GwinnettForum | Number 22.22 | March 17, 2023
GRANTS TOTALLING $65,000 are going to six small businesses in Norcross. The funds are part of the American Rescue Act small business grants. Decked on the Norcross City Hall steps to the second floor are Mayor Craig Newton; Recipient Hayalol Ghat; Christabel Ghansah (Capital Projects Manager, City of Norcross);Recipient Emelia Orubelel; William Corbin (Economic Development Director, City of Norcross); Recipient Briana Murray; Mayor Pro Tem Bruce Gaynor; Recipient Nona D. Johnson; Councilmember Matt Myers; Recipient Laura Balfour; Councilmember Josh Bare; Recipient Hyung “Harry” Seon Park; Recipient Viren Solankil; and Councilmember Arlene Beckles. For more details of the grants, see Notable below.
TODAY’S FOCUS: Norcross picks Buford Highway site for new police building
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Check out the charming homes on Buford’s South Hill Street
SPOTLIGHT: Lail Family Dentistry
FEEDBACK: Average Joe has no knowledge who places are named for
UPCOMING: Deadline is April 21 for PCOM Opportunities Academy
NOTABLE: Norcross awards $65,000 in Rescue Plan grants
RECOMMENDED: Just Brunch, in Duluth
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Former Georgia Poet Laureate David Bottoms has died
MYSTERY PHOTO: Can you identify this idyllic stone church?
CALENDAR: Gwinnett County Career Fair today from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Gas South Arena
Norcross picks Buford Highway site for new police building
From GwinnettForum staff
Chief Bill Grogan
NORCROSS, Ga. | The City of Norcross is moving ahead with plans to locate a new police headquarters and Municipal Court building, on land formerly of the Norcross Library. The site, fronting on Buford Highway between Norcross-Tucker Road and Jimmy Carter Boulevard, is expected to be completed within 21 to 24 months, that is, by mid-2025.
The new facility is estimated to cost $20 million, to be funded from SPLOST funds, fines and approximately $10 million in municipal bonds. The new headquarters will be approximately 33,000 square feet.
The city has purchased four additional parcels on the south side of Stevens Road, across from the former library, and will use this property for additional parking space. Stevens Road will no longer be a through street, but will become a cul de sac off South Peachtree Street.
At one time, city officials thought that the renovated library building would be sufficient to house the police headquarters. However, when evaluating space needs, especially anticipating the city’s growth and population, and police force size over the next 20-30-40 years, it was found that far more space would be needed in the police building, and that razing the library building would be the best path to take.
Norcross officials also recognized that, as is the case in many other cities, there are benefits of locating the Municipal Court near the police station. Both the Norcross police and its court currently operated out of City Hall, with the police operations being particularly crowded. In the proposed building, the Norcross police will also be able to store evidence for future trials, which is now stored off-site from the City Hall. There is also expected to be in the new facility a drive-in sally port to offload prisoners into the local jail.
The current Norcross police staffing is 49 sworn officers, plus 18 other staff members.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Check out the charming homes on Buford’s South Hill Street
146 South Hill Street, the home of Toni and Jeff Pirkle.
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
MARCH 17, 2023 | Driving down South Hill Street in Buford the other day, I was pleased to see several new homes built here in recent years, many of them classical gems.
That made me return later, and with the help of Public Safety Director Dan Branch, photographed these homes and identified the owners of several of these homes.
That’s why today we’re giving you a virtual tour of some of these homes on South Hill Street in Buford. We hope you enjoy this photographic tour.
Near the top of the street at 146 South Hill Street is the home of Toni and Jeff Pirkle. She told me that this home was inspired from a house that looked similar in Beaufort, S.C. Love that double front porch!
Now, as you go down hill toward the Buford City Hall, we photographed these houses,
136 South Hill: Julie and Patrick Adamson.
590 South Hill: Joan and Jimmy Perkins.
523 South Hill: The home of Kathleen and Jonathan Welch. This home was inspired by the 146 South Hill home of the Pirkles.
510 South Hill: Dave and Michael Poll.
500 South Hill: Melissa and Robert Downs.
480 South Hill: Stephanie Stewart.
479 South Hill: Anderson Bowen.
469 South Hill: Stacy and David Walker.
Today, more and more, many streets in Gwinnett, particularly in our cities, have such outstanding homes. If your particular street has distinctive homes, let us know, and perhaps you might see your street highlighted here.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Lail Family Dentistry
Dr. Slade Lail and his team
The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Lail Family Dentistry has been serving the community in Duluth and Gwinnett County for 53 years. Being the longest serving dental practice in the county, our roots run deep within our community and will continue to do so for generations to come. The doctors at Lail Family Dentistry are all members of the Lail family and are here to provide for you and yours. If you are in search of a traditional, hometown dentist that utilizes the latest dental techniques and technology while also exemplifying the utmost sense of professionalism, timeliness, and hospitality, we would be glad to welcome you to our practice. For more information, please visit our website at drlail.com or phone (770) 476-2400.
- For a list of other sponsors of this forum, click here.
Average Joe has no knowledge who places are named for
Editor, the Forum:
Let me agree with you on the lunacy of renaming Lake Lanier. I’d bet that nearly no one around here or anyone else has any idea who the lake was named for. Even if told, “It’s named for Sidney Lanier,” their reply would be, “Who?”
It seems that in far too many cases, it’s rabble-rousers who push the renaming ideas. Average Joe has no idea who the people are who have lakes, streets, cities, forts, etc., named after them. Then along come these trouble-makers who are suddenly so very offended by the name when no one has previously cared whose names have been used.
I heard a woman on the news state that Lake Lanier is such a lovely place to be associated with something so wrong. What? How many people have enjoyed time at Lake Lanier while shaking their heads and wishing the name weren’t so offensive? And how many will stay away now that they’re aware that Lanier was a Confederate soldier? Probably no one.
In addition to the nonsensical part of all this renaming frenzy, what about the astronomical cost to do that? What else could be done with that money? Maybe help more veterans, more of the homeless, and a myriad of other far more important problems we have?
– Louise Stewart, Norcross
Another insight on what teachers have to put up with
Editor, the Forum:
Recently there have been reports of many teachers quitting their profession. My many years of experience in the classroom has given me insight into the difficulties facing our schools. Teachers are more and more in the political spotlight requiring staff to be on guard against accusations from the public. Without administrative support, teachers are often left out in the cold. In addition, greater demands of adherence to a politically correct curriculum makes it hard to deal with the realities of students who come to school with few skills and without the tools to allow success.
One such memory comes to mind: I had a student who came to class without pencil or paper, and was very angry at any teacher who tried to encourage him. More frustrating was his parents who came to the school complaining teachers were harassing her poor child. The administrator sided with the parent. This was one of many frustrating events that made my teaching career much more difficult. I didn’t quit, but it wasn’t good for my health.
– Alan Schneiberg, Sugar Hill
- Send us your thoughts: We encourage you to send us your letters and thoughts on issues raised in GwinnettForum. Please limit comments to 300 words, and include your hometown. The views of letters are the opinion of the contributor. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length. Send feedback and letters to: elliott@brack.net.
Deadline is April 21 for PCOM Opportunities Academy
PCOM Georgia is accepting applications for the PCOM Georgia Opportunities Academy, sponsored by the Office of Diversity and Community Partnerships. The academy is set for June 26–30, 2023 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., on the PCOM Georgia campus in Suwanee. This free program is open to rising 9th, 10th, and 11th grade Gwinnett County area high school students who have an interest in health care. The application deadline is April 21.
Christy Finley, diversity and inclusion program coordinator, says: “In many instances, high school students may be limited in their exposure to various areas within the healthcare field and others may not realize they want to pursue a career in health care. The academy is a unique opportunity to connect high school students with current and future healthcare professionals who can provide them with the tools necessary to determine if health care is the right career for them.”
The aim of the five-day camp is to introduce students who identify as African-American, Latinx or are traditionally underrepresented in medicine to college readiness and careers in health care. Students attending the academy will engage in career exploration, practice critical thinking skills and collaboration by engaging in problem-based learning, and develop the skills and self-confidence needed to successfully apply to and navigate college.
During camp, lessons in nutrition, anatomy, CPR and trauma will be covered. Students will be introduced to careers in pharmacy, physical therapy, medicine and research. They will learn alongside current and future healthcare professionals, while participating in clinical skills simulations and anatomy labs.
Hudgens offering 10 art scholarships for local students
The Hudgens Center for Arts and Learning now is offering 10 scholarships for qualifying K-12 students to take any art class at The Hudgens for free of charge. The classes will begin March 20, 2022.
The funding comes from the Community Block Grant for Gwinnett County. These scholarships are designed to provide quality art education opportunities for families and children experiencing economic hardship. Those interested should get in touch with Stephanie Lloyd by contacting her at slloyd@thehudgens.org.
Norcross awards $65,000 in Rescue Plan grants
The City of Norcross has awarded $65,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Small Business Grants to six local small businesses. Three years after the COVID-19 global pandemic rocked our nation, aftershocks are still being felt by many small business owners.
Norcross Mayor Craig Newton says: “Four countries and a cross-section of genders and sexual orientations were represented among this year’s grant recipients. While these diversities may set them apart, they all share a commitment to our community and economic development in Norcross. What earned these six business leaders an ARPA grant is that their companies have experienced an unfortunate decline due to COVID-19. It’s our hope that these funds will help foster a return to ‘business as usual’ or – even better – new growth in their client base and bottom lines.”
With award amounts based on 2019 annual revenues, this year’s ARPA Small Business Grant recipients included:
- CNU Medical Institute, Emelia Orubele: awarded $10,000: Located at 5855 Jimmy Carter Boulevard, this technical school trains and certifies its students to work in the medical field.
- Kiian Silver: Viren Solanki: awarded $10,000: Located inside the Global Mall this jeweler primarily sources its jewelry from India.
- Fleecher Designs : Laura Balfour: awarded $10,000: Located on South Peachtree Street, this is a full-service branding and graphic design studio.
- The Local Peach: Chef Nona D. Johnson and Briana Murray, awarded $10,000: Located at 125 Lawrenceville Street, this market provides chef-inspired prepared meals and catering.
- Silky Corp, dba Ladlee: Hayal Bhatt – Awarded $15,000: Located inside the Global Mall, this company represents one of the largest showrooms featuring high-end Indian fashion in the country.
- HNS Logistics: Hyung “Harry” Seon Park: awarded $10,000: Located at 5720 Buford Highway, this logistics and supply chain company primarily serves Korean businesses with import and export services.
To qualify, small business grant applicants must represent a domestic corporation in good standing in the State of Georgia, have an active Norcross Business License, have experienced an annual revenue decline of 25 percent or more for tax years 2019 and 2020 because of COVID-19, and either operate a commercial operation within Norcross city limits with 1-10 full-time employees or a home-based operation within Norcross city limits with 2-10 full-time employees. ARPA grants may be used to pay rent, lease, or mortgage costs; utility bills; payroll; business-related insurance; inventory expenses; and other operating expenses.
Moore is Gwinnett Technical College’s GOAL winner
Moore
To stand out in a crowd of thousands of students is no easy feat, but Gwinnett Technical College student Ryan Moore has done just that. Moore, a resident of Covington, was recently named Gwinnett Technical College’s Georgia Occupational Award (GOAL) of Leadership winner. The Surgical Technology student was one of 80 students nominated for the honor at Gwinnett Tech this year. Moore will represent Gwinnett Technical College in the spring’s regional and statewide competitions. In addition, the state’s GOAL winner will serve as the student ambassador for technical education in Georgia.
Moore was born in Brooklyn, N.Y, and raised in the countryside in Newton County. Since childhood, he has always loved helping people and has been fascinated with science. The combination of this, plus his favorite shows, Scrubs and House, brought the aspiration to become a doctor. Moore overcame tribulations growing up, but with advice from his brother at one of his lowest points, “that he was rooting for me and to stay strong and that is what has kept me humble.” Moore pushed on to graduate from high school and then Morehouse College, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biology.
Just Brunch, in Duluth
From Chuck Paul, Norcross: I met a friend of mine for lunch at Just Brunch, located near the Gas South Arena. The restaurant has a nice buzz to it. Entrees were delivered in under 10 minutes, perfect for a lunch break. My guest really liked cobb salad with added shrimp. My meat lover’s omelet was good as was the biscuit (jam, too). However, with only a party of two, I was not able to be seated until my guest arrived. We sat at a table that fronted a large (sunny) window and found it problematic to see/talk with my guest because of glare. I didn’t realize until we were ready to leave that they have shades that could have been drawn. Pricing is steep: $19 for a meat lover’s omelet; breakfast potatoes were average. Would I come back? While it would not be a destination, I would consider trying something else on the menu.
An invitation: what books, restaurants, movies or web sites have you enjoyed recently? Send us your recent selection, along with a short paragraph (150 words) as to why you liked this, plus what you plan to visit or read next. Send to: elliott@brack.net.
Former Georgia Poet Laureate David Bottoms has died
When David Bottoms was 29, his first book, Shooting Rats at the Bibb County Dump, was chosen by Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist and poet Robert Penn Warren from more than 1,300 submissions as winner of the 1979 Walt Whitman Award of the Academy of American Poets. In 2000, at age 50 Bottoms was appointed by Governor Roy Barnes as Georgia’s poet laureate, and he remained in that post until 2012. In 2009 he was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame, and in 2011 he received a Governor’s Award in the Humanities.
David Harold Bottoms Jr. was born on September 11, 1949, in Canton, the only child of David H. Bottoms, a funeral director, and Louise Ashe Bottoms, a registered nurse. He graduated from Cherokee High School in 1967 and entered Mercer University in Macon, where he received his B.A. in English in 1971. He married Margaret Lynn Bensel, an elementary school art teacher, and enrolled in the graduate English program at West Georgia College. He received his M.A. in 1973, and from 1974 to 1978 he taught high school English and worked part-time in the Georgia Poets-in-the-Schools Program.
In 1979, when he received the Whitman Award, he resigned his teaching position and accepted a graduate fellowship at Florida State University, where he received his Ph.D. in American poetry and creative writing in 1982. That same year he took a teaching position at Georgia State University in Atlanta, where he became a professor of creative writing and a founding coeditor, along with Pam Durban, of the literary magazine Five Points.
In 1986 Bottoms accepted a visiting appointment as Richard Hugo Poet-in-Residence at the University of Montana; a year later he and his wife divorced. At the University of Montana he met Kelly Jean Beard, a law student. They were married in 1989 and moved to Billings, where she practiced law and he finished his second novel. The following year they moved to Atlanta, and in 1991 their daughter, Rachel, was born. Bottoms returned to GSU, where he served as the associate dean of fine arts and was named the John B. and Elena Diaz-Verson Amos Distinguished Chair in English Letters.
Over the years Bottoms received many awards for his work, including the Levinson Prize from Poetry magazine, an Ingram Merrill Award, fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, and an Award in Literature from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters.
Bottoms’s work confirmed the promise of Robert Penn Warren’s early praise. Out of the natural world of rats, snakes, buzzards, and snapping turtles, and out of the deepest concerns of the human heart, Bottoms made a spiritually charged but highly accessible poetry. The critic Ernest Suarez writes, “Bottoms has generated a complex body of poetry that often confronts the darkest dimensions of human nature.”
David Bottoms died on March 10, 2023 of progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare neurodegenerative disease that targets the brain stem. He had been battling the condition since 2018.
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia article online, go to https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Can you identify this idyllic stone church?
Today’s Mystery Photo is a quaint, beautiful stone church, but where is it? Do your searching to find out and then send your answer to elliott@brack.net, and include your hometown.
Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas, identified the last mystery as it was “shot on the grounds of the former Roosevelt family estate, which is now part of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Hyde Park, N.Y. It is located in front of the ‘Freedom Court’, which commemorates the shared vision of two great warriors of freedom: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882–1945) and Sir Winston Spencer Churchill (1874–1965). The two bronze busts facing each other are of FDR, the 32nd president and of the UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The bust of FDR was created by the American painter and sculptor Walter Russell (1871–1963) and the bust of Churchill was created by the Croatian Sculptor Oscar Nemon (1906–1985).”
Others recognizing the mystery were Barbara Dawson, Dahlonega; Dan Mackaben, Lawrenceville; Susan McBrayer, Sugar Hill; George Graf, Palmyra, Va.; Jay Altman, Columbia, S.C.; and Ross Lenhart of Stone Mountain, who wrote: “When I was four years old, FDR ‘patted’ my head at Bernard Barauch’s Hobcaw Barony (Waccamaw Neck, S.C.) on the way to go fishing on Winyah Bay. My father, the rather moderate Republican, would tell the story over and over ending with: ‘And the (expletive) made my son a Democrat right then and there.’ I guess that I was ‘anointed’ by the best of them.”
>>> SHARE A MYSTERY PHOTO: If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Send to: elliott@brack.net and mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
Career Fair: Gwinnett County is hiring,and wants applicants to join its growing team during the annual Career From Here hiring event. It will be Friday, March 17 (today) from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Gas South Convention Center located at 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth. Job seekers can network with departments and agencies that operate within Gwinnett, have their resume reviewed and apply for many open positions in fields like public safety, court and legal services and other departments. County officials encourage attendees to bring copies of their resume. Visit GwinnettCountyJobs.com to view current job openings.
Transition Fair: Gwinnett County Public Schools Transition Fair will be Saturday, March 18, at Peachtree Ridge High School, 1555 Old Peachtree Road in Suwanee, from 9 a.m. until noon. This fair connects families with disabilities of all ages with resources to support their journey to adulthood. Attendees will get tips on how to navigate through the Transition Fair.
Snellville Farmers’ Market will be March 18 from 9 a.m. to noon, in the parking lot behind City Hall/ The Community Garden@Snellville will be at the market with cool season vegetables and herbs grown from seeds in the greenhouse. All plants are still only $2 (cash only). All proceeds go to support the Community Garden.
Author Robert David Coughlin, who wrote a book on Lake Sidney Lanier, will speak at the March 20 meeting of the Gwinnett Historical Society. The meeting will be at 7 p.m. at Rhodes Jordan Park Community Center, 100 East Crogan Street in Lawrenceville. Coughlin’s 400 page book is full of details and visuals providing a fascinating look at how Lake Lanier came to be.
Food Tasting: The Gwinnett Stripers, along with concessionaire partner Professional Sports Catering, invite you to its VIP Food Tasting on Wednesday, March 22 at noon. Be the first to experience Coolray Field’s newest concession offerings for 2023, including Southern fare, upscale local brews, fresh pizza and new concession partners, including Pontoon Brewing Company, Sahlen’s Premium Smokehouse Hot Dogs, and other new offerings. Executive Chef Jamerius Sims and General Manager Erin McCormick will be available for interview opportunities. Coolray Field is located at 2500 Buford Drive in Lawrenceville.
Reading is FUNdamental: Building Speech, Language, and Emergent Literacy Skills will be Saturday, March 25 at 11 a.m. at the Duluth Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library. Do you believe reading is FUNdamental? Would you like to learn how to build your child’s speech, language, and emergent literacy skills while reading together? If so, this series is for you!
King statue unveiling: On Saturday April 1, 2023, at Rodney Cook Sr. Peace Park, in downtown Atlanta, will be the unveiling of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I’ve Been to the Mountaintop statue. The statue is the work of Gwinnett artist Kathy Fincher, now of Clayton, and Artist Stan Mullin of Athens. It will be unveiled at at the World Peace Revival Movement inaugural World Peace Revival Legacy Award. The awards will be presented by Ambassador Andrew Young, passing on to the next generation of Dr. King’s Beloved Community to further his mission of peace and nonviolence. This award is being presented to nine recipients who personify these ideals and have showcased them in their dedication and commitment to the community. Two recipients are from Gwinnett: Dr. Calvin Watts, superintendent of Gwinnett County Public Schools, and Congressman Rich McCormick.
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