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Music Festival Updates

Yes, I actually do "work", despite a bunch of posts that seem contrary.

Some major movement on the Music Festival site.

First, the Chili Cook-Off is "on hiatus", meaning "not happening in 2011".  Don't shoot the messenger I just post what they tell me.

However the Battle of the Bands is back!  I just wrote up an online registration form last night and an update on the main page.  Registration fee is $30.  Perform to win an opening act gig at the Georgia Theater in Athens.  Moms and Dads if the teens have a band that has taken over the garage and is driving you out of your tree with the jam sessions, get them focused on something serious!

Here's the Battle info page

Here's the registration page.  You can upload an MP3 as an audition clip but your life and the lives of the festival staff will be easier if you link to a website with your music on it.

The new Young Adult Zone will be rounded out with a "Break Down" contest.  I'll post the 411 as soon as I get it.

Finally the Food Vendor application has been reopened.  This is your last chance to sell food at the Festival.  Sign up ASAP because once I get the Word From On High, it gets closed again.

Check out the Volunteer app and the Submit your pictures forms.  I'm working on the photo gallery as we speak (type?)  Festivals function with volunteers and it's the only way to get a true inside look.

Best place for questions is Oktober Productions at inquiries@dunwoodymusicfestival.com.

No time off for me.  I'm back to the gold mines all the way through Monday.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

How to Rebuild Dunwoody Zoning

Zoning.  One of the key (if not THE key) rallying point that led to our City's existence.

The first time we threw our codes together, it was a patchwork of ordinances copied and pasted from a number of sources, especially DeKalb county.  Ironic as hell when you think about it but we had to start somewhere.

This is an ideal time to review our ordinances from the top all the way to the bottom.  It's relatively early in our City's life, so we don't have to undo a ton of precedent.  At the same time we have some experience with the kind of life people want to live in their homes. 

There's an inherent flaw in the entire zoning process as it stands:  ordinances are based on a listing of individual activities and their limits, in the quest to protect neighbors from pissing each other off.  This is a flaw for several reasons:

• it is a reactive process, rather than proactive.  Ordinances have to be created bit by bit as a new fashion or trend becomes popular and people want to integrate it into their lives.  We all know how well that went the first time the City tried to process a major ordinance change. 
• it is a process that allows individuals or groups to demand that their interests, hobbies, or lifestyles be codified.  Everyone wants to enjoy what interests them but the scrutiny and criticism dip to a whole new depth when City Hall gets involved.  That isn't necessary.  It's also not a productive use of City Hall's time.
• the process is polarizing.  Otherwise rational adults turn into bickering, backstabbing "dead end kids" when an extended conversation would probably reveal quite a bit of common ground.  Even worse, a "litmus test" arises for future elected officials.  Just this past week, when candidates qualified for this November's elections, the first question asked on the local blogs regarding candidates is, "What do they think about chickens?"  A discussion about a special interest is now being promoted as the deciding factor in who is worthy of holding office.  If that standard becomes dominant we're in for a lot of unhappy residents and ugly elections for a very long time. 
• it creates double standards, multiple loopholes, and conflicting regulations.  The same behaviour or activity may be allowed or not depending up on the alleged intent of the homeowner.  A lawsuit is only a matter of time.

To stop this and similar snowballs from picking up steam and making Dunwoody miserable, it's time to rethink how ordinances are drawn.  Rather than organize ordinances according to a list of specific actions, base ordinances on general boundaries according to their zoning designations.  Set one uniform standard for all activity, regardless of whether it's business, or personal.  Everyone has to meet the standard, for any activity.  Then all homeowners in a specific residential area could do as they please with their property without having to split hairs between residential, commercial, or agricultural purposes.

First, you have to review the ordinances that are currently written and have a serious think about why some behaviours or activities are limited or prohibited.  You have to decide exactly what is a "nuisance", one of the most common words in an ordinance.  What activity is tolerable, what is intolerable and why.  What is an inherent right in the use of one's property, and what will inherently infringe on others' rights.  When you're able to set this definition, application becomes fairer.

For example, some of the concerns about my special interest (home business with customer visits) include increased traffic and the risk that homes may be converted to commercial enterprises, thus, interfering with the enjoyment of a residential community.  In my solution above, the ordinance would not ban businesses per se, but would set limits on the number of cars parked at a residence on a daily basis, or the amount of land that can be paved over, or whether or not the residence could be rezoned in any way.

In another (in)famous example, rather than categorizing domesticated animals as either pets or livestock, set basic parameters on the maximum number and maximum size of animals allowed at a residence, based on the size of the lot.  (Homes zoned R50 will have more stringent limits than those zoned R85, and so on.)  Then everyone in a basic zoning designation can choose whatever animals they keep, so long as they are within the size and number limits.

This process is not going to be easy or simple or without conflict.  However if done well, now, while the City is still in its adolesence, there will be long-term advantages. 

• A more consistent application that Code Enforcement can apply evently
• Resistance to legal challenges that would be possible due to multiple standards
• Consistent application over time as interpretations of what consititutes a "residential neighborhood activity" evolves and fads or styles ebb and flow.  This is the real strength - there will be less of a need to go to the expense of rewriting codes every couple of years as popular activities change. 
• Finally, people can keep their opinions about what is a good idea to use their home for, and what isn't.  As long as the codes are written and enforced so that rights don't start infringing on each other, there will be a lot less to worry about.

How's this for a start?  Given enough time and effort, is it doable?

The Home Occupation Glacier Shifts

Per public notice in the Crier and the City website:

THE CITY OF DUNWOODY, GEORGIA NOTICE OF MEETING FOR THE PUBLIC


A public meeting will be held before the Dunwoody Community Council on Thursday, September 8, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. at Dunwoody City Hall, 41 Perimeter Center East, Dunwoody, Georgia 30346, for the purpose of due process of the following:

Amendments to the text of Chapter 27, Sections 27-183, 27-185, and 27-1321 regarding home occupations in the R-100 (Single-Family Residential) District and “Supplemental Regulations.”

For further information please call the Community Development Department at (678) 382-6800.

Agenda isn't posted by the City yet.  However the sections involved are currently worded as the following:

Sec. 27-183. - Principal uses and structures.

The following principal uses of land and structures shall be authorized in the R-100 (Single-Family Residential) District:
(1) Detached single-family dwelling.
(2) Personal care home, family.
(3) Personal care home, registered.
(4) Stable.

Sec. 27-185. - Special permits.The following uses and structures shall be authorized only by permits of the type indicated:
(1)  Special administrative permit from city manager or his designee: Home occupation involving no customer contact and no employee other than a person residing on the premises.
(2)  Special exception permit from the zoning board of appeals: Utility structure necessary for the transmission or distribution of service.
(3)  Special land use permit from city council:
a.  Adult day care facility.
b.  Amateur radio service antenna exceeding 70 feet.
c.  Cemetery, columbarium, or mausoleum.
d.  Child day care facility.
e.  Convent or monastery.
f.  Home occupation involving any customer contact.
g. Home stay bed and breakfast residence.
h. Neighborhood recreation club.
i.  Place of worship.
j.  Private elementary, middle and high school.
k. Congregate personal care home if located on a campus of no less than 25 acres.
Sec. 27-1321. - Home occupations and private educational uses.

The following provisions shall apply to home occupations. Private educational uses shall only be required to comply with subsections (1), (2), (3), (4) and (8) of this section:
(1)  There shall be no exterior evidence of the home occupation.
(2)  No use shall create noise, dust, vibration, odor, smoke, glare or electrical interference that would be detectable beyond the dwelling unit.

(3)  The use shall be conducted entirely within the dwelling unit, and only persons living in the dwelling unit shall be employed at the location of the home occupation.
(4)  No more than 25 percent of the dwelling unit and in no case more than 500 square feet, whichever is less, may be used for the conduct of the home occupation.
(5)  No use shall involve public contact on the property and no article, product or service shall be sold on the premises other than by telephone.
(6)  No materials or equipment shall be stored on the premises upon which the home occupation is located, except where such materials and equipment are stored entirely within the residence.
(7)  No vehicle other than a passenger automobile, passenger van, or passenger truck shall be used in the conduct of a home occupation, and no other vehicle shall be parked or stored on such premises.
(8)  No home occupation shall be operated so as to create or cause a nuisance.

(9)  Home occupation shall not include the use of a dwelling unit for the purpose of operating any automobile repair establishment, taxi service, van service, limousine service, wrecker service, car wash, or ammunition or firearms sales establishment.
I can think of a number of changes that could be made to the above ordinances to make business easier and less expensive while still protecting the residential nature of the neighborhood and respecting the rights of residents who do not conduct business from home.

I can also think of verbage that should be clarified.  For example in (8) above - define "nuisance".  I can think of residential activities that create a greater nuisance than a home-based business.  I'd like to see the City (at whatever level - commission, council, manager, etc) set a single standard on what should be a tolerable level of activity, and what is an over-the-line "nuisance" for all activity in a traditionally residential community, regardless of purpose and then write your codes accordingly to encompass home-based employees.

Finally - why just R100?  Why not include R75 and R50 zoned areas?  Anyone?  Anyone?  Bueller?

I'm going to try to make this meeting.  Anyone else have any input or info on this discussion coming up?

DHS Academy of Finance Garage Sale - Dunwoody School Daze

Dunwoody School Daze

DHS Academy of Finance is still raising money for their trip to the NYSE.

Let's support the next generation learning how to be creative and make a living!

BTW - 2526 Lost Mine Trail is off of Tilly Mill Road, near the Doraville city line, near the Buddhist meditation center.

Dunwoody Election Season Hits the Ground Running

Qualifying for Dunwoody city office is open this week through Friday.  General Election information for qualifying as a candidate is available from the city website.  We'll know what the race looks like finally on Friday afternoon.

This is the first time since the inaugural city elections that city council seats have been contested.  The city coucil doesn't always make decisions directly, but they do impact every decision.  What isn't handled in council chambers is decided by the employees they hire and the commissions they appoint.  You can tell alot about an elected official by who they appoint to a commission.  A lot has changed since the first election and there were plenty of surprises between campaign rhetoric and actual actions when the votes were counted.  You can tell alot about an official by those differences too.

Get to know the candidates, not as your neighbors, not as your friends, not as the guy/gal you wave to while walking his/her dog as you drive past.  Get to know them as potential government agents and try to see what kind of decisions they are going to make.  Chatting over a cold beer at the pool may bring a different answer than a serious debate in executive session.  All of these decisions are going to affect how citizens and visitors make a living, from the multinational corporation all the way down to the lowly solopreneur.

A few candidates and their representatives have contacted me to inquire if I will post about them on the Working Girl.  I will and to keep it fair and impartial I'm going to come up with a list of questions that I will pose to everyone running in a contested race.  Anyone who wants to respond is welcome to and their comments will be posted in their entirety, unedited (not even a spell check!) as they come in.

Regarding a few of the other questions I've received:

No, I am not running for office.  I've said this before, I'm more effective in the private sector. 

No, I will not be creating any campaign websites for this particular season.  I've got a big batch of long-term projects on my desk and I don't have the time to commit to a seasonal site that requires frequent time-sensitive updates and interactivity.  Maybe next time, OK?

I am not sure whether I will make any endorsements on the Working Girl.  We'll see how that pans out as we get closer to November.  If I do, it will be after Halloween has passed and we all know what that event is like.

What I will do is make some suggestions to our esteemed neighbors-turned-candidates that will get repeated on election day.

Stay classy.  No matter who wins and who loses, we still have to live together.  Things to avoid include

• Cheap shots at your opponents that don't have anything to do with managing the city
• Creating personal controversies.  Remember how the Pankey campaign in 2008 allegedly tried to create dirt on Adrian Bonser?  Like that.  Don't do it.
• Gratuitous negative campaigning.  I don't care what the marketing statistics say, negativity will bounce back on you.
• Putting flyers on cars parked at a church/synagogue during worship.  Enough said.
• Bragging about your campaign's strengths if you win.  The only thing worse than a sore loser is a sore winner.

This is a small town.  Creating more conflict in a race than absolutely necessary can follow you around like a bad smell and can compromise any positive input you have on this city. 

This campaign will go down a lot easier if you can focus on your strengths, abilities, and spell out as much as you are able your intentions for Dunwoody.  Compare yourself with your opponent when you must and be a lady or gentleman about it.

See you on November 8!

Why Are Dunwoody Banks a Frequent Target for Thieves???

Yes.  Again.

http://www.wsbtv.com/news/28986763/detail.html

I believe this is the second time this branch of Regions Bank has been hit.  The Chase branch near the Village has been hit three times.

If these low-lifes are this brazen when it comes to armed robbery in our banks, then no business that handles cash is safe.  That's about 2500 - 3000 establishments.  That number doesn't include homes.

What is it going to take to convince this segment of society that Dunwoody isn't worth their trouble?  A bullet to the head?  Hard time busting rocks?  Getting dragged out of the brush and mauled by a K-9 officer?  Group beatdown by soccer moms who are sick of this crap?

I'm wide open to suggestions, folks.

UPDATE:
Here's DPD's official press release.  If you have a tip, call DPD, yadda yadda yadda.

Heneghan’s Dunwoody Blog: Solicitation in Dunwoody - changes need to be made.

Heneghan’s Dunwoody Blog: Solicitation in Dunwoody - changes need to be made.

I've seen a lot of these emails floating around about how random people "claiming" to be selling door-to-door are scoping out potential targets for burglary.

I've had my own encounters. Like the well-dressed young gentleman claiming to be soliciting for a youth organization - but he doesn't have any sales materials with him. Or the young lady claiming to be from Georgia Perimeter College soliticing for another alleged charity. At 10 PM. Again, with no sales materials but says "[she] can go get it."

Then you have your solicitors who go through the permiting process and show said permit on request, but they don't know where to paint the line between making an assertive sales pitch and being an intrusive PITA.

The only solicitors I purchase from are the ones already exempted in the current ordinance: Girl Scouts (I need my Samoas, dammit!) school kids selling wrapping paper, Boy Scouts selling popcorn, and the like. Otherwise, I bring up my defensive posture backed by a full-on attitude problem that makes me look like I'm more trouble than I'm worth. That way if a "solicitor" does have bad intentions, they'll move on down the road.

This is why I think a community marketplace (see post further down) would be an asset; not-for-profits and others who would consider selling door-to-door would have a place to set up shop and see customers without risking putting off homeowners who would feel threatened by this type of action at their door.

From Patch: Dunwoody Moms Create Important New Children's Book

Two Dunwoody mothers have turned a difficult subject into what they hope is an accessible and even fun lesson for children.

Tatiana Matthews and Allison Fears have just self-published their first children’s book ‘Fred the Fox Shouts “No!”,’ a book that takes on the issue of sexual abuse.

“A few years ago I realized that there was a huge hole in the publications and curriculum that was offered for kids,” Matthews said. “Everything seemed to be focused on stranger danger and there was very little that was geared toward safety with people we know and trust.”


Full Article

Too often we remember the lesson of "be polite", "don't create a scene", etc.  In general that's good advice but when there's danger, you have to make a scene.  It's true for adults as well as children.

Buy the book online here. 

You can also contact the authors who are looking for opportunities to make presentations to local groups

Dunwoody High School Academy of Finance Puts Lessons into Action

The Dunwoody High Academy of Finance is raising money for its trip to the NYSE.  In addition to raising their own money for their own trip, they are also donating a portion of the proceeds to the Intreped Fallen Heroes Fund.

The Academy will deliver Krispy Kremes TO YOUR DOOR on Saturday the 27th.  To pay on delivery, get your order in TODAY via this form on the AhA! Connection.  You can also link to Academy members' email with questions.

I love this group and more high schools (public and private) need a Finance Academy.  From Dunwoody High's wikipedia page:

The Academy of Finance is a two-year program in which students gain specialized preparation in the field of finance while completing their normal course curriculum. Over the course of the program, students are introduced to four segments of business: Entrepreneurship, Marketing, International Business and Personal Finance. Students practice real world activities while preparing marketing plans for products and competing in financial competitions. Business partners from the community visit the class and work with the students to prepare them for their future. Each year, the academy students visit the New York Mercantile Exchange, the Stock Exchange, and an investment bank to experience how the world’s largest financial center operates.

If we want more business in town, we have to see that the kids in school get a chance to learn first hand what that entails.  These teens are learning by doing - they're going out and earning their own money with their own effort for their own field trip.  I'm putting my money where my mouth is and supporting this effort.
 
There are other Academy of Finance fundraisers around town supported by other businesses so if you see one, lend them a hand!

Local Business Films Grand Opening for TLC Series

It's not a Dunwoody business but lots of Dunwoody moms and girls of all ages flock here for parties and "girl-time" fun.  It started as a cupcake bakery but it has become so much more.

Pink Pastry Parlor has been around for some time at the corner of Holcome Bridge and Spalding but is now located in Rivermont Plaza, down by the corner of Holcombe Bridge and Nesbit Ferry in Alpharetta.

Today's grand opening festivities were filmed by a production company for a TLC reality series, tentatively titled "Pink" that is slated to air in November, according to the producers on site.  Little girls from all over North DeKalb and North Fulton lined up to have their makeup done and explore the newly-expanded location.

Hint - there are now TWO pillow-fight and bounce-on-the-bed rooms.  And a baking class room, and a grownup girl/pink party room.  And lots more pink "hand" chairs for pedicures.  And a separate fashion show room.  And a HUGE movies-and-toys-for-the-really-little-girls room.

Production crew was everywhere and there was no ignoring them.  Their detachment is like the guards at Buckingham Palace:  they don't interact with anyone, even to smile or speak, and they don't visibly react  to anyone or anything aside from pointing the camera or boom.  That brings its own sense of intimidation, like Sasquatch the Sound Guy here.  I whispered that his testerone levels will eventually recover.  I thought I saw a tear in the corner of his eye.

The potential here is huge because they've expanded their clientele to include adults as well as children and teens.  It's ok to be a grown woman who likes to indulge the little girl inside (timely article from Knitternall here) and it's one more place where moms can get away from it all, even for just a couple of hours.  (Dunwoody MOMs South, St Brigid's Circle @ All Saints and Greater North Fulton Alumnae of Phi Mu, I'm talking to YOU!!!)



Go ahead.  Have a cupcake.


REQUIRED WEB GEEK REVIEW:

I'm a web geek so I have to give the website some commentary.
http://www.pinkpastryparlor.com/ was created by the store's owner with a commercially-available template and the latest version of WordPress.  WP has come a long way from "just a blog" to a growing powerhouse of content management.  It's not right for every project but I'm finding more and more opportunities to use it for clients.

They covered most of the bases:  social media links, video, consistent naviagation, easy-to-find contact information.  Beautiful layout to frame their information. 

But there's a couple of lessons to be learned too:
1.  NEVER put "coming soon" on a page.  Back in "the day" it was helpful to remind visitors to keep checking back but today it turns into an albatross.  Everyone (yours truly included) forgets to update the page with the "coming soon" content.
2.  NEVER (and I mean NEV-ER) launch a page or a blog without real information on it.  If you don't have anything to blog about (and they sure did today!) don't post it in your navigation bar.  If any of your content involves the words "Lorem ipsum" or "Hello World" you're not finished yet.  Make sure your blog sidebars promote only relevant links and content as well.  No one cares about wordpress.org. 

I'll have more to chat about in the "Opportunity" sense once the sugar buzz wears off!  When I hear about the series airing, I'll post it here.  Or, if someone else has details, post a comment.