Mold Remediation in Decatur, GA

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Decatur-Avondale Estates|Local Event

Eagle Eye Books, Neighbor

Thu, Dec 5, 2024 at 7:00 PM

Eagle Eye Book Shop, 2076 N Decatur Rd, Decatur, GA, 30033

More info here

Join us for an unforgettable evening as we celebrate the paperback re-release of Jasmine Mas' Blood of Hercules!

The event is ticketed- meaning a purchase of the new edition from Eagle Eye Books is required to attend.

Jasmine will be in conversation with USA Today Best Selling Author Kimberly Lemming and we can not wait!

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DECATUR, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Families in one of metro Atlanta’s oldest neighborhoods are searching for answers after discovering Georgia Power plans to build a 115 kV transmission line through some properties.

“For a 25-foot swath, they’re going to cut down every single tree that falls in that area,” said Andrew Rutledge, a resident of historic Decatur.

Georgia Power‘s Scottdale Transmission Line Project is intended to replace a 60-year-old line between Scottdale and Decatur. Project leaders say they’re looking at running the line from Scottdale down Annie Street to East Ponce de Leon Avenue, down Sycamore Street, along East College Avenue, to the Decatur substation next to Trackside Tavern.

“Our team is very thoughtful when it comes to planning projects of this scale and complexity,” said Misty Fernandez, Georgia Power’s Atlanta Region executive.

Residents feel like the decision was made without their knowledge or approval.

“Under the wire, so to speak,” Rutledge joked.

“This will run through the back side of my property, which is residential. We had no input on it,” said Eddie Towson, who lives in Scottdale.

The move even caught the city and DeKalb County off guard.

“The responsibility of the city is to protect the residents, protect their property,” said Andrea Arnold, the Decatur city manager.

Arnold says Decatur city leaders met with Georgia Power leaders Monday to talk about alternative routes for the line.

“They listened to our concerns and they’re willing to put the Decatur part of the project on pause to allow Georgia Power staff, as well as city staff, to sit down and talk about some potential alternatives,” said Arnold.

As the day progressed, people stopped to look at signs about a meeting with Georgia Power on Tuesday night. Many said it was the first they were hearing about the construction.

“I was on my walk today, and I saw the signs on the side of the road,” said Jordan Brown, who added he wasn‘t opposed to the transmission line as long as it didn’t come at the expense of trees or homes.

Leaders with Georgia Power say no final decision has been made for the project.

“The purpose of tonight’s meeting is to take what we have designed over the course of several years and get the public’s input into this. Because the stakeholder, the community engagement part of this, is very important for us,” said Fernandez.

Some people had no idea that construction would happen until Georgia Power showed up to buy their land.

“The great thing about Georgia Power is not only do they have the ability to do what they want, they also try to bully everybody that they come across,” Rutledge said.

Janie Thompson has lived in historic Decatur since the early 1980s. Named after its first owner, it’s called – no joke – the Death House.

“The poor man was named Harry Death,” Thompson said.

The Death House was originally about a quarter mile away in current Sycamore Park. Only the steps remain. The home was moved in one piece to its current location to make room for the MARTA line.

Now, it could be in Georgia Power’s crosshairs. Current renderings have the line running through a portion of Thompson’s yard.

“I would look for another alternative,” Thompson said. “I don’t want people to do without electricity, but come on!”

“We will have some more public information meetings,” said Fernandez. “We will have more meetings with city leadership and community leaders. We’ll also have other ways customers can engage with us and provide their input.”

Copyright 2024 WANF. All rights reserved.

Decatur, GA — Decatur School Board member Hans Utz wouldn’t know about Georgia Power’s plans for a massive 2.4-mile-long transmission line project passing through his neighborhood if a resident hadn’t tipped neighbors off.

The resident, who lives near Sycamore Street, learned about the project when Georgia Power inquired about buying some of their property.

Utz was caught off guard. Records show that city officials also had no idea it was happening.

“To put it plainly, the city was blindsided with this project, and surprised that GA Power did not consult local officials at the city of Decatur prior to releasing the plans,” Assistant City Manager Andrea Threadgill wrote in a Nov. 7 email to city officials.

The news about Georgia Power’s plans set off a scramble behind the scenes as city officials worked to gather more information. Georgia Power had previously scheduled an input meeting on Nov. 12 at the American Legion Post 66, located at 30 Covington Road in Avondale Estates. The meeting is from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. There’s a Decatur Historic Preservation Committee meeting about the project on Nov. 19 at 6:30 p.m. because Sycamore Street is part of the Old Decatur Local Historic District.

The project, which Georgia Power calls the Scottdale Transmission Line, begins at the Scottdale Substation, travels on Annie Street, then goes a mile down East Ponce de Leon Avenue, runs down Sycamore Street, then continues along East College Avenue to the Decatur substation. Utz said the lines will be “high tension” lines as high as 80 feet tall.

He showed Decaturish an example of high-tension lines visible from the nearby Avondale MARTA station.

Utz emailed city officials on Nov. 7 asking why Georgia Power would be interested in putting this project in a residential area.

“It does seem a little unusual to want to put high-tension lines over a residential street, especially when you have multiple industrial-zoned roads immediately adjacent,” he wrote. “It would be helpful to understand their logic/requirements.”

Georgia Power contacted DeKalb County Chief Operating Officer Zach Williams about his project on Oct. 7, according to a letter provided by DeKalb County Commissioner Ted Terry.

Terry appears to have only recently become aware of the project himself.

“This slipped by almost unnoticed,” Terry wrote in a Nov. 11 email he forwarded to Decaturish. “And the lack of public notice, on short notice, for a potential disruptive process is concerning. We will be letting constituents know about the meeting tomorrow. But we ask that the administration stand with county commissioners (D2/D4/D6), representing this area, in slowing down this planned development until adequate information and impact can be shared with the residents in Scottdale and Decatur, and the elected leaders in each can be briefed by GPC on the rationale, alternatives, and impacts.”

According to the Oct. 7 letter to Williams, Georgia Power’s rationale for the project is that it will ensure the area has a reliable, steady power flow.

“The construction of this transmission line is needed to ensure safe and reliable electric service to commercial and residential customers in the surrounding area,” the letter from Georgia Power says.

The letter says Georgia Power officials considered alternative options, including not proceeding with the project.

“Not building a transmission line along this route is a risk that is unacceptable for safety and reliability reason,” the Georgia Power letter says. “A new transmission line is needed in this area to meet the growing demand for electricity.”

To read the full letter, click here.

Many aspects of the project are unknown. It’s unknown how many trees the power company will have to remove and whether they’ll be subject to any local ordinances, including Decatur’s tree ordinance.

In her Nov. 7 email, Threadgill said she didn’t expect the power company to send anyone to the Nov. 19 Decatur Historic Preservation Committee meeting. She said HPC will not make any approvals or decisions regarding the power company’s plans. She expects HPC will write a letter stating its position and attach meeting minutes, which will include public comment. That letter will be sent to Georgia Power.

“GA Power most likely will not be present for the meeting, therefore there will be unanswered questions,” Threadgill wrote. “Nonetheless, GA Power needs to be aware of resident comments and concerns and that community input is important before they move forward with any further planning for this project.”

Decatur City Manager Andrea Arnold forwarded Threadgill’s letter to the city commission on Nov. 7, telling commissioners the city is asking Georgia Power for more information.

“I have also attached the only information that we have received by way of a resident about the proposed ‘mega line install’ that would include significant tree removal along [East Ponce de Leon] and Sycamore Street and the addition of large, overhead power poles,” Arnold wrote. “I have reached out to the city’s point of contact at Georgia Power, Rondah Thomas, for a meeting. I am also going to loop in our lobbyist, Tom Gehl.”

To see the project renderings, click here.

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Decatur, GA — The Decatur City Commission will meet on Monday, Nov. 4, for a regular meeting at 7:30 p.m. at Decatur City Hall, located at 509 N. McDonough Street, and virtually via Zoom. There will also be a dinner session at 5:30 p.m., an executive session at 6 p.m. and a work session at 6:30 p.m.

The work sessions will focus on a communications report. During the regular meeting, the city commission will consider approving the concept design for the Square renovation.

Phase one of the renovation to the Decatur Square will feature a new stage, a play area, plaza improvements and expanding the Square into North McDonough Street. The estimated cost is $4.2 to $6 million.

To access the meeting, follow these instructions:

To view the agenda, click here.

This meeting will be held in-person. Members of the public wishing to participate during either the “Public Comment” or “Requests and Petitions” portions of the meeting may attend the meeting in one of two ways:

1. Attend in-person by coming to Decatur City Hall, 509 N. McDonough St.

2. Register in advance at https://zoom.us/j/92227385190. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. You may also participate by phone by calling (929) 205-6099 and entering the meeting ID (The 11-digit number shown in the Zoom registration link.)

NOTE – This meeting will utilize virtual meeting technology. We cannot guarantee it will operate as planned. If your participation must be a matter of public record, attend the meeting in person or email your comments to Deputy City Manager David Junger at david.junger@decaturga.com by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 4th.

Members of the public may also view the live broadcast of the Decatur City Commission meeting at https://www.decaturga.com/citycommission/page/streaming-video

One of the downtown master plan’s goals is to create welcoming and vibrant open spaces, parks, and plazas. During the master planning process, the consultants at MKSK heard a lot about the Square from the community. The first objective of this goal is to create a more comfortable Decatur Square with amenities that attract daily activity and flexible, accessible spaces for community events.

The master plan says one action item is to “activate Decatur Square by making improvements to better support both special events and to be usable and comfortable on a daily basis. ”

Construction is anticipated to be completed by spring 2026.

“The roughly 2.5-acre Decatur Square Transformation design recommendation is consistent with feedback received for the new band shell and restroom facility; expansion of the square into the North McDonough turnaround to further enhance the placemaking and (nature-based) play qualities, also including green infrastructure and electric vehicle charging; and improvements to the existing plaza with landscaping, hardscape, play equipment and furnishings,” Assistant City Manager Cara Scharer wrote in a memo.

In other business:

– The city commission will consider approving an easement with Georgia Power to install underground distribution lines to serve the South Housing Village at Legacy Park.

– The city commission will also hear presentations on the Commissioners’ Cauldron and the city’s co-responder program.

– During reports and other business, the city commission will discuss House Bill 581. The bill is a referendum on the Nov. 5 ballot and, if approved by voters, would essentially cap property assessments at the rate of inflation through a statewide floating homestead exemption.

A floating homestead exemption generally increases its value to offset inflation. For example, if a home has a taxable value of $100,000 and that increases the following year to $110,000, the exemption floats to be worth $10,000. So, according to a presentation from the Georgia Municipal Association and the Association County Commissioners of Georgia, the homeowner’s taxable value remains at $100,000.

But with HB 581, the taxable value, or the assessed value, could only increase by a rate of inflation set by the State Revenue Commissioner, which would likely be the consumer price index.

With the same example, if the assessed value is $100,000 and increases to $110,000 the following year, but inflation is 2% then the taxable value could only increase by 2%, up to $102,000. The exemption floats to be worth $8,000 of assessed value, so the homeowner would pay based on the $102,000.

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This weekend, downtown Decatur will be decked out to the nines for the annual Haints & Saints parade! With nearly 2,000 people expected to head to this amazing event, you definitely don’t want to miss out! Keep scrolling to find out more about Decatur’s Haints & Saints Parade!

What is the Haints & Saints Parade?

Placita Latina is hosting their iconic joint Halloween and Day of the Dead parade, which serves as a closing event for the month-long Hispanic Heritage celebrations throughout the city!

You can expect fun costumes, amazing dancing, local food, music, and so much more!

Haints & Saints Parade Details

Where: Bell St. entrance of the Decatur Cemetery | 229 Bell St, Decatur, GA When: Sunday, October 27th, beginning at 6pm and running until 8pm

After the parade, the party will continue in Decatur Square with dancing, music, and entertainment!

So grab your friends and family to make a marching group, build your own float, or join in your classic cars! Or, if marching along in the parade isn’t your thing, come watch the parade go by, and then join for dancing on The Square afterwards!

The parade is appropriate for all ages, and it’s free for anyone to sign up to march! Learn more on Decatur’s website, here!

What should I wear to the parade?

Costumes are encouraged for all–both spectators and those who want to participate in the parade! Wear your cutest, best, weirdest, or most beautiful costumes! Cultural appreciation is encouraged, to help celebrate Día De Los Muertos, or you can don your Halloween costume!

If you’re looking for other ways to celebrate Halloween, check out our roundup of awesome Halloween events this spooky season!

And there’s also so many Day of the Dead celebrations happening around Atlanta too! You don’t want to miss out–check out our roundup of Día de los Muertos happenings here!

No matter what you’re doing this weekend, it’s time to celebrate, y’all! Let’s get spooky!