01-08-2016 Sandy Springs Reporter

SEE MORE, PAGE 13

BY JOE [email protected]

Rep. Scott Holcomb says it’s simple. With a presidential primary scheduled for Georgia in March, “there’s likely to be a lot of nonsense” during the coming session of the state General Assembly, the DeKalb Democrat says.

Political posturing is “already out there,” Holcomb said. His prediction for the 2016 Legislature? “I think it’s going to be a year not terribly impressive in terms of legislative accomplishment,” he said. “Th e shadow of the presidential primary is going to weigh heavily on the Gold Dome. You’re just going to see a lot of nonsense.”

Still, state lawmakers are bound to do something during the 40 days they meet and debate the state’s business, even if it’s only to approve a state budget. And as legislators pre-pared for the start of the 2016 Georgia General Assembly,

set to start Jan. 11, there was plenty of new legislation be-ing talked up.

Local lawmakers said they expect to spend much of the session arguing over hot-button statewide issues such as gambling, the state budget, funding for education and mer-it pay for teachers. “I think it’s going to make for an inter-esting year,” Rep. Beth Beskin (R-Buckhead) said. “I really think education is going to be one of the big ones this year.”

Th e proposal to allow casino gambling in Georgia “will be taken seriously,” Rep. Joe Wilkinson (R-Sandy Springs) said, but he and several other local lawmakers seemed un-willing to predict that it would pass this year. “I don’t see that happening in this session, particularly in an election

SEE LAWMAKERS, PAGE 7

BY JOHN [email protected]

Several Barfi eld family members are op-posing Mercedes-Benz USA’s plan to re-name part of Barfi eld Road for itself.

Th e street name, honoring an old farm-ing family, “may not mean much to other people, and certainly not to Mercedes-Benz, but it means a lot to me and my family,” Natalie Barfi eld of Gainesville wrote in a Jan. 3 letter to offi cials.

Meanwhile, there is talk of renaming an-other street named for MBUSA —Mercedes Drive in Montvale, N.J., where the carmak-er was long headquartered until its surprise move to Sandy Springs was announced last year. In a reversal of the Sandy Springs situ-ation, one option in New Jersey is replacing the Mercedes street name with that of an old farming family that previously owned the land, according to Montvale Mayor Roger Fyfe.

“Admittedly, there were those who want-ed to spray-paint the street signs the day [MBUSA] announced they were leaving. (Th is is New Jersey, after all.),” Fyfe said in an email.

MBUSA informally notifi ed Sandy Springs in November of its desire to rename part of Barfi eld Road, where its new head-quarters will be constructed, as “Mercedes-

SPECIAL PHOTOS

For this winter edition of our semi-annual Education Guide, Reporter Newspapers introduces its fi rst “20 Under 20,” a special feature adapted from our sister

publication Atlanta INtown. Meet this group of extraordinary young people who are working to improve their communities. The section begins on page 15.

Expect political ‘nonsense’ in 2016 Legislature

More Barfi eld relatives voice opposition to

renaming road for Mercedes

JAN. 8 — JAN. 21, 2016 • VOL. 10 — NO. 1

Sandy SpringsReporter

www.ReporterNewspapers.net The plan manHow to ease traffi c woes

COMMENTARY 12

Where’s the beef?Wendy’s to reopen after fi re

COMMUNITY 4

Inside All aboard?

COMMUNITY 5

Five highrises are proposed in a new development near the Sandy Springs MARTA station. See page 2.

New Perimeter towers proposed

C O M M U N I T Y

2 | JAN. 8 – JAN 21, 2016 | www.ReporterNewspapers.net


Five skyscrapers are planned as part of a massive redevelopment on Perimeter Cen-ter West next to the Sandy Springs MAR-TA station. A preliminary community meeting is slated for Jan. 20.

The residential and office towers, each standing 20 to 29 stories tall, would sur-round the existing office building at 1117 Perimeter Center West, replacing a three-story parking deck. Design illustrations show the towers as walled with mirrored glass and topped with triangular beams.

“It’s a substantial project that will be built over several or many years,” said Rob Forrest, a Milton real estate profession-al who is handling permitting and zon-ing for an Australian family that bought the 13-acre property last year. The new, mixed-use project would include ground-floor retail space,” he said, and can connect to the MARTA station.

The plan also preserves the existing building, known for its unusual hexago-nal shape, which has an interior courtyard that would be opened up for performanc-es. “What we’re looking at is really, really embracing that [building and courtyard],” Forrest said, adding that the intent is “to

protect the current building and the cur-rent tenants.”

Forrest declined to identify the develop-ers or any other project they have worked on, saying only that the family is originally from Korea and that this is “their first for-ay into the Americas.”

“They like to fly below the radar… They prefer not to be known,” he said.

Forrest said he has spoken with various “stakeholders” in the area, but would not say who they are, except that homeowner organizations are not among them.

Tochie Blad of the Sandy Springs Council of Neighborhoods said residents need more details, especially on traffic flow, the MARTA connection and wheth-er the project is speculative or has pro-spective tenants in place. “Connectivity to MARTA is key to any of these massive projects,” Blad said. “And we don’t have any information.”

Forrest said he expects to file a full proj-ect application with the city next month. He said specific residential unit counts are still on the drawing board and would not give an estimated project budget.

Fulton County property records show

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www.ReporterNewspapers.net | JAN. 8 – JAN 21, 2016 | 3

the developers bought the site for $68.5 million. Th e project totals 1.3 million square feet, Assistant City Manager Jim Tolbert said at the Jan. 5 Sandy Springs City Council meeting.

Th e site is on the oppo-site side of the Mount Ver-non Highway/Peachtree-Dun-woody Road intersection from the parcel where developer Hines proposes another mas-sive, mixed-use development with skyscrapers. Th e Hines project is embroiled in a city zoning dispute.

Th e Perimeter Center West project requires rezoning to mixed-use, and its timing may be aff ected by whether the city extends its rezoning moratorium, currently set to ex-pire on Jan. 17. Tolbert said it is one of three—and by far the largest—projects that “gambled” on the moratorium ex-piring and fi led in recent weeks so that it could move ahead under existing zoning code.

Th e City Council discussed the rezon-ing moratorium in a non-voting work ses-sion, with no consensus on whether it should be extended 90 days or more. Th e council recently approved new “interim guidelines” for mixed-use projects while city consultants work on a new zoning code expected later this year. Th e guide-lines—which merely are suggestions—call for denser and taller redevelopment near

MARTA stations.“Th is was a delay, but we’re patient,”

Forrest said of the rezoning moratori-um, adding that the developers would not mind a further extension and that it has given them more time to talk to stakehold-ers. “Whatever it takes for the city to get ready…We respect that a lot,” he said.

Blad said that the moratorium should be extended “with a project of this size” coming down the pipe.

Whatever happens with the moratori-um, the Perimeter Center West project is still in an early phase under new city rules requiring pre-application meetings with city staff and the general public. As part of that process, the developers will hold a public meeting Wed., Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. at 1117 Perimeter Center West.

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Wendy’s seeks to reopentwo years after fi re


It’s taking a lot longer than serving up a combo meal, but the Wendy’s fast-food restaurant at 8455 Roswell Road has a reopening in the works two years after a fi re shut it down.

“We are working with our insur-ance company to get it rebuilt and re-modeled, and hope to open soon,” said Jay Long, director of operations for PAP Enterprises, a Wendy’s franchise compa-ny that runs fi ve metro Atlanta restau-rants. “We’re certainly anxious to get go-ing again.”

Th e fi re at the restaurant, on Roswell Road between North-ridge Parkway and Sulli-van Hill Road, happened on Jan. 12, 2014, Long said, and the business has remained closed. Today, it is surrounded by a tem-porary chain link fence weighted down with split-open sandbags. Th e Wendy’s logo is gone and dumpsters sit along the building.

Some local residents and nearby business employees expressed concerns about the Wendy’s remaining vacant.

Calling it a “burned-out eyesore,” Pitts Road resi-dent Justin Moseley said, “It’s been sitting empty and ugly ever since [the fi re], with no apparent signs of it being rebuilt.”

Th e property meets city code require-ments, said city spokeswoman Marla Shavin. She said the delay in renovations is due to PAP and its insurance company entering arbitration.

Long declined to comment on PAP’s issues with its insurer.

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The Wendy’s restaurant at 8455 Roswell Road remains

closed after a 2014 fi re.

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CATCHING UP

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C O M M U N I T Y



Monorail systems recently proposed by city officials in Brookhaven and San-dy Springs aren’t the first time some-one local has pitched alternative, elevat-ed trains. In 2011, a Marietta company presented plans for a “maglev” train con-necting Cobb County and Perimeter Mall—and the firm’s president says he’d like to bid on any new Brookhaven and Sandy Springs systems.

“We’d be very interested in both those projects,” said Tony Morris, pres-ident and CEO of American Mag-lev Technology. “Anyone who has been around Perimeter Mall for 30 years at 5 p.m. knows something has to be do-ne…I’d love to see something happen, whether it’s us or somebody else.”

AMT built one of the world’s few maglev test tracks in Powder Springs in 2006 and is planning an Orlando mag-lev line, but it has yet to build a full sys-tem after several unsuccessful projects, some of which cost millions of public and private dollars.

The company’s false starts include the Perimeter Center plan and a proposed maglev line between MARTA’s Georgia State station and Turner Field. Only a few maglev trains—which slightly levi-tate on a powerful magnetic field rather than riding on wheels—are in commer-cial operation, all in East Asia.

Such lack of success has made mono-rails and maglevs the butt of jokes—most famously in a 1993 episode of the TV comedy “The Simpsons,” where a con man sells a used monorail to Hom-er Simpson’s home town by claim-ing there’s interest from a rival city. Brookhaven Mayor John Ernst joking-ly quoted a line from that show when asked about a local monorail: “Maybe it’s more of a Shelbyville thing.”

“I look forward to reading what the $10,000 got us,” Ernst said of City Councilman Joe Gebbia’s discretionary fund expenditure for a monorail-ori-ented transportation study. “We’ll take a look at what it says and all the costs…and see what happens.”

Morris said that monorail-pitching

officials deserve praise rather than jokes. “I want to give great credit to people who even have the guts” to propose al-ternative train systems, he said. “This is a very complicated subject. It’s emotion-al. It’s controversial.”

Elevated monorails and maglevs are both pitched by advocates as less expen-sive alternatives to normal rail-based mass transit. They can be built on public

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American Maglev Technology first pitched a plan for a train connecting Cobb County and Perimeter Mall in 2011. The company built this test train in Powder Springs in 2006. Sandy Springs and Brookhaven are

studying monorails and other forms of elevated transportation.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 6

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right of way atop pillars; may have lower maintenance costs; and some may operate auto-matically without drivers.

AMT’s 2011 proposal called for a 21.5-mile elevat-ed maglev train between Ken-nesaw State University and the Dunwoody MARTA station. It would have run alongside I-75 and I-285, and includ-ed proposed stations in Sandy Springs on Roswell Road and at the King and Queen build-ings at the Concourse offi ce park.

“From our standpoint, that was a very logical project,” Morris said. “It’s even gotten better now that the Braves have absconded to Cobb County.”

Construction costs were estimated at $430 million to $645 million. AMT said that was much less expensive than standard MARTA costs. However, Cobb County offi cials were not convinced the math added up and declined to get aboard the plan.

Fifteen years ago, AMT was unable to complete a monorail on the campus of Virginia’s Old Dominion Universi-ty amid technology problems and fed-eral funding that didn’t come through.

About $7 million in state funding was spent, according to media re-ports.

AMT now plans its maglev construction projects entire-ly with private funding, Mor-ris said. But, he added, operat-ing costs remain a challenge for any commuter-focused train system that has to keep fares af-fordable. AMT’s Cobb/Perime-ter train was to have a $4 fare that included a free transfer to MARTA. But that requires some type of subsidy, he said,

adding, “Th at’s going to be the big co-nundrum for [Brookhaven and Sandy Springs’ monorail ideas].”

Morris said among AMT’s ideas are tax incentive districts around train sta-tions. Another possibility is selling ad-vertising on the trains. “We were going to turn our vehicles into giant Coke bot-tles or beer bottles or hot dogs,” he said of AMT’s proposed Turner Field train.

Morris acknowledged there isn’t a simple calculation for building alterna-tive trains, but said that’s why conversa-tions about the Brookhaven and Sandy Springs monorail are important. Mass transit, he said, “is our destiny. It’s just not clear what [form] it’s going to be.”

‘Maglev’ train previously pitched for Perimeter Center

Tony Morris, AMT president

and CEO

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

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year,” said Sen. Fran Millar (R-Dun-woody). “I know a lot of legislators are looking at it, but I don’t think this will happen during this [session],” said Rep. Tom Taylor (R-Dunwoody). “I think there’s still a lot of the religious right out there that’s still opposed.”

Some said they expect the “Georgia Religious Freedom Restoration Act” to produce a lot of debate, but not to pass. “I think it’ll be something we’ll hear about,” said Rep. Taylor Bennett (D-Brookhaven), who has been a vocal op-ponent of the bill and said he expected he would continue to be in the thick of the argument.

There are plenty of other ideas float-ing around: Sen. John Albers (R-Ro-swell) said he is proposing safeguards against identity theft. Millar propos-es allowing special accounts for people with disabilities. And Wilkinson said he plans to push legislation to make “the adoptable dog” the official state dog.

Several legislators plan to propose lo-cal changes.

Holcomb plans to introduce legisla-tion calling for a referendum to change the form of government in DeKalb County to eliminate the position of CEO. Instead, he wants to give voters a chance to create a county government with nine commissioners, including a commission chairman who’s elect-ed countywide and a county manager, he said. That would replace the current system, which has seven commissioners and an elected CEO, who has much of the authority of a mayor and a county manager combined.

Holcomb says he wants to hold the referendum this year because the presi-dential election in November should at-tract a relatively large number of voters. He argues the proposal deserves a lot of debate and a lot of voters. “If it passes, great. If it fails, great,” he said. “Let the voters have that decision.”

Taylor plans to again promote his proposal calling for a constitution-al amendment allowing cities to start their own school systems. The number of school systems in Georgia is limit-ed by the state Constitution, but Taylor wants a statewide vote on whether to al-low more systems so cities could break away from large county districts and start smaller, local school systems. The limit on the number of districts was set in 1945, Taylor said, and is outdated. “I don’t think that in ’45, they envisioned school districts of 100,000, like DeKalb, or 175,000, like Gwinnett,” he said.

Meanwhile, MARTA is asking law-makers to designate half of a proposed 1-cent transportation sales tax in coun-ties where the transit system operates to pay for future expansion of MARTA train lines. MARTA officials say the tax, which would last for 42 years, is the only way they can raise the billions of dollars needed to extend the lines into north-

ern Fulton County and south DeKalb County.

But some lawmakers aren’t so keen on the new tax. Millar says most local Republican lawmakers oppose the idea. Millar and Taylor argue the state should pay part of the cost of MARTA’s expan-sion and not rely only on taxpayers in counties MARTA serves directly. “I’m all in for this expansion. It depends on who pays for it,” said Taylor, who chairs the legislative MARTA oversight committee called MARTOC. “It’s a state asset,” he said. “Let’s have the state get some skin in the game.”

Millar agreed: “In DeKalb and Ful-ton, a lot of us think we’ve done more than our fair share,” he said. “[MARTA’s] not just for people living in DeKalb and Fulton. ... The state needs to get into the game.”

One thing several legislators agreed on was that 2016 will bring a relative-ly short legislative session. While the March 1 presidential primary may draw a lot of attention, party primaries are scheduled for May 24 this year and law-makers will want to get back to their own campaigns as quickly as they can, they argue.

“It’s going to be a fast session because it’s an election year,” Wilkinson said. “It’ll be a much faster-paced session. A lot of people will be anxious to get out and to start campaigning.”

So you can ignore the legislative non-sense. It’ll be over soon.

Lawmakers: Expect some ‘nonsense’ in the 2016 session


Here are some of the local issues law-makers in Reporter Newspapers com-munities say they expect will be debat-ed in the state Legislature this year. The 2016 session of the General Assembly begins Jan. 11.

MARTA taxMARTA is asking that half of a

planned 1-cent transportation tax in Fulton and DeKalb counties be desig-nated for expansion of the transit sys-tem’s rail lines into north Fulton and south DeKalb. The agency is asking that the tax be extended for 42 years so it can borrow money on the expected reve-nues and start work soon.

Referendum to get rid of the DeKalb CEO

Rep. Scott Holcomb, a DeKalb Democrat, says he will introduce leg-islation calling for a vote in 2016 on whether to eliminate the DeKalb CEO position and replace it with a coun-ty commission chairman and a county manager.

City school districtsRep. Tom Taylor (R-Dunwoody) is

again promoting a call for a state con-stitutional amendment to allow more school districts in Georgia so cities can start new schools.

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Library Leader TrainingSaturday, Jan. 16, 10:15 - 10:45 a.m. –Does your child have a love for books? Do they dream of one day working in a library? If so, then this is the class for you. In this 30-minute train-ing session, children will have the opportunity to learn basic catalog searching skills, locate books in the library from the catalog, and learn about the maintenance that it takes to keep a library run-ning and tidy. Free and open to the fi rst fi ve par-ticipants. Advance registration is required. Suit-able for kids aged six to 12 years old. Dunwoody Branch Library, 5339 Chamblee-Dunwoody Rd., Dunwoody, 30338. For more information and to register, go online to dekalblibrary.org or call 770- 512-4640.

Birds of Prey� ursday, Jan. 21, 10 - 11 a.m. – In this eco-adventure, students learn about Georgia’s native hawks and owls. Discover their unique features and their importance within local eco-logical systems. Participants will have the op-

portunity to learn fi rst hand by playing a game and dissecting owl pellets. Students can also take home the small bones they fi nd as part of the experience. Blue Heron Nature Preserve, 4055 Roswell Rd. NE, Atlanta, 30342. For addition-al details, go online to bhnp.org or call 404-345-1008.

Teen Volunteer FairSaturday, Jan. 23, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. – Is giving back one of your New Year’s resolutions? Th is informational session provides volunteer op-portunities for kids in middle and high school that introduces them to the inner workings of possible future careers. Representatives from sev-eral nonprofi ts will be on site to discuss teen vol-unteerism and assist with applications. Free and open to the public. Register by emailing [email protected]. Buckhead Branch Li-brary, 269 Buckhead Ave. NE, Atlanta, 30305. To learn more, visit afpls.org or call 404-814-3500.

Storms A BrewinMonday, Jan. 25, 4:30 - 5:30 p.m. –Presented in partnership with Imagine It: Chil-dren’s Museum, this interactive musical perfor-mance teaches children about the weather and how to stay safe when bad weather arrives. Free and open to the public. Space is limited and registration is required. Suitable for kids aged 4 and up. For more information and to regis-ter, email [email protected], call 404-303-6130, or visit afpls.org. Sandy Springs Branch Library, 395 Mount Vernon Hwy., San-dy Springs, 30328.

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Free Admission DayMonday, Jan. 18, all day – In honor of Mar-tin Luther King Jr. Day, the Atlanta History Cen-ter opens their doors for a day of free admission. Visitors will gain all-inclusive access to the Mar-garet Mitchell House, exhibitions in the muse-um, Meet the Past experiences at the 1928 Swan House and the 1860 Smith Family Farm, the Centennial Olympic Games Museum and the Goizueta Gardens. 130 West Paces Ferry Rd. NW, At-lanta, 30305. For addition-al details, go to atlantahistory-center.com or call 404-814-4000.

Mini Book SaleWednesday, Jan. 20, 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. – On the third Wednesday of every month, the Friends of the Brookhaven Library present a mini book sale. Time to stock up on reading materials for an aff ord-

able price and support your local library branch at the same time. Free to attend and open to the public. Suitable for families of all ages. Visitors are asked to park behind the library and enter at the lower level. 1242 N. Druid Hills Rd. NE, Brookhaven, 30319. Questions? Go online to dekalblibrary.org or call 404-848-7140.

‘A Lucky Child’Sunday, Jan. 24, 6:30 p.m. – Am Yisra-el Chai, a holocaust education and awareness non-profi t in Atlanta, holds an event featuring Th omas Buergenthal, one of the youngest child survivors of Auschwitz. Buergenthal is an international and hu-man rights lawyer as well as judge at the Internation-al Court of Justice. Th e event takes place on the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day and includes a lecture, book signing and coff ee. Westin Atlanta Perimeter North Hotel, 7 Concourse Pkwy., Sandy Springs, 30328. To fi nd out more and to pre-order a signed copy of Buergenthal’s book, “A Lucky Child,” email [email protected]. Free to participate, registration is required. Go to courag-eandcompassion.eventbrite.com to register.

L I F E T I M E O F L E A R N I N G

Advance DirectivesTuesday, Jan. 12, 7 - 8 p.m. – Advance Direc-tives for healthcare are an important part of a com-prehensive plan for your personal well-being. An advance healthcare directive, also known as a living will, is a legal document in which a person specifi es what actions should be taken for their health if they are no longer able to make decisions for themselves because of illness or incapacity. Georgia’s AD laws are among the best in the country, and in this class you’ll learn why and get the forms needed to fi le your own AD. Presented by the DeKalb County Public Library and Compassion & Choices, Geor-gia Chapter. Suitable for adults aged 18 and up. Free and open to the public. Brookhaven Library, 1242 N. Druid Hills Rd. NE, Brookhaven, 30319. For more information, go online to dekalblibrary.org or call 404-848-7140.

DivorceCareWednesday, Jan. 20, 6:30 p.m. – Going through a separation or divorce? Don’t go it alone. DivorceCare is a group of caring people who gath-er to learn about and discuss information on topics such as depression, loneliness, faith, fi nances, anger and more. DivorceCare for Kids is a 13-week pro-gram to help children as they weather the grieving

process of their parents’ divorce. Th ese two classes run concurrently through April 27 every Wednes-day evening except Ash Wednesday (Feb. 10) and DeKalb County Spring Break (April 6). Cost for participation is $15. Dunwoody United Method-ist Church, Room 240, 1548 Mount Vernon Rd., Dunwoody, 30338. For more information and to register, go online to dc4k.org or contact Cathy Wright, DivorceCare Leader, by calling 770-394-0675.

Journaling witha Purpose

� ursday, Jan. 21, 6 - 7:45 p.m. – Th is course is designed for the person already comfort-able with journaling but seeks to set an intention and create a daily habit. Th e benefi ts to daily journaling include opportunities for self-refl ection and better relationships with others. Th e workshop explores how to use your writing to achieve a higher purpose in your life. Free and open to the public. Registra-tion suggested. Suitable for college-aged kids, adults and elders. Questions? To learn more and to register, go online to afpls.org, email [email protected], or call 404-814-3500. Buckhead Branch Li-brary, 269 Buckhead Ave. NE, Atlanta, 30305.

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BY COLLIN KELLEYAlfredo’s Italian Restaurant, a

landmark on Cheshire Bridge Road for more than 40 years, will close lat-er this year after its building was sold for redevelopment. Along with the Al-fredo’s property, the land where Enat Ethiopia Restaurant, Ghezai Auto Repair and a Georgia De-partment of Trans-portation Mainte-nance facility were also sold to make way for a mixed-use de-velopment. A closing date for Alfredo’s has not been announced.

Jamba Juice has opened fi ve new stores in the Atlan-ta market, including two franchises owned by former professional football line-backer Julian Peterson and his wife, Aimee. Th e Atlanta location is at 4279 Roswell Road, Suite 201 and the De-catur location is at 2052-B North De-catur Road.

If you’re craving a Five Guys burger

and fries while shopping, the chain has opened its sixth location inside Lenox Square in Buckhead. Th e new loca-tion is also off ering Five Guys Milk-shakes, featuring 10 diff erent mix-ins to the vanilla shake base including ba-con, chocolate, Oreos, banana, coff ee and salted caramel.

Mark your calendars for Taste of Dunwoody on Feb. 20 at 7:30 p.m. at the Westin Perimeter Hotel. Th e an-

nual event benefi ts Children’s Health-care of Atlanta. Attendees can enjoy an evening of food provided by more than 25 Dunwoody restaurants, a si-

lent auction, a cash bar and live mu-sic performed by Band X. Tickets are $100 and can be purchased at giving.choa.org/tod.

Newk’s Eatery has opened new lo-cations at Th e Forum on Peachtree Parkway and in Dunwoody adja-cent to Perimeter Mall. Th e fast-casu-al sandwich, pizza and salad shop also has other locations around metro At-lanta, including Brookhaven.

Piccadilly Cafeteria closed its lo-cation on North Druid Hills Road on Jan. 3. Th e cafeteria, originally a Mor-rison’s, had been at the spot since the 1960s, according to Tomorrow’s News Today. Children’s Healthcare of Atlan-ta will expand into the property.

QuickBites: News You Can Eat

SPECIAL

Newk’s Eatery, a fast-casual sandwich, pizza and salad shop, has opened in

Dunwoody, near Perimeter Mall.


BY MEGAN VOLPERTThere is so much good food at Ponce

City Market and I want to tell you all about how to approach that delightful challenge, but first, I feel a moral obliga-tion to warn you about the parking.

Huge urban lifestyle complexes like this often get a rocky start, so I let this market breathe for a full month before checking it out. You can pay for parking in one of two ways, either use the machine

or an app. Well, it’s chilly out and I don’t want to stand around messing with my smartphone, so the machine wins – which means I lose a full five minutes repeatedly force-feeding my credit cards into an un-sympathetic box to no avail.

We marched inside in a huff, joining a lingering crew of complainers similarly be-wildered by parking mishaps. A very nice, very stressed-out young gentleman carry-ing a clipboard asked if he could be of ser-vice. He had suggestions, took notes, tried to remember to smile. Ten minutes later, we were officially off the hook for paying.

A dozen friends of mine have been to PCM, at 675 Ponce de Leon Avenue in Atlanta, and all report similar situa-tions – except for this one smug millenni-al I know who just said he hadn’t noticed parking problems because he’d always ei-ther walked there from the BeltLine or cy-cled his way to the rooftop bike valet.

Anyway, on to the eats. Let us begin by declaring a clear winner of the epic bat-tle of cuisine taking place at Ponce City Market’s Central Food Hall. I’m speaking of course of Linton Hopkins versus Lin-ton Hopkins: amazing fried chicken sand-wiches versus the classic diner burger. If you can only get one or the other, go to Hop’s Chicken instead of H&F Burger. The chicken on a biscuit was divine and the chicken on a bun was almost as great.

I’ve eaten the Holeman & Finch burg-er many times: when it was offered in lim-ited edition on the late night menu, when it was offered in an unlimited supply at brunch, when it was offered on a mas-sive scale at Turner Field, and now this. I

have to say, the more that burger proliferates, the less I like it somehow. But any way you like it, Linton Hopkins is certainly the current champion of fast-casual dining in Atlanta.

Amongst the artisans in the Food Hall there are two gems: Simply Seoul Kitchen and 18.21 Bit-ters. Eat at the former and drink at the latter. The so-called “Kimchi Queen” of

Atlanta, Hannah Chung, is responsible for Simply Seoul and she makes a mean mushroom bun. 18.21 Bitters is not actu-ally a bar, but I found myself engaged in an impromptu tasting of tinctures and bit-ters that included a half dozen of the best tastes I had at PCM. Took home three small bottles of magic and can’t wait to serve my smug millennial friend.

One of the best things about PCM is the overabundance of beverage options: cold-pressed juices at Lucky Lotus, whis-keys at Brezza Cucina, coffees at Dancing Goats, shakes and floats at H&F Burg-er, tequilas at Minero, flavored seltzers at W.H. Stiles Fish Camp and even popsi-cles at King of Pops. Whatever your mood at whatever time of day, you have great choices. If wandering through the cavern-ous West Elm store for hours is your idea of a good time, you could go from coffee to smoothie to cocktail quite easily.

I went to Ponce City Market with four other people. Each of us ran off in a dif-ferent direction and we reconvened a half hour later to assemble a giant potluck of basically everything in the Central Food Hall. All of it was delicious, most of it was reasonably priced, and everyone had a blast picking at the cornucopia.

We really got to know each other bet-ter by the food we brought back, what we tried and what we liked. My personal highlight was Fish Camp’s crab beignets.

Megan Volpert lives in Decatur, teaches in Roswell and writes books about popular cul-ture. Send feedback to [email protected]. For more on Ponce City Market: poncecitymarket.com.

D I N I N G O U T

Ultimately, it’s your experience that matters.

650 Phipps Boulevard NE • Atlanta, GAwww.ThePiedmontatBuckhead.com • 404.381.1743

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To be sure, we’re proud of our 27 years of experience in senior living. But, to us, what really matters is your experience at our communities. We do everything with that idea clearly in mind. So, go ahead, enjoy yourself with great social opportunities and amenities. Savor fine dining every day. And feel assured that assisted living services are always available if needed. We invite you to experience The Piedmont for yourself at a complimentary lunch and tour. Please call 404.381.1743 to schedule.

Ask about our Assisted Living services.Supportive services are available at The Piedmont. See how a little help can give you so much peace of mind.

Ponce City Market offers plenty of good food selections

Res ta u r a n t R e v i ew

SPECIAL PHOTOS

Top right, food and drinks from Simple Seoul Kitchen and Lucky Lotus at Ponce

City Market. Above, the view of the Central Food Hall from the market’s mezzanine.

C O M M E N T A R Y


Atlanta Region’s Plan provides 25-year road map to move our region forward

Th e Atlanta region is one of the largest, most dynamic metropolitan areas in the country. What will it take to ensure that we remain competitive in the coming de-cades, with a high quality of life?

Th e Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) and its community partners have been working for more than a year to ad-dress this question. Th e result is the Atlan-ta Region’s Plan, a long-range blueprint that incorporates all of ARC’s planning areas – transportation, community devel-opment, water resources, aging and health services, and workforce development.

Th e 25-year plan focuses on three key areas: providing world-class infrastruc-ture, building a competitive economy and ensuring the region is comprised of healthy, livable communities.

Th ese are ambitious goals, to be sure – even more so when you consider that we’ll be adding 2.5 million people by 2040, the equivalent of metro Charlotte. But we must aim high if we are to ensure our fu-ture success.

Th is means fos-tering vibrant, walk-able communities and improved hous-ing options, including the ability for older adults to age in place. It means developing a highly educated and skilled workforce that is able to meet the needs of 21st centu-ry employers. And it means making care-fully targeted invest-ments to maintain and expand our trans-portation system.

Th e Atlanta Re-gion’s Plan includes $86 billion in trans-portation spending through 2040. About two-thirds is needed to maintain our exist-ing system. Of the rest, the plan commits: $10 billion to widen roads and improve highway interchanges by 2020; $6.5 bil-lion to build a network of managed toll lanes, promising a reliable, free-fl owing ride to commuters willing to carpool, ride a bus or pay a toll; and $12 billion for transit expansion projects.

We all know that the north Atlan-ta communities of Sandy Springs, Buck-head, Dunwoody and Brookhaven are home to some of the region’s worst traffi c. New businesses, apartment towers and other development fl ocking to the area promise to bring even more vehicles to

already crowded thorough-fares.

Th e Atlanta Region’s Plan includes a number of im-portant transportation proj-ects that are planned in and around the Sandy Springs, Buckhead, Dunwoody and Brookhaven areas.

In what will be one of the biggest road projects in state history, the Georgia Department of Transporta-tion will soon begin recon-struction of the interchange at Ga. 400 and I-285. Th e enhancements will improve safety and traffi c fl ow in this highly congested area. Flyover ramps will eliminate unsafe and ineffi cient left-hand merges, and new collector-distribu-tor lanes will separate through traffi c from vehicles that are entering and exiting via ramps on both I-285 and Ga. 400.

Looking a bit further down the road, the state DOT plans to build managed toll lanes along the Ga. 400 and I-285 “top end” perimeter corridors. Th e Ga. 400 project will build two managed lanes in each direction (four total) between I-285 and Holcomb Bridge Road, and one managed lane in each direction (two total) between Holcomb Bridge and Mc-Farland Parkway in Forsyth County. Th e confi guration for the I-285 project is still being evaluated.

Th ese projects are programmed for the latter portion of the 25-year plan, at a combined cost of $2.4 billion.

Another key project will remake a one-mile stretch of Roswell Road just north of the Chattahoochee Riv-er. Th e existing reversible lane system will be removed in favor of a median-divid-ed, four-lane roadway with a multi-use path on both sides of the thoroughfare. An ad-ditional northbound turn lane will be built at the Ga. 120 intersection.

Construction on the $22.9 million project, ex-pected to begin by 2024, was identifi ed through ARC’s highly acclaimed Livable

Centers Initiative program.Meanwhile, MARTA is planning an

extension of the Red Line along Ga. 400. An initial phase would extend the line north to Holcomb Bridge Road with sta-tions at Northridge and Holcomb Bridge

roads. A second phase would extend to Windward Parkway in Alpharetta. Unless additional funding is secured, construction will not begin on the fi rst phase until the latter years of the 25-year plan.

It’s important to note that there’s no way we can build our way out of conges-tion. Traffi c is an inev-itable part of a healthy, growing economy. Th at doesn’t mean there’s nothing we can do to improve mo-bility – only that the long-term solution must include a robust, truly regional transit network to give com-muters new ways of

bypassing the gridlock.Th ese are just some of the highlights of

our new long-range plan. To learn more, I encourage you to visit www.atlantare-gionsplan.com.

Please let us know what you think. ARC is accepting public comment about the plan through Jan. 15. You can send us an email at [email protected] and take an online survey at atlantar-egionsplan.metroquest.com.

John Orr is the manager of the Atlanta Regional Commission’s transportation and mobility division.

JOHNORR

GUEST COLUMN

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The planned reconstruction of the I-285 and Ga. 400 interchange will be one of the biggest road projects in the state’s history.

C O M M U N I T Y


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More Barfi eld relatives oppose renaming road for Mercedes


Benz Drive.” Th e company has not yet fi led a formal request, which will involve neighborhood notifi cation and a public meeting, a city spokeswoman said.

Th e renaming drew opposition from Nancy Kite of Hapeville, a descendent of William Monroe Barfi eld, the last owner of the family farm for which the street is named. She called the renaming a “slap in the face.”

Natalie Barfi eld said she and six other family members—including her father and grandmother—also oppose the re-naming. Like Kite, they do not live in Sandy Springs and learned of the street’s history through news reports.

Th e Barfi eld Road name should stay, Natalie Barfi eld said, “basically to keep my heritage and show my kids that’s my family’s road.” She added that local-ly known names are as important as fa-mous ones.

“Is our city and state government go-ing to allow big companies to come into our state, give those companies millions of dollars of incentives and tax breaks and also allow them to rename roads and take away Georgia’s history and my heritage?” Natalie asked in her letter to city and state offi cials.

In emailed responses provided by Natalie Barfi eld, City Councilman Ken Dishman said her perspective will factor into his decision and Mayor Rusty Paul said “the name change for a portion of the road to refl ect our changing history in no way diminishes our recognition of our more distant past.”

MBUSA did not respond to ques-tions. But the company has said oppo-sition would not stop its proposal and that putting the company’s name on its headquarters street is itself a tradition.

In Montvale, Fyfe said, several pro-posals are “being knocked around in terms of a name change” for Mercedes Drive. One is “DePiero Road,” in honor of a family that sold its century-old farm to MBUSA for its headquarters 40 years ago. Another is “Wegmans Way” to rec-ognize a new shopping center anchored by a Wegmans supermarket going up across the street. A third option is keep-ing the current name because MBUSA will still have a training facility in Mont-vale.

“Some have suggested Fyfe Road,” the mayor added, “but our ordinance only allows using the name of deceased former mayors and I’m not in any hurry to join that club.”

SS

C O M M U N I T Y


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Sandy Springs 5252 Roswell Road, Suite 202 | Atlanta, GA 30342 404.252.4908The property information herein is derived from various sources that may include, but not be limited to, county records and the Multiple Listing Service and it may include approximations. Although the information is believed to be accurate, it is not warranted and you should not rely upon it without personal verification. Real estate agents affiliated with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage are independent contractor agents and are not employees of the Company. ©2015 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Operated by a subsidiary of NRT LLC. Coldwell Banker, the Coldwell Banker logo, Coldwell Banker Previews International and the Previews logo are registered and unregistered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. 11146_ATL_08/15 Administered by American Home Shield

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1002 Garden Court - $219,000Cynthia Wallace 678-488-7771

Immaculate end unit & largest floorplan in The Gardens. 2 sty entry foyer opens to vaulted fireside great rm. Eat-in

kitchen w/custom cabinetry, SS appliances, breakfast bay & pantry. Master suite w/renovated spa bath & custom walk-in closet. Separate storage rm. Private

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625 Mount Vernon Highway - $1,875,000Debbie Sonenshine 404-250-5311

Spitzmiller & Norris Architect, Robert Fields premier builder, Alec Michaelides top landscape designer at

LandPlus and Kay Van Doren designed interior. Custom moldings, heart pine floors & beams, custom solid

doors, extra insulation, cabinetry by Charles Reinike.

1866 Olde Village Run - $639,900Karyn Feinberg 404-309-9018

Dunwoody’s top schools in Village Mill. Over $200K on new mstr wing w/2 walk-in closets, fp, sitting area, oversized

bedroom, glam bath w/dbl vanities, stone shower & heated flrs. Kit w/all the bells & whistles. Kit open to family rm that opens to screened porch. Backyard is fenced, flat, grassy & even has a bridge! All baths recently renov!

2260 Gracehaven Way - $725,000Michelle Irastorza 678-522-4448

John Wieland custom home w/hardwood floors, custom built-ins & high-end finishes. Master suite offers his & hers dual master baths & closets, soaking tub & owners retreat complete w/morning kitchen. Owner added over $80K in upgrades, including custom plantation shutters, irrigation

system, Prof. landscaping & terrace lvl paver patio & walkway.

10301 Papillon Trace - $655,000 Cindy Wallace 678-488-7771

Private .97 acre lot. Eat-in kit, vaulted fireside great rm w/exposed wood beams. Gorgeous landscap-ing & gunite pool w/hot tub. Main floor master w/

fireplace, spa bath & his/hers walk-in closets. Sep study & banquet size dining rm. Finished terrace lvl, hdwd flrs, trim details & plantation shutters.

2990 Coles Way - $599,500Debbie Sonenshine 404-250-5311

One of the best lots in the area, private, level play area, huge deck, stone patio on quiet cul-de-sac street. Huge kitchen. Office/study, banquet size dining room, great room & sun room on main. Big bedrooms up w/

hardwood floors & built-in custom closets. Terrace level offers playroom, gym/bedroom, full bath & fireplace.

10 Quarry Lake Court - $995,000Michele Hirsh 404-277-9886

Karen Tompkins 404-273-66072 sty foyer w/marble floors. Banquet size dining rm, 2 sty living

rm w/frpl. Kit w/tons of cabinets, granite counter tops, SS appliances & lge walk-in pantry. Kit overlooks breakfast area & fireside keeping rm. Master suite on main w/frpl & pvt deck, bath w/His & Hers walk-in closets. 4 BR up, daylight finished

terrace lvl. Brick patio w/gunite pool, fenced backyard.

4249 Parkside Drive - $500,000Nancy Puffe 770-262-1859

Coffered ceiling in great rm, bookshelves & opens to a very large kit w/HUGE island. Mud rm in laundry rm just off the kit. Hardwood flrs & 10 inch trim on main lvl. Formal living rm & dining rm, & study completes the main level. Upper level w/beautiful master suite, 3 additional BR, 3 BA, den/media/playroom. Large porch next to “Flagstone Patio”.

Additional patio between side of house & 3rd car garage.

Administered by American Home Shield

Sandy Springs5252 Roswell Road, Suite 202 | Atlanta, GA 30342404.252.4908

For two days only, S i lver Restora t ion Expert Joni McMahan will be at our store to provide free recom-me n d a t i o n s a n d estimates on bringing

new life back to your old sterling & silverplated heirlooms. Missing parts replaced. Broken pieces repaired. Sterling silver polished. Replating too! You’ll love entertaining again with your family silver or just having it restored to pass along to the next generation. So gather up your old silver today and come Save 20% Off!

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Eaves to speak at MLK Day event Sandy Springs’ annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration on Jan. 18 will feature

a keynote address by Fulton County Chairman John Eaves. Th e 10 a.m. event also will include the announcement of the honor-ee of the city’s Humanitarian Award, which has been given an-nually since 2007.

Th e MLK Day Community Celebration is free and open to the public. It will be held in the City Council chamber at City Hall, 7480 Roswell Road, Building 500.

City buys shuttered gas station Th e city is buying a long-shuttered gas station at 8475 Roswell Road, between Sul-

livan Road and Hightower Trail, as “land banking” in the hopes of sparking redevelop-ment.

Th e $630,000 purchase from Tucker-based Triton Enterprises was approved by City Council on Jan. 5. Th e station closed 11 years ago and has been on the market many times without a sale, city offi cials said. Th ere is no specifi c plan yet for the property, making it the city’s fi rst speculative land-banking purchase, city spokeswoman Sharon Kraun said.

“We’ll be eliminating the biggest eyesore on Roswell Road,” said City Councilman Ken Dishman. Mayor Rusty Paul agreed, saying, “Th e only way we could make it pret-ty…is to be able to buy this and do it ourselves.”

Offi cials said gas tanks already were removed and that the purchase price was $50,000 below the appraised value.

Homeowners off the hook for sidewalksSandy Springs’ single-family homeowners are off the hook for building new sidewalks in front of their houses for now—and maybe for good, as the city considers ways to pay for such projects out of municipal coff ers.

In its quest to create sidewalks, City Council has repeatedly tweaked a policy that re-quires certain redevelopments to pay for new sidewalks. Th e latest revision in Septem-ber required builders of single-family homes located on a Sidewalk Master Plan to either build sidewalks or pay into a city construction fund at a rate of $100 per foot of street frontage. Builders also could request a waiver for “hardships.”

Since then, there has been a large number of waiver requests, and the buy-out fee may have been unintentionally calculated higher than necessary, city offi cials said at the Jan. 5 City Council meeting.

New developer takes onRoswell Road project

Davis Development is the new developer of the mixed-use project planned for 6075-6077 Roswell Road, according to property owner Kirk Demetrops of MidCity Real Es-tate Partners. Camden USA pulled out of the high-profi le project late last year.

“We got a strong group that intends to move forward with the project as approved,” Demetrops said, calling Georgia-based Davis a “really top-notch developer of multi-family housing.”

Th e 4-acre project would replace an existing offi ce building and post offi ce with 291 apartment units, commercial space and a parking deck. Construction may start late this year after existing tenants’ leases expire, Demetrops said.

BRIEFS


C O M M U N I T YWinter 2016 Education Guide

Editor’s note: In this issue, Reporter Newspapers presents its � rst “20 Under 20,” a special feature adapted from our sister publication

Atlanta INtown. We asked leaders of local public and private schools to recommend students who have gone above and beyond the norm to

improve their communities. We received an impressive list of nominees and selected the 20 pro� led on the following pages, young

people who strive to make their world a better place.

Preschool – 12. Family. Community.mountvernonschool.org404.252.3448

CURIOSITY & PASSIONdrive learning. When students explore their questions, passions, and interests they make connections that inspire original ideas to impact the world. Embraced by a Christian community, Mount Vernon students are the new generation of innovative thinkers, engaged citizens, and compassionate leaders.

Group ToursPreschool – Grade 4 1/13 & 2/17 at 9:30 a.m.Grades 5 – 6 1/27 & 2/23 at 9:30 a.m.Grades 7 – 12 1/20 & 2/03 at 8:30 a.m.

leadersimpact-ready

Growing up with dogs, Hal-ey has always loved ani-

mals. When she was 9, Haley decided she want-ed to help homeless pets, so she created the King-swood Fun Run to benefi t the Atlanta Humane Soci-ety (AHS). With the sup-port of her parents, Tim and Christy Hooper, the sixth an-nual run was held last August and raised $15,000. She has raised more than $25,000 for AHS since starting the run. When she went to turn in the 2015 event’s donations, she was honored by the AHS staff and told that her contributions had saved 70 dogs from a puppy

mill earlier that same week. “Making a diff erence in an animal’s life is such a rewarding experience,” Haley said. “I knew, along with my parents, that all the hard work and participation of dozens of people, was paying off to help improve the lives of hundreds of sweet animals. I cannot wait to start planning for next year’s race on Au-gust 13, 2016!”

Haley Hooper, 15The Lovett School

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E D U C A T I O N G U I D E

Vajraang Kamat, 18North Atlanta High School

Natalie Peek, 17Riverwood International

Charter School

During the past four years, Vajraang, the son of Samir Ka-mat and Bindu Bal-

akrishnan, has volunteered more than 2,000 hours in lo-cal, national and internation-al projects for Embracing the World, a United Nations-rec-ognized international human-itarian organization. Locally, he volunteers in the Atlanta chapter, par-ticipating in park cleanups, shelter kitch-ens and fundraisers. He’s also the coordina-tor of the Southeast chapter of Ayudh, the youth wing of Embracing the World. Nationally, Vajraang tours the U.S. every summer and Th anksgiving break, trav-eling to 14 cities to participate in various humanitarian activities and fundrais-ers. Internationally, he shadows Ammachi labs in south India, which focuses on technological humanitarian projects. As chief designer for the North Atlan-ta Robotics Team, he merged his work in Ayudh with robotics to design and

build a tree-planting robot. Vajraange and his team-mates shut down their laptops to help clear Stand-ing Peachtree Park along the Chattahoochee Riv-er. “Once our robots are built, we hope to bring them to the park and put them to good use here,” he said. “Th ough what we do is small, we plan to keep it alive. We hope to keep working on and main-taining this park, and, with the help of our robots, show how technology and service can go hand in hand for the betterment of society.” w w

In March, Natalie Peek or-ganized a group of her fellow students to trav-el to Selma, Ala., to

mark the 50th anniversa-ry of “Bloody Sunday,” a day student Civil Rights ac-tivists were beaten by state troopers and police during an attempted march across the Ed-mund Pettus Bridge. Th at confron-tation was part of the campaign that led to the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Natalie put together a program that included a visit to the Center for Civil and Human Rights in At-lanta, a screening of the movie “Selma,” and the trip to Alabama to take part in the anniversary march across the Pettus bridge. She says she plans to return this year to join the 2016 commemoration. “Th e combination of learning, watching and then experiencing civ-il rights in action was truly amazing,” Natalie said. “To walk with 100,000

other people, 32 out of the multitude from Riverwood, for the same hope of marching closer to equality, em-powered the students on the trip.”Natalie now is raising money to buy works by Rep. John Lewis (D-Atlanta), who led the 1965 march, for ninth grade English classes. Natalie is the daugh-ter of Tim Peek and Helen Ingebritsen.

Bridging Human Interaction

Group Classes ■ Private Tutoring Corporate Classes

Transcription Translation & Interpretation

Services

[email protected] ■ 404.444.1532

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A community of 1,375 students, ages 3-years-old through 12th Grade.

Discovering Everything Except Their Limits.

Learn more and apply online at www.hies.org.

In the right atmosphere, students take chances and seek

out challenges. With the right mentors, students discover interests and passions they

never knew they had.

Jan_2016_HIES_Reporter.indd 1 12/3/15 12:19 PM



Evan Mercer, 18The Lovett School

Evan has single-handedly run Lovett’s six-week Habitat for Hu-

manity build for the past two years - volunteering himself and getting his peers involved. Evan be-came interested in Habi-tat for Humanity after go-ing on a Lovett service trip to New Orleans, where he worked on housing restoration projects. “Habitat has opened my eyes to a lot of things,” Evan said. “I have been able to work with families and help them attain one of the basic necessities of life while gaining exposure to the technicalities of home construction. I have also been able to experience the communities I live around,

which has familiarized me with the socioeconomic and racial divisions in Atlanta.” Evan, the son of Claire and Todd Mercer, said the biggest reward is the dedication of the home. “At the end of each build, Habitat for Human-ity dedicates the house, and it’s great to see how appre-ciative the homeowner and his or her family are. It feels good to see our impact and the result of our hard work.”

Saachi Datta, 16The Galloway School

Saachi was chosen as a Giving Point Institute member this year because

of her work creating an organization called Manāna, which col-lects donations to throw birthday parties for un-derprivileged kids. When asked about her most memorable moment giv-ing back, Saachi said, “It is hard to choose just one mem-orable moment because the last two years with Manāna have been unforgettable. However, there was one event, the memory of which I will always cherish. Walking into the Agape Center to set up for our second celebration, the volunteers and I were excited to surprise the children who did not know that we were returning. When they realized that we had come back, their shrieks of de-

light were piercing and their enthusiasm was infectious. A little girl, barely 5 years old, came fl ying up to me, nearly knock-ing me over, and gave me the tightest hug she could. ‘I remember you! I’m so happy! I just turned fi ve!’ she said. Th at one large smile on her face went straight to my heart. It made me appreciate that we do have the power to aff ect others, whether it be one smile or many smiles. I realized then that Manāna’s mission – to celebrate children’s lives – had come to

fruition, and my commitment to the cause was sealed.” Saahi is the daughter of Jaydip Datta and Sarita Kansal.

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Enrolling NOW for Fall 2016!

Summer Camp Registration begins Jan. 25!

Call or email to schedule your personalized tour! 404.603.5759 [email protected]

Ahava Early Learning Center

Explore Our Reggio Emilia-Inspired Preschool!

Ahava Early Learning Center welcomes all children regardless of race, ethnicity or religion.

Visit our website at www.ahavalearning.org or call 404-603-5759.

Ahavath Achim Synagogue | 600 Peachtree Battle Avenue NW | Atlanta, GA 30327

Flexible Schedule Options

Open 7:30 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Year-Round Program

Low Student : Teacher Ratios

Scholarships available!

Open Houses: 1/25, 2/22, 3/23 & 5/11

9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m.

www.wesleyanschool.org/admissions

We are Christ-centered. We are invested in students. We are academically stimulating.

We are WESLEYAN

BUS SHUTTLE ROUTES 2015-16Decatur/Stone Mountain, Dunwoody, Johns Creek, Roswell,

Sandy Springs/Brookhaven, and Suwanee/Duluth

Join us for our Family Open House on January 9 at 1:00 p.m.Our largest admissions event of the year!



Which Test: SAT or ACT? As founder of Applerouth Tutoring, I help parents navigate the complicated world of college admissions testing. Parents know the ACT is an alternative to the SAT, but they often do not know how to help their student choose between the two tests. Recently instituted changes to both tests contribute to the uncertainty.

Students tend to feel more comfortable with one test format over the other. Over the past fifteen years, I’ve seen time and again how that extra comfort can translate into a significantly higher score. It’s important to make as informed a decision as possible about your student’s test preparation. Making an Informed DecisionStudents became familiar with the New SAT format when they took the redesigned PSAT in October, but not all students have taken the ACT equivalent, the Aspire. Parents often ask how they can use just a PSAT score to make this important decision.

The easiest way to make this decision is to have your student take a mock ACT so that you can compare the ACT result with its PSAT counterpart, once scores are released January 2016. Compare your student’s percentile rankings on the two tests, and then put your energy into the test your student feels most comfortable with and excels most naturally at.

A lot of benefit is derived from using meaningful data to inform your decision. When students find out early which test is a best fit, they avoid unnecessary stress and frustration. Junior year is often the most demanding year of high school. There is a way to make at least the standardized testing experience more productive and manageable.

Find Out MoreYou can speak with me and learn more about these tests at one of our upcoming FREE EVERYTHING COLLEGE ADMISSIONS SEMINARS:

To view more information about locations or to preregister, go to applerouth.com/calendar or call 404-728-0661.

January 16th 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Wyndham Powers FerryAtlanta, GA 30339

February 6th 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. FLC at Second Ponce

Baptist ChurchAtlanta, GA 30305

January 19th 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

DoubleTree HotelRoswell, GA 30076

February 20th 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Roam DunwoodyAtlanta, GA 30338

Ti� any Wills, 17Marist School

A wide range of volunteer work decorates Tiff any Wills’ re-sume. She’s volunteered at Marist, at Feldwood Elemen-

tary school, at a senior citizens’ com-munity, with Kiwanis International K-Kids, Hands on Atlanta and Habitat for Humanity. As a Girl Scout, she focused her eff orts on helping younger girls feel bet-ter about themselves and succeed in life. As part of a year-long scout project she called “Looking Past Society’s Image,” she worked with a group of fi fth graders to discuss the impact of society’s views on their self-images. “One of the most memorable moments was when I had the girls go home and talk to fe-male role models about self-image and self-esteem,” Tiff any said. “When they re-turned, I could see the impact of our discussion and the work they created to help themselves the next day. I was truly empowering these girls, and I could see that I was making a positive change in their lives.” Tiff any is the daughter of Teresa Dallas-Wills.

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Will Epperson, 17Holy Innocents’

Episcopal School

A Type 1 dia-betic, Will has not let that defi ne

him. Instead, he has worked hard to raise money for JDRF (Ju-venile Diabetes Re-search Foundation), and to help make HIES the top-grossing school in the nation for seven years in a row in the JDRF Fall Walk. With Will as captain of this year’s walk, HIES raised $93,000 for JDRF. When HIES began collecting bottles of clean drinking water for victims of fl ooding in South Carolina, Will was one of a handful of students who not only helped to load two trucks and a bus, but also went to the state and helped unload the water. He also volunteered at Camp Hope, a weeklong camp for the children of those who are incarcerated, and at AYUDA Inc., a nonprofi t that delivers di-abetes education to those in the Dominican Republic and other countries. Will, the son of Natalie and Tom Epperson, was a volunteer, fundraiser, mentor and camp counselor for AYUDA this past summer for three weeks, raising $7,000 for the program, and being promoted to mentor for the summer of 2016. One of his most memorable moments was spending last summer in Latin America to educate those living with diabetes. “I was thanked by people who I had never seen before nor spoken to,” he recalled. “It really showed me how much it meant to the campers and their families that we were there to teach them about how to live with diabetes.”

5645 Dupree Drive, Sandy Springs, GA 30327www.templesinaiatlanta.org

Temple Sinai has a remarkable and exciting educational experience waiting for your child in each of

our programs from ages 12 months throughTransitional Kindergarten.

For more information or to schedule a tour of the preschool, please call 404.255.6200.

With a focus on academics through play, we offer small classes, an experienced staff, and modern classrooms filled

with developmentally appropriate resources.

BEYOND EXPECTATIONS

To learn more and register for an admissions tour, visit gallowayschool.org/admissions

At Galloway, students (age 3-grade 12) are inspired to be fearless learners, to embrace challenges, and to discover

more about themselves and the world around them.

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E D U C A T I O N G U I D EConnecting learning to life at every level.

paceacademy.org/icgl

In October, students explored the 2015–2016 Isdell Center for Global Leadership (ICGL) theme of FOOD during a study tour to California.

Photograph by ICGL Director TRISH ANDERSON

APPLICATION DEADLINE:

www.aischool.org ��•o,,•,i IBCONTINUUM �',

�, CONTINUUMDEL'IB

..-Q,..owno.� CONTINUO DEL IB

JANUARY 31, 2016 ti • .,�

INTERNATIONAL - ,SCHW-

Sofi a Bro� man, 18Atlanta Girls’ School

Julie Street, 15The Westminster Schools

Sofi a Broff man began raising funds in 2014 for the Fistu-la Foundation, after learning more about the long-term ef-

fects of obstetric fi stula, a birth in-jury that affl icts women who do not have access to maternal healthcare. Fis-tula occurs in the world’s most desti-tute countries and causes permanent in-continence. Fistula surgery is not glamorous, but it can save a young woman from a life-time of shame. Sofi a, the daughter of Neal Broff -man and Elisa Gambino, has raised enough money for eight repair surgeries. Last summer, Sofi a interned at the nonprofi t, youthSpark, and developed a national art com-petition called stART 2 END, in an eff ort to inform her peers and address the issue of child sex traffi cking. “I have come to realize the injustices that are the hardest to talk about often refl ect where the need is greatest,” she says. “I will continue this work be-cause needed change does not evolve from silence.”

In seventh grade, Julie found the perfect outlet for her love of serv-ing in the National Charity League (NCL), a mother-daughter service

organization committed to community service and leadership. Th rough NCL, she has volunteered hundreds of hours to help organizations such as Operation Grat-itude, Agape, Furkids, Buckhead Christian Ministries, Ronald McDonald House, Hospice Atlanta, Atlanta Food Bank and the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Julie, the daughter of Randy and Holly Street, is a particularly devoted volunteer for Operation Gratitude, which sends care packages to veterans and active duty military personnel. Over the past 18 months, Julie has devoted over 150 hours serving Operation Gratitude, and has been involved from the beginning of the partnership between NCL Buckhead and Operation Gratitude. Julie researched paracord bracelet materials, deter-mining where they could be sourced most economically, and created hundreds of ready-to-assemble paracord kits so that the local members of NCL could weave bracelets for the care boxes. She personally wove over 300 bracelets. Speaking about Operation Gratitude, Julie said, “Th is organization sends over 150,000 care packages a year to active duty mil-itary. Reaching out to them was really meaningful for me because four generations of my family have served the U.S. forces in the past century, including my own uncle who has spent fi ve years in both Iraq and Afghanistan.”

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Zack Leitz, 19University of Georgia

Haley Todd, 18Mount Vernon

Presbyterian School

Disturbed by the homeless-ness he saw in Athens and Atlanta, Zack, a recent Dunwoody High School

graduate and the son of Jane and Bar-ry Leitz, founded a Georgia nonprof-it called Th e Backpack Project. People working with the project fi ll backpacks with over 40 items of food, clothes and toiletries, and then deliver the backpacks to homeless people, “establishing a person-al connection in the process,” he says. So far, he says, the project has delivered more than 350 back-packs. “Every person we meet has a diff erent story to tell, but I will share one that has impacted me the most,” Zack said. “A man named Tony, homeless on the streets of Ath-ens, was the second of many to receive a backpack from us.... As we walked back to the car to pick up another load, we passed by Tony again. By this time, he had had sever-al minutes to look through the backpack and its contents. Tony stopped us, and with tears in his eyes, he thanked us and explained that everything he owned had been stolen from him the previous night. He shared with us that the backpack we gave him replaced almost everything that was taken from him. Th at experience, along with many others since then, makes me confi dent about the work that I do with Th e Backpack Project.”

At Mount Vernon, Haley Todd plans each of the Up-per School’s chapels and oversees spiritual organiza-

tions such as Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Young Life. As president of the Creative Writing Club, she led a letter-writing initiative for healthcare workers in impoverished nations. Out-side school, Haley volunteers frequently with Families of Children Under Stress (FO-CUS), where she works with children who have special needs. “A really cool opportunity I had recently was at a middle school church re-treat. Another small-group leader announced that his group had a boy in a wheelchair, and he was seeking advice. Because I also volunteer with children with disabilities, I of-fered suggestions about the best way to navigate hills and about being comfortable lift-ing people out of their wheelchairs.” Haley is the daughter of Amy and Russell Todd.



RSVP by January 18 to Rise Arkin, Director of Admissions · 404-917-2500 ext. 117 · [email protected]

Words can’t describe it. A visit will.Join us Wednesday, January 27 from

8:30 - 10:00 am for our Parent Open House!

RSVP by January 18 to Rise Arkin, Director of Admissions · 404-917-2500 ext. 117 · [email protected]

Tour in Small Groups. Attend Classes. Meet our Faculty.

Casey Gentry, 16North Atlanta

High School

Casey has volunteered for the Susan G. Komen Foundation, cleaned cages for FurKids, prepared and served meals at

Ronald McDonald House, made para-cord bracelets for military members for Operation Gratitude as well as volun-teered at Children’s Healthcare of At-lanta, Chastain Th erapeutic Riding Pro-gram, City of Refuge and Northside Shepherd Senior Center. Casey also re-ceived the President’s Volunteer Ser-vice award for National Charity League (NCL), a mother-daughter service or-

ganization. Th e daughter of Kathy and Boyd Gentry, Casey said one of her cher-ished memories was one night when she volunteering at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta where she met a young patient who spoke no English and whose fam-ily had returned to Mexico. “I stayed with him for the rest of the night, learn-ing about how his family went back to their home in Mexico and wouldn’t see him for another month,” she said. “Th is experience opened my eyes to my aff ect on others and made me feel more use-ful than many other days in my life. Vol-unteering has shaped who I am and giv-en me my identity that today I can be proud of.”



UnlockingPotential

confidence creativity

reading

right brain

life skills

analysis

science

left brain

Swift School300 Grimes Bridge RoadRoswell, GA 30075678.205.4988www.theswiftschool.org

JAN. 23

Open House

10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

ROLLING ADMISSION

JULY 5 - 22

Summer Explorations

[email protected]

A WORLD OF WONDER

CLOSER LOOK.

The Westminster Schools

Take a

www.westminster.net

From observing sunspots during science labs to seeing the world

from a global perspective, our community of vibrant learners

never stops exploring. Picture the possibilities.

Parent Information Sessions Available | Learn More Online

Samantha Daly, 16Dunwoody High School

Prashanth Kumar, 16Pace Academy

One of Saman-tha Daly’s passions is reading, her mother says, and when Saman-

tha found out Covenant House, a residence for troubled youth in At-lanta had no library, she decided to pitch in. She created a lending library by renovating and furnishing a room to house it, and collecting and cataloging 1,753 donated books to fi ll it. Samantha, daughter of Donna and Jack Daly, has been involved in other charity works – donating her hair to Locks of Love, volunteering to serve meals at a homeless shelter, rais-ing money for Haitian hurricane victims – but says “this was my most memorable mo-ment of volunteerism because having the ability to see fi rst-hand the impact that I made on the young adults’ lives was overwhelmingly rewarding. “I was able to speak to the youth and staff , and hear them talk about how excited they were about the library. It made all of my hard work worthwhile,” she said. “Th e pur-pose of volunteering is to better other peoples’ lives, and being able to see that you have made a signifi cant diff erence is truly a life-changing experience.”

For the past four years, Prashan-th has traveled to Tirunelve-li, India, to volunteer at Gal-axy Hospital and Kidney

Care Center, where he translates for doctors during procedures and helps comfort patients. Th is work also led to hosting blood drives in the small town and other places in India. He also teaches at a local Tamil school every Sunday, teach-ing the Tamil language to children and serves as a peer tutor for Pace’s Academic Resource Cen-ter. Prashanth, the son of Krishnan Kumar and Sun-dari Ganesan, is also a counselor for the Middle School MathCounts program and Low-er School chess team. He said that his trips to India each summer have inspired his career path. “Going to volunteer in India solidifi ed my aspiration to be a doctor, as it is clearly a job that would immensely change the lives of any community,” he said. “[Th e trips] nour-ish my internal drive to help make the world one in which all people, irrespective of what country they are in, have the same chance to thrive.”

Madeleine, daughter of Dean and Janice Howell, takes action against human traf-

fi cking. As co-leader of AIS Against Human Traffi cking, she’s put to-gether a panel discussion on the is-sue, helped organize a fashion show that raised $2,000 for the cause, and spoken at an international conference. “Th e most memorable moment I’ve had during my time volunteering with Atlanta International School Against Human Traf-fi cking (AISAHT), was when a few of my fellow members and I were invited to speak at a Global Issues Network conference in San Francisco this past fall,” she said. “We presented on human traffi cking, the measures that we’ve taken to combat it, and how we’ve helped victims and people at risk of being traffi cked. Any time I make a presentation on the issue, it’s always amazing to know that I’m spreading awareness on such an important issue. What made this even more special was pre-senting to a group of individuals who seemed to be so aff ected by what we were say-ing and were inspired to join our eff orts in fi ghting human traffi cking.”

Madeleine Howell, 17 Atlanta International School



James Pastan, 18The Westminster

Schools

Morgan Robinson, 17Riverwood Intl

Charter School

James is the founder of Trading Smiles, a nonprofi t or-ganization that

seeks to spread hap-piness and a sense of comfort to homeless kids through trading cards. He collects old trading cards, either from donations from other kids or by buying them in bulk online, and repackages the cards and do-nates them to the Atlanta Chil-dren’s Shelter (ACS). Since the in-ception of Trading Smiles, James has donated more than 4,000 cards to homeless children in Atlanta. Th e organiza-tion was presented at a Yale Young Global Scholars information session in Viet-nam as an example of what Yale Young Global Scholars do in their communities. Since then, he has received emails from students in Vietnam who are interested in getting involved. James, the son of Stephen and Elizabeth Pastan, hopes to reach 10,000 cards donated before he graduates in May. He is working to establish a relationship with a trading card manufacturer or sports team in order to always have a consistent supply of cards and to expand the organization national and in-ternationally. James said meeting and playing with the kids at ACS is a reminder of why he started the nonprofi t. “Every time I drop off a donation at the ACS, I look at the playground and remember why running Trading Smiles is so reward-ing: every card is an invitation to play.”

Morgan has al-ways given of her time to her com-

munity by volunteering with many groups and organizations. Whether it’s helping to build play-grounds with Kaboom, traveling to Birmingham, Ala., for school cleanup projects, planting a com-munity garden for the needy, or holding leadership positions with Sporty Girls, you can always fi nd Morgan giving of her time. Mor-gan also volunteers with Alive Ministries, an or-ganization whose mission is to eliminate hunger for at-risk students in local schools. She also participated in the Haiti Care Mission’s “Th reads of Love” project, a 2011 initiative to collect and donate 5,000 pillowcases for the purpose of making “pillow-case dresses” for infants and young girls in need in Haiti. Th e daughter of Scott and Nathalie Brandon-Robinson, Morgan also collected knitted hats for donation to the neo-natal intensive care unit of Children’s Hospital at Egleston as part of the Middle Years Program Project. “As I toured the NICU and saw the precious bundles of joy to whom my hats would help, I believe my heart was warmed most of all,” she recalled. “Despite being hooked up to countless machines and tubes, the babies had so much life and strength in their little bodies. Ultimately, it was one of the best feelings to know that my actions were possibly adding a sense of comfort to a mother’s life, and most of all, showing them that they were not alone.”

NEW CARD!

Information regarding company, school, or university issued cards will be provided at a later date by your company or school.

Effective January 9, 2016 MARTA converts to a more secure Breeze Card

and the Breeze Ticket returns.

The cost of new silver Breeze Card will be $2 and will be valid for 3 years.

SILVER CARDS will be available for FREE with card registration at the RideStores January 2016!* (Mon. the 11th – Fri. the 29th, weekdays only)

Breeze Card Changes for Regular Fare Customers

*BLUE CARDS will no longer be usable after July 9th, 2017*Breeze Tickets Return! The cost of the Breeze Ticket will be $1

Questions? Visit www.itsmarta.com or 404-848-5000.


E D U C A T I O N G U I D E SEIGAKUIN ATLANTA INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL Japanese-English Bilingual School

Japanese students are world-renowned for their high test scores, discipline, and level of academic achieve-ment. At Seigakuin, your child will learn more than just a second language. They will be educated according to the curriculum set forth by the Japanese Ministry of Education—the very same curriculum that has led Ja-pan to the top of the world in academic success.

3 year olds—6th Grade Absolutely no prior knowledge of Japanese needed for

children 5 and under Christian Values After School available until 6:00 PM

5505 Winters Chapel Rd, Atlanta, GA 30360 TEL: (770) 730-0045 [email protected] www.seig.ac.jp/english/atlanta Facebook: www.facebook.com/seigakuin.atlanta

At Saint Luke’s Little Saints Preschool we honor the individuality of the child as we

prepare each student for elementary school.

■ Fully accredited through AdvancED■ Award winning Creative Curriculum for Preschool■ Classes for 12 months old through Pre-K■ Christian environment

New family registration for the 2016-2017 school year is January 21, 2016. Call Carol Perry, Director to arrange a private tour

770-393-1424, ext. 240.

Anna Kibler, 18Atlanta Girls’ School

Anna has or-ganized and raised more than $6,000

since 2013 for causes such as AID Atlanta and Jerusalem House. Her eff orts have in-cluded email cam-paigns to friends and family, as well as on-cam-pus recruitment of AGS community members. Anna was also selected to be the ser-vice club leader at AGS, where she organizes and plans service proj-ects for the school’s student community. “I chose to volunteer and raise funds for Jerusa-lem House in the AIDS Walk over the last three years,” she said. “Jerusalem House is the oldest and largest organization providing permanent housing and supportive

services for low income and homeless individuals liv-ing with HIV/AIDS. I am passionate about supporting people living with HIV/AIDS because my family has lost dear friends to this horrifi c disease. ... In addition to raising money, I have chosen to expand awareness through my school’s community through participation in the annual AIDS Walk and through a neighborhood dining-out benefi t to raise additional funds. It gives me immense satisfaction that I am able to help others in need in my community.” Anna is the daughter of Ja-net Kibler.

Josie Barton, 17Holy Innocents’

Episcopal School

Ever since she was a young girl, Josie has been a volun-teer at Children’s

Healthcare of Atlanta. In 2012, Josie became part of girlFriends, a volun-teer group of ninth-to-12th-grade girls dedicated to fundraising through-out the school year for Chil-dren’s. She is now co-presi-dent of girlFriends, which raised more than $30,600 last school year. Josie, the daughter of Jim and Diane Barton, also creates cards for sick children through Holy Innocents’ Send-a-Smile Club, tutors at-risk students at Sandy Springs Mission, and serves as an acolyte and vacation Bible school counselor for St. Martin’s Episcopal Church. “One of my most memorable moments was a few years ago while I was volunteering at the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Heart to Heart Christmas party,” she said. “I was running the Build a Bear station, help-ing the heart patients stuff their animals. Th ere was a little girl and her grand-mother having trouble, but none of the other volunteers could help them. None

of the other volunteers could help because the girl and her grandmother only spoke Spanish. I was nervous at fi rst, but once I began speaking to them in their native language I could see a wave of relief wash over them. As I helped the little girl stuff her bear, I spoke to them and learned she had received a heart transplant as an infant and had had multiple surgeries since. I was so grateful I was able to use my Spanish to help her, especially after everything she had been through.”



Max Rubenstein, 15The Galloway School

At The Davis Academy, learning happens in our classrooms, our state-of-the-art science and idea labs, new outdoor nature sanctuary and through video conferences with students from around the globe. We teach life skills, instill values, and provide diverse experiences so that our students become well-balanced and self-confident individuals.

8105 Roberts Drive, Atlanta, GA 30350 770-671-0085 | davisacademy.org

A proud partner of:

Be Amazed.By How We Are Different.

But don’t take our word for it. Come see for yourself!

Join us for a Parent Information Session. Register online at davisacademy.org/events.

General Parent Information Session January 14, 2016 | 10:00 am – 11:30 am

Mechina: Kindergarten Prep Parent Information Session January 26, 2016 | 11:45 am – 1:15 pm

To schedule a private tour, call 678-527-3300.

CHOOSE Joy.An independent Catholic school on two campuses near Chastain Park for students age 6 months-12th grade www.holyspiritprep.org/visit

COMEVISIT

Preschool Open House January 31K-6th Grade Open House February 87th-12th Grade Open House January 31Campus tours Weekly

COME VISITJanuary 31 Preschool Open House

Grades 7-12 Open HouseFebruary 8 Grades K-6 Open HouseWeekly Campus toursFrequently Shadow days

As well as being ac-tive at school – including creating a men-

torship program, work-ing on an anti-bullying campaign and working as a teaching assistant in the elementary school music program – Max also serves on the 21st Century Lead-ership Youth Council and created a charity called Game Givers that delivers video games to sick children at hospitals through-out Georgia. He also mentors youth to host gaming tournaments to raise funds and awareness. In addition, Max is a board member for E.P.I.C Kids Foundation, a nonprofi t that provides children

with opportunities for personal development. He also served on the Teen Jam board for the Atlanta Jewish Community Center, leading and implementing community service proj-ects around the city. Th e son of Ali and Da-vid Rubenstein, Max said a special memory is meeting a patient named Davis who had spent 21 months at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta as part of Game Givers. “After spending some time with him, I was able to really understand the impact that my charity had,” Max said. “Davis and I will be getting together soon at one of my upcoming charity video game tour-

naments, and I look forward to getting to know him better. Th ere are many days I feel grateful that I started Game Givers, but on that day I know I truly lived my mission: helping sick kids in the hospital.”

Marist brings back adult classes Marist School brings back “Th e Marist Eve-

ning Series,” a program of adult education taught by Marist faculty and staff . Courses include reli-gion and spirituality; photography; computer ap-plications; history and culture; college planning; music appreciation; and genealogy.

Courses are to be off ered at the school, 3790 Ashford-Dunwoody Road, from 7 p.m. until 9 p.m. on Jan. 25, Feb. 1 and Feb. 8. Early registra-tion ends Jan. 15. Course tuition must be paid in full at the time of registration. Learn more at marist.com/eveningseries.

Fulton opens hardship transfer applications

Applications now are available online for parents who wish to apply for 2016-2017 hardship transfers to move their children to another Fulton elementary, middle or high school or to renew a current hardship transfer. Hardship transfer requests re-late to medical reasons, curriculum diff erences, childcare situations or for employees’ children. Th e deadline for submitting requests is Feb. 15. For more information, call 470-254-5550 or visit fultonschools.org.

Schenck School names new HeadJoshua J. Clark will become Head of School at Th e Schenck School beginning

July 1, the school announced. Clark heads the Bodine School, an independent school in Memphis, Tenn., that specializes in teaching students with dyslexia, the Schenck School said.

“Th e Schenck School has been educating children with dyslexia for over 55 years in Atlanta,” said David P. Higgins, chairman of the school’s board of trustees. “Mr. Clark brings to Th e Schenck School successful experience in growth, development and community outreach. We are fortunate to have Mr. Clark continue our direct, singular approach of accelerated, dyslexia remediation in the years to come.”

EDUCATIONBRIEFS

Send your education news to

[email protected]



3110-A Ashford Dunwoody Rd. Atlanta, GA 30319404.228.0709 | stmartinschool.org

discover the possibilities at St. Martin’s Episcopal School

Beginners (3-year-olds) through 8th grade

Extended-day program available

Preparation for Atlanta’s top high schools

Welcoming Christian atmosphere

January 20, 2016, 9:30 a.m.Elementary & Middle School curriculum overview

January 23, 2016, 10:00 a.m.Super STEAM Saturday (3-year-olds – 1st grade)

February 4, 2016, 9:00 a.m.Early Childhood parent open house and chapel

Students aim to create a ‘destination’ treehouse

BY ELLEN [email protected]

Learn by doing. Th at’s the aim of a project through which a group of fi fth graders are working to bring a new tree-house to the Chattahoochee Nature Center.

Not just any treehouse. Th is one will be special, a destination. Architect Bill Edwards, who is working with the Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School students on the project, wants “to stretch their thinking beyond the traditional tree-house.”

“I wanted them to consider the unique site for the project and the fact that this is not necessarily just a tree-house and building for kids, but may well be used and experienced by people of all ages and abilities,” he said.

School offi cials describe the tree-house project as one dedicated to real-world problem solving while combin-ing science, technology, engineering, art and math.

And the overall project isn’t just about the treehouse itself, HIES Low-er School writing specialist Jim Barton said. “Th e ultimate purpose of the tree-house will be to promote environmen-tal conservation and education along the Chattahoochee River and through-out the region,” Barton said. “Knowing the animals it is designed to protect is a crucial step in being able to credibly advocate for its construction and solicit contributions.”

Th e project started after Barton found out that the nature center, locat-ed on the Chattahoochee River in Ro-swell, wanted to repair its 40-year-old boardwalk and build a “destination” treehouse.

Barton thought he had a perfect team for the project in his writing stu-dents. Everything kind of grew from

there.“We could write the proposals, de-

sign the treehouse, work on the strate-gic plan and actually present it to the people who would fund it,” Barton said.

“So the idea is, this writing program − which has now spread to science, en-gineering, math and every discipline − is going to be the proposal that is taken to the funding corporations. I hope to see some of these kids actually present-ing to corporations around the area.”

Th e project touches just about every class the students study. In math class, students learned the skills required to calculate spaces. Science teachers talk-ed about the eff ects of pollution and how the nature center can help promote health and preservation, Barton said. In art class, students work on illustrations. In faith studies, they examine myths as-sociated with the environment and spir-itual ideas Native American tribes con-nected to the Chattahoochee River.

Th e students are “set loose” to work on the diff erent aspects of the proj-ects in diff erent classes, fi fth-grade stu-dent Chris McDonald said. “Every sin-gle class is a diff erent level,” McDonald said.

Th e class fi rst visited the nature cen-ter in October. Th ey started the proj-ect by conducting “extensive research on the animals and vegetation” in and around the nature center, Barton said.

Th e students spoke in November with naturalists from the nature cen-ter and with Edwards, the architect, who visited the school. Edwards talk-ed to students about design, engineer-ing, style, materials and construction of a treehouse. He said the students im-pressed him. “I feel the students were

DEBBIE REAMS

Fifth graders from Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School take the measure of a structure at the Chattahoochee Nature Center in Roswell. They’re designing a “destination” treehouse for the center.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 28

We’re looking formore student interns!

During the school year we offer a paid internship for selected high

school students. Interns write our “Standout Student” profi les, work on

various editorial assignments and possibly assist in other areas of our

publications such as sales. Ideal candidates will be editors or writers

with a school publication, have excellent written, verbal and computer

skills, be profi cient in social media and have their own transportation;

juniors and seniors preferred. If you qualify, or know someone who does,

please e-mail [email protected].



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Treehouse helps students learn

engaged and interested in the pro-cess,” Edwards said.

Edwards said he focused his pre-sentation on the experience, so that the project and its goals would be memorable to the students.

“I also wanted them to begin the project with goals or a program in mind – not just start drawing and see what happens, but to have a plan,” Edwards said.

He said he asked them if they wanted a “fun place,” a “contem-plative place” or a little of both, and he asked if the designs would blend into the natural environ-ment or “make a statement.”

“All of these are intentional de-cisions in design,” Edwards said.

By early December, students started working on a website at hi-estreehouseproject.com that fea-tures the story, photos and video of the project.

The video will be used to pres-ent the project to Treehouse Mas-ters, a TV show on the Animal Planet network that showcas-es construction of elaborate tree-house s.

“Also, each student will have his or her own webpage, which will feature a summary of his or her proposal, a sketch of the pro-posed treehouse, a research sum-mary and a video pitch intended for potential donors, corporations and the Treehouse Masters pro-duction company,” Barton said.

“I think it’s kind of cool that we’re building a treehouse and trying to work with the Treehouse Masters,” fifth-grader Beth Gil-creast said.


Architect Bill Edwards challenged the students to “stretch their thinking”

beyond a traditional treehouse.

PHOTOS BY DEBBIE REAMS

From left, Alex Aartigue, Beth Gilcreast and Chris McDonald are part of the

team working on the project.


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Sandy Springs Police Blotter

CAPTAIN STEVE ROSE, [email protected]

Sandy Springs police blotter: Dec. 19 to Dec. 30

The following information was provided by Capt. Steve Rose of the Sandy Springs Police Department from its records and the infor-

mation is presumed to be accurate.

ROBBERY 1100 block of Hammond Drive—On

Dec. 25, a robbery by snatching was re-ported at about 4 p.m. when a woman and her son went to a complex to look at a property. When she left her car, a man came up to her, pushed her against the parking garage wall and either threatened or did hit her in the face. He then took her purse and fl ed.

7900 block of Roswell Road—On Dec. 28, around 9 a.m., a woman said she heard knocking on the apartment door. She and her two sons were staying with the resident. Eventually she opened the door and a man came in, pulled a gun and demanded to know where the home-owner was. Th e man made her lie down on the fl oor. At that time, the homeown-er looked out, saw the man with the gun and jumped from the window. Both vic-tims said the man looked familiar and gave the detectives information on the person they thought the suspect looked like, including street names and where he worked. A laptop and $100 was stolen.

BURGLARY 800 block of Overhill Court—On Dec.

24, a property management employee re-ported someone came into a home where work was being done and took a miter saw, drill, air handlers, air compressor

and paint sprayer.

8100 block of Colquitt Road—On Dec. 24, an apartment resident no-ticed the front door had been damaged and someone had forced entry. A lap-top was taken from the kitchen, and a watch, Samsung tablet and jewelry were also taken.

5500 block of Glenridge Drive—On Dec. 29, someone went into the storage area of an apartment building and took four AC units, hoisting them over a fence and most likely into a truck or van. Th e units are $400 each.

100 block of Mount Paran Road—Sometime between Dec. 28 and 29, someone opened a garage bay door and forced entry to the door leading into a home currently under construction. Th ey removed the washer, dryer and HVAC system.

4900 block of Peachtree-Dunwoody Road—On Dec. 29, someone reported that between Dec. 23 and Dec. 29, some-one entered a residence by forcing a door,

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P U B L I C S A F E T Y


SANDY SPRINGS NOTICE OF REZONINGPetition Number: RZ15-0084

Petitioner: City of Sandy Springs

Property Location: 124 & 126 Johnson Ferry Road

Present Zoning: O-I (Office Institutional; RZ08-011) & R-4 (Single Family Dwelling)

Request: To rezone the property subsequently to a land exchange between 124 Johnson Ferry Road and former Masonic Lodge property to O-I.

Public Hearings: Planning Commission January 21, 2016 at 6:00 p.m. Mayor and City Council February 16, 2016 at 6:00 p.m.

Location: Sandy Springs City Hall Morgan Falls Office Park 7840 Roswell Road, Building 500 Sandy Springs, Georgia 30350

SANDY SPRINGS NOTICE OF VARIANCE PETITIONPetition Number: V15-0045

Petitioner: Thomas & Emily Followill

Location: 380 Montevallo Drive

Request: One (1) primary variance from Section 6.4.3.C of the City of Sandy Springs Zoning Ordinance to encroach six (6) feet into the required ten (10) foot setback to allow for an existing carport and to encroach one and half (1.5) feet into the required ten (10) foot setback to allow for an existing home and a proposed second floor addition.

Public Hearings: Board of Appeals January 14, 2016 at 7:00 p.m.

Mayor and City Council February 16, 2016 at 6:00 p.m.

Location: Sandy Springs City Hall Morgan Falls Office Park 7840 Roswell Road Building 500 Sandy Springs, Georgia 30350 770-730-5600

SANDY SPRINGS NOTICE OF VARIANCE PETITIONPetition Number: V15-0046

Petitioner: Kacy & Ross Homans

Location: 220 Abington Drive

Request: One (1) primary variance from Section 4.3.4.B.2 of the City of Sandy Springs Zoning Ordinance to encroach three and a half (3.5) feet into the required ten (10) foot setback for play equipment.

Public Hearings: Board of Appeals January 14, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. Mayor and City Council February 16, 2016 at 6:00 p.m.

Location: Sandy Springs City Hall Morgan Falls Office Park 7840 Roswell Road Building 500 Sandy Springs, Georgia 30350 770-730-5600

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taking several items.

THEFTS Marseilles Drive—On Dec. 24, a man

said he checked his door-front video and saw a man removing a delivery box from his doorstep about 3 a.m.

6000 block of Riverchase Circle—On Dec. 24, a package was reported stolen from the doorstep of a home after FedEx delivered it. It was supposed to have been delivered to a neighbor. (Related to this, Alpharetta PD arrested someone who has been stealing packages. Th is may be the same person.)

1100 block of Mount Vernon High-way—On Dec. 24, a man reported his wallet was taken from his locker. Th e lock on the locker had been removed some-time between 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. A cred-it card was later used at a discount de-partment store in Dunwoody.

First block of Concourse Parkway—On Dec. 26, an employee reported that her wallet was on her desk in her offi ce at a gym. Someone entered the offi ce at some point when she was away and took the wallet.

700 block of Hammond Drive—On Dec. 26, a woman said she had a sublet

agreement with a roommate and, at some point, terminated it. When the room-mate moved, she took the woman’s $70 coat. Roommate denies it—which is a good reason to live alone.

Th e manager of Maya Seafood and Steak reported on Dec. 26 that a custom-er ordered dinner and drinks valued at $99, and then said she did not have the money to pay. She said her date was sup-posed to show up but didn’t. She was cit-ed and released.

Rivermere Way—On Dec. 28, a report was made that between noon on Dec. 23 and 9 a.m. on Dec. 28 someone illegal-ly entered a home via a rock through the window of a side door. Several kitchen items were taken.

9200 block of Huntcliff Trace—On Dec. 28, a woman reported that her trash can was stolen from the top of her drive-way and yard.

5500 block of Glenridge Drive—On Dec. 28, a resident said clothing ordered online and confi rmed delivered was sto-len from her doorstep.

Read more of the Police Blotter online at

www.ReporterNewspapers.net

SS


EDUCATION THAT WORKS

Lawrenceville Campus5150 Sugarloaf Parkway

Lawrenceville, GA 30043-5702

Alpharetta-North Fulton Campus2875 Old Milton Parkway

Alpharetta, GA 30009-2230

To learn more, call 770-962-7580 or visit www.GwinnettTech.edu.

Business • Computer Sciences • General EducationEarly Childhood Education • Criminal Justice

Health Sciences

Gwinnett Technical College

Equal Opportunity Institution. Gwinnett Technical College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award the associate degree. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Gwinnett Technical College. Veterans’ benefits, financial aid options and scholarships available for those who qualify.

Get a great education for a great career and start classes at our new campus in Alpharetta-North Fulton. • Choose from more than 150 of degree, diploma and certificate programs. • Take advantage of financial aid and scholarships. • Enjoy the lowest tuition in Georgia. • Look at Move On When Ready for high school students to jumpstart college. • Use your Veterans G.I. Bill benefits to get started in a new career.

For more than 30 years, Gwinnett Tech has been providing career-focused real-world education for in-demand jobs. We offer programs in the fastest growing fields, emerging industries and new technologies.

Call 770-962-7580 for more information!

Alpharetta-North FultonMini-mester Begins February 24, 2016

Apply now!

Reporter_GTC_Education_Guide_Dec_2015_121515.pdf 1 12/17/2015 9:14:38 AM

Documents

01-08-2016 Sandy Springs Reporter