April 14: Peace & Love Fest at the Land Trust

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Nancy

From the Land Trust, an invitation!

It’s Spring – Time for Peace, Love & Music at the Land Trust!

Sound the trumpets – Spring has sprung! And we all know that means flowers, greenery, and fun at the Land Trust with all your neighbors and friends. Join us on Saturday, April 14, from 1:00 to 11:00 pm, for food, music and family fun at yet another Peace & Love Fest.

Our onstage lineup weaves through various sounds and styles. The first half of the day will be filled with neighborhood kids’ bands. We are lucky enough to have gotten our local favorites to play: My Homework Ate My Dog. If you haven’t yet seen these amazingly talented young men perform, be warned – they will rock your world (and they’re still only in 8th grade!) Plus their up-and-coming sister act, 5th-graders Spaghetti Junction, who will share our stage in a unique ensemble with some of their parents in My Imaginary Band. Other kids’ bands on the program are Shades of Gray and Rocket 88.

Easing us into a lovely evening will be the sweet horns of more local faves, The Owls, followed by bluegrass with the Deja Bluegrass Band, Cajun zydeco with Hair of the Dog, and capping the evening, the dancing grooves of Deep Blue Sun.

The Gorilla Grill will be serving burgers (meat and veggie), dogs, and other picnic fare throughout the entire festival, so spend the day with us! We will also have our usual Bake Sale and super Raffle prizes to further our fundraising efforts for the Land Trust. To help make the event more Earth-friendly, you are encouraged to bring your own washable cups, dishes and silverware, and get a free raffle ticket for each person in your family.

Our suggested donation for attending is only $10.00. You will also have an opportunity to sign up as a Land Trust “caretaker” for 2012 (ranging from $25 for students or seniors to $75 for families) in lieu of donating at the gate. Besides the usual taxes, insurance, and maintenance needs, this year’s fundraising goals are electricity throughout the Land Trust (cost: approximately $5,000) and installation of our new greenhouse down by the pond ($1,000).

As always, festival-goers are encouraged to park at Clifton Sanctuary (369 Connecticut Ave.) or on surrounding streets to spare our immediate neighbors the impact of so many visitors.

In other words, friends – seriously great music, in a superb locale, with all your friends and neighbors, all while helping to support our precious and unique Lake Claire Community Land Trust. It’s a Do Not Miss. We hope to see you there to enjoy our beautiful city in the Spring!

–
“The mission of the Lake Claire Community Land Trust is to acquire, maintain, and protect green space for neighborhood enhancement and education; and to provide a place for neighbors and friends to celebrate nature, community, and the arts.”

Visit us at www.LCCLT.org!

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2012 Druid Hills Home and Garden Tour needs volunteers

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Nancy

Our next-door neighborhood, Druid Hills, is looking for volunteers for the Home & Garden Tour.

The 2012 Druid Hills Home and Garden Tour needs volunteers and we are asking for your help.  The tour dates are Friday, April 20th through Sunday, April 22nd.  We need volunteers to guide tour guests through points of interest in the homes and assist at the Artist Market.  There are six homes with four shifts each and five Artist Market shift choices. All volunteers will receive a free tour ticket, a $20 value, plus you will be invited to the volunteer “Thank You” party after the tour. This fun party is held at Everybody’s Pizza in Emory Village.

Get the Details here!

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TRAFFIC ADVISORY : Lane Closures on DeKalb Avenue

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Nancy

TRAFFIC ADVISORY
Roadwork Necessitates Lane Closures on DeKalb Avenue

What : Street striping to cause lane closures

Where: DeKalb Avenue between Mathews Avenue and Southerland Terrace.

When: 9 am – 4 pm, Friday, March 23

Comments: Weather permitting, contractors will be striping the road, necessitating the intermittent closure of lanes during construction hours. Flaggers will be onsite. Motorists are urged to use caution and to avoid the area if possible.

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News of the Day: Ponce Closure & More Schools Info

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Nancy

A few items that the Neighbors might like to know about:

  • Beltline work will be causing Ponce de Leon closure from Fridays at 9 pm – Mondays at 5 am this weekend and next: March 23 – 26 and Mar 31 – April 2
  • Attend community input meeting TONIGHT, Mar 21 at Jackson HS (801 Glenwood Ave SE 30316). Arrive by 5:45 pm so we can sit together; meeting begins at 6:30 pm. Lin speakers will be asking prepared questions. We will not speak negatively of other neighborhoods and will not respond to negative statements. It’s critical that we have a good turn-out!
  • FYI for those interested: Virginia Highlands Civic Association’s letter to Superintendent Davis .
  • Call to Action: Write a Letter to APS by 3/26
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Mary Lin Kindergarten Roundup: May 1

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Nancy

Mary Lin Elementary’s annual Kindergarten Roundup is Tuesday, May 1st at 9:30am. It’s a great opportunity for parents/guardians of rising kindergarteners to meet the Kindergarten team and hear about what’s in store for the upcoming year.

You are highly encouraged to bring your rising kindergartener to meet other kids that will be entering in August and to hang out in a kindergarten classroom with a current kindergarten class.

For more information, email peggyfromli@gmail.com or call the Mary Lin office at 404-802-8850.

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Call to Action: Write a Letter to APS by 3/26

Posted on March 18, 2012 by Nancy

Please Support Atlanta Public School’s Redistricting Proposal – Write a Letter by March 26th!

Thanks to the many Lake Claire Neighbors who supported our community in the redistricting process by responding to the survey, writing a letter and attending  APS meetings.   Our voice has been head, and the recently released preliminary Atlanta Public Schools (APS) redistricting proposal is favorable for our community.  If you haven’t had a chance to view it, you can access it at http://www.atlanta.k12.ga.us/cms/lib/GA01000924/Centricity/Domain/45/FinalRecPub.pdf.

However, we are not across the finish line yet – there are neighborhoods that oppose the proposal, and we need to show APS strong support for it.  Community feedback ends March 26th and we need your help.

We ask that you please write a letter to our APS Leaders, School Board Members and our Public Officials showing your support for the redistricting proposal.  Some suggested points to include in your note are below, as well as the names and email addresses for you to send the note.

In addition, the final community feedback session will be held Wednesday, March 21st at 6:30 p.m. at Jackson High, located at 801 Glenwood Avenue Southeast, 30316.  Please arrive early for parking and seating.  We need to have strong turn out from our community to show APS that we think the proposal makes sense and that we support it.

Letter Key Points

Below are some suggested bullet points that you can include in your communication to APS Leaders, School Board Members and our Public Officials.

Please personalize the letter – include some information you and your family, and what you personally like about the proposal.

We ask that you be positive in the note and caution against saying anything negative about other neighborhoods. 

Since the Superintendent’s plan was published March 4th, it was announced that the proposal to use the Coan location as the 6th grade academy for Inman Middle is off the table.  We ask that you please do not reference Coan in your note since this is no longer an option. 

  • I believe that the Superintendent’s proposal is a balanced approach that is a fair and fiscally responsible way to solve the capacity challenges in the Grady cluster.
  • I am glad that Mary Lin is remaining K-5, and appreciate the school receiving much needed SPLOST funding for renovations and an expansion.   This gets our kids out of trailers, provides necessary capacity for our community’s growth and allows Lin to continue to build on its tradition of success.
  • The defined cluster model is a sensible one. It strengthens both community support and parental involvement, and encourages long-term, cross-cluster collaboration that will help schools be successful and enable our children to excel.
  • The 6th grade academy is a shared and logical solution to Inman Middle’s anticipated future capacity concerns.  I am open to alternate locations for this academy, including an Inman expansion or annex, or another facility within the Grady cluster boundary.
  • The Mary Lin Community has been an integral part of Inman Middle and Grady High for decades.  We look forward to partnering with APS and our neighboring communities in continuing to build and maintain high-performing, diverse schools of which we can all be proud.
  • In summary, I support the Superintendent’s proposal – it is a logical and responsible plan that makes sense for the entire Grady Cluster and APS.
  • Thank you for all that you do for our schools.

Letter Recipients and Email addresses:

APS Redistricting Feedback:   APSRedistricting@AtlantaPublicSchools.us

APS Leaders:
Erroll B. Davis, Jr., Superintendent of Schools: ebdavis@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Steve Smith, Deputy Superintendent/ Chief of Staff: swsmith@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Larry Hoskins, Deputy Superintendent of Operations: lhoskins@atlantapublicschools.us

Karen Waldon, Deputy Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction:  kwaldon@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Dr. Betsy Bockman, SRT-3 Executive Director:  bbockman@atlanta.k12.ga.us

 

APS Leader Email Distribution List:  ebdavis@atlanta.k12.ga.us ; swsmith@atlanta.k12.ga.us ; lhoskins@atlantapublicschools.us ; kwaldon@atlanta.k12.ga.us ; bbockman@atlanta.k12.ga.us
Atlanta Board of Education (ABOE) Members:
Cecily Harsch-Kinnane (District 3):  chkinnane@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Reuben McDaniel, At-Large (3&4):  rrmcdaniel@atlantapublicschools.us

Brenda Muhammad (represents Inman Park):  bjmuhammad@atlantapublicschools.us

Courtney English (at-large for Inman Park):  cenglish@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Nancy Meister: nmeister@atlanta.k12.ga.us

LaChandra Butler Burks:   lbburks@atlantapublicschools.us

Yolanda Johnson:  yjohnson@atlantapublicschools.us

Byron Amos: bamos@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Emmett Johnson:  edjohnson@atlantapublicschools.us

 

ABOE Leader Email Distribution List:  chkinnane@atlanta.k12.ga.us ; rrmcdaniel@atlantapublicschools.us ; bjmuhammad@atlantapublicschools.us ; cenglish@atlanta.k12.ga.us ; nmeister@atlanta.k12.ga.us;  lbburks@atlantapublicschools.us ;  yjohnson@atlantapublicschools.us ; bamos@atlanta.k12.ga.us ;  edjohnson@atlantapublicschools.us

 

Public Officials:
Councilwoman Natalyn Archibong (Our rep): narchibong@atlantaga.gov

Councilman Alex Wan (CP rep): awan@atlantaga.gov

Councilman Kwanza Hall (IP rep): KHall@AtlantaGa.Gov

State Senator Jason Carter: jason.carter@ senate.ga.gov

State Representative Stacey Abrams:  stacey@staceyabrams.com

 

Public Official Email Distribution List: narchibong@atlantaga.gov ;  awan@atlantaga.gov  ; KHall@AtlantaGa.Gov   ;  jason.carter@ senate.ga.gov  ; stacey@staceyabrams.com

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Free Legal Seminar for Small Businesses- from Neal & Wright

Posted on March 16, 2012 by Nancy

Note: We normally do not run ads on the website, but this was accidentally left out of the Clarion print version, and we thought the Neighborhood would like to know about it!

Neal & Wright LLC presents a new free legal seminar focusing on special issues confronted by small (and larger) businesses, including:

  •  ownership strategies,
  • entity selection,
  • buy-sell agreements,
  • leases,
  • and many more TBD topics.

Please join us for coffee and Flying Biscuits! RSVPs requested but not required. RSVP at info@nealandwright.com. All free seminars are held at the Neal & Wright LLC office conveniently located in Downtown Decatur.
Visit us online for directions and more information.

Big Issues for
Small Businesses
March 24, 2012
10:00 – 11:30 a.m.

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Two Alerts about Suspicious Driver incidents

Posted on March 16, 2012 by Nancy

You may have already seen at least one of these, but there have been several reports of suspicious drivers in recent days.  These may not be related.  Be on alert and be sure to talk to your kids about what to do if they are approached.

Lake Claire (Connecticut Ave.)

Atlanta police officials released a sketch of the man believed to have attempted to kidnap a 12-year-old Lake Claire girl as she walked home from school.

The March 12 incident occurred around 4:10 p.m. near the intersection of Connecticut and New York avenues.

The victim told investigators the man, driving a silver SUV, pulled up alongside her and offered a ride.

She declined and began walking away but the man put the vehicle in reverse and tried to follow her.

He gave up when other motorists approached the intersection.

Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers Atlanta at 404.577.TIPS (8477).

(From the East Atlanta Patch)

Sycamore Dr. Decatur:

Suspicious Driver Approaching Children in Sycamore Dr. Area

Please be on the alert for a green honda station wagon driven by a white male in his late 40′s. This afternoon on the Dekalb end of Sycamore Dr. (coming from Church St.), this man caught the attention of a neighbor walking toward Church St. because he slowed to a stop as he neared a young girl. The child didn’t indicate a problem, so after the man drove past the child, the neighbor resumed walking until he heard the child’s mother calling after him, asking if he’d noted the car’s tag. The mother told the neighbor that the man had pulled into their driveway and atttempted to call the young girl over from her front yard. The mother spotted it and went outside, and the man quickly backed out and headed down the street toward Decatur. The neighbor called 911, and a Dekalb officer responded, took the information, and said that they would patrol the area.

The mother said that this man has been spotted driving slowly through the area in the same vehicle over the last two weeks, and that this also occurred with another child (thwarted).

 

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Land Trust Easement & Frazer Center Zoning

Posted on March 14, 2012 by Nancy

Request from Land Trust to Lake Claire Neighbors:

The  Land Trust, in keeping with its mission, is arranging to have a majority of its space put into a conservation easement, which will prevent any significant development of this space and preserve it as green space for recreational, educational, and community use. We are attaching for your information a draft of the easement agreement and a map of the area involved. On the map, the conservation easement portion is outlined in black, and those parts of the Land Trust not included in the easement are marked with cross-hatching. We will have a final version of the document within the next couple weeks, say by the first of February.

The “grantees” in this document, consisting of adjoining property owners, are those who will have the right to periodically inspect the property to prevent any violation of the easement. We would like to request that Lake Claire Neighbors participate as an additional grantee in this document, in order to strengthen its force and to add an additional level of monitoring.  It is customary for such conservation easements to have an outside civic or environmental organization participate in this capacity. We would appreciate it if you could bring this to the attention of your executive committee.

We understand that you will wish to review the document carefully, but it’s important to note that as a grantee, Lake Claire Neighbors would have no financial obligations, and  “no obligations whatsoever for the use, management, maintenance, or supervision of the property” (p. 6).  Its role would be that of a neutral party that can help assure that the provisions of of the easement are being observed.

The Frazer Center is requesting a “Zoning Overlay District”

From the Frazer Center website: “At a meeting hosted by The Frazer Center on February 21, 2012, the following draft of an overly was presented by our attorney, Michele Battle, Esq. Ms. Battle is open to questions and/or feedback and can be reached at mlb@battlelawpc.com . “
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This Thursday! March LCN Meeting: Agenda

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Nancy

Agenda for Lake Claire Neighbors Meeting
Lake Claire Neighbors. Inc.: Regular Meeting: Thu., March 15. 2012
Atrium, Frazer Center
7:00: Social Hour
7:30: Meeting Agenda
Guests: City Councilwoman N. Archibong (Valencia Hudson)
APD Officer J. Bruce, Rep Stacey Abrams (Genny Costillo), others
Officer Reports: includiing:

  • V.P. Zoning: Dan White
  • For infomation only, no vote conducted
    • Candler Park: Dr. Bombay: expansion/request for exemption, parking ordinance
    • L.C. Land Trust, Inc. request for L.C. N., Inc. to serve as trustee for new easement, This document available via website. Vote at April meeting.
      The Lake Claire Land Trust Inc. (501 c3)  has asked the LCN Inc. to  be a signatory to this easement agreement .
      The easement agreement makes no financial demands on LCN Inc.. (Section 8 Grantee’s obligations)
      LCNA is being asked to be a party to this agreement because of its historic role as a mediator representing the entire interests of Lake Claire.
      The Executive Committee has reviewed this document and in consultation with our  pro bono attorney Dan Wright finds no reason not to be a party to this agreement.
      Executive Committee recommends membership approve this request.
  • V.P. Fundraising: Allyson McCarthy and Mary Williams
    • - Movie Night: Sat. night, March 31, Lake Claire Park

Guests: Board of Education
Q & A
Neighborhood School Committee, ch. Sherry Neal
Q & A

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