NOTE:  As you read this, remember Peachtree Park Drive is not in our neighborhood.  That said, it is in Buckhead and we should keep our eyes open and report tips to CrimeStoppers.

ATLANTA POLICE SEEK PUBLIC’S HELP IN IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL SERIAL SEXUAL ASSAULT SUSPECT

The Atlanta Police Department is seeking the public’s help in identifying a suspect possibly responsible for a string of sexual assaults in the Buckhead/North Atlanta area.

The suspect’s most recent assault occurred early Saturday morning (April 28^th, 2012).

A woman living in the Lindbergh Drive area returned home around 4 a.m. with her roommate. Shortly after going to sleep, she awoke to a man fondling her. The male also made sexually suggestive remarks to the victim.

The man is described as a black male, 5’-8” to 5’-10” tall, with a dark complexion and wearing a gray hooded sweat shirt with dark-colored pants. The man left the apartment, but stole some property prior to fleeing the scene.

The crime fits the pattern of several similar crimes committed in the Buckhead area since late 2009. In these cases, the suspect has made sexual contact with the victims, made sexually suggestive remarks and stolen property prior to exiting. Suspect descriptions have been similar. In all cases, there were no indications of forced entry.

• December 6, 2009/Peachtree Park Drive
• January 1, 2011/Lenox Road
• January 5, 2011/Peachtree Park Drive
• January 19, 2011/Peachtree Park Drive
• October 31, 2011/Lindbergh Drive
• November 12, 2011/Peachtree Park Drive

Atlanta Police are working aggressively to catch the suspect. In the most recent incident, the victim was able to provide an artist’s rendering of the suspect. To see the artist’s rendering, client on this link: APDSVUCrimes0430B.  Zone 2 officers have stepped up patrols in the Lindbergh area, and investigators with the Special Victims Unit are working these cases.

We are asking anyone with information on these crimes to contact Crime Stoppers Atlanta at 404-577-TIPS (8477) or submit a tip through www.crimestoppersatlanta.org. Tipsters may remain anonymous and be eligible for a reward up to $2,000.

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Atlanta residents invited to provide input on their level of satisfaction with selected city services during March 28^th meeting as part of the Atlanta City Council’s 2013 City Budget Review Process

WHAT:           Citizen Input meeting on City of Atlanta services

WHEN:           1 until 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 24, 2012

WHERE:          395 Piedmont Avenue, N.E.      

                     Piedmont Room of the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center

ATLANTA – Atlanta residents will have an opportunity provide input on their level of satisfaction with selected city services as part of the Atlanta City Council’s 2013 City Budget Review Process.

A community meeting will be held from 1 until 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 24^th inside the Piedmont Room of the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center, located at 395 Piedmont Avenue, N.E.

Selected department heads will be on-hand to present an overview of their department’s budgets and services provided to residents.

Attendees will then be surveyed on their satisfaction with an array of city departments in performing their duties from repairing potholes and sidewalk to response times for public safety calls. Attendees will also have the opportunity to provide feedback on what level of service is needed to reach their satisfaction.

“This survey is part of our new way of including residents and stakeholders in the 2013 city budget review process,” said Finance Committee Chairwoman Felicia Moore. “It’s imperative that we know what the departments’ funding needs are in order to provide their quality services that our residents expect.”

The survey will also be available on-line through Survey Monkey. Citizens will be provided a link through email and on the City’s website. The data will be compiled and a report will be generated for review and analysis.

The link for Superintendent Davis’ School District Recommendations based on the demographic studies is: http://www.atlanta.k12.ga.us/Page/413

Based on this document, as it appears now and if it stays the same, the current recommendation does not result in any redistricting changes for SR-T 4.

APS has set a timeline for the continuation of the Demographic Study.
The Community Meeting for SRT 4, held with Superintendent Davis will be held March 13th at North Atlanta High School at 6:30pm.
Please follow the link below to see details.

http://www.atlanta.k12.ga.us/cms/lib/GA01000924/Centricity/Domain/45/DStimelined.pdf

As many of you may have heard, the Atlanta Public School (APS) System has a demographic and capacity study underway to provide information to Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr. so that he can make facility and redistricting recommendations to the Board of Education for APS as a whole this spring.

As part of the process, APS has released a second round of planning options developed by a team of demographers for public review and feedback. There will still be another round of data/feedback evaluation and a new set of options presented to Superintendent Davis prior to his development of a proposal he will submit to the Board of Education for approval. These current options are not final, but they are a reflection of the demographers’ most recent thinking. The deadline for feedback on this current set of options is Saturday, February 24^th.

As a resident of Peachtree Park neighborhood, this is an important opportunity to make your voice heard in this process. Even if you do not have a child in the Atlanta Public School system, the quality of education does impact your property value. This is your opportunity to help shape the future plans for public school for your neighborhood. For those of you who are not aware, Peachtree Park is in SRT4. Our schools are as follows:

Garden Hills Elementary School (GHES), Sutton Middle School (SMS), and North Atlanta High School (NAHS)

If you are interested in speaking to any of the current parents of Garden Hills Elementary school students, please contact Kristin Mitra or Heather Martin.

Kristin Mitra: 404.808.9599 or kristinmitra@bellsouth.net.   Heather Martin: 404.323.0755 or heathermartin7@me.com

For detailed information regarding the current set of options please visit the following address:

http://www.atlanta.k12.ga.us/Page/413

To fill out the online survey regarding the current options, please click on the link on the page that says:

Option A and Option B Feedback Form  Digital/Online Feedback Form

You may also choose to provide feedback directly to the demographers at:

APS Demographic Study Group

APSDemographicStudy@atlantapublicschools.us

If you are interested in sending comments and concerns to other contacts involved in this process, they are as follows:

Erroll B. Davis Jr., Superintendent, Atlanta Public Schools: ebdavis@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Reuben McDaniel, Chairman, Atlanta Board of Education: rrmcdaniel@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Nancy Meister, Atlanta Board of Education, District 4 Representative: nmeister@atlanta.k12.ga.us

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

Mikkal Hart Murunga, Director of Community and Legislative Affairs, Atlanta Public Schools: mhmurunga@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Yolanda Adrean, City Council Representative, District 8: yadrean@atlantaga.gov

Interested in Touring Garden Hills Elementary School?

Attend the Garden Hills Elementary Open House on Tuesday, February 28 at 9:30 a.m.

GHES tour 228

Overview

The city of Atlanta, LivableBuckhead, BATMA, Councilman Shook and many others are working hard to increase green space in Buckhead. One of the concepts in the planning stages is a bike and walking trail that travels along the GA400 corridor. Essentially, it would start near the toll booth and run south, eventually connecting to the Belt Line. Part of this trail is proposed to go through Peachtree Park (Highland Drive and the connector between Highland/Martina and E. Paces Ferry).

Process to Date

BATMA, which is run by Denise Starling, has been engaged in the early design stages of this trail for some time. While they have certainly made the PPCA board aware of this project, we have not been deeply engaged in active dialog until the beginning of February. At this first official meeting that we had, Denise and her team shared the vision for the bike trail and listened to our concerns.

Since then, this topic was discussed at the most recent PPCA board meeting and we decided to form a sub-committee to work with BATMA to ensure all neighborhood concerns are known and addressed as well as possible.

What We Know at This Stage

This project has a great deal of sponsorship across the city and is very likely to happen. During past surveys of citizens, trails and connectivity have constantly been referenced as desired enhancements to the Buckhead area. Over half of the necessary funding has already been raised and there are plans to enter a detailed design stage in the coming months.

The current proposed trail goes through Peachtree Park. It enters near the Lenox bridge, travels across the current sidewalk to the bottom of Martina/Highland and then goes up Highland to Peachtree. While this trail location is not finalized and the board has not endorsed this decision, there doesn’t appear to be other good options.

A great way to be informed about this project is to go online to http://livablebuckhead.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Buckhead_Trails_Overview.pdf and review the presentation they have developed to inform citizens. At this stage in the process, the team is in conceptual design. This means they are trying to finalize the exact locations where the trail will travel and work with neighbors on any concerning issues.

Concerns Raised by Board and Neighbors

There are 3 primary issues that have been raised so far regarding this proposed trail. They are parking, security and speed/safety. BATMA has heard all of these concerns and is very open to working with us to address them. Future meetings with neighbors and further communication with BATMA will work to address specific solutions to each of these concerns.

Next Steps

We are planning a meeting to allow all Highland and lower Martina residents to come and hear the proposals and voice any concerns they may have. We will then nominate a sub-committee that will work with BATMA to get the best possible results for Peachtree Park. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Ed Holmes at ed.holmes@peoplenet.com.

The City of Atlanta’s penny sales tax to help fund water and sewer improvements is up for its 3rd renewal on March 6. This penny helps fund the $4 billion capital program started by Mayor Franklin to address a federal court order to modernize a century old water and sewer system. If the Municipal Options Sales Tax, or “MOST,” as it’s called, is not renewed, the City will have no choice but to raise water rates again, and possibly by as much as 22% or more.

Below is information which provides further detail. This initiative is an important foundation in our city’s and region’s water infrastructure.
Citizens For Clean Water
Municipal Option Sales Tax – March 6, 2012
MOST Q&A Brochure

The above information is provided by the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 1, 2012

Contact: Carlos Campos
Public Affairs Unit
(404) 546-4212

 ZONE 2 PRECINCT REDUCES OVERALL CRIME 13 PERCENT

The Zone 2 precinct in Buckhead, led by Commander Maj. Robert Browning, led all Atlanta Police Department zones in 2011 in reducing crime by posting an impressive 13 percent drop compared to the previous year.

“Given the challenges fighting crime that not only the Atlanta Police Department had last year, but departments across the nation, a 13 percent reduction in crime is a remarkable feat,” said Police Chief George Turner.  “Maj. Browning and the men and women who work under his command are to be commended.”

Maj. Browning will be awarded the department’s “Crime Reduction Award” for 2011. The award is formally presented at the Atlanta Police Foundation’s annual “Crime is Toast” breakfast in the fall.  The award goes to the zone that has the largest reduction in crime for a calendar year. Last year, Zone 6 took the award for its efforts in 2010.

“This award is a testament to the men and women who come to work every day with only one thought on their mind ‘How can we make Zone 2 a safer place to live, work and play?’” said Maj. Browning. “The Buckhead and North Atlanta areas are vital to our city’s cultural and economic success. I’m privileged and honored to serve there, and want to ensure it remains that way from a public safety standpoint.”

Other notable achievements in Zone 2 include:

• A 50 percent increase in traffic enforcement
• A 14 percent decrease in property crimes
• A 23 percent decrease in motor vehicle break-ins
• An 8 percent decrease in auto thefts

Zone 2 includes many neighborhoods in north Atlanta, including Buckhead, Peachtree Hills, Mt. Paran and Riverside. The Crime Reduction Award for Zone 2 was applauded by northside civic and political leaders.

“This is great news for all of us who live and work in Zone 2,” said District 7 Councilmember Howard Shook.  “Congratulations and thanks to the men and women of APD, as well as the many neighborhood stakeholders, who contributed to this significant achievement.”

“Major Browning and the men and women of Zone 2 should be commended for their efforts in reducing crime in Buckhead,” said District 8 City Councilmember Yolanda Adrean. “These officers have not only shown tremendous commitment to the public safety needs of Zone 2, they have also truly embraced the spirit of community policing. This reduction in crime shows what can be achieved when the doors of dialogue between residents and law enforcements officers are opened.”

“The men and women of Zone 2 work hard to reduce crime in our neighborhoods, “said District 9 Councilmember Felicia Moore.  “I truly appreciate their efforts to work personally with members of the community.  This partnership has worked to produce this great recognition.”

“Zone 2′s continued success in keeping crime stats low plays a major role in this Community’s quality of life,” said Buckhead Coalition President and former Atlanta Mayor Sam Massell. “It’s a reward for the exemplary public/private partnership.”

Maj. Browning has pledged to continue his efforts to reduce crime in Zone 2 in 2012 by continuing to step up traffic enforcements, directed patrols, and investigations of suspicious persons near parking lots, decks and businesses.

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Second round of demographic capacity study community meetings

scheduled for late January, early February 

ATLANTA – The second round of demographic capacity study community meetings is scheduled for late January and early February in each of the four APS regional (School Reform Team or SRT) areas.

The schedule is as follows:

 Jan. 30 – School Reform Team 3 Cluster (schools zoned to Grady and Jackson high schools) — Jackson High School

          Jan. 31 – School Reform Team 1 & 4NW Cluster (schools zoned to Douglass, Mays, Washington high schools and B.E.S.T. and Coretta Scott King academies) — Young Middle School

          Feb. 1 – School Reform Team 4 NE Cluster (schools zoned to North Atlanta High School) — North Atlanta High School

          Feb. 2 – School Reform Team 2 Cluster (schools zoned to South Atlanta and Carver high schools) — Price Middle School

 The times of all meetings are 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

During the meetings, new proposed scenarios will be presented that incorporate community input obtained over the past several months from throughout the district.  The original scenarios were intended as a starting point to provide parents and community members examples of redistricting proposals to elicit comment and recommendations.

Independent demographers will conduct the meetings and explain the new scenarios, after which they will again solicit community input that will be considered for the next set of scenarios. The new scenarios will be available on the district Web site (www.atlantapublicschools.us) under Demographic Study.

The first round of community meetings was held November 28 through December 1, 2011.  The community input obtained during those meetings and afterwards was included in new scenarios that will be posted on the district Web site prior to the next round of community meetings.  The community meetings follow a demographic survey launched in June, which allowed the public to provide input regarding the district’s student capacity situation.  Focus groups were held in each of the four SRTs on this subject last year.  The information has been available since last year on the district’s Web site.

Following the next round of community meetings, Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr. will develop new scenarios based on community input to present to the Atlanta Board of Education for consideration.  Community input will also be part of the Board’s consideration of Davis’ proposed scenarios.  The Board is expected to consider the matter in the spring.

“From the beginning, our goal has been to make this process transparent with input from parents and the community,” said Davis.  “The opportunity for public input will continue up to the point when the Atlanta Board of Education approves a redistricting plan for implementation beginning the next school year.”

ATLANTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS is educating today’s students for tomorrow’s world. We are committed to ensuring that all students graduate from our schools ready for success in college and life.

Summary of The Issue:

Every 10 years Atlanta Public Schools evaluates capacity of its schools in tandem with updating population / demographics for the areas served.  This can lead to changes at existing schools as well as identify the need for new schools.  The initial work in 2011 has resulted in 4 options that they are sharing with the public and asking for input.  The deadline for the input is Friday December 16.

What Does This Mean For Our Neighborhood:

Simply put this impacts everyone.  If you have or expect to have kids, and whether you are considering our neighborhood public schools, or if they are already attending these – this directly impacts you.  Even if you don’t have kids, but you are a homeowner or have an interest in Peachtree Park, the changes from this could impact property values.  People get all wrapped up about tax rates changing that may impact you by a couple hundred bucks a year, but many lose sight of the outsized impact schools can have on the value of the neighborhood.

How Do You Provide Input / Feedback?

The survey at this link is the way they are collecting feedback.  http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/2SPYCCK

Sample Survey / Tip To Get Started:

The online survey is a little confusing – for the 1st question you only need to go to the 4th column, “SRT 4 Zones” and find Garden Hills in the drop down.  This indicates that you are in a neighborhood that feeds into Garden Hills.

Also on Questions 2 thru 4 – note the headings “1-most preferred” to “4-least preferred” that go left to right.  You want to be sure the option your top option (on this sample form I listed Option #3 as most preferred) is in the correct column.  The sample ballot shows ranked the options in order 3,4,1,2.

What Are The 4 Options and How Do You Evaluate Them?

On Your Own:

The current districting and 4 proposed options can be viewed at this link.  http://www.atlanta.k12.ga.us/Page/413  Please note – if you download the PDF file it is very large and can take several minutes.

With Help From Your Neighbors:

We’ve had several people volunteer to summarize the changes and potential impacts.  While these views do not necessarily reflect those of the PPCA, we are sharing them as a resource for those that are looking for a summary of how the changes impact Peachtree Park’s schools.

Summary of Option 1
·      Garden Hills Elementary gains a portion currently attending Sarah Smith Elementary
·      Garden Hills Elementary loses area south of Sidney Marcus to E. Rivers Elementary
·      Redistricted to new middle school populated by these Elementary Schools: Garden Hills, E. Rivers & Morningside

Summary of Option 2
·      Garden Hills Elementary gains a portion currently attending Sarah Smith Elementary
·      Garden Hills Elementary loses everything south of E. Wesley and west of Piedmont to E. Rivers Elementary
·      Redistricted to new middle school populated by these Elementary Schools: Garden Hills, E. Rivers & Morningside
·      E. Rivers Elementary would lose everything west of Northside and below 75

Summary of Option 3
·      Garden Hills Elementary gains a portion currently attending Sarah Smith Elementary
·      Garden Hills Elementary loses everything south of E. Wesley and Sydney Marcus to a new “North Atlanta” elementary school
·      Garden Hills Elementary gains approx 0.5 mile over Peachtree from West Paces to W. Wesley
·      E. Rivers Elementary would gain a large portion of Brandon – South of W. Paces to Northside but would lose everything west of Northside
·      Redistricted to new middle school populated by these Elementary Schools: Garden Hills, E. Rivers, Morningside & New “North Atlanta” Elementary School

Summary of Option 4

·      Same geographical layout as option 3 for Garden Hills Elementary
·      E. Rivers Elementary would not extend east of Peachtree, but would have a small area on the other side of Northside
·      Still includes New “North Atlanta” Elementary School
·      Morningside appears to be unaffected

Notes On All The Options:

·      All options involve Peachtree Park neighborhood kids going to a new middle school populated by at least by Garden Hills, E. Rivers & Morningside. It is not known if the New Middle School would have the IB program.
·      All options keep Peachtree Park neighborhood kids going to Garden Hills Elementary.  The only difference is that each scenario involves adding or subtracting certain neighborhoods / geographic areas that feed into Garden Hills.

Who Can We Talk To:

We encourage you to reach out directly to neighbors and also follow the discussion / comments on the Peachtree Park Facebook page.  http://www.facebook.com/peachtreepark

Sharing pictures of Peachtree Park homes during Fall 2011.