Blog Topic: Government

In the Loop: Wave Goodbye to the Prince Avenue Flags

By Blake Aued | April 18, 2016 3:45pm

Photo Credit: Uma Nagendra

The bright orange flags at two Prince Avenue crosswalks are gone—for good this time.

The Athens-Clarke County Transportation and Public Works Department placed the flags at crosswalks near The Grit and Daily Grocery for people to wave at drivers as they crossed the busy street more than a year ago, but they didn't work, according to ACC traffic engineer Steve Decker.

A study done by TPW and police found that waving the flags did not make more drivers slow down or stop, so TPW stopped replacing the flags.

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In the Loop: UGA Poets Oppose Campus Carry Bill

By Blake Aued | April 14, 2016 3:59pm

A group of University of Georgia poets has joined the widespread opposition to HB 859, the "campus carry" bill that would lift a ban on guns in university classrooms and offices.

Magdalena Zurawski, a UGA creative writing professor who was featured in Flagpole last year, and Jenny Gropp, managing editor of the Georgia Review, have created a group called the Poetry Action Network to oppose the bill. They're asking people to send in photos of themselves holding signs stating their opposition to the bill (an example is above) so the photos can be forwarded to Gov. Nathan Deal's office. Deal has until May 3 to sign or veto the legislation.

Here's the full letter from Zurawski and Gropp that's circulating around town:

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In the Loop: Meg Norris Discusses Opting Out of Georgia Milestones Testing

By Bertis Downs | April 7, 2016 12:00am

Photo Credit: Alberto G./Flickr

Meg Norris, founder and resident expert in standardized testing for Opt Out Georgia, came to Athens Wednesday evening to meet with parents interested in the possibility of having their children forego the upcoming Georgia Milestones assessments.

An hour of discussion ensued, with Norris explaining the policy backdrop for the current tests and some of the politics involved in helping pass Senate Bill 355, the state law giving parents the right to control the education of their children, including opting them out of assessments without penalty. And on the pressing question of “Should I opt my kid(s) out of these tests, and what will happen if I do?” Norris’ answer, not unexpectedly, was “It’s complicated.”

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In the Loop: Weigh In on Closing Newton, Chase Street Bike Lanes

By Blake Aued | April 12, 2016 11:31am

Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones/file

Since the Athens-Clarke County Transportation and Public Works Department, at the Bottleworks owners’ urging, reversed a one-way block of Newton Street from northbound to southbound in 2013, the number of crashes there has risen by 40 percent.

It’s a small number—only three per year, on average, according to TPW Director David Clark. Most of those crashes involve people waiting to turn left from Prince Avenue onto Newton and getting rear-ended, he said.

TPW is floating a plan to close the block of Newton between Taziki’s and The Grit to create an outdoor cafe (along with three on-street parking spaces and enough room for emergency vehicles). The idea came from UGA professor Jack Crowley’s downtown master plan.

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In the Loop: Paul Broun's Ex-Chief of Staff Indicted

By Blake Aued | April 6, 2016 6:51pm

Former Athens congressman (and current candidate) Paul Broun's former chief of staff was indicted today on eight charges in an FBI investigation related to his alleged misuse of taxpayer money, according to the AJC.

David Bowser has been charged with one count of obstruction of proceedings, one count theft of government property, one count of concealment of material facts and five counts of making false statements.

Bowser is accused of paying consultant Brett O'Donnell $43,000 in taxpayer money to prepare Broun to debate opponents in his 2014 run for Senate and urging O'Donnell to portray himself as a campaign volunteer. O'Donnell plead guilty of lying to investigators in U.S. District Court last year.

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In the Loop: School Board Candidates Tackle Questions at Forum

By Blake Aued | April 5, 2016 3:04pm

Photo Credit: Joshua L. Jones

Kamau Hull (left) and John Knox at a Federation of Neighborhoods meeting Monday night.

In spite of increased interest in the inner workings of the Clarke County School District since thealleged sexual assault at Cedar Shoals High School came to light, only one Clarke County Board of Education seat is being contested this year.

In District 8, out on the Eastside, University of Georgia geography professor and father of a recent Cedar Schoals graduate John Knox is facing Kamau Hull, a lawyer and CSHS grad with a son in the district.

Hull and Knox—along with unopposed incumbent Charles Worthy and Jared Bybee, the lone candidate for an open seat on the board—appeared at a Federation of Neighborhoods forum Monday night. Here are a few of the questions they tackled, and their responses.

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In the Loop: CCSD's Charter District Application Has Been Approved

By Blake Aued | April 1, 2016 11:26am

After nearly a year’s wait. the state school board has approved Clarke County School District’s application to become a charter district.

The application had been held up by several issues—most notably a dispute with the state over governance of CCSD’s career academy—but those issues have now been ironed out.

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In the Loop: Downtown Sewer Line Repairs Finished for Now

By Blake Aued | March 31, 2016 5:12pm

Photo Credit: Athens-Clarke County Water Conservation Office

Yes, that's raw sewage. Hug a Public Utilities worker today.

Athens-Clarke County workers have repaired 150 feet of clogged sewer line on Broad Street downtown—for now.

The Public Utilities Department finished temporarily patching up the sewer line late Wednesday night, but a permanent fix wasn’t possible because of a rainstorm coming through Athens, PUD Director Gary Duck said. Workers will have to go back in, probably early next week, Duck said.

“We’re going to need several days of good, clear weather,” Duck said.

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In the Loop: Opposition to 'Campus Carry' Bill at UGA Grows

By Blake Aued | March 29, 2016 11:04am

Members of the University of Georgia community continue to add their voices in opposition to House Bill 859, the “campus carry” bill that would allow guns on most parts of the UGA campus.

In the past week, parents of children enrolled in UGA daycare facilities and the College of Education faculty Senate have written letters to Gov. Nathan Deal urging him to veto it. They’ve joined the university administration, University Council, Franklin College faculty Senate and numerous individual students and faculty members.

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In the Loop: Gov. Deal Says He'll Veto 'Religious Liberty' Bill

By Blake Aued | March 28, 2016 12:05pm

Photo Credit: Blake Aued

Gov. Nathan Deal speaks at an Athens GOP meeting in 2014.

Gov. Nathan Deal announced today that he will veto a controversial “religious liberty” bill that supporters say would protect gay-marriage opponents from government reprisal but critics say would legalize discrimination against the LGBT community.

In addition to opposition from civil rights groups, many corporations had threatened to pull their business out of Georgia. Hollywood studios have said they’d stop filming movies and TV shows like Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and “The Walking Dead” here, and the bill put Atlanta’s bid for a Super Bowl at risk.

Deal said the bill goes too far. Here’s a statement from his office:

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