Archived News

Underage alcohol sting nets 47 arrests

A four-day underage alcohol sting by the DeKalb County Police Department called Operation School’s Out produced 47 arrests, according to police spokeswoman Mekka Parish. Those arrested were charged with furnishing alcohol to people younger than 21 years old.

During the four-day operation that took place May 19-26, more than 150 liquor stores and convenience stories were checked for compliance, police said. DeKalb Police worked with the Georgia Department of Revenue on the sting. In addition, eight people were arrested during the sting for selling tobacco products to people younger than 18 years old.

DeKalb student advances to semifinals of national spelling bee

Simola Nayak, an eighth-grader from Henderson Middle School, made it to the sixth round of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Nayak spelled words such as “cassideous” and “cryophilic” in the national semifinals until misspelling the word “rapparee,” which is an Irish bandit from the 1600s.

Earlier this year, Nayak beat Renfroe Middle School student Andalib Malit Samandari after spelling more than 200 words and going 21 rounds in the Georgia Association of Educators State Spelling Bee.

Informational meeting upcoming for Clarkston city hall annex redesign

A public information meeting will be held June 7 to discuss architectural and site improvement plans for the renovation of the Mary Morris House, which will be the Clarkston city hall annex. The meeting will be held at the Clarkston Women’s Club at 3913 Church St. at 6:30 p.m.

City Manager Keith Barker, architect Rick Bizot and landscape architect Jill Sluder will present the schematic design plans to support the construction of the future city hall annex. After the formal presentation, attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions. Display boards of the schematic plans will be available for review.

FODAC awarded $100,000 contract

Friends of Disabled Adults and Children (FODAC) announced June 4 it has been awarded a $100,000 contract from the Atlanta Regional Commission – Area Agency on Aging (ARC-AAA) to implement home modifications for the disabled community.

The exclusive contract, awarded through a bidding process, is funded through the “Money Follows the Person” program in Georgia (MFP GA), which aims to transition disabled residents of nursing homes and intermediate care facilities (ICF) to their own residences.

FODAC is a nonprofit organization providing more than $9 million annually in durable medical equipment and supplies to the disabled community.

Good Growth DeKalb plans more rallies against Walmart

Good Growth DeKalb has put up more than 400 yards signs and has more than 2,000 signatures on a petition to keep Walmart from building a store in Suburban Plaza. The community activist group is planning three more protests this summer—June 8, July 13 and August 10—the second Friday of each month. The rally will take place from 5-6:30 p.m. in front of Suburban Plaza at the intersection of Church Street and North Decatur Road.  Decatur mayor Bill Floyd and State Rep. Karla Drenner support the initiative, according to the group.