How to Make Your Car Last 200,000 Miles -- and Beyond.

AM NOTE: With many Milton residents doing their best to stretch the dollar, we thought the following story would be of interest.

Courtesy yahoo.com

Last October, the odometer in Joe LoCicero's 1990 Honda Accord rolled past the 1 million-mile mark. He's a damage claims inspector who reportedly drives his Accord about 62,500 miles every year. Honda not only gave "Million Mile Joe" a new Accord, but organized a parade in his home town in Maine in honor of the milestone.

Not many of us will own a car long enough to drive it a million miles, since most of us drive our cars about 15,000 miles per year, according to AAA. But experts agree that basic maintenance can help you stretch your car to 200,000 miles and beyond.

[Related: 5 money-saving DIY tips for car owners]

Read Your Owner's Manual - and Follow it

Joe Malizia Sr., owner of Bel Air Fast Lube in Maryland, says the best thing you can do is read your owner's manual as soon as you bring your new car home, and find out what your car's maintenance schedule is, since keeping up with the recommended maintenance schedule can prolong your car's life significantly. It may seem like a hassle to have to visit your mechanic every few months, and some may lament the higher price of the premium gas that's recommended for their car. But following those simple directions can prevent unnecessary problems that will wear your car out prematurely.

John Lawlor, technical advisor at NPR's Car Talk, agrees, saying "the least-read book in the world is the owner's manual." He adds that not only is maintaining your oil and fluids important, but keeping your tires properly inflated to the owner's manual's specs is another important factor to keeping your car on the road. Though making regular visits to the mechanic for normal maintenance may seem like the expenses will add up quickly, you'll most often be saving yourself lots of money in expensive repairs down the road. Like Lawlor says, "It is the cheapskate who spends the most."

Get Personal With Your Car

Unless you're a gearhead, you probably won't know how to change your spark plugs, or what makes your electronic stability control system kick in. But knowing basics like how to check your oil level and paying attention to your car when something feels wrong could save you a big repair bill down the road, say both Malizia and Lawlor.

[Related: 14 Things You Should Always Buy Used]

Malizia also says that it's very important to pay attention to your warning lights. Your vehicle's monitoring systems are there for a reason, and it's better to nip a problem in the bud rather than to let it escalate to catastrophic proportions that could keep you from reaching that 200,000-mile mark.

Lawlor says that one of the most important things you can do is keep your car clean. The paint on today's cars can be damaged by simple things like bird droppings, acid rain or sap. Always having a coat of wax on your car will prevent the paint from being damaged, which can keep the metal from rusting. Additionally, Lawlor says you should make sure you keep your interior clean. Dirt on your seats or dash can act like sandpaper, grinding into the surface every time you touch it.

Find a Mechanic You Can Trust

One of the best ways to ensure that your car is well taken-care of for the long haul is to find a mechanic you trust, Malizia says. We've all heard horror stories about garages charging unsuspecting customers for fictional "blinker fluid" problems, or going in to fix one problem and finding 15 more. But most technicians are honest and up-front, and building a relationship with a mechanic you trust will help you as you push your car past that 200,000-mile mark.

[Related: Debunking Fuel-Economy Myths]

Lawlor suggests taking later-model cars to the dealership, especially if they're under warranty. The more recent the car's model year, the more complex it's likely to be, and dealership technicians undergo specific training so they know your car like the back of their hand. While the dealership is likely worth the money for newer models, Lawlor says that you'll be better off taking cars that are more than 10 years old to your local mom-and-pop repair shop. They'll know the basics of your car well enough to perform maintenance like changing the brake pads, but most won't charge you as much as a dealership might.

No matter how you take care of your car, accidents are bound to happen and mechanical failures may be beyond your control. Properly maintaining your car will keep it on the road longer and will get you a higher price when it's time to sell it or trade it in. Take it from Joe Malizia: The highest-mileage car he's seen in his shop is his own 1993 Ford Taurus SHO, which is still going strong after 19 years and 238,000 miles.

Heat Stroke - An Education.

Courtesy Medicinenet.com

Heat stroke facts

Heat stroke is a form of hyperthermia in which the body temperature is elevated dramatically.

Heat stroke is a medical emergency and can be fatal if not promptly and properly treated.

Cooling the victim is a critical step in the treatment of heat stroke.

The most important measures to prevent heat strokes are to avoid becoming dehydrated and to avoid vigorous physical activities in hot and humid weather.

Infants, the elderly, athletes, and outdoor workers are the groups at greatest risk for heat stroke.

What is, and who is at risk for heat stroke?

Heat stroke is a form of hyperthermia, an abnormally elevated body temperature with accompanying physical symptoms including changes in the nervous system function. Unlike heat cramps and heat exhaustion, two other forms of hyperthermia that are less severe, heat stroke is a true medical emergency that is often fatal if not properly and promptly treated. Heat stroke is also sometimes referred to as heatstroke or sun stroke. Severe hyperthermia is defined as a body temperature of 104 F (40 C) or higher.

The body normally generates heat as a result of metabolism, and is usually able to dissipate the heat by radiation of heat through the skin or by evaporation of sweat. However, in extreme heat, high humidity, or vigorous physical exertion under the sun, the body may not be able to dissipate the heat and the body temperature rises, sometimes up to 106 F (41.1 C) or higher. Another cause of heat stroke is dehydration. A dehydrated person may not be able to sweat fast enough to dissipate heat, which causes the body temperature to rise.

Those most susceptible (at risk) individuals to heart strokes include:

infants, the elderly (often with associated heart diseases, lung diseases, kidney diseases, or who are taking medications that make them vulnerable to dehydration and heat strokes), athletes, andindividuals who work outside and physically exert themselves under the sun.

What are heat stroke symptoms and signs?

Symptoms of heat stroke can sometimes mimic those of heart attack or other conditions. Sometimes a person experiences symptoms of heat exhaustion before progressing to heat strokes.

Signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion include:

nausea,vomiting, fatigue, weakness,headache, muscle cramps and aches, and dizziness.

However, some individuals can develop symptoms of heat stroke suddenly and rapidly without warning.

Different people may have different symptoms and signs of heatstroke. Common symptoms and signs of heat stroke include:

high body temperature,the absence of sweating, with hot red or flushed dry skin, rapid pulse, difficulty breathing, strange behavior,hallucinations, confusion, agitation, disorientation, seizure, and/or coma.

How do you treat a heat stroke victim?

Victims of heat stroke must receive immediate treatment to avoid permanent organ damage. First and foremost, cool the victim.

Get the victim to a shady area, remove clothing, apply cool or tepid water to the skin (for example you may spray the victim with cool water from a garden hose), fan the victim to promote sweating and evaporation, and place ice packs under armpits and groin.


If the person is able to drink liquids, have them drink cool water or other cool beverages that do not contain alcohol or caffeine.


Monitor body temperature with a thermometer and continue cooling efforts until the body temperature drops to 101 to 102 F (38.3 to 38.8 C).


Always notify emergency services (911) immediately. If their arrival is delayed, they can give you further instructions for treatment of the victim.

Atlanta weather | Temps in the 100s forecast; air quality in unhealthy range.

AM NOTE: Temperatures will be in the 100 plus area today. Please do your best to follow the advice of the folks below!

By Mike Morris
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The hottest weather in five years will push metro Atlanta temperatures into the triple digits by Friday and into the weekend, forecasters said.

Georgia has issued a code red air quality alert for metro Atlanta for Friday. That means the outdoor air may be unhealthy for most people. Children, people sensitive to ozone and those with heart and lung disease are considered at great risk, according to the state Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection division. Limit prolonged outdoor exertion, especially during the afternoon and early evening hours when ozone concentrations peak, experts advise.

Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Karen Minton is forecasting highs of 101 on Friday, a steamy 102 on Saturday and 101 on Sunday.

If the forecast holds true, it will mark the first time since August 2007 that Atlanta's high has hit triple digits. During that brutally hot month, temperatures were in the 100s on nine days, topping out at 104 on August 22, 2007.

The hottest temperature ever recorded in Atlanta was 105 during the summer of 1980.

Atlanta's high Thursday of 98 was 10 degrees warmer than normal for the date. The warmest reading in metro Atlanta Thursday was 101 in Cartersville, while in Rome, the mercury soared from an early morning low of 58 degrees to an afternoon high of 103.

Minton said the weekend will be dry, with the next chance of rain coming on Monday and Tuesday, when there's a 20 to 30 percent chance.

However, there is some good news, at least for outlying metro Atlanta areas.

Morning lows outside of the perimeter will be in the low 60s during the morning hours, Burns noted. Therefore, the National Weather Service is not issuing a heat advisory at this time.

"We will also have a nice northwest breeze and extremely low humidity," Channel 2 chief meteorologist Glenn Burns said. "The low humidity will actually make the 100 degree heat feel more like the mid 90s."
The heat was already playing a factor early Friday for firefighters battling a blaze in an apparently vacant house on Mayson Turner Road in Atlanta.

"The most important thing for us is short duration of exposure into the fire," Atlanta fire Battalion Chief David Rhodes said.

"Bring them out and get them out of their gear," he said. "We get them out and let the air cool them off and get them some water, wet towels on the head, that kind of stuff."
Rhodes told the AJC that he and other fire officials preach a message of hydration to their firefighters.

"They have to constantly be drinking water during the day, building up to the potential of having and incident," Rhodes said. "They can't wait until the incident occurs in order to get themselves up to speed and hydrated."
Rhodes said hydration isn't just a concern when temperatures approach the triple digits.

"With the weight of the gear, even in the wintertime, with the work, our firefighters dehydrate quick," he said. "The heat makes you sweat more, and it's real easy to lose a lot of your body fluids through sweat quickly, and we have issues with potassium and cramping and all that stuff when it gets this hot."
The Weather Service said all residents of north and central Georgia "need to take proper precautions against the heat, including drinking plenty of water and limiting outdoor activities during the hottest part of the day."

And, most important, don't leave any living thing — person or pet — in a hot car. This can quickly lead to tragic consequences, experts say.

Georgia Power spokeswoman Lynn Wallace said there are several things customers can do to help limit the costs of keeping cool during the heat wave:

• Set your thermostat at 78 degrees or higher and leave it there. For every degree below that setting, you'll use 3 to 4 percent more electricity.

• Set the thermostat even higher when at work or away from home for long periods of time, but no more than 5 degrees higher.

• Invest in a programmable thermostat that automatically adjusts your home's temperature to your schedule.

• Change or clean your air filter regularly to maximize the unit's cooling potential.

• Check your windows and doors for a tight fit and apply weather stripping or caulking if needed.

• Use fans whenever possible. Ceiling fans can make the air in a room feel 6 degrees cooler and allow you to save energy.

Neal Boortz Quote On Obama Care Decision.

"The power of the federal government is now complete.There is nothing it cannot do.Federalism is essentially dead. Bad day for America."--Neal Boortz

Senator John Albers Responds to U.S.Supreme Court Ruling on Health Care Law.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Natalie Dale, Director
Shawna Mercer, Sr. Communications Specialist
Shawna.Mercer@senate.ga.gov
404.656.0028

ATLANTA (June 28, 2012) – Senator John Albers (R-Roswell) has
released the following statement about today’s U.S. Supreme Court
ruling on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA):

“This is an egregious overreach of federal government authority.

Our founding fathers feared this type of action and it is now incumbent upon the states to opt out of this flawed mandate and elect a President and Congress to overturn this law. We must return to the principles that made America great. I am disappointed and ready to do everything possible to protect Georgia and America by overturning Obamacare.”

THE BIGGEST SCANDAL IN U.S. HISTORY.

Courtesy Ann Coulter.

Forget executive privilege, contempt of Congress, "fast and furious," how many documents the government has produced and who said what to whom on which date.

The Obama administration has almost certainly engaged in the most shockingly vile corruption scandal in the history of the country, not counting the results of Season Eight on "American Idol."

Administration officials intentionally put guns into the hands of Mexican drug cartels, so that when the guns taken from Mexican crime scenes turned out to be American guns, Democrats would have a reason to crack down on gun sellers in the United States.

Democrats will never stop trying to take our guns away. They see something more lethal than a salad shooter and wet themselves.

But since their party was thrown out of Congress for the first time in nearly half a century as a result of passing the 1994 "assault weapons ban," even liberals know they were going to need a really good argument to pass any limitation on guns ever again.

So it's curious that Democrats all started telling the same lie about guns as soon as Obama became president. In March 2009, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced to reporters on a trip to Mexico: "Since we know that the vast majority, 90 percent of that weaponry (used by Mexican drug cartels), comes from our country, we are going to try to stop it from getting there in the first place."

As she sentimentally elaborated on Fox News' Greta Van Susteren show: "The guns sold in the United States, which are illegal in Mexico, get smuggled and shipped across our border and arm these terrible drug-dealing criminals so that they can outgun these poor police officers along the border and elsewhere in Mexico."

Suddenly that 90 percent statistic was everywhere. It was like the statistic on women beaten by their husbands on Super Bowl Sunday.

CBS' Bob Schieffer asked Obama on "Face the Nation": "It's my understanding that 90 percent of the guns that they're getting down in Mexico are coming from the United States. We don't seem to be doing a very good job of cutting off the gun flow. Do you need any kind of legislative help on that front? Have you, for example, thought about asking Congress to reinstate the ban on assault weapons?"


At a Senate hearing, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said: "It is unacceptable to have 90 percent of the guns that are picked up in Mexico and used to shoot judges, police officers and mayors ... come from the United States."

And then, thanks to Fox News -- the first network to report it -- we found out the 90 percent figure was complete bunkum. It was a fabrication told by William Hoover, of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATF), and then spread like wildfire by Democrats and the media.

Mexican law enforcement authorities send only a fraction of the guns they recover from criminals back to the U.S. for tracing. Which guns do they send? The guns that have U.S. serial numbers on them. It would be like asking a library to produce all their Mark Twain books and then concluding that 90 percent of the books in that library are by Mark Twain.

You begin to see why the left hates Fox News so much.

Obama backed away from the preposterous 90 percent claim. His National Security Council spokesman explained to Fox News that by "recovered," they meant "guns traceable to the United States." So, in other words, Democrats were frantically citing the amazing fact that almost all the guns traceable to the U.S. were ... traceable to the U.S.

Attorney General Eric Holder told reporters that even if the percentage is inaccurate, the "vast majority" of guns seized in crimes in Mexico come from the United States. (And he should know, because it turns out he was sending them there!)

This was absurd. Most of the guns used by drug cartels are automatic weapons -- not to mention shoulder-fired rockets -- that can't be sold to most Americans. They are acquired from places like Russia, China and Guatemala.

Right about the time the 90 percent lie was unraveling, the Obama administration decided to directly hand thousands of American guns over to Mexican criminals. Apart from the fact that tracking thousands of guns into Mexico is not feasible or rational, the dumped guns didn't have GPS tracing devices on them, anyway. There is no conceivable law enforcement objective to such a program.

This is what we know:

(1) Liberals thought it would be a great argument for gun control if American guns were ending up in the hands of Mexican criminals;

(2) They wanted that to be true so badly, Democrats lied about it;

(3) After they were busted on their lie, the Obama administration began dumping thousands of guns in the hands of Mexican criminals.

We also know that hundreds of people were murdered with these U.S.-government-supplied guns, including at least one American, U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry.

But let's look on the bright side. The BATF was originally going to ship warheads to Iran until realizing the explosions might disable the tracking devices.

(Contrary to more Democrat lies, there was no program to dump thousands of guns in Mexico under George W. Bush. The Bush administration did have a program that put GPS trackers on about 100 guns in order to actually trace them. That operation was ended almost as soon as it began because of the lack of cooperation from Mexican officials. You may as well say Holder's program was "started" by the first cop who ever put tracer dye on contraband.)

No one has explained what putting 2,500 untraceable guns in the hands of Mexican drug dealers was supposed to accomplish.

But you know what that might have accomplished? It would make the Democrats' lie retroactively true -- allowing them to push for the same gun restrictions they were planning when they first concocted it. A majority of guns recovered from Mexican criminals would, at last, be American guns, because Eric Holder had put them there.

Unfortunately for the Democrats, some brave whistleblower inside the government leaked details of this monstrous scheme. As soon as Congress and the public demanded answers, Holder clammed up. He just says "oops" -- and accuses Republicans of racism.

COPYRIGHT 2012 ANN COULTER
DISTRIBUTED BY UNIVERSAL UCLICK
1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106; 816-581-7500

2012 Presidential Election Coverage.

By Accessmilton.com

With advocacy from both sides of the aisle becoming more and more pronounced as we come closer to the 2012 Presidential Election, Accessmilton.com will begin the process of aggregating election related stories for our readers here in Milton Georgia.

We will do our best to pull stories from various perspectives to insure a balanced approach. However, if we over look a story that you would like us to post, please email us at tim.enloe@yahoo.com.

It should be stressed, however, that Accessmilton.com will continue to the #1 site for all things Milton Georgia.

Thank you.

Tim Enloe
Accessmilton.com
770 653 0552

New Poll Up / Old Poll Results.

By Accessmilton.com

There is a new poll up in the right margin.

It asks:

Will Crabapple be a good location for the library?

Have your say today.

Results from the previous poll are below=>

New Milton library site sits on history.

Members of Carroll Realty, Glenn Fletcher (left) and Wes Williams (right), with Williams' daughter, Colleen, said they are proud of their part in bringing Milton its own library, on the Dinsmore farm in Crabapple.

Courtesy Jonathan Copsey; The Milton Herald

June 25, 2012

MILTON, Ga. — Milton's new public library will be at the corner of Charlotte Drive and Mayfield Road, in downtown Crabapple. The county paid $1.1 million for the 4.09-acre piece of historic property where the homestead of the Dinsmore family still stands.

With a large white house sitting up on a slight rise from the road, there are two barns and a smaller, yellow house on the property. There are plenty of large trees on the property, including two massive oaks. A family of turkey vultures has taken up roost in one of the barns.

The Dinsmore farm belonged to Theodore Roosevelt (T.R.) Dinsmore and his wife Imogene. While the white farm house dates back to the 1950's, the property has been in the family for much longer.

"You would see [T.R.] sitting on his porch at all times," said Wes Williams, a long-time area resident and real estate agent for the property.

At one point, the Dinsmore family owned a large percentage of the Crabapple area, Williams said.

T.R. died in 2005 and Imogene died in 2009.

Drivers-by might recall that the property has had a "for sale" sign out front for the past several years.

Williams and Glenn Fletcher are partners in Carroll Realty, the Realtors who have tried to sell the property for the past seven years.

It was slow going, Fletcher said, trying to find the right developer and development for such an important site in Crabapple, especially with the newly formed City of Milton.

"This is the last big parcel in Crabapple that wouldn't require an assemblage of lots," said Fletcher. "We went looking for the right fit."
They then heard about the $275 million library bond.

"When Wes and I happened to along how Fulton County passed their bond and they were looking for a library site, we knew it was a perfect site," said Fletcher.

The lot has road visibility and is within walking distance of several schools – Milton High School, Northwestern Middle School and Crabapple Elementary School – all important criteria for site selection by the library board.

The realtors reached out to the library director, John Szabo, and invited him to walk the site.

This was all in 2008. Two years later, Fletcher, Williams and Williams' 10-year-old daughter, Colleen, went to a Library Board of Trustees meeting to make their case.

They think the decision was made easier for the board when young Colleen stood up and wanted to speak.

"She told them, 'I think that Charlotte Drive would be a great location for your new library,'" said Williams. "She got up there and was unfazed by the people in the room."

The Fulton County Commission voted at their June 6 meeting to approve the $1.1 million to purchase the Dinsmore estate. The motion to approve came from North Fulton Commissioner Liz Hausmann and was unanimously approved.

The 25,000-square-foot library is part of 10 new or renovated libraries that were approved in a 2008 referendum worth $275 million, and work has been moving on a few sites since then. The library in Roswell already has preliminary designs drawn up, and the new Alpharetta Library is part of the new designs of downtown Alpharetta. The next step for the library is for architecture and designs to be drawn up.

For Fletcher and Williams, it's a perfect fit for Milton.

"It's nice to think this piece of property will be the center of learning for young kids," said Fletcher, who also helps teach special needs children at the Old Milton High School.

"This is one of the main entrances into Milton," said Williams. "What better way for a city to be represented than a landmark to learning?"

Volunteers needed July 11 for wildlife preservation group.

By Accessmilton.com

Want to help preserve the habitats of local wildlife? On Wednesday, July 11 the City of Milton will hold a meeting to kick off the city’s efforts in being named a “Community Wildlife Habitat” by the National Wildlife Federation.

The meeting, which lasts from 7 to 8:30 p.m., will be held in the executive conference room at Milton’s City Hall, 13000 Deerfield Parkway, Suite 107 G (Click here for directions, click here for a map of City Hall).

Additionally, city staff will hold an information meeting on the effort for the public July 16 before the regularly scheduled City Council meeting. Refreshments will be available starting at 5:30 p.m.

This distinctive certification would make the City of Milton just the third city in Georgia and 61st in the nation to become a National Wildlife Federation Community Habitat, said William Check, who is organizing the initial meeting. He said volunteers are needed to carry out the certification project with city staffers.

“We’re looking to bring awareness to the community about our local wildlife while preserving their precious natural habitats,” said Check, a Milton resident and Blessed Trinity High School student. “Anyone who is interested in preserving Milton’s diverse and robust environment is encouraged to attend.”

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Check at william.check@cityofmiltonga.us or call 678-242-2500 for more information.

To stay up to date with the project’s progress, visit www.cityofmiltonga.us/wildlifehabitatcommunityproject. To certify your backyard or for more information, visit the National Wildlife Federation‘s Web site.

Boot drive total rises to $42,965.

Courtesy Milton Fire Department

As part of its yearly Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Fill the Boot Campaign, the Milton Fire Department’s A Shift raised nearly $10,000 June 22. The total raised over four days is now nearly $43,000.

The department is trying to top its 2011 total of more than $60,000, which was second in the state in fundraising.

Milton firefighters will continue their drive July 6.

In just five years, the City of Milton Fire Department has raised more than $221,000 for MDA, which uses the money to aid local children and adults affected by neuromuscular diseases by providing wheelchairs, leg braces, clinic visits, support groups and a chance for children to attend Camp Walk-N-Roll.

Crabapple antique fest now accepting applications.

Courtesy City of Milton

The Crossroads at Crabapple Antique and Art Festival Committee is now accepting vendor applications for its one-day, outdoor festival on Saturday, Oct. 6.

Antique dealers and local artists are encouraged to apply. Be advised that space is limited. To apply for the event, which brings thousands to historic downtown Crabapple, e-mail crossroadsatcrabapple@gmail.com or call Amanda Quintana of the Crabapple Community Association at 770-241-1125.

A tradition since 1969, the festival features thousands of antiques, accessories and unique pieces of art in all mediums. Last year’s event drew more than 10,000 attendees and 100-plus vendors from six states. The City of Milton is a presenting sponsor of the event.

Parking and admission are free, and proceeds benefit local community programs and non-profits. For more information, visit www.crossroadsatcrabapplefestival.com.

Cogburn Road construction update 6.

By Accessmilton.com

Foundation work is done, as is construction of the bridge footer. Bridge structure is scheduled for delivery on Wednesday and will be going in.

For more information, visit the project's site by clicking here.

Milton moves ahead with Crabapple plan.

By Patrick Fox
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Milton's city council has passed ordinances to allow planners to enforce form-based zoning codes in the Crabapple area. The action means the city can now create a uniform aesthetic in one of the city's oldest districts while preserving the surrounding open spaces.

Over the past two years, the city has held public meetings to draw up a Crabapple Visioning Study that will now be used to guide the area's development.

Information: Contact city planner Robyn MacDonald at 678-242-2540.

Crabapple plan taking shape.

By Accessmilton.com

The policy tools for City of Milton to implement the Crabapple Visioning Study, which foresees a bustling, aesthetically uniform city center in the historic crossroads area, are now part of the city’s zoning laws.

At its June 18 meeting, Milton’s City Council passed ordinances establishing transfer of development rights and an overlay district for Crabapple allowing planners to enforce form-based coding principles. These two zoning tools mean Milton can now create a uniform, community-approved aesthetic in the area while protecting the surrounding open spaces from development.

To view new laws, click here. This packet of information is also available during normal business hours at Milton’s City Hall, located at 13000 Deerfield Parkway, suite 107.

“These innovative zoning tools will allow the city to implement the Crabapple Visioning Study’s village concept,” said Kathy Field, director of Community Development. “Now, development in the area can reflect the community’s architectural ideals and be confined to those areas with existing infrastructure, meaning protection of precious green space.”

Monday’s vote caps more than two years of work to create the vision and framework for an ideal Crabapple. In 2010, Lew Oliver Inc. Wholetown Solutions created the Crabapple Visioning Study after numerous meetings with residents, planners, citizen volunteers and elected officials. Then, in December 2011, Field and Community Development staff began meeting with Crabapple residents and business owners to craft a new type of zoning district that fit the area’s unique nature.

For more information on form-based code and transfer of development rights, contact City Planner Robyn MacDonald at 678-242-2540 or robynmacdonald@cityofmiltonga.us.

Police chief returns from counterterrorism training.

Harrell with an Israeli police commander at the Israeli Police’s Bomb Disposal Division.

By Accessmilton.com

Milton Police Chief Deborah Harrell has returned from an intensive two weeks of public safety training conducted by Israeli police.

Harrell traveled to Israel as part of a 14-member delegation of public safety officials from Georgia who studied best practices in counterterrorism, emergency management, and other types of public safety and homeland security strategies through the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange (GILEE).

“This was an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and a transformative experience,” said Harrell, who was hand-picked for the program. “I gained unparalleled knowledge of practices I would have had no exposure to before the trip.”
GILEE was founded prior to Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Games as a joint program between Georgia State University and the state’s law enforcement community. The program continuously works to improve public safety in Georgia and the nation by enhancing inter-agency cooperation and educational training among and world’s top law enforcement communities, with Israel a principal partner in this exchange.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, GILEE has provided more than 800 senior law enforcement officials worldwide – more than half from Georgia – critical knowledge in current public safety practices through more than 200 peer-to-peer training exchanges. More than 15,000 public and private leaders in law enforcement and public safety have attended GILEE’s special briefings, such as the annual Business Continuity Summit.

“I am an avid supporter of GILEE,” said GBI Director Vernon Keenan, a 1993 graduate of GILEE’s training exchange. “When we send our men and women into critical incidents, it is too late to worry about whether we have trained them properly. GILEE delegations gain valuable, peer-to-peer training with international partners where they are exposed to new techniques, new skills and new ideas – many that validate the public safety practices we use here.”

Woman charged in Wal-Mart fracas.

Courtesy www.ajc.com

By David Ibata
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Click here for video coverage.

An altercation between two women in a food aisle of a north Fulton County Wal-Mart left one injured and the other taken to jail, Channel 2 Action News reported.

Fulton County Sheriff's Office, Fulton County Sheriff's Office Dorothy R. Kemp, 63, of Sandy Springs was arrested and charged with simple battery after police said she pushed a co-worker into a produce cooler during an altercation at a Wal-Mart store in Milton. The two women work for an independent contractor that provides samples to customers

The incident, involving two women who work for a private contractor that supplies samples to customers, happened about 2 p.m. Saturday at the Wal-Mart at 5200 Windward Parkway in Milton, police said.

"The employees got mad. One got upset with the other and went over and pushed her,” Milton police Capt. Shawn McCarty told Channel 2. "In this case, the suspect lost her temper in the crowded Wal-Mart and took it out on the person she was angry with."
The incident was recorded on the store’s surveillance video, police said.

The victim, 56-year-old Marissa Audry Moody, told police the confrontation started when Dorothy R. Kemp, 63, took her cutting board, according to a police incident report. Moody said she asked Kemp to return it.

Kemp ignored her, so Moody put her frying pan down on Kemp's cart and repeated her request, police said. Kemp allegedly told her to go away.

Moody said she told Kemp she needed a bottle of disinfecting spray, and there was none in the back room, according to the police report. So, Moody said, she grabbed a bottle of the spray from Kemp’s cart and starting walking back to her cart.

An officer who watched the video described what happened next in the recording: “Ms. Kemp ran after Ms. Moody and grabbed her by the shoulders to stop her. Ms. Kemp grabbed the disinfecting spray and pushed Ms. Moody into the fruit [cooler]. Ms. Moody’s feet were up in the air and she could not get out of the cooler.”

A Wal-Mart employee came over and helped Moody out of the cooler, police said. Kemp, meanwhile, had returned to her stand and gone back to work, preparing samples to hand out.

The police were called. After speaking with both women and watching the video, police said, they arrested Kemp and charged her with simple battery. She was released Sunday after posting $3,000 bond, according to Fulton County jail records.

Moody, meanwhile, was taken to North Fulton Hospital to be treated for her injuries. The Roswell woman told Channel 2 that she was injured badly enough to require X-rays and physical therapy.

When contacted by Channel 2 Thursday, an official for the California company that employed the women would not comment when asked if Kemp still worked for the firm.

Contacted at her Sandy Springs home, Kemp also declined comment to Channel 2.

Milton library has a home.

Courtesy Jonathan Copsey; The Milton Herald / Appen Newspapers

June 15, 2012
MILTON, Ga. - The Milton library officially has a home – the old Dinsmore farm at the corner of Charlotte Drive and Mayfield Road in Crabapple.

"Hopefully in the next couple years we will see a library here in Crabapple," said Milton Council member Karen Thurman at a meeting of the Crabapple Community Association June 14 at Milton's Cuisine, on Mayfield.

The 25,000 square foot building is part of 10 new or renovated libraries were approved in a 2008 referendum worth $275 million and work has been moving on a few sites since then. The Roswell library already has preliminary designs drawn up and the new Alpharetta library is part of the new designs of downtown Alpharetta.

The Fulton County Commission voted at their June 6 meeting to approve the $1.1 million to purchase the farm. The motion to approve came from North Fulton Commissioner Liz Hausmann and was unanimously approved.

Cogburn Road construction update 5.

by Accessmilton.com

Foundation work is continuing on the south side of the work site and crews are currently scheduled to pour the footing at the end of the week. The concrete bridge structure has been completed and is ready for delivery.

For more information, visit the project's site by clicking here.

Fulton Buys Land for New Library In Milton

Courtesy neighbornewspapers.com

At the Fulton County Board of Commissioners June 6 meeting, Commissioner Liz Hausmann, who represents north Fulton, made a motion to approve the county's purchase of land for a library in the city of Milton.

Fulton County has purchased, for $1.1 million, the Imogene Dinsmore estate at 855 Mayfield Road. The motion was approved unanimously by commissioners.

Read more: NeighborNewspapers.com - Fulton buys land for new library in Milton