For attendees:
Over 40 parking spaces of items to browse. Admission is free.

For vendors:
Spaces are $10 each. You can register for Garage Sales at Lilburn City Hall (using cash, check or credit card), located at 76 Main Street, online by clicking the “Register Now” button below (requires use of a credit card), via telephone (requires use of a credit card) or by mailing a completed registration form with a check.

More:
• CityofLilburn.com

Service will begin on July 1, 2010, giving residents and haulers time to transition to the new system. The new ordinance, which does not affect city residents, will provide a reliable, cost-effective, and environmentally-conscious solid waste management system and also will allow Gwinnett County to fulfill its requirements under state law. All homeowners will have access to services for the collection and disposal of household garbage, expanded recycling, white goods (household appliances), bulky wastes (mattresses, furniture, etc.), and yard trimmings.

The new ordinance sets five service districts and authorizes the County to enter into one or more service agreements with a private company or companies to provide residential garbage service with no more than one service provider within each district. Fees for residential waste services will be made payable to Gwinnett County and will be billed as a residential solid waste fee on the same bill as county taxes.

Approval of a new ordinance is the first required step in the process of implementing a new solid waste management plan. Details of the service areas, costs, and collection logistics will be made available as soon as they are finalized.

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Mike Beaudreau was quoted in part as stating, “I don’t think it’s perfect…”

Don Collins, government contract manager for Waste Industries, told commissioners his company took it on faith that the county would follow the court’s order and draw up a new plan in a public, above-board manner, but that the plan showed officials worked behind closed doors to satisfy members of the first lawsuit.

…Isn’t that why a Gwinnett County special grand jury is investigating the board’s land deals?…

“Even as our federal lawsuit continues,” Collins said, “your vote today confirms our position before the court that the county’s illegal trash plan is marching forward.”

Local news outlets report that despite not being allowed to address the board before the vote, citizens were vocal in their opposition after the vote. It was also disclosed that a new recall effort was being launched targeting Chairman Bannister.

More:
• GwinnettCounty.com
• GDP
• AJC
• GwntRecall.com

The hope is to transform the entire stadium complex into a multipurpose facility — possibly used as a venue for concerts, large church gatherings and multiple sporting events.

More:
• Stone Mountain Tennis Stadium News
• Evermore CID

• MikeBeaudreau.com - Take the survey…

Points from the original plan still being considered:
• Service fee(s) to be included in county tax bill
• Expanded recycling
• Mandatory participation by all residents
• 5 zones to be established and serviced by one hauler

If approved, the plan is expected to take effect this July. The board will not allow public comment prior to the vote. Voting will take place at 10 AM tomorrow at the Gwinnett County Justice and Administration Center in Lawrenceville.

Possible candidates mentioned to replace Linder include State Senator Don Balfour, State Representative Clay Cox and former Braves pitcher John Smoltz.

Source: CrimeMapping.com

Dear Friends:

As you may have heard, the Georgia Legislature has taken a two week recess to allow various committees of the house and senate to work jointly on the budget. This unusual action was determined to be necessary, and I agree, by the Speaker and Lt. Governor as we come to grips with cutting an additional $1 billion from our projected spending in the upcoming fiscal year.

Just to give some perspective, when I was first elected in 2004, the state budget was nearly $24 billion dollars. That number has steadily declined each year as we have cut government spending – some by policy driven choice, but most by necessity of declining tax revenues. Below is a summary of what we are facing:

What is the total state 2011 Budget?

It is about $18 billion. This year, the Georgia General Assembly has discretion over $16 billion in the General budget. This excludes $2 billion in (the bulk of) motor fuel taxes, all lottery funds and the Brain and Spinal Injury Trust Fund, which are dedicated by state constitution to specific appropriation purposes.

What is the shortfall that will need to be addressed in the proposed 2011 Budget?

Projections put it at $1 billion or more. It about equals the Everything Else category listed below.

How is the proposed 2011 General budget allocated?

• 44% ($7 billion)
K-12 - 1.6 million students; 160,000 teachers

• 14% ($2.2 billion)
Community Health - Medicaid, Peach Care, state health benefit plan, county public health departments

• 12% ($1.9 billion)
Regents - 300,000 students; 35 colleges and universities

• 8% ($1.2 billion)
Debt Sinking Fund - Bond payments

• 6% ($1 billion)
Corrections - 54,000 inmates; 37 prisons

• 5% ($800 million)
Behavioral Health - Including 7 state-run mental health hospitals, Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities

• 3% ($500 million)
Human Services - Including Child Welfare, TANF, Aging, Adoption, Foster Care Services

• 2% ($320 million)
Technical Colleges - 160,000 students; 65 colleges and branches

• 6% ($1.1 billion)
Everything Else*

*Everything Else totals just over $1 billion in the budget. It covers 40 agencies and all branches of government, such as Public Safety; Juvenile Justice; Judicial System; Governor’s Office, Senate and House; Teachers Retirement; Driver Services; Pardon and Paroles; and Revenue Department.

Thanks for your support. If I can be of service to you please let me know.

Representative Clay Cox
401 State Capitol
Atlanta, Georgia 30303
(404) 463-7853
clay.cox@house.ga.gov

Source: Direct e-mail from Clay Cox’s office

Source: CrimeMapping.com

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the AJC is reporting that Gwinnett County’s contract with the Braves calls for the club to receive the first $350,000 annually paid in naming rights, the county to receive the next $350,000 and anything over that to be divided evenly. With the county’s share calculated at about $281,000 a year, that puts the deal in the neighborhood of $10 million.

The Gwinnett Daily Post reports that Gwinnett Braves general manager North Johnson called the deal the “second-largest in minor league baseball.”

In addition to the naming rights Coolray will also receive a sign at the main entrance to the ballpark, an LED marquee on Ga. Highway 20 and signage on top of the scoreboard.

More:
• Gwinnett Braves / Gwinnett Stadium posts

Each meeting will begin with an overview of the progress to date and the distribution of a handout that includes a brief report from the four different work groups. Attendees will have more than an hour to discuss and comment on the reports in small groups. That input will be combined with a brief survey and included in the group’s draft recommendations that will be available for a similar public review process in April. Later that same month, the committee will make its final recommendations to the Board of Commissioners on desired County services, service levels and revenue sources for the next five years.

The initiative is a partnership between Gwinnett County government and the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce. Mike Levengood of McKenna Long & Aldridge and Bill McCargo with the Atlanta Education Fund are co-chairs of the committee. Engage Gwinnett seeks common ground, workable solutions and compromises as necessary for the greater good of the community to help guide the County government through the recession and its aftermath.

The four meetings will be held at various times and in different locations throughout the county to encourage participation:
• Thursday, Feb. 18, 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Duluth
• Saturday, Feb. 20, 9 a.m. - 11 a.m. at 12Stone Church near Lawrenceville (State Route 20 campus)
• Monday, Feb. 22, 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. at Grace Fellowship Church in Snellville
• Thursday, Feb. 25, 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. at Victory World Outreach Center in Norcross

For more information:
• EngageGwinnett.com

David Stedman, the Evermore Economic Development Director stated that there is a developer interested in a project.

“In this economy, we need to show that we are making an effort to improve the market dynamics of the area in a fundamental way,” he said. “When businesses and developers hear about the vision we have for the area, people get excited.”

More:
• http://corinthhills.org/?s=stone+mountain+stadium
• Gwinnett Daily Post

Bannister is looking to put the penny sales tax on the ballot this November.

• http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/news/i-team%3A-gwinnett-land-deals-021010

For more:
• 888.451.3750
• Stone Mountain Park - http://www.stonemountainpark.com
• Big Apple Circus - http://www.bigapplecircus.org

Gwinnett County has published the following on its website newsletter:
The Board of Tax Assessor’s Office will be adjusting the 2010 tax value on several thousand properties in Gwinnett County as assessors review the real estate sales and foreclosure data occurring in certain areas of the county. To make sure your property is included on the review list, you should file a Real Property Tax Return. The property tax return will allow you to declare your opinion of the value of your property.

If your value is not accepted, a Notice of Change in Assessment will be issued to you (scheduled mailing by mid April 2010). The notice allows you to appeal the value, which will result in a review process and possibly further into hearings.

The property tax return process begins with the timely filing of a Real Property Tax Return. You may visit the Tax Assessor’s web page at www.gwinnett-assessor.com to print a partially completed form between January 1 and March 1, 2010. Complete and mail the Real Property Tax Return anytime between January 1 and March 1, 2010. If you are mailing your return, it must be postmarked by the USPS no later than March 1, 2010. Your completed return will not be accepted via email or fax - no exceptions.

Should you have questions about the process, you may call 770.822.7200 or e-mail assessor@gwinnettcounty.com.

Bear in mind that your tax bill is the product of the millage rate x property assessment equation and Gwinnett County just increased its millage rate.

Interesting reading:
• Metro Atlanta property valuation comparison map
• Why you’re paying too much in property taxes

To help bolster the effort, the Evermore CID is planning to move its base of operations from its current location in Snellville to the stadium’s pro shop located next to the stadium.

The stadium, owned by the Stone Mountain Memorial Association (SMMA) - a Georgia state authority - had entered into an agreement with Gwinnett County in May 2009 for a $1 per year, 50 year lease to operate the 25 acre facility. Part of the agreement included a provision to demolish the stadium structure itself this month, but the SMMA, citing cash flow problems, has been forced to delay the $1.5 million dollar demolishion to 2011. This budget induced delay has created an opportunity for Evermore to facilitate a salvage of the venue.

Evermore CID had previously commissioned a study that concluded that transforming the structure into a multipurpose facility could bring in over $100 million dollars in new revenue over the span of 10 years as well as creating new jobs. A new feasibility study is to be commissioned in order to determine long-term viability.

Optimism of the planned salvage varies with Curtis Branscome, SMMA CEO stating his lack of optimism due to the capital required and with Baker stating that the project is very viable in his opinion.

Dwight Harrison, of Dwight Harrison VW, and vice-chair of the CID states that the interest in the project is greater than the stadium itself as the venue is the gateway to the CID from the west.

Gwinnett County Commissioner Mike Beaudreau has stated that any project would have to be a private venture and that the county is not prepared to “sink a bunch of money into this thing.”

There were just over 3,000 incidents of entering autos, or car break-ins, in unincorporated Gwinnett County between April and December 2009. The Gwinnett County Police Department has worked diligently to curtail this increase of theft and made 112 entering auto arrests during that same time. Once a pattern is identified, GCPD conducts “directed patrol” in that area, which generally results in entering auto crimes dropping in that area and rising in another. In other words, we simply move the criminals around.

Our Crime Analysis Unit has studied this specific crime and compiled some startling facts from the period April through December 2009:
• Approximately $38,000 in cash was stolen from vehicles
• 69 guns were stolen out of vehicles
• 48% of the vehicles entered were unlocked

Those guns are now in the hands of criminals, and that makes everyone less safe. Some of these criminals will graduate from breaking into cars to committing armed robbery or worse.

GCPD has reached out to the public on numerous occasions this year, imploring them to follow simple crime prevention steps to avoid being a victim of this crime. Despite these public education efforts, citizens continue to become “volunteer” victims by leaving valuables in plain sight in unlocked vehicles. Shoppers purchase a TV, computer, or other high-dollar electronic device at a big box store and then go directly to a restaurant to eat without unloading their expensive merchandise. When they return to their car, an observant criminal has taken their stuff. There is no elaborate planning necessary to commit this crime, which is why perpetrators stake out these particular stores.

As easy as this crime is to commit, it is even easier to prevent just by taking these simple steps:
• Always lock your vehicle
• Do not invite theft by leaving valuables such as GPS devices and laptop computers in plain sight inside the vehicle
• After shopping, lock items in the trunk or take the merchandise home
• At the end of your day, park your vehicle in the driveway or garage and take all valuables inside the house
• Be particularly aware when you are at a restaurant or gym because the perpetrators know you are going to be away from your vehicle for an extended period of time and simply wait for you to go inside to break into your car
• For bank deposits or withdrawals, always alternate your times and routes, be aware of your surroundings, and never leave cash in the car unattended

Many people believe that it is solely law enforcement’s responsibility to keep them safe from crime. They long for the days when they were able to leave their doors unlocked without fear of theft or violence. However, this is just not the case today. Citizens must step up to the plate and take responsibility for helping the police keep them safe. Citizens must “target harden” their environment and stop being volunteer victims. Make yourself a difficult person to victimize. Every security measure comes with a certain amount of inconvenience, whether it is an alarm system that has to be armed and unarmed, a door that has to be locked and unlocked, or having to carry your valuables from the car to the house everyday. It is inconvenient but vitally necessary.

The number of thefts from vehicles could be drastically reduced if we all commit to thinking ahead and making the necessary changes in our daily routine. The Gwinnett County Police Department is dedicated to arresting as many of these perpetrators as possible; we would never ask a citizen to confront a criminal. We simply ask for citizens to help us by removing valuables from plain sight and locking their doors.

I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to address those individuals who commit this type of crime. Many of the perpetrators are juveniles or young adults who do not seem to realize the consequences of being convicted for Entering Auto (Georgia Code 16-8-18). This crime is a felony, regardless of the value of the item stolen from the car, and carries a possible sentence of not less than one year nor more than five years - for a single count. This is not a game or child’s play; it is a serious crime. Police officers and the courts spend considerable resources dealing with this issue and take a grave view of people convicted of this crime. Parents, teachers, youth ministers, scout leaders, or anybody else that has influence over young people should take the time to counsel with them that engaging in this behavior could alter their future in a very significant way.

Thank you for the opportunity to address this issue. Please, let’s all work together to make Gwinnett County a safer environment in which to live and work.

Registration is required:
GwinnettStormwater.com
dwrswreg@gwinnettcounty.com
678.376.7126