Author: On Common Ground News

The Stonecrest Burlington Coat Factory is now open for business. The new store celebrated its grand opening on Sept. 22 with city officials, community leaders and store representatives. Mayor Jason Lary, City Council members Diane Adoma and Jimmy Clanton and Eric Hubbard, who is the District Outreach Director for Congressman Hank Johnson joined Burlington Regional VP Terry Mosley and store manager Greg Sapp for the ribbon cutting ceremony. The ceremony was followed by a donation of three pallets of new store items to Helping Oppressed Mothers Endure, Inc. (HOME). The organization helps single, working or student mothers survive the…

By Mackenzie N. Morgan Nearly 200 people joined sisters Barbara Elliott and Jennifer Ward-Woods of Decorating Den Interiors—“The Sisters and Company” for their 20-year anniversary celebration on Sept. 24 at their headquarters, 917 Main St., Stone Mountain. The pair said the red carpet affair was a way to say thank you to current and former clients for their support over the years, as well as an opportunity to show off their updated main studio area. Guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres, entertainment and were each sent home with a black swag bag. “It was so good to see so many of our…

The DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management (DWM) will host a Fats, Oils and Grease (FOG) Permitting Program workshop on Friday, Oct. 6, 10 a.m. to noon, at the Department of Watershed Management, 4572 Memorial Drive, Decatur. DWM developed the FOG Permitting Program workshop to educate the public about the harmful effects of grease on the county’s sewer system. Discharges containing high concentrations of fats, oils and grease from food service establishments such as restaurants, schools, nursing homes and other public facilities can cause blockages or overflows of the sanitary sewer system. The workshop will provide an overview of…

Interested in improving your leadership and public speaking skills? Join Toastmasters. Voices of Faith Ministries Toastmaster’s Club is hosting an open house on Oct. 2, 6:30 to 7:45 p.m., at its Stone Mountain campus, 2500 Rockbridge Road. At the open house, you will meet the officers of the club and experience the way a club meeting is held.

Rockdale County residents are invited to an open house at Costley Mill to see the county’s newest park. The official grand opening is spring 2018, but citizens can tour the grounds, learn about planned improvements, speak one-on-one with the Board of Commissioners, and meet the Parks and Recreation staff at the open house on Saturday, Oct. 7, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Rockdale County purchased the 77-acre park in June and is working on improvements to the park. “We hope that the public will take this opportunity to tour the grounds of the park and enjoy an afternoon with…

The Rockdale County Board of Commissioners announced the County’s Student Talent Development Program: Shadow Day. The primary focus of the program is to provide an opportunity for high school and college students to explore different careers in county government. Shadow Day will take place Thursday, Oct. 5, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The program includes opportunities in various county departments. This opportunity is available at no cost. Lunch, snacks and the official Rockdale County 2017 Shadow Day T-shirt will be included. Rockdale County’s Shadow Day will offer participating students the following: Help with career decision-making Learning how to network, potentially…

TO THE QUALIFIED VOTERS OF THE CITY OF STONECREST The City of Stonecrest will hold its Municipal General Election on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 to elect three (3) members of City Council. One for Districts 1,3 and 5. The terms of office for all three of these elected positions shall be four-year terms, which shall begin on January 1, 2018. Voter registration for this election will end on October 10, 2017. Only those persons who are residents and registered voters of the City of Stonecrest are eligible to vote in this election. Absentee voting begins October 16,…

Today, the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners approved an agreement with the City of Atlanta over the annexation of 744 acres including Emory University, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Georgia Power Co., Villa International, Synod of South Atlantic & Presbyterian Church (USA) and the Centers for Disease Control. The county and city have been engaged in an arbitration process with representatives of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. If adopted by the City of Atlanta, the agreement will become the recommendation of the arbitration panel. “We have a historic agreement that protects the interest of all residents in DeKalb County and…

The Emerging Leaders of DeKalb (ELD) Class of 2018 will host an open house on Oct. 17, 6 to 8 p.m., Frazer Center, 1815 S. Ponce DeLeon Ave. N.E., Atlanta. If you are an emerging leader between the ages of 25 – 34 that lives, works or cares about DeKalb County, ELD is the leadership program for you. Leadership DeKalb established the Emerging Leaders of DeKalb Program (ELD) in order to explore a new pipeline of talented leaders and develop the next generation of leaders in DeKalb County. The ELD program is composed of leaders between 25 -…

Today, Atlanta Public Schools (APS) unveiled a first-of-its-kind digital tool to help parents access useful, easy-to-understand information about schools across Atlanta. The website, APSInsights.org, includes color-coded school profiles, an enrollment and performance map, data explorer tools, and a blog with information about how to best utilize the tool. Parents can learn how their school compares to the district and state on multiple student achievement indicators and find information about school climate and demographics. Potential APS parents can also learn about their zoned school and APS school options such as administrative transfer and charter schools. “We know that…