive commissioners make of the deeply conservative state legislature are routinely ignored and sometimes even directly refused. Commissioners who deem themselves more practical than progressive have stopped asking for such legislation—gun control, for example—which they know our shotgun-toting Gov. Kemp would veto immediately even if it were to pass.
The commission is now in the process of compiling this list of legislative requests. When the idea of mandatory gun registration came up, it was shot down quickly by Commissioner Jerry NeSmith. “That’s something I could never support,” said NeSmith. He went on to clarify that, beyond practical considerations, he opposes the concept of mandatory gun registration itself. He even refused to support the motion when limited to assault weapons only. (However, NeSmith does support the banning of assault rifles.)
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In the Loop: Sen. Johnny Isakson Will Resign at the End of the Year
U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson will resign effective Dec. 31, he announced today, citing health problems, giving Gov. Brian Kemp an opportunity to appoint his successor and putting another Georgia Senate seat up for grabs in 2020.
Isakson has suffered from Parkinson's Disease for several years. He broke four ribs in a fall in July, and revealed in a statement today that he also had a growth removed from his kidney this week.
“In my 40 years in elected office, I have always put my constituents and my state of Georgia first," he said. "With the mounting health challenges I am facing, I have concluded that I will not be able to do the job over the long term in the manner the citizens of Georgia deserve. It goes against every fiber of my being to leave in the middle of my Senate term, but I know it’s the right thing to do on behalf of my state."
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In the Loop: VIDEO: Athens AT&T Workers Go on Strike
Despite posting a $19.4 billion profit in 2018, AT&T is refusing to bargain with members of Communications Workers of America. The contract of AT&T technical and call center employees has expired, and now they’re on strike, asking to keep their current pay and benefits.
More than 20,000 AT&T workers have gone on strike across the Southeast over unfair labor practices and bad faith in contract negotiations. The strike started on Saturday and includes technicians and call center employees.
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Culture Briefs: Bobcat Goldthwait, Dana Gould Show Canceled After Atlanta Car Wreck
Bobcat Goldthwait and Dana Gould have canceled tonight's 40 Watt show after the two comedians were injured in a car wreck in Atlanta Thursday evening.
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In the Loop: Athens Police Suspend Pot Arrests
Photo Credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The Athens-Clarke County Police Department has temporarily stopped arresting people suspected of possessing marijuana because its drug-testing equipment can't tell the difference between marijuana and hemp.
The Georgia legislature legalized hemp production earlier this year. However, hemp is indistinguishable from marijuana, except for its lower THC content (0.3% or less). Tests used by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, ACCPD and other law enforcement agencies can only detect the presence of THC, not measure its potency.
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