Author: On Common Ground News

The Stonecrest City Council this week approved a motion to direct the city attorney to immediately file a temporary restraining order in DeKalb County Superior Court to cease all activities of the Metro Green recycling plant. The council’s unanimous decision was made at a special called meeting held virtually on Monday, Aug. 3.  The vote was taken after the council gave its approval to go into a closed executive session on the advice of City Attorney Winston Denmark. Denmark said he had notified the City Council in an email about 90 minutes before Monday’s special-called meeting that Metro Green’s…

A DeKalb County Tax Commissioner’s Office employee tested positive for the coronavirus on Aug. 4, prompting the temporary closure of the central tax office located on Memorial Drive in Decatur. The employee who tested positive immediately left work after feeling ill and sought medical attention to take a COVID-19 test. Out of an abundance of caution, DeKalb Tax Commissioner Irvin Johnson is closing the central office until all employees receive COVID-19 testing results and the offices undergo a deep cleaning and sterilization of hard surfaces. All central office employees will self-quarantine until they receive their test results. “The health,…

The NAACP DeKalb County branch is hosting a campaign to support black businesses during National Black Business Month in August. NAACP DeKalb President Teresa Hardy is urging the community to support the “31 Days to Circulate the Black Dollar” campaign and urging businesses to sign up for participation. “We know that our black dollars only circulate six hours in our community, so we want to change the narrative,” said Hardy.  “The theme, ““31 Days to Circulate the Black Dollar,” is based on a focused effort to spend our money within our community to create massive change intentionally.” Black-owned businesses…

Due to a previously scheduled church event, the DeKalb County Board of Health will temporarily close its Greenforest Community Baptist Church COVID-19 testing site, located at 3250 Rainbow Drive in Decatur, on Thursday, Aug. 6. Operations will resume on Friday, Aug. 7, at 10 a.m. During this temporary closure, four other COVID-19 testing sites operated by the DeKalb County Board of Health will be open from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.: Beulah Missionary Baptist Church,
2340 Clifton Springs Road, Decatur Former K-Mart Store Parking Lot, (at I-285 and Buford Hwy.)
5597 Buford Hwy. NE, Doraville Greater Piney Grove Baptist Church
,1879 Glenwood Ave. SE,…

State Rep. Karla Drenner and State Sen. Emanuel Jones Members of the DeKalb County Legislative Delegation, co-chaired by State Rep. Karla Drenner (D-Avondale Estates) and State Sen. Emanuel Jones (D-Decatur), will hold a press conference to discuss Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits. The news conference will be held on Monday, Aug. 10, 10 – 11 a.m., at the Georgia Department of Labor parking lot, 774 Jordan Lane, Decatur. At the event, speakers will include members of the DeKalb County Legislative Delegation and Teresa Hardy, President of the NAACP DeKalb County Branch.…

A member of the DeKalb County Sheriff’s K9 Unit has died in the line of duty. Investigators in the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Fugitive Unit were attempting to serve an arrest warrant on a rape suspect today(Aug. 4)when a K9 Deputy Sheriff escaped his partner’s control inside the Atlanta apartment complex where the endeavor was being made. “The K9 Deputy lost sight of the suspect and came upon a plain clothes sheriff’s office investigator involved in the pursuit,” said Chief Deputy Randy Akies.  “When the K9 Deputy advanced aggressively, the investigator fired in self-defense and, unfortunately, the K9 died…

  Hiring underway in Locust Grove The City of Stonecrest will become home to one of three new warehousing facilities for Georgia-based The Home Depot, which is expanding in DeKalb, Fulton and Henry counties. In addition to Stonecrest, the company is opening warehouse facilities in the cities of East Point and Locust Grove. Gov. Brian P. Kemp said in his announcement today (Aug. 4) that the tri-county expansion will create approximately 1,000 jobs for the greater metro Atlanta area. “Since 1978, The Home Depot has been creating jobs and opportunities for hardworking Georgians and for people around the…

Pictured L-R:Woolworth student lunch counter sit-in demonstration, 1960, Dr. Noel Battle and Mrs. Martha Battle.  Atlanta has lost another pioneer of the Civil Rights Movement, the Rev. Dr. Noel Battle, one of the foot soldiers in the city’s lunch counter sit-ins and one of its most prominent black developers and philanthropists. Dr. Battle died on July 28 at Emory St. Joseph Hospital in Atlanta after a long illness. He was 87. “He fought the good fight of faith for as long as he could,” said Martha Battle, Dr.…

Due to an outbreak of the coronavirus at Chief Cornerstone Community Church, 2900 Salem Road, Conyers, Fieldstone voters now must go the Rockdale County Government Annex, 1400 Parker Road, on Tuesday, Aug. 11. Elections officials announced the emergency relocation in a news release this evening, Aug. 3. The annex will be open on Aug. 11 from 7 a.m. until 7:30 p.m.(extended hours) for the Democratic Primary and Nonpartisan Runoff Elections. The Board of Elections and Registration Office was notified on Friday, July 31, that several members of Chief Cornerstone Community Church have tested positive for the coronavirus.  The virus is…