Today’s Focus
FOCUS: Summerour Middle School adopts mandatory uniform policy
By Dorothy Jarrett | Here at Summerour Middle School (SMS), our motto is “We are committed to creating a culture of excellence by working hard and being nice!” Every student can recite this and every teacher talks about what it really means with our students. We believe that our culture of excellence will ignite our success.
FOCUS: Ballet Theatre announces season of “sensory friendly” performances
By Holly Calmes | Commitment to the community is a cornerstone of Gwinnett Ballet Theatre’s cultural foundation. The non-profit organization, which includes the school as well as the performing company, has produced many programs in past years, bringing live arts experiences and dance education to children and adults in Atlanta and Northeast Georgia.
FOCUS: Home by Dark coming to Gwinnett Performing Arts Center Saturday
By Ann Bates | Continuing the run of its Gwinnett concert series, Home By Dark’s September 12 show will feature acclaimed songwriters Marcia Ramirez and Emily Shackelton at 8 p.m. at the Gwinnett Performing Arts Center. The show promises an experience filled with storytelling, improvisation and musical performances hosted by Home By Dark founder and songwriter James Casto.
FOCUS: Snellville, other cities use cop cab to send drivers a message
By Brian Arrington | Snellville’s Cop Cab isn’t alone on Georgia roads.
The roving billboard which encourages those who see it not to drink and drive, is one of at least five such police vehicles in the state. It has been in use in Snellville since June of 2014. Councilman Bobby Howard says: “The idea behind the Cop Cab is to make sure people think before they drink and drive. I’m glad to see other cities spreading that same message using cars like the one we have in Snellville.”
FOCUS: Hospitals in merger discussions
By Beth Hardy | Northside Hospital and Gwinnett Medical Center have announced that they have approved a non-binding letter of intent (LOI) to begin exclusive discussions to combine their operations.
If a final agreement is reached, the merger would create a major health care system serving rapidly growing areas of the Atlanta Region and North Georgia. Anchored by Northside Hospital in Sandy Springs and Gwinnett Medical Center in Lawrenceville, the system also would include hospitals in Canton, Cumming and Duluth, as well as cancer treatment centers, imaging centers, medical office buildings, urgent care centers and other outpatient locations throughout the state.
FOCUS: Suwanee could get $46 million in high-end apartments
By Lynne DeWilde | The City of Suwanee Downtown Development Authority (DDA) has taken initial steps to enter a public-private partnership with developer Terwilliger-Pappas that will create a mixed-use multifamily/retail building at Chicago Street and Buford Highway adjacent to Town Center. The proposed development, on a 3.5-acre tract currently owned by the DDA, is expected to feature a five-story structure with 10,000 square feet of street-level commercial/retail/restaurant space and 235 high-end apartments. The project also is expected to include a parking garage around which the mixed-use structure will be built. The City Council will consider a re-zoning to allow such a project at its September 8 meeting.
FOCUS: Teamwork, respect, communication and attitude are key skills
By Mark Butler, Commissioner of Labor, State of Georgia | According to research conducted by Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation and Sanford Research Center, well-developed soft skills account for 85 percent of job success. Soft skills, also known as “people skills” or “interpersonal skills,” refer to personal attributes such as teamwork, respect, communication, attitude and more.
Gwinnett Forum | Nov. 22, 2024
“We are born charming, fresh and spontaneous and must be civilized before we are fit to participate in society.”
– Etiquette Authority Judith Martin (1938 – ), also known as Miss Manners.
Continuing objectives
Gwinnett Forum publisher Elliott Brack suggests that Gwinnett County needs a long-range list of continuing objectives for improving the county. His list:
- Move statewide non-partisan judge and school board elections to the General Election.
- Adoption of the 2023 Transit Plan for Gwinnett.
- More creative efforts to support the arts in Gwinnett.
- Advancement and expansion of city historical societies.
- Require establishments that serve alcoholic beverages to halt sales of such products at 1 a.m., and close by 2 a.m.
- Require the Georgia Legislature to meet only once every two years.
- 21st century salary for the Gwinnett County Commission members.
- Remove chewing gum on sidewalks at entrances of post offices and other governmental buildings.
- Eliminate single-use plastic packaging and straws in Gwinnett and require instead the use of paper products.
- Condos instead of apartments for Gwinnett.
Interested in Gwinnett history?
Now re-printed in its third edition, Gwinnett: A Little Above Atlanta, the award-winning history of Gwinnett County, is once again available for purchase. It sold out of its first two printings. The book won the 2010 Award of Excellence in Documenting Georgia History from the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Board. The book is available at Old Town Antiques at 93 Main Street in Lilburn.
- The history of Gwinnett is also available as an e-book from Amazon or Barnes and Noble for $9.95.
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