Community Category
Gwinnett School System Praised – Again!
April 3rd, 2009 Categories: Community, Gwinnett
Gwinnett County Public Schools is one of five systems nationwide selected to compete as a finalist for the prestigious Broad Prize top award for urban school systems. As a finalist, Gwinnett is guaranteed to receive $250,000 in scholarship funds for 2010 graduates and is competing to receive Read the rest of this entry »
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Peachtree Road Race Design Running Out of Time
February 25th, 2009 Categories: Community, Gwinnett
Have you ever wanted to have a piece of your artwork viewed by over 55,000 people in one day and kept in homes for years to come? Well, now is your chance to earn local and national fame. The Atlanta Journal Constitution Peachtree Road Race design contest is under way and the deadline for submission must be postmarked by February 28th.
Here’s your chance to create the Peachtree Road Race’s biggest prize.
T-shirt design rules and entry form
Representatives of the Atlanta Track Club, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and local artists will judge T-shirt designs. Five finalists’ designs will be selected and published in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The public will select the winning design.
The person who submits the winning design will receive $1,000 and have the design reproduced on the 2009 Peachtree Road Race T-shirt, distributed to runners at the race’s finish line. The four finalists who are not selected will each receive $100.
All entries must be postmarked by Feb. 28, 2009 and:
1. Designs should measure 12” x 12”.
2. Designs must be submitted on unlined white paper or illustration board. Designs must be created in: color markers, paint, color pencils, inks, chalks or crayons. Designs may be hand-drawn or computer-designed, but “clip art” is not allowed.
3. An official entry form (or facsimile) must be submitted with each design. DO NOT affix entry form to artwork.
4. DO NOT write on front or back of artwork.
5. Designs should include the race title, “The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race 2009″ It should be at the top of the design. The word “Peachtree” should be at least 2” high.
6. Color copies of original designs will be accepted.
7. All entries must be submitted together. Limit three entries per person.
8. Designs should be sent to: AJC Peachtree Road Race 2009
T-shirt Design Competition, Atlanta Track Club, P. O. Box 12109, Atlanta, GA 30355 9.
All entries must be postmarked by Feb. 28, 2009.
10. DO NOT send entries to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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More Positive Economic News! Pending Homes Sales Increase Again.
February 3rd, 2009 Categories: Community, Real Estate Business
Pending home sales post increase of 6.3%
I noticed this article in today’s USA Today online edition. Of course it was buried in the bottom of the edition. Why would the media continue to downplay positive signs of potential economic recovery when they can sell more using all the bad news. Hmmm….
The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday its seasonally adjusted index of pending sales for preowned homes for December rose 6.3% to 87.7 from an upwardly revised November reading of 82.5. That’s better than the 82.3 reading economists expected, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters.
The reading also was up 2.1% from December 2007.
“In an otherwise bleak landscape, this represents a ray of hope, as it’s a leading indicator for existing home sales. I’m sure it’s foreclosure-driven, so it could be a hollow number,” said Brian Dolan, chief currency strategist at Forex.com.
Data from the housing market, which is at the center of the worst financial and economic crisis in decades, has sent conflicting signals in recent days.
Last week, the NAR reported an unexpected rise in existing home sales in December, driven mainly by distressed sales, with prices falling from a year earlier by the biggest margin in over 40 years.
The NAR’s housing affordability index jumped 10.9% in December to 158.8, the highest since it began tracking records in 1970. The index rose on falling home prices and low mortgage rates.
But government data Thursday showed sales of new U.S. single-family homes dropped in December by their biggest margin since 1994.
Stability in the housing market is critical to the U.S. economy’s recovery. The economy slipped into recession in December 2007.
The pending sales index tracks signed contracts to purchase existing homes. Typically there is a one- to two-month lag between a contract and a done deal. Home sales that were pending in December are likely to be completed in the coming weeks.
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Georgia Force(d) to cancel AFL season in 2009
December 17th, 2008 Categories: Community, Entertainment, Gwinnett
The Georgia Force of the Arena Football League has been informed by the Arena Football League (AFL) that the 2009 season has been suspended. It has been rumored for weeks that the season was in jeopardy but last week the AFL Board of Directors issued the following statement.
“Every owner in the AFL is strongly committed to the League, the game, and, most importantly, the fans,” said Acting Commissioner ED POLICY. “Owners, however, recognize that, especially in light of the current unprecedented economic climate, the AFL, as a business enterprise, needs to be restructured if it is to continue to provide its unique brand of this affordable, fan-friendly sport.”
This is a blow to all the local Georgia Force fans who come to expect a break from the winter time blues and head to the Gwinnett Center for some faced paced, inexpensive entertainment. The Georgia Force has been in the Atlanta area for a number of years and has had a very successful campaign since moving back to Gwinnett a couple of years ago. Since Arthur Blank purchased the team in 2005, the Force had compiled a 33-15 record and had appeared in three consecutive playoffs. The team recently issued this response to the league news that the season was cancelled.
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Gwinnett Gas Shortage Hits Home
September 29th, 2008 Categories: Community, Gwinnett
Anyone that lives in Gwinnett County has seen, heard or has had to deal with the recent gas shortage we have experienced over the past four weeks and I am tired of it. Since this all started I have reassured my wife that there will be gas and that there is no need to fill up our gas tank whenever we see a station that actually has gas.
Well, maybe I was wrong. Yesterday I needed to drive to a meet with a client who is going to be selling their home and I left my office with a little more than 70 miles in the tank. I figured I would l find somewhere to fill up and have no issues. Well, I was wrong. All the way down to the appt. which is about 45 miles from my office there were no gas stations pumping anything but air out of the tanks.
Get the math issue above (70 miles in the tank, 45 miles one way = 0 gas).
As I was searching for a gas station that had gas I got to thinking about the last time we as a Country had a situation like this. Back in 1973, and living in Fairfield Connecticut, we had a similar issue. Gas prices shot up from $.38.5 to $.55.1 cents per gallon. I remember this vividly because my friends and I would buy as many morning newspapers as we could and walk up and down the line of cars waiting for gas and sell our newspapers.
The following excerpt is taken from our friends at Wikipedia:
Thankfully, my gas gauge was kind to me and I pulled into my home with 4 miles left in the tank. This morning, the gas station up the street did have gas and my wife called me to let me know about it. After putting in 15 gallons at $3.97 each I was miffed. What is going on that a year or so ago we were paying around $2.50 per gallon and now we are paying $4.00 and having to “search” for gas.
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Patricia Hermes / Author and Mom Coming to Town
September 18th, 2008 Categories: Community, Entertainment
I am looking forward to having my mom and oldest brother visit Gwinnett County and Hamilton Mill this weekend. My mother, Patricia Hermes, has written over 50 childrens books over the past 25+ years and has been invited to have a book signing at the Mall of Georgia Borders bookstore this Saturday at 2pm. Come out and say Hi. She has also being interviewed on Fox 5 Atlanta on Monday morning.
If you have kids in the 8-13 year range, chances are you have a book or two of hers on your bookshelves.
Here is a little more about mom: Patricia Hermes is the author of almost fifty books for readers from early middle grades through young adult, as well as two nonfiction books for adults. Her books have won many awards and recognitions: American Library Association Best Book, Smithsonian Notable Book, C.S. Lewis Honor Book, Ira Children’s Choice, as well as many state awards, four of them for the novel, “You Shouldn’t Have to Say Goodbye”.
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Scenes From Gwinnett County Communities
September 12th, 2008 Categories: Community, Gwinnett
Here are a few fun photos from the many diverse communities of Gwinnett county showing the county’s wonderful mixture of history, natural beauty, modern growth, entertainment and fun.
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Historical and Modern-day Facts About Gwinnett County
September 11th, 2008 Categories: Community, Gwinnett
Gwinnett county was officially established by the state legislature in 1818 and named for Button Gwinnett, one of Georgia’s two signers of the Declaration of Independence. The county covers 437 square miles of land about 30 miles north of Atlanta with the county seat in Lawrenceville, GA.
The population is approximately one-million and growing. Gwinnett county has been one of the most rapidly growing counties in the United States through the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s when the population grew from 72,349 in 1970 to 700,794 in 2004. Though the growth has slowed overall, there are still many rapidly growing areas throughout the county and a great deal of economic development. Many of Gwinnett’s historic old towns have been aggressively pursuing renovation and revitalization projects surrounding their historic roots. Read the rest of this entry »
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New Gwinnett Imaging Center at Hamilton Mill
September 9th, 2008 Categories: Community, Hamilton Mill
This is news from HamiltonMillDwellings.com
Gwinnett Medical Center is opening a new imaging center right here at Hamilton Mill. Now you can get an MRI, Ultrasound and more — right around the corner with little or no waiting time! It’s called GMC Imaging Center at Hamilton Mill and they are located right in the same complex with Diamond Dwellings (2078 Teron Trace — behind 12Stone Church on Hwy 124).
Here’s a list of features for the new facility:
- Board Certified radiologists
- Licensed & certified professional staff
- Fast & easy registration
- On-site lab
- Mammography, bone density, MRI, CT, ultrasound, X-ray and EKG
- All Digital Imaging
This weekend is the grand opening carnival with lots of fun stuff for the kids, etc.
Here’s a link to the New GMC Imaging Center website and also the main hospital site.
Their phone number is 678.312.8600
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Wouldn’t it be great to save a life?
September 4th, 2008 Categories: Community
Representatives of the Heart Screens for Teens will be at Brookwood High School in Snellville on Saturday, September 27th. For only $58, you can get an echocardiogram for your teenager. A test of this type usually costs around $900 to $1500 but this group is bringing it to Gwinnett teens for a reduced price.
An echocardiogram is an ultra sound scan of the heart which can reveal the presence of an enlarged heart and other heart abnormalities. Each scan will be taped and analyzed by a pediatric cardiologist. Results will be mailed directly to the parents of each Hamilton Mill teenager who participates. The tests are designed for children aged 11 to 18 and are not just for athletes – any child could experience a problem in gym class.
The screenings at Brookwood High School (1255 Dogwood Road, Snellville, GA) will take place from 8 am to 4 pm September 27th. Those interested in an appointment should contact Gayla Malkiel who is with the Brookwood High PTSA. You can email her at gaylamail@aol.com to arrange an appointment or call her at 770-979-0840.
For more information about the Heart Screens for Teens program, visit their website – www.heartscreensforteens.com.
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