Treetop Quest in Brook Run Seeks "Operator"

Treetop Quest, the obstacle course company operating in a corner of Brook Run Park seeks an "operator" to run all major operations of the park.

Wages:  $10 per hour, part time

The ad was posted to Craigslist and spread via Twitter

View the ad here:  http://atlanta.craigslist.org/nat/csr/5695862946.html

Treetop Obstacle Course Operator

Operators are the eyes and ears of the Park. They help create a fun atmosphere through friendly, fun, high-energy assistance while ensuring safety regulations are respected. No experience needed; we provide necessary training.

We are seeking fun, motivated and professional operators to join our team on a flexible schedule:

- Treetop Quest open days:

o Every weekend & Holidays in August through November

o Group reservations during the week

Weekend AND weekday availability necessary. We have 2 locations: Buford and Dunwoody.

Mission:

- Daily opening and closing of the Course

- Morning inspection: Inspecting each platform and obstacle for safety and cleanliness

- Greet participants

- Equip, advise and prevent participants

- Lead a safety briefing/orientation talk and demonstration

- Enforce park regulations

- Monitor participants going through obstacles, and coach them

- Handle off the ground rescue situations

Profile required:

- Must be 18 and older

- Athletic, dynamic with an outgoing personality, a sense of hospitality and good communication skills

- Must be patient and able to lead groups of kids as well as adults

- Must be reliable and this position requires a strong commitment to security

- Practicing outdoor activities and/or a tour guide experience are a plus

- Will be exposed to all weather conditions, frequent standing, sitting, walking, lifting of weight in excess of 40 pounds, stooping, reaching, climbing, and able to visually identify safety hazards

- Must have a flexible work schedule (including evenings, weekends and holidays)


READ BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION

Contact info:

DO NOT APPLY IF YOU CANNOT ATTEND THE 3 DAYS TRAINING:

AUGUST 3-5TH -- TRAINING IS ALL DAY

Please apply online at https://www.treetopquest.com/work-with-us/

Please do not apply if you do not meet the above qualifications. Only candidates being considered will be contacted.

Special Called Meeting to Review DeKalb's SPLOST - Again

From Councilman Terry Nall:

Bill,

Thanks for the recap.

Now that we have clear confirmation of erroneous legislative language (HB 596) that makes our homestead property tax freeze disappear if the eHOST /SPLOST referendum passes, we should all be working to stop the referendum from being called by BOC rather than spending our time on changing the distribution formula via an IGA.

We cannot rely on a promised legislative fix in January and simply hope it can be retroactive. The stakes for our citizens are too high to take this risk.

In my personal view, any city approving and/or encouraging the SPLOST resolution and companion IGA at this point, especially with the new information on HB 596 now known and confirmed, is putting its citizens last, not first.

Thanks again for your recap and your service for DMA.

From Commissioner Nancy Jester:


Nancy's blog goes into more detail about why this county SPLOST could result in massive tax increases for Dunwoody homeowners:
https://blog.nancyjester.com/2016/07/16/big-tax-increases-on-the-horizon/

Below is the video I streamed live from the Dunwoody Homeowners Association meeting on July 10.





Dunwoody City Council voted last week, 6-1, to defer entering into an IGA with the county on spending projects for this proposed SPLOST. There is no project list and for all of the reasons described above by our representatives, it looks like a financially bad deal for our city.  The special called meeting is scheduled for tomorrow, Monday, July 18 at 8:00 AM at council chambers.

http://sireapp.dunwoodyga.gov/sirepub/mtgviewer.aspx?meetid=945&doctype=AGENDA

Dunwoody City Council (esp Shortal) please note:

The DHA was the forum by which Commissioner Jester could direct her comments to the public and field any questions.  The Dunwoody Homeowners Association did not vote to take a position on her comments.  So if there's any negative fallout from whatever your decision is, kindly refrain from backlashing the DHA.  It isn't their fault.

Dunwoody Homeowners Association Agenda - updated 9:15 PM

Sunday, July 10, 2016 | 7:30 pm 

North DeKalb Cultural Center, Room 4

THE AGENDA 

Update was distributed July 7 at 9:15 pm

1. Announcements and introduction of distinguished visitors

2. Approval of minutes for June 5, 2016 meeting—Lindsay Ballow

3. Overview of city actions related to DHA membership – Mayor Shortal

4. Brief report on 4th of July parade –Robert Wittenstein

5. Request for Sponsorship – Dunwoody Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization – Laurie Nichols

6. Presentation – SunTrust Bank development proposal for bank relocation in Dunwoody Village—Den Webb (Smith, Gambrell & Russell), Terri Lasoff (SunTrust), Bart Sargent (Architect), Davis Blumenthal (Engineer/Project Manager)

7. Discussion – City actions related to DHA members on city boards and city board members attending DHA meetings; DHA response.

Board only session: Votes as needed on any motions including:

• DHA action related to city policy changes re: DHA
• Dunwoody Elementary School Request for funds
• Potential removal of inactive board members

THE ISSUES

The word of the day is:

accountable

[uh-koun-tuh-buh l]

adjective

subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something;responsible; answerable.

Last month, the Dunwoody City Council met secretly to change city policy and ban DHA members (not just voting members but ALL members) from serving on certain city boards.  The fact that this conversation regarding dual board membership (public vs private) has been regularly reviewed and questioned over the years is irrelevant.  The action of creating policy outside of a public forum represents the greatest ethical failing of our city government to date.

Realizing this, the council called an emergency public meeting and suspended implementation of this illegally-created policy.

The DHA is now going to discuss how best to hold our government accountable for their actions and how best to legally advocate for that position.  We were supposed to have as a guest speaker an attorney specializing in City Planning and Zoning to discuss a legal perspective on the question; a scheduling conflict came up but Rob will be presenting his thoughts for the board to cosider.

Denny Shortal accepted Rob's invitation to attend the DHA meeting.  He will give a speech but will not stay for the later discussion.  Just like the special called meeting.

SunTrust

SunTrust is in the process of purchasing the Old Hickory House property.  Their legally-required "public meeting" was held a couple of weeks ago.  They are holding a second public meeting with the DHA voluntarily to further reach out to the public.

A couple of points from that first presentation:

1)  This is not an issue of "adding" another bank.  No banks are being added.  SunTrust is merely relocating from a rented space to a new custom built space.  They know the competition is tough here; their goal is to serve their customers.

2)  At the time of the first public meeting, a rumor was circulating on Facebook that the landlords of Shops of Dunwoody refused to share their parking lot with SunTrust (or anyone else) and threatened to "boot" the cars of employees or customers of SunTrust.  I showed the Facebook posts to the team presenting and the categorically denied the rumor.  They pointed out that the storefront where they met was rented from Shops of Dunwoody and there have been no threats of penalizing SunTrust customers or employees in any way.

3)  Even with the requested drive through customer service area and 2 additional parking spaces, they intend to design and landscape the property so it is in greater compliance with the spirit and letter of the Comprehensive Land Use Plan and the Overlay District than it is now.

4)  The presentation team consisted of the property architect, engineer, a corporate real estate executive from Suntrust, the Atlanta area bank manager and the branch manager.  I expect this same team on Sunday.

DHA board meetings are open to the public; come visit and develop an informed opinion on these and other issues affecting our city.

Countdown to July 4, 2016

Let's remember what the Dunwoody community is really all about.

Dunwoody City Council Damage Control - Too Little, Too Late?

Let's call this my "public comment".  No babysitter in the morning means no attending a meeting either.  But believe me, I will be watching on video and commenting on social media.  No more Miss Nice Guy.

The last time I was this furious and actively sought justice, was over 10 years ago when a staff member at Northside Hospital entered my hospital room while I was sedated after giving birth to my first child and stole a check reorder form from my purse.  Then after ordering new checks from my bank, the crime ring they were working for stole them from the mail and went on a casino gambling spree.

You people on city council violated me and my family and our trust in a way that was just as severe, even as the methods differed.

Get this through your dense heads:  you are not trustworthy.  You are not ethical.   

I don't care how popular you think you are, or what your little favorite causes and groups are, you broke the law and you continue to wield your council seat like a personal fiefdom.  I've caught smaller instances of favortism in the past, even pointed them out so that you can  get yourselves back to the ideals you boasted of during your campaigns for office.

The first words out of each and every one of your mouths at the special called meeting should be the following and no less:

I was wrong.  I misused executive session to take out Shortal's personal vendetta.  I have no excuse and no justification.  I deserve a legal penalty for breaking the law and the trust I asked you to place in me.

Don't even think about trying to claim some kind of moral high ground for this or any other policy or legislation for the rest of your term in office.  If you honestly believe that you are justified in using executive session to single out one civic group for whatever reason, then you have been in office too long.  Pick your ass up out of that seat and walk it out the door - TODAY.

The only chance you have for redemption, either in your office or your personal lives, is to acknowledge the blatant legal betrayal and accept that responsibility in a visible, tangible, meaningful way.  Man up, gird your loins, and face the music, which is just what you would expect from any other elected official.  Maybe - MAYBE - you will be worth speaking to again.  

The fact that you have yet another "executive session" after this emergency meeting would be funny except that you seem to think all is well.

DUNWOODY SPECIAL CALLED MEETING

June 24, 2016
9:00 AM – Council Chambers

41 PERIMETER CENTER EAST, SUITE 103

DUNWOODY, GA 30346

DUNWOODY SPECIAL CALLED MEETING

A. CALL TO ORDER

B. INVOCATION

C. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

D.  PUBLIC COMMENT - (Public Comment allows the City Council the opportunity to listen to the public (3 minutes per speaker/30 minutes total.)

E.  BUSINESS ITEM(S)

1.   Discussion of City Boards and Committees.

F.   PUBLIC COMMENT - Public Comment allows the City Council the opportunity to listen to the public (3 minutes per speaker.)

G.   COUNCIL COMMENTS

H.   CITY MANAGER COMMENTS

I.   EXECUTIVE SESSION

1.   For the Purposes of Legal, Real Estate, and Personnel Discussions.

J.   ADJOURNMENT

STOP DIGGING!!! (Op-Ed: Dunwoody mayor's comments offensive, harkening back to Old South, from On Common Ground News)

On June 11, a Lithonia-area paper called On Common Ground News printed an op-ed piece from Mr. Jerome Edmondson, who is running for the DeKalb District 7 seat.  

He attended the Memorial Day celebration at Brook Run park.

It's too late for the people mentioned in the post but perhaps the rest of us can learn how to speak and behave appropriately in the 21st century.

Link:  https://issuu.com/ocgnews/docs/ocg_6-11-16  (Scroll to Page 6)

Screenshot of the op-ed:

Today, Mayor Shortal dismissed the team that has organized Memorial Day and Veterans' Day celebrations in Brook Run for years.  Less than a month after the incidents discussed in the letter.  Call me cynical, but I don't think the real problem has been solved.

99 Red Balloons - Denny Shortal and City Council Declare War on Dunwoody Homeowners Association

You and I in a little toy shop
Buy a bag of balloons with the money we've got
Set them free at the break of dawn
'Til one by one they were gone
Back at base bugs in the software
Flash the message "something's out there!"
Floating in the summer sky
Ninety-nine red balloons go by

Ninety-nine red balloons
Floating in the summer sky
Panic bells, it's red alert
There's something here from somewhere else
The war machine springs to life ....

Read more: Nena - 99 Red Balloons Lyrics | MetroLyrics

Shocker: Shortal purges DHA from city positions

Almost 5 years ago, I opined on this blog that there should be a clear separation between voting board members of any civic group and an official government board.  

My Dunwoody Christmas Wish List

When I brought it up in a meeting, I was almost booed right out of the room.  But I stand by these statements today.  I accepted the Exec nomination knowing full well I would turn down any request to serve on a city board that receives requests from the public and makes recommendation to city council.

Not everyone loves the DHA.  I sure didn't when I moved to Dunwoody in 2004.  It was an argument about DHA's positions about business that got me invited to join the board.  (Yes, really.  Remind me to tell you that story sometime.)

But for a moment, let's take a look at this process and its implications.

1)   It's not just voting board members or executive members that are affected here.  ALL DUES-PAYING members are banned from serving in this capacity, whether you have a voting role or not.  So even if you don't have a conflict of interest, the fact that you are a MEMBER makes you ineligible to participate in government.

Councilmembers John Heneghan and Jim Riticher and Terry Nall are DHA members, by the way.

2)  Only the DHA is targeted.  Even though every homeowners association in Dunwoody has an interest in the real estate development and evolution of the city, only DHA members are banned.  So if you're in one of the following associations, you're good to go.

Ashford Chase Homeowners Association
Ashworth Homeowners Association
Bellewood HOA
Briers North
Brooke Farm
Devinger Homeowners Association
Dunwoody Club Forest Neighbors
Dunwoody Club Forest West
Dunwoody Highlands
Dunwoody North Civic Association
Fairfield Homeowners Association
Lockridge Forest Civic Association (part in Dunwoody; part in Peachtree Corners)
Madison Community Homeowners Association
Madison Square at Dunwoody
Mayfair Park Homeowners Association
Meadowlake at Dunwoody
North Springs Homeowners Association
Oxford Chase Homeowners Association
St. Andrews Circle
Wellesley Place Homeowners Association
Wellington Place Condos
Winter Rose Homeowners Association
Wintercrest Homeowners Association
The Woodlands
Wyntercreek Subdivision

Or are you?  Maybe the DHA member banning is only the first strike and other homeowner associations will be added.  If one HOA can be systematically banned from government participation, then no one is safe.

3)  What about other civic groups?  The Chamber of Commerce has a vested interest in business and real estate development.  Are their members banned?  Especially since the current chair was Mike Davis' campaign manager.  No love lost there.  How about the Nature Center?  Or the Dunwoody Womens' Club?  Are they banned too?  

How about the Dunwoody Preservation Trust or the Brook Run Conservancy?  Are their members banned?  Or did they earn themselves some protection since they supported Denny's campaign for mayor?**

4)  Does this extend to spouses?  For example, I serve on the DHA exec board.  Would Pat Sr be eligible for appointment to a city board or commission?  How about adult children of DHA board members?  Siblings?  In Laws?  How far does this go?

5)  Don't miss the part where any and all officials are banned from visiting DHA meetings.  Even if they sit and keep their mouths shut.  They can't even *hear* what people say in a presentation that is the only place in Dunwoody where any citizen can show up and meet the developers and other parties in person.  Remember the Dunwoody Village townhomes?  The DHA played an integral part in negotiating standards of features for seniors and layout of that to-be-built development that were acceptable to the Vernon North neighborhood right behind it.  City Council just blew hot air after the hard work had been done and had nothing to add but ridiculous demands for the type of models to be presented and other minutiae that are beyond a government's scope.

For all of the talk of "transparency" and "involvement", city council is now diminishing the one venue where citizens can meet the major players and develop an informed opinion about development plans before they go to city government for official review.  That's not building a community.  That's not building trust.  That's not promoting citizen involvement.  That's cutting off communication at the knees.

6)  Speaking of cutting off communication, how about that gag order, threatening legal and ethics violations against those who talked to others about this process?  So city council can illegally change city policy in executive session, but those impacted are threatened?  This has to be a script for a bad sitcom.

7)  If DHA membership was so unethical for board or commission members, why did it take this long to discover it?

Finally, this is a city policy.  City policies, by law, must be voted on in public.  Denny Shortal insisted that this vote be taken in executive session.  That's called abuse of privilege, kiddos, and it's a violation of state law.

Not bad enough news for you?  

The majority of city council went along with him.  Including some who are exuberant about how "ethical" and "transparent" they are.  (Do I really need to name the names here?)  Denny has now blown up each and every campaign promise he made in his little video-recorded house visits where he promised more transparency and integrity.  To add irony to insult, this move is the pinnacle or arrogance - an insult leveled at Mike during the election season.

I regret to say this is only the beginning.  Dick's article above indicates that he's lawyered up and the open records requests will be flying hot and heavy.  There should be more revelations made - assuming someone isn't going to try to weasel out of responding.

This situation is NOT what we signed on for when Dunwoody voted for incorporation.

**Reports came across my desk that some citizens were alarmed at the amount of campaigning DPT board members engaged in for Denny Shortal.  So  much so that complaints were filed with the IRS over their tax-exempt status.

The opinion expressed in this and every post on this blog is my own and does not necessarily reflect that of any other organization with which I am affiliated, or its members.

So much for Black Walnut Cafe - SunTrust wants to make it a bank.

Remember the sign outside the now-closed and decaying-by-the-day Old Hickory House that said "Anything But a Bank"?

SunTrust took that as a challenge.

SunTrust has purchased the property from Black Walnut Cafe and guess what they want to build there?

But they are submitting a SLUP to request more parking spaces.

The required community meeting is June 22 at 5486 Chamblee Dunwoody Road, Suite 8, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  That's inside the Shops of Dunwoody shopping center but can anyone clarify exactly what "Suite 8" is?

Want to tell SunTrust what you think?  Show up and tell them.  This community meeting is a required step in the SLUP process.  They have to look you in the eye and hear what you say.

...and Let it Begin With Me

From the 2016 Continental Congress at DAR Constitution Hall, the All-American DAR Chorus.
CC is always an uplifting and moving experience.  Every woman there has a direct, familial connection with the founding of this country.  The facts of our history, the country's well-being:  it's personal..  I paged at this conference once in 2004.  (Then I had the kiddos....)  The Chorus chair got everyone back to basics tonight.

Vendors Wanted to Manage Atlanta's Streetcars

I received this notice from a resource that distributes RFPs to municipal vendors:
Pre-RFP release event is tomorrow afternoon.
Who feels lucky???

Greetings Prospective Contractor:

This is an invitation for the event date below. The City of Atlanta is seeking a mid to long-term solution to provide stable and flexible management for the operation and maintenance of the Atlanta Streetcar system. Prior to the release of a Request for Proposal, the City will host an event to discuss a basic overview of the project and the general contracting process.

This event is designed to attract specific members of the contracting and subcontracting community to share programmatic information about the upcoming project. At this meeting, interested parties with specialties and DBE certifications in the following areas and NAICS codes are invited to attend:

Primary Trades


Urban Mass Transit Maintenance

336510

Uniforms

812331


Electrical Maintenance

238210

Faculty Security

561612


Body Panel/Track Maintenance

488210

Vehicle Maintenance

811310


Rail Engineer

541330








Secondary Trades


Emploment Placement Agencies

561311

Facilities Support Services

561210


Regulation & Admin of Transport Services

485113


The event will take place at City Hall in City Council Chambers on Wednesday June 8, 2016 from 1pm to 3pm. The address is 55 Trinity Ave. 2nd Floor Atlanta, GA 30303. Hope to see you then.

Cordially,


Richard D. Case

Senior Manager

Office of Contract Compliance

rcase@atlantaga.gov

Dunwoody Homeowners Association meeting Sunday, June 5

North DeKalb Cultural Center
Room 4
7:30 PM

The DHA monthly meeting is the place to learn about proposed projects in Dunwoody, meet the involved parties in person, ask your questions, and develop an informed opinion before these requests go to City Council.

Discussion – Review of updated PCID Zoning Code rewrite— Steve Foote

Presentation – Transwestern development proposal for office tower at Perimeter Mall –Jessica Hill, Morris, Manning & Martin and Trent Germano, Transwestern Development Company

This last one will generate the most discussion, IMHO.
This is the group that wants to put up an office tower (with no tenants announced yet) in place of the MARTA parking structure across the street from State Farm and on the same corner as the new High Street development.

They also want a 95% tax abatement from Dunwoody.
I look forward to an explanation as to why they and their project deserve it.

Here's some info on the proposed project from the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/print-edition/2016/05/27/the-story-behind-proposed-perimeter-mall-office.html