Author: On Common Ground News

Congressman Henry “Hank” Johnson (GA-04) is kicking off the 2020 Census Count campaign with a video urging community leaders and stakeholders to get involved. The census count officially began on Jan. 21 in the remote fishing village of Toksook Bay, Alaska. Locally, the head count will begin around mid-March. National Census Day is April 1. The video will be featured on all of Johnson’s social media outlets. “The census informs how billions of dollars are allocated every year to health clinics, schools, affordable housing, and hundreds of other critical services and programs that make a difference in our lives every…

  DeKalb County residents will have a chance to experience Georgia’s new voting machines ahead of the Voting Town Hall she is hosting on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 6 to 8 p.m., at the Porter Sanford Performing Arts Center, 3181 Rainbow Drive, Decatur. The interactive voting machine experiences will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. The state of Georgia is replacing all voting machines by the March 24 Presidential Primary with a new voting system and DeKalb County Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson wants to ensure that all DeKalb residents experience how to use the new  machines before the elections. “The ability…

Presenting the award (left to right): Mindy Kao, Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta; Barbara J. Mobley, president of Toney Valley Civic Association; Tyler Sanchez, Neighborhood Watch Coordinator; and Neona Sherrer, vice president of Toney Valley Civic Association The Toney Valley Civic Association was recently awarded a Neighborhood Fund Grant of $9,900 by the Community Foundation For Greater Atlanta. The majority of the grant fund will be used by the 36-year-old non-profit organization to sponsor and support its inaugural Toney Valley Day Festival slated for June 13 on the grounds of Toney Elementary School in Toney Valley.  The homecoming, community…

Mason Mill Road, between Clairmont Road and Houston Mill Road NE, in Decatur will be closed to through-traffic beginning at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 4, through 5 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 10. Residents living in the area will have access to road. Road closure and detour signs will be placed in the area to advise motorists of traffic restrictions. For more information, contact the DeKalb County Roads and Drainage Department at 404-294-2878.

Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04) has announced the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Education Scholarship and the Performing Arts & Visual Arts Scholarship will open to applicants beginning Feb. 3. The deadline for both scholarships is April 3. The Performing Arts Scholarship provides financial assistance to outstanding African-American students pursuing a major in performing and visual arts, including — but not limited to — architecture, ceramics, drawing, fashion, graphic design, illustration, interior design, painting, photography, sketching, video production and other decorative arts. The education scholarship is open to any outstanding African-American college students residing or attending college in a Congressional Black Caucus…

“He was our SWAT brother, a great friend. There’s not one day that he didn’t enter this building and didn’t have a smile on his face.” “He meant a lot to a lot of people.” “I’ve never met somebody like Cole before who had so much integrity, the most honesty of anybody in my 20 years of law enforcement…” Rockdale Sheriff’s Investigator John Cole “J.C.” Haynie was remembered with tears and laughter this evening during a candlelight vigil held by a crowd of colleagues, family and friends outside the Sheriff’s Office headquarters. Several who worked with Haynie shared stories about their…

Rockdale County’s Board of Elections and Registration plans to launch a new app that will help voters to determine the wait time before they go to polling precincts this election season. Rockdale Supervisor of Elections Cynthia Willingham said at today’s Board of Commissioners meeting that the new app would be ready in about two weeks for voters to download. Voters will be able to use the app during the early voting period for the Presidential Preference March 2-20 and on March 24,the Presidential Preference Primary Election Day. The app, Willingham said, also would be available for other elections scheduled throughout…

Stonecrest Councilmember Robert Turner, II received the certificate of recognition from the Harold F. Holtz Municipal Training Institute during the Georgia Municipal Association’s (GMA) Annual Cities United Summit in Atlanta on Jan. 26. The Harold F. Holtz Municipal Training Institute, a cooperative effort of GMA and the University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government, provides a nationally-recognized series of training opportunities for city officials. To receive a certificate of recognition, a city official must complete a minimum of 42 units of credit, including at least 18 hours from a list of required classes. The training program consists of…

The DeKalb County Police Department responded to a shooting call at 10:30 a.m. today at 610 Wesley Club Drive Apartments in Decatur. A black male in his early 30s was found suffering from a gunshot wound. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he later died. Police said the shooting appears to be “isolated and the result of risky behavior” between the victim and suspect(s). No suspects have been arrested and the investigation is active and ongoing.

The former Sears building at The Mall at Stonecrest could become home to Georgia Piedmont Technical College’s(GPTC) South DeKalb campus, as well as a MARTA Police precinct, the city’s business development manager told the City Council at its work session on Monday (Jan. 27). William Settle, who joined the city’s economic development team last September, said Stonecrest has been aggressively recruiting for a higher educational institution of learning to move into the Sears building. He said he and other city officials have been in discussions with GPTC about relocating its Wesley Chapel Road campus in Decatur to the city of…