September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Practice makes perfect
Colonial Pipeline of Alpharetta conducts response drills. PAGE 26
Up-front pricing
How this practice is changing medical consumerism. PAGE 14 Volume 2, Issue 9 • Cherokee • Cobb • Forsyth • Fulton • Gwinnett • Hall • An Appen Media Group Publication
The plane! The plane! Private aircraft sales begin to climb. PAGES 6 – 7
Say cheese!
North Atlanta hospitals continue innovation, care Health care is one of the area’s most vibrant economic engines. Aside from investing hundreds of millions of dollars in the local economy each year, the medical industry is a linchpin in the region’s elevated quality of life. Read more, Pages 16 - 17. Northside Hospital, Gwinnett Medical Center announce merger plans. Read more, Page 23.
Pictures from CummingForsyth Biz Expo. PAGE 11
LEGO gardens
PRSRT STD US Postage PAID Atlanta, GA Permit #3592
Gainesville host of new block sculpture exhibit. PAGE 27
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Northside Hopsital Forsyth has been in a continuous state of construction since it opened in 2002. Currently the hopsital is working on a $45 million vertical expansion which is adding three floors and two additional, 32-bed patient care units.
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Know someone turning heads in your community? Nominate them for North Atlanta Business Post’s 40 under 40! See page 8 for more detail.
2 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
WELCOME
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 3
Letter from the publisher Greetings, and happy football season! We get asked all the time about what the “latest” is and do our best to stay in the know so that you, our readers, are too. This publication has evolved even over the last few months as an important source of business information and news. We know this because our subscriptions have increased, our web and social media traffic have exploded and we get news tips and suggestions from the community every day. Keep sending them our way! As this area continues to evolve, we will too. A critical reminder from the staff here at the Business Post is to make sure to nominate candidates for our 40 Under 40 program! The deadline is Sept. 10. This is the inaugural year of the program, and through partnership with the Gwinnett, Greater North Fulton, Hall, Cherokee, Cobb and CummingForsyth Chambers of Commerce, this is sure to be a prestigious accomplishment for anyone that is named to the final list of 40. You can nominate online at: northatlantabusinesspost. com/40under40. The awards gala is Oct. 22 at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse in Alpharetta. Our next edition focuses on higher education and includes our North Fulton Market Report. Access to education, including and maybe especially at a graduate level is a proven catalyst for economic development worldwide. Georgia – and north
Atlanta – is home to some of best institutions in the country, and the industry is growing. Recent news about the Georgia State University/Georgia Perimeter College merger will add to and improve available programs for students to garner new skills. And just down the street from us in Alpharetta Gwinnett Technical College will be opening a new campus across from the Avalon development. Lastly, elections are right around the corner for many of our municipalities and now is the time to make your concerns and questions heard to the many candidates running for elected office. How do you want to see your area grow (or not)? What issues are important to you? Transportation? Education? Crime? Quality of life? If you don’t ask the questions – if you don’t let your elected officials hear from you – you are not participating in the process. Of course, we will do our best to report on the issues that are relevant and timely, but it’s up to you to take it from there. Be sure to vote Nov. 3!
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Officials formally open the Alpharetta Innovation Center Aug. 20.
Tech Innovation Center opens in Alpharetta Site ‘center of gravity for innovation in North Fulton’ By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. – In keeping with Alpharetta’s tag line as the “Technology City of the South,” the newest instrument in its kit to spur on innovation opened Aug. 20. The Alpharetta Technology Commission’s Innovation Center formally opened its doors on Webb Bridge Road. The center is a 24/7 technology co-working space with event, office and conference room space. “This is exciting stuff and it’s only going to get better,” said Mark Hubbard,
CEO of the ATC. He described the innovation center as the “center of gravity for innovation in North Fulton.” Alpharetta Mayor David Belle Isle said the center provides an important need in the technology community in Alpharetta and surrounding North Fulton. “One goal of the commission is to connect technology companies with each other,” Belle Isle said. “We wanted to create a space where technology companies can come together and connect.” Local state Sen. Brandon Beach said the center is integral to the pipeline of creating and keeping hi-tech jobs in Georgia. “This is the only technology city of the South,” said Beach. “We as a state are committed to having cutting-edge infrastructure to help. You supply the ideas and we will supply the talent and
the infrastructure.” Badsha Das, of 8d Designs, a technology design company housed in the new Innovation Center, said the space was ideal for his company. “There are lots of other companies here,” he said. “This feels like our place. This is for us.” While other locations offer casual work space for companies, this is one specifically for tech startups. Belle Isle said the effort was to create, foster and, importantly, retain technology companies in Alpharetta. “This is the beginning point, but not the end in terms of technology and innovation in Alpharetta,” said Belle Isle. The Innovation Center is located at 2972 Webb Bridge Road, Alpharetta 30009. For more information, visit www. alpharettatech.org.
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NEWS
4 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Consumer demand, investment pickup will trump market turbulence By PATRICK FOX pat@appenmediagroup.com ATLANTA – Consumer demand and the return of investment spending will be the key to continued growth in the U.S. economy, according to Rajeev Dhawan of the Economic Forecasting Center at GeorDhawan gia State University’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business. Speaking at his quarterly “Forecast for the Nation” Aug. 27, Dhawan downplayed the effect of China’s stalled economy and recent turbulence in the stock market. U.S. consumers are still poised to contribute to domestic growth because of savings from low gas prices and wealth gains from reflated home values and stock portfolios, he said. If China’s woes trigger a sustained stock market correction, Dhawan said, it could affect consumption attitudes which could stifle growth. But most of the affect from China’s stumbling economy is felt in Southeast Asia, Chile and Brazil, countries whose economies depend on large exports to China. “So I can understand the fire going over there, but then how does it become a problem for us?” he said. “If that affects
our market, that affects our mood, that affects our spending, and that becomes a problem for achieving the potential growth rate.” The economic growth rate in the United States, which came in at a surprisingly strong 3.7 percent in the second quarter, is key, Dhawan said. The latest number puts the 2015 growth rate at about 2 percent. The economy is being led by strong auto sales, especially trucks. For the first seven months of the year, vehicle sales averaged 17.0 million units – up 4.5 percent over the previous year’s strong sales numbers. Light trucks including sports utility vehicles drove the increase, rising by 10.7 percent over the previous year, thanks to automaker discounts and lower prices at the pump. By contrast, consumers hit the brakes when it came to passenger-car purchases, which declined 1.9 percent. “Right now, you are basically spending money on cars, and not spending it on the other stuff,” he said. As for oil prices, Dhawan anticipates prices will stay below $60/barrel until late 2016 due to a drop in global demand and an increase in drilling efficiency by U.S. producers. “People can safely expect low gas prices to continue for the next year,” he said. While lower gas prices and job gains have buoyed consumer sentiment,
Forecast perspective 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Real GDP 2.2% 1.5% 2.4% 2.2% 2.5% 2.5% Job growth (in millions) 2.26 2.3 2.63 2.94 2.72 2.57 Auto sales (in millions) 14.4 15.5 16.4 17 16.5 15.4 Housing starts (in millions) 0.78 0.93 1.00 1.10 1.20 1.28 Source: GSU Economic Forecasting Center
spending could still be affected by other factors, such as political turmoil over the budget, China’s devaluation of its currency and the Greek economy, he said. “People are saving more than in the past,” Dhawan said. “The reason is that your income growth is not as good as previously, and you want to make up for all your losses in the stock market, your home and other things.” As people economize, discretionary spending remains sluggish, he said. And that, he added, requires economists to reshape their views on what the potential growth rate is for the U.S. economy. In this recovery, the average GDP growth rate has been 2 percent, while the recovery in the ’90s was 3 percent, Dhawan said. Even the Fed, which originally projected growth in the 3-3.5 percent range, has lowered its expectations closer to 2 percent as the decade has progressed. Here are some of the highlights from
the Economic Forecasting Center’s National Report: • Following a stumble in the first quarter, real GDP grew at a strong 2.3 percent in the second quarter of 2015. Growth of 2.2 percent is expected for the second half, for an overall rate of 2.2 percent for 2015. It will expand at a better rate of 2.5 percent in 2016 and 2017. • Business investment will grow by 3 percent in 2015, rebound to 5.4 percent in 2016 and 5.2 percent in 2017. Expect jobs to grow by a monthly rate of 219,000 in 2015, 226,000 in 2016 and 214,000 in 2017. • Housing starts will average 1.105 million units in 2015, rise to 1.202 in 2016 and 1.275 in 2017. Expect auto sales of 17.0 million units in 2015, 16.5 in 2016 and 16.4 in 2017. • The 10-year bond rate will rise to 2.7 percent in 2015 and should rise to 3.3 percent before the end of 2017.
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 5
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NEWS
6 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Grounded by tight budgets, aviation rises again flexibility,” Swanick said. “It’s efficiency in business by not having to go to the airport, ATLANTA – It’s been a slow climb for through security and private aircraft out of the recession, and all those things.” after a steady ascent last year, the indusShe said typically, a try appears to be hitting some turbulence. lot of the transactions The latest data for the first quarter of 2015 shows U.S. deliveries of genSenters- she’s seeing are in eral aviation aircraft dropped about 14 Mcdermott the $3 to $10 million range percent from the first quarter last year. Rates are appealing right now. That’s a decline of about 49 planes. “Three or four years ago, a lot of Nevertheless, the growth of high-tech banks did not have an appetite for this companies in north Metro Atlanta means type of financing, but as the market the market for aircraft could level off lostarted to recover cally. Each year in the and because we’re in United States, general a low-interest-rate aviation aircraft log environment, I’ve 23 million flight done some deals hours, more than that were priced on a two-thirds for busifloating rate of below ness purposes, ac3 percent,” she said. cording to the online “If you’re looking for aviation marketing a fixed-rate, term site AeroWeb. loan, you could be “From a financing anywhere between perspective, a lot of 3.5-5 percent on this our high-net-worth asset. So, it’s a very clients are CEOs good time to leverage or business owners if that’s part of your or private-equity overall plan.” people,” said ShanIt is difficult to get non Swanick, client financing for aircraft adviser with SunTrust older than 15 years, Private Wealth Manshe added. agement in Atlanta. The most impor“They really view tant factor in buying private aviation as the this type of asset, ultimate luxury. So, Swanick said, is for an it’s affordable when executive to assemble the market’s good.” all the people associThat means ated with the person private aircraft is the Lisa Senters-McDermott, or company’s opfirst thing cut out of a founder and owner eration: accountants, budget when there’s a of Jet Senters Aviation bankers, attorneys. downturn or any type “We look at both of uncertainty in the sides of the balance economy, she said. sheet to see whether In times like financing a plane is prudent or if usthis, there isn’t a whole lot of inventory ing cash is prudent,” she said. “It really out there, she said, so that can affect a depends on the rate environment. It person’s decision on whether to lease or depends on the liquidity of our client.” own. Swanick said she generally deals with “People fly private because it provides
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EDITORIAL CALENDAR 2015-2016 Issue Date
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October 2015 – Higher Education • N. Fulton Market Report special focus
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December 2015 – Chamber of Commerce spotlight • Forsyth Market Report special focus
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“There’s just a lot more choices in aviation. It’s creating more opportunity for the consumer and more competition for the seller.”
General Aviation Industry Performance 2012-2013
Call 770-442-3278 to reserve your ad space today! www.NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
World Shipments
U.S. Shipments
World Revenues
Leader
Top Model
+8.7%
+6.4%
+24.1%
CESSNA
Cirrus SR22T
General Aviation Industry Performance 2013-2014 World Shipments
U.S. Shipments
World Revenues
Leader
Top Model
+4.3%
+1.0%
+4.5%
CESSNA
Cirrus SR22T Source: AeroWeb
NEWS
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 7
The top model plane from 2012 – 2014 is the Cirrus SR22T.
Average General Aviation Price (U.S. and Global)
U.S. and Global Deliveries of General Aviation Aircraft
Prices for general aviation aircraft have climbed substantially since 2007 as manufacturers make up for lower sales. From 2007-2010, the average price of a GA aircraft (worldwide) has almost doubled from $5.1 million to $9.8 million (+91 percent). In the United States, manufacturers have raised their prices by 64 percent ($3.6 million in 2007 to $5.9 million in 2010).
The 2007 to 2009 recession had a major impact on general aviation aircraft production. Global production fell 52 percent from 2007-2010, from 4,276 aircraft to 2,020. During that same time, U.S. production fell from 3,279 to 1,334 units, a drop of 59.3 percent. In 2014, worldwide production was 2,454 aircraft, an increase of 4.3 percent from the prior year. The U.S. output was 1,631 aircraft, up 1 percent.
Source: General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA)
business jets, such as the Cessna Citation. Clients could finance through a floating-rate loan or a fixed-term loan. Depending on the strength of the liquidity of the borrower, the bank could also look at doing some sort of liquid secured financing where they’re leveraging their own assets. “Rates are so low right now, it’s a great time if you’re going to purchase a plane to look at doing that,” she said. “That way if you didn’t want to have that large capital outlay, you could keep those investable assets working for you in the stock market or other investments.” Another option businesses choose is to either lease or share ownership of a plane. Lisa Senters-McDermott, founder and owner of Jet Senters Aviation, said she sees the market rebounding, similar to what the real estate market went through. There are still some pretty good buys out there, she said. “There’s just a lot more choices in aviation,” she said. “It’s creating more opportunity for the consumer and more competition for the seller.” Jet Senters Aviation is a referral-only full-service boutique private aviation firm based at Peachtree-DeKalb Airport.
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Source: General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA)
It has two divisions, a charter brokerage arm, and a consultancy. McDermott stressed that airplanes, like automobiles, depreciate rapidly, so it’s important to take that into account when buying. “Business has been fabulous, because we are private aviation advisers for our customers,” she said. “What we do is look at what is going to suit our customers best.” McDermott said the first thing a person exploring aviation should do is evaluate how much the plane will be used. If it makes more sense to charter, then the advisers will explore that route, she said. Sometimes, she said, clients want to buy the plane and have it available. “Say, if you want to purchase a Gulfstream 200, we can bring it onto our fleet, help you choose the proper management certificate to put it under,” she said. “Then, we can manage the plane for you. You can use it when you want, so it’s ready to go whenever you want to fly it. When you’re not using it, then, like a rental house or a beach house, we manage it for you and make sure other people are using it and they’re paying you for the use of that aircraft. So it’s offsetting your costs.”
• BurgerFi • Café Efendi • Chicken Salad Chick • DaVinci’s Donuts • Humble Pie • Taziki’s • Twisted Taco • Wild Wing Café • 850o F Bar Pizza
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Mediterranean • Alpine Bakery • First Watch • Great Harvest Bread Co. • Hudson Grille • Mambos Cafe • Piece of Cake • Reveille Cafe
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NEWS
8 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Businessman Rick Jackson turns to producing indie films By HATCHER HURD hatcher@appenmediagroup.com
ALPHARETTA, Ga. – Ultrasuccessful Alpharetta businessman Rick Jackson has turned over the reins of Jackson Healthcare, one of the largest health care staffing companies in the U.S., to give him time to delve into a new career — producing indie films. His production company, Giving Films, chose as its first project an adaptation of the New York Times best-selling book, “90 Minutes in Heaven,” and has lined up Samuel Goldwyn Films to distribute it. All profits from the movie will go charity, hence the company name Giving Films. It cost $6.5 million to produce, which is average for an indie film, but wouldn’t cover the catering bill for big Hollywood productions like “Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation” which also debuted this year. Jackson said he had wanted to get his film production company shooting for two years, but he waited until he could get what he felt was the right property. That was “90 Minutes,” which has sold more than 7 million copies to date. “We had tried to get it two years ago and it wasn’t available. When it came back on the market, we decided it would
Producer Rick Jackson, right, meets with the real Rev. Don Piper, author and inspiration for the movie, and his wife Eva. be a good first film for Giving Films. The book has a huge following already, so we think this will good for us,” said Jackson, who plans to produce or co-produce one to two films a year “90 Minutes in Heaven” is the true story of Don Pipe, who had a near-death experience Jan. 18, 1989, when a semitrailer truck crushed his car. He had been declared dead by the first rescue
workers on the scene. A passing minister stopped, prayed over him and helped bring him back to life. Piper said while he was “dead” for 90 minutes, he experienced love, joy and life as he’d never known before. He said he was in heaven. But back on earth, that heavenly bliss was replaced by excruciating pain from his injuries and the emotional turmoil of
his recovery. The story is about his faith and the support and prayers of his wife, Eva, and his congregation as he fought to rehabilitate his shattered body. Jackson was pleased to have lined up well-known stars Hayden Christian (episodes two and three of “Star Wars”) and Kate Bosworth (“Superman”). It also has Dwight Yoakum and Fred Thompson of film, television and senatorial fame. “With a cast like that, we think the quality of the production will come across on the screen,” he said. “It’s a story about a preacher, so you know it will be about faith, but it doesn’t preach to you,” Jackson said. “But all of our future films will be faith-based or faith-oriented because we feel like there needs to be higher-quality entertainment with faith message or inspiration.” Future projects will stand on their own as entertainment, but they will be films that will uplift in some way. Just getting the first picture done has been a tremendous learning curve for Jackson. Perhaps the biggest lesson he learned was that it is best to have secured the rights for the film before you begin production. They had already scouted locations and set up the shooting schedule,
See FILMS, Page 24
Know someone turning heads in your community? AT H
North Atlanta Business Post’s “40 under 40” is unique in that 30 of the winners are submitted by the Chambers of Commerce in six counties in our coverage area. The remaining 10 are selected from the pool of nominations from other businesses, municipal chambers, individuals and more. There is no limit to the number of candidates who can be submitted by one group. Nominations are open from July 1 and run through
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September 10. After the nominations are in, the fun begins. North Atlanta Business Post will organize a “Meet & Greet,” an after hours networking event where all the nominees can meet, mingle and let loose. The finalists will be announced in December, and then North Atlanta Business Post will host the awards ceremony at which the finalists will be encouraged to collect their award.
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TRANSPORTATION
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 9
MARTA eyes $8B expansion Ga. 400, Clifton projects need funding By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com ATLANTA – If there is one thing metro Atlanta is known for, it’s the traffic. But MARTA Board Chairman Robert Ashe has grand plans to change that. These plans include nearly $8 billion in funding over the next several decades as well as significant improvements and expansion projects, notably expanding rail services to Windward Parkway in Fulton County and in DeKalb County. MARTA prides itself on being one of the top 10 transportation systems in the country. Their mission is only going to get greater as Atlanta’s population continues to grow and spread out in the metro area. They estimate their services have moved over 3.5 billion people in the last 25 years. The importance of MARTA is significant, Ashe said. He pointed to recent corporate moves to Atlanta – such as Kaiser Permanente and Mercedes-Benz – both of which chose locations in Atlanta near metro stations. “What’s become clear is that having MARTA access and rail access means corporate relocation, increased development in terms of condos and office buildings. And it’s a generational shift to live-work-play. Large employers are finding that, to attract the talent they want, these people need options. One option is transit accessibility.” However, to move more people efficiently MARTA needs to expand, and that does not come cheap. Three significant projects are on the books. In Fulton County, plans call for five
stations to dot the 12-mile distance from North Springs to Windward Parkway – Northridge Road, Holcomb Bridge Road, Encore Parkway/North Point Mall, Old
MARTA is proposing five new stations on the northern line up to Windward Parkway highlighted in green. Existing stations are shown in orange.
Milton Parkway and Windward Parkway. No specific sites have been chosen yet. Another major expansion plan is along the Clifton corridor. This would link the Lindbergh station with the Avondale station in DeKalb County. The light rail line will provide service to one of the region’s most congested areas – and biggest job centers – serving Emory University, Emory Hospital, the Centers for Disease Control, Children’s Healthcare and Veteran’s Administration Hospital. Finally, a new bus rapid transit service is proposed along I-20 between the existing Five Points MARTA station in downtown Atlanta and a new transit center at Wesley Chapel Road and a 12mile extension of the existing heavy rail line from the Indian Creek Station. The rail line would extend south, adjacent to I-285 to serve the Wesley Chapel Road transit center, and then transition east parallel to I-20 to the Mall at Stonecrest in Southeastern DeKalb County. While MARTA has streamlined its services and staff, putting it on stable financial footing in recent years, Ashe said it’s still not enough to expand services, only maintain them. “We don’t have a way to pay for them at the moment,” he said. “If we are going to talk about capital expansion, we need to identify new sources of revenue.” That revenue would come in the form of new penny taxes counties can levy for transportation. The State Legislature has approved HB 170, which allows every county in the state to levy a 1 penny sales tax for transportation for a span of five years. Ashe said that money could help MARTA expand, but not as the law currently stands – five years is not enough time. “Five years is too short a time for any
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MARTA is a Breeze Beginning in January, MARTA will implement a new type of Breeze card for use of the system. This card will be phased in over the year. MARTA Board of Directors Chairman Robert Ashe says it contains increased security technology to stop Breeze cards from being counterfeited. “For regular users and for people buying the cards, there will be no difference,” Ashe said. At $2 apiece - an increase of $1 over current rates – Ashe said he hopes users will reuse the cards rather than throw them away. of those projects,” he said. “We cannot guarantee any [projects] would be fully constructed within five years.” And because of this, other revenue sources – such as bonds or federal grants – will be significantly harder to get and there would be little money left over to actually maintain and operate those systems. For the three large projects Ashe wants to build, he needs lots of money over a longer time period. Ashe wants the legislature to allow Fulton and DeKalb voters to approve a half of that transportation penny tax to be dedicated to MARTA for 40 years. This would be a long-term funding source of about $4 billion he could then use to leverage additional monies – federal monies and bonds – which he said could effectively double the funds. Thus the $8 billion over 40 years. With that money, Ashe said, MARTA could finish all three projects as well as work on further opportunities. “The legislature has already authorized this tax,” Ashe said. “We want the Fulton and DeKalb voters to be given the option to increase the investment they have already made in the system.”
RIBBON CUTTINGS
10 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
New businesses in your area
Business: The Joint Opened: July 31, 2015 Owners: Tom Haimes, Angie Haimes, Jeff McGinty, Cindy McGinty What: A local chiropractic business making chiropractic work
Business: Christian Brothers Automotive Opened: May 2015 Owners: Tom and Lisa Burgess What: A full-service automotive repair
approachable and convenient. Walk-ins welcome. Address: 885 Woodstock Road, Suite 320, Roswell Phone: 770-299-1999 Web: clinic04028@thejoint.com
Business: Inspire Chiropractic Opened: April 20, 2015 Owners: Josh and Ashley Hasty What: Inspire Chiropractic is focused on helping people reach their greatest potential in health and in wellness
through the most advanced chiropractic care possible. Address: 2615 Peachtree Parkway, Suite 270, Suwanee Phone: 678-541-9100 Web: inspirechiropractic.com
and service shop. Address: 5960 Bethelview Road, Cumming Phone: 470-695-3131 Web: locations.cbac.com/cumming
Business: The Specific Chiropractic Center Owner: Dr. Cailen Wells What: Dr. Wells is passionate about Upper Cervical Chiropractic different from General chiropractic. She was inspired at the age of 16 years old to do
this type of Chiropractic after the loss of her mother from Pancreatic Cancer. Address: 5755 North Point Parkway Suite 12 Alpharetta Phone: 678-805-7344 Web: thespecific.com, cailen@ thespecific.com
Business: Buffalo Wild Wings Opened: August 31, 2015 What: National sports bar chain serving buffalo wings and beer.
Address: Mall of Georgia, 3333 Buford Drive, Buford Phone: 678-332-6798 Web: buffalowildwings.com
Business: Fendley Farmstead, LLC Opened: August 28, 2015 What: Offer a venue for weddings, receptions, family reunions, corporate events, birthday parties and a yearly
Christmas celebration where you pick your own Frasier Fur Cristmas Tree. Address: 1287 Sardis Rd. Canton Phone: 404-408-5561 Web: fendleyfarmstead.com
Business: Baldinos Subs Opened: August 22, 2015 Owner: Rishi Patel What: Baldinos Giant Jersey Subs can only be described with one word, fresh. Baldinos cuts all of their veggies including their crisp lettuce every morning. They sell both deli fresh and hot subs off the grill. Address: 12890 Highway 9 Ste # 100 Milton Phone: 678-580-0434 Web: facebook.com/ BaldinosSubsMilton
Business: Crooked Creek Furniture and Gifts Opened: August 2015 What: Home decor, furniture and more.
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Address: 12746 Cumming Highway Canton Phone: 470-695-7145 Web: facebook.com/ Crookedcreekfurniture
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NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 11
Did we see you there?
Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce 2015 Business Expo at the Forsyth Conference Center took place August 13, 2015.
By KATHLEEN STURGEON kathleen@appenmediagroup.com FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — Local businesses and community members had a chance Aug. 13 to mix and mingle at the 2015 Business Expo at the Forsyth Conference Center, 3410 Ronald Reagan Blvd. Jason Mock with the Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce, who put on the expo, said it was a great event. “Today’s been a good day for our business community and for our public to get out and meet businesses in Forsyth County and see new products and services,” Mock said. “It’s a great opportunity for the residents of this community to come out and see our businesses.” One of the title sponsors of the event was Kubicek Information Technologies, which offers flat-rate IT managed services in Cumming, Suwanee, Alpharetta, Johns Creek and the surrounding Metro Atlanta area. Eugene Kovalov is the lead support engineer and he said the expo gives other businesses and local residents an opportunity to learn about his company. “A lot of these businesses are small businesses that are trying to grow like us,” Kovalov said. “We aren’t a large business and we want to grow, but at the same time our main point is to help others grow. We want everyone to know about us and to know they can rely on us to help them grow.” Other businesses in attendance included Miles, Hansford and Tallant law firm, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and Costco. For information on the business expo, visit http://www.cummingforsythchamber.org/.
Photos by Kathleen Sturgeon/Staff
From left, Jason Mock, Anna Barlow, Laura Stewart, Alex Girrbach and Chris Benitez from the Cumming-Forsyth Chamber of Commerce attend the 2015 Business Expo at the Forsyth Conference Center.
Natalia Hall, sitting, Keith Lumpkins and Amber Skrimcovsky spoke about Hampton Inn.
Dana Miles and Molly Anderson hosted the Miles, Hansford and Tallant booth.
Sara Harrison, left, and Jamie LeBlanc let everyone know about the Forsyth County Conference Center.
Eugene Kovalov works for Kubicek, a title sponsor of the expo.
Over 50 booths were set up for local businesses.
HEALTH & MEDICAL
12 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
The Affordable Care Act:
How new Obamacare mandates affect you and your business
The percentage of marketplace consumers who qualified for tax credits to make their monthly premiums more affordable in the first two months of open enrollment.
25 percent:
The increase in issuers competing for business in the 2015 marketplace as compared to 2014.
40:
The average number of plans consumers can choose from in 2015.
1.86 million:
The largest number of users on one day to HealthCare.gov.
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87 percent:
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The average monthly tax credit for people who qualify for financial assistance in the 37 states using HealthCare.gov through Jan. 30, 2015.
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The number of Americans who have signed up for or been automatically renewed for 2015 marketplace coverage.
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About 11.4 million:
W
Quick numbers about the Affordable Care Act/ ‘Obamacare’
NE
GEORGIA – Beginning in 2010, the state of health care has taken a new course. The Affordable Care Act (ACA), commonly known as “Obamacare,” went into effect in phases, spanning several years. The intent of the ACA was to slow the rapid rise of health care costs throughout the nation. To do this, everyone in the nation must be covered with some form of health insurance. Insurance could be obtained through employers, as has traditionally been the case, or in situations where employerprovided coverage was not available or affordable, through state-run health care exchanges. Consumers could purchase insurance plans through these marketplaces, and in cases receive monthly tax credits to offset the cost of the premiums. States could also expand their Medicaid programs to include a wider swath of citizens to increase coverage. However, the federal government did not mandate that states establish their own health care exchange, nor did it mandate an expansion of state-run Medicaid programs. As a result, many states, including Georgia, chose not to build their own exchange, and 21 (to date) have chosen
not to expand their Medicaid programs. In those states, citizens can purchase & LOWERIN insurance through a federal exchange. GH LITY A U Despite numerous challenges to its EA Q legality, the law is now largely in LT G N H I place and will remain so for some V C time. O In Georgia, as of March 31, 2015, more than 450,000 Georgians have signed up for the ACA through the federal marketplace. Georgia was listed as among the top 10 states where consumers received financial assistance through advanced premium tax credits. Figures say 91 percent of those receiving health insurance through the marketplace received subsidies. “Georgia has one of the largest numbers of people on the [ACA],” said David Howard, an associate professor of health policy and management at Emory’s Rollins M School of Public Health. ER ES C Howard says there are benPR C efits to the new health care legislaA OT tion, such as increasing the continuity EC TIO N of insurance coverage and funding for S comparative effectiveness research, but he is concerned about the fiscal impact of the legislation. “In the initial years of the exchanges, Providing insurance options, insurers set premiums based on a lot of covering preventive services guesswork,” he said. “Now they have a and lowering costs. complete year of claims under their belt and they know people are signing up for plans.” Coverage available to Unfortunately, he said, the first and children up to age 26. largest group to sign up are the sick and elderly. This causes premiums to rise until more healthy people sign up. Once that happens, the industry should even out. But what does the ACA mean for indiYearly wellness visit and viduals and businesses in 2015-16? many free preventiive services For individuals, everyone must for some seniors with Medicare. be covered. The first penalties for not enrolling began going into effect in 2014 and increase annually. The penalties are based on family income and are meant to deter a failure to enroll. Insurers must justify any David Howard, Associate professor For businesses, most of the provipremium increase of 10% or of health policy and management at sions of the law have gone into effect and more before the rate takes effect. Emory’s Rollins School of Public Health are largely the same as those for individuals. The employer mandate was delayed Because the state opted out of “It’s hard for people who don’t work until 2015 and 2016. Ultimately, 95 expanding Medicaid, the federal govin the industry to figure out what they percent of employees must be covered by ernment has had to pick up much of will be liable for,” Howard said. some form of health care. the slack in the form of subsidies for This leads to confusion both for the A new change will force employers of monthly health care premiums through employer and the insurer. And this consmall and medium-sized companies to the exchange. fusion can lead to higher premiums. begin complying by the rules. Up until Howard said that, despite the ACA’s “It may work itself out,” Howard said, now, it was only large companies. tumultuous initial years, things should “but insurers are saying that hasn’t hapEmployers that do not meet the rebegin to settle down by 2015-16. pened yet.” quirements will face penalties.
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By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com
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“In the initial years of the exchanges, insurers set premiums based on a lot of guesswork. Now they have a complete year of claims under their belt and they know people are signing up for plans.”
Young Adult Coverage Strengthening Medicare
Holding Insurance Companies Accountable
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 13
14 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
HEALTH & MEDICAL
Health care tourism By PATRICK FOX pat@appenmediagroup.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. – An Alpharetta physician has launched what he hopes will revolutionize consumer-based health care for thousands of patients. Dr. Jeffrey Gallups, a double boardcertified physician specializing in nasal and sinus disorders, opened the Ear, Nose and Throat Institute three years ago after more than a decade of planning. Like the name implies, ENTI provides specialty treatments for disorders of the ear, nose and throat at 17 facilities in Georgia – and does it with the price tag affixed. “Now is the dawn of medical consumerism, just like consumerism for any other product,” Gallups said. “Medicine has been this giant black hole, where you don’t know what it’s going to cost.” Medical services vary from place to place, but most hospitals use what are called charge masters, which are detailed charts listing prices for services. These prices often vary depending on whether the patient has private insurance, no insurance or Medicare. And, sometimes, the charges vary within each category. In addition, some clinics associated with hospitals charge what are called hospital facility fees which are tacked on
to bills even though the service never took place at the associated hospital. In some cases, hospital facility fees can run more than the procedure itself. Gallups said under his business model, Gallups doctors control every aspect of a patient’s care. “We have our own surgery center, our own doctors, our own facilities, our own anesthesiologist, our own pathologist,” he ditto said. “In fact, there’s no other practice like it outside of a hospital pretty much in the Southeast.” Because of these controls, ENTI is able to keep expenses down and determine exactly what the costs are. “We cut out multiple people in the process and still make a profit that lets us hire – we have 200 employees – it lets us maintain them as well as provide the public with transparent pricing,” Gallups said. The facilities are structured to have staff consulting with patients before the
The Ear, Nose and Throat Institute has two surgery centers in Atlanta. The Milton Hall Surgery Center (above) is on Old Milton Parkway in Alpharetta. On the south side of Atlanta, the ENT Institute offers state-of-the-art surgical facilities in East Newnan. fairly simple, it took a lot of courage to break out from the traditional model doctors function under. He operated a traditional medical practice until about three years ago. Then he bought out his
procedure, informing them of all the costs and steps. “To me it’s really simple,” Gallups said. “What does something cost? How can we hire people to provide that, and then make a small margin?” Gallups said although the system is
See TOURISM, Page 28
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HEALTH &
16 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Hospital care continues to expand in north Metro Atlanta By PATRICK FOX pat@appenmediagroup.com ATLANTA – Metro Atlanta’s health care industry continues to grow, and that growth is most evident at area hospitals, where hundreds of millions of dollars are going into upgrades and expansions. While its main campus in Sandy Springs remains one of the busiest in the country, Northside Hospital has made or is in the process of making major additions to its Cumming and Cherokee County campuses. Construction has been continuous at Northside Hospital-Forsyth since 2002. The hospital, Forsyth’s largest private employer with 2,500 people on staff, will soon treat a wide range of brain tumors and other neurological conditions through the use of a device called a Gamma Knife Perfexion system. The $7 million technology extends the capabilities of the hospital’s cancer center, which already employs three linear ac-
celerators. The system is scheduled to go online in November. “This allows our physicians to use radiosurgery in treating somewhat inaccessible or inoperable tumors of the brain,” said Lynn Jackson, administrator for Northside Hospital-Forsyth. NHF also just opened its second hybrid endovascular surgical suite for minimally invasive procedures. The hospital has a Magellan surgical robot used in these suites. The robot provides physicians robotic control of catheter tips to navigate through a range of anatomies and lesions. The hospital also uses a MAKOplasty robotic system for joint surgery in the hybrid suites. Together with two other operating rooms recently added, the expansion accounts for a $9 million investment. One of the biggest projects underway at the Forsyth campus is a $45 million vertical expansion which is adding three floors and two additional, 32-bed patient care units. This will bring the facility to eight
stories. “We’re excited it will be available for occupancy in November 2016,” Jackson said. The hospital is also building a women’s-focused ambulatory surgery center in one of the medical office buildings on campus which is due to open in the spring. The hospital just opened a new $1.1 million Breast Care Center which offers regular mammography and 3-D imaging. In addition to having a dedicated breast radiologist on hand, the center will also have a specialist in breast tomosynthesis, which uses the 3-D technology to read high-resolution images and provide a higher diagnostic accuracy compared to conventional mammography. NSF was also recently certified for special care Level III nursery, so it expanded its nursery beds. The hospital has only accommodated women’s services since 2008. “Prior to that time, we’ve been 25 years without hospital-based obstetrics up here,”
New strains of bacteria challenge hospitals to control infections By Patrick Fox pat@appenmediagroup.com Consumer Reports has come out again with its ranking of hospitals with the best record for infection control. The magazine concentrates on two particular infections that have gained prominence in the medical community: MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus) and C. diff (clostridium difficile). Both are serious and can be fatal if not treated promptly. Both can also survive for days on surfaces and easily be transferred to people, equipment and furniture. The rankings carried numerous caveats, including the proviso that many hospitals underreport infections, and some hospitals do not see enough patient traffic to provide a solid statistical analysis of infection data. Among Georgia hospitals, Northside Hospital was rated among the best across five individual infection categories, including MRSA and C. diff. “We’ve implemented a hospital-acquired infection team, and we involve a lot of our staff in these teams,” said Metta Waters, director of Patient Care Quality at Northside Hospital. “We include nursing staff, pharmacy, environmental services, laboratory as well as physicians. These teams help us research and implement the best practices at the bedside.” The list of protocols and procedures are called “bundles.” “So if a patient has a central line, we follow a bundle when we’re inserting the line, when we’re prepping the patient, all of that to reduce the risk of the patient getting an infection,” Waters said. The hospital also consults other agencies to incorporate best practices in its bundle. “We also research those to make sure they’re appropriate for our hospital, and we implement that throughout the organization,” she said. “So anyone starting an IV or inserting a catheter into a patient is using those bundle elements. Obviously the ultimate goal is to have as few lines as possible, only have them when you need them.” Waters said the key she tries to stress is involving the entire staff in the process.
“Two areas that are very basic but important in preventing infections is hand hygiene and environmental cleaning,” she said. Both are monitored constantly. Waters also said the hospital is careful about its use of antibiotics. Overuse can reduce their efficacy against infections, she said. Consequently, Waters said she hasn’t seen reports of new or unusual strains. “We don’t have a lot of resistant MRSA-type strains in our organization,” she said. “We don’t have a real problem with that. We just try to stay vigilant in attacking every infection, whether it’s a resistant strain or not. But we just don’t see a lot of those patients in our hospital.” Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville and Braselton also scored among the best in the Consumer Reports survey of Georgia hospitals. The hospital follows the Centers for Disease Control’s guidelines to combat infections, said Dr. Supriya Mannepalli, Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s medical director of Infectious Diseases. Again, members of all hospital departments, from environmental services to surgeons, are involved in the process, she said. “The hospital stays aggressive in the never-ending battle against infections by reviewing our data on a regular basis to evaluate our performance and improve our current practices,” she said. “We also monitor changes to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network definitions for devicerelated infections and multidrug resistant organisms in an effort to stay ahead of the curve.” Mannepalli said the Infection Prevention and Control team follows an antibiotic use policy which requires clinical pharmacy specialists to review the use of certain antibiotics and provide feedback to physicians and other providers when necessary. “We also formed an antimicrobial subcommittee, led by Infectious Diseases physicians and clinical pharmacy specialists, which reviews and implements best practices for streamlining antibiotic use,” she said.
Construction has begun on a new replacem cal office building and Cancer Center, a 60 Jackson said. “Of course we are thrilled to provide what is sort of a signature product line for Northside.” Since 2008, NSF has ushered in 15,000 babies, and it expects to add another 2,800 this year, Jackson said. “We have about 900,000 square feet of space here with 265 beds (including outpatient beds) on a little over 150 acres,” Jackson said. “So we still have lots of room to grow.” There is no less activity at Northside Hospital-Cherokee, where construction is underway on a new replacement hospital off I-575 at Ga. 20. The $250 million replacement facility will include an 84-bed hospital facility, a distinct Women’s Center, multispecialty medical office building and Cancer Center, a 600-space parking deck and 300 surface parking space. The replacement hospital will use 10,000 light bulbs — 8,500 light fixtures with about 50 percent using new LED energy-efficient technology. It will be wired with 952 miles of cable, which could stretch from Atlanta to Long Island, New York. The current Canton hospital has been around since April 1962 and was known as the R.T. Jones Memorial Hospital. It had 62 rooms and 17 physicians. Gwinnett Medical Center, the county’s largest health care provider, has opened two multimillion-dollar electrophysiology labs, which diagnose and treat heart arrhythmias. The new labs, installed at the Strickland Heart Center on the Lawrenceville campus, allow doctors to perform procedures previously not available in the county. The Heart Center already has a cardiac catheterization lab where dye is injected to detect blockages. The hospital also welcomed its first class of internal medicine residents this summer as part of the system’s graduate medical education program. The class includes five first-year residents and one second-year resident. The medical educa-
& MEDICAL
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 17
RENDERING COURTESY NORTHSIDE HOSPITAL
ment hospital for Northside's Cherokee County operation. The $250 million replacement facility will include an 84-bed hospital, a distinct Women’s Center, multispecialty medi00-space parking deck and 300 surface parking space. tion program also includes a family medicine residency, now in its second year. That track includes 10 residents.
“During their three years at GMC, internal medicine residents will have the opportunity to train with subspecialists such as cardiologists and neurologists and general internal medicine physicians.” Kimberly Bates, MD, GMC’s director of the internal medicine residency for the Graduate Medical Education Program “During their three years at GMC, internal medicine residents will have the opportunity to train with subspecialists such as cardiologists and neurologists and general internal medicine physicians,” said Dr. Kimberly Bates, GMC’s director of the internal medicine residency for the Graduate Medical Education Program. “In addition, their training will feature oneon-one training with critical care physicians and in the system’s high-volume emergency departments, which care for nearly 140,000 patients yearly.” Over the past five years, Gwinnett Medical Center has channeled more than $75 million into upgrades and expansions. This does not include the $92 million, 129-
bed North Tower facility, which opened in 2009. Emory Johns Creek Hospital recently expanded services to patients in South Forsyth County by opening two new centers in Cumming that will specialize in wound treatment and diagnostic imaging. The new Emory Johns Creek Hospital Hyperbarics and Wound Care Services Center is on the second floor of the Physicians Immediate Med building at 2575 Peachtree Parkway, at the intersection of Mathis Airport Road and Ga. 141. The 3,000 square-foot facility provides treatment for patients with complex or nonhealing wounds caused by diseases, such as diabetes and vascular disease. Emory Johns Creek Hospital and Healogics, the company that provides the care model for the Emory Johns Creek Hospital Hyperbarics and Wound Care Services Center, spent a combined $725,000 to open the new center. The hospital has also opened a satellite imaging center at 634 Peachtree Parkway in Cumming to offer expanded access to general diagnostic imaging services and CT scans. The 2,299 square-foot Emory Johns Creek Hospital Imaging Center previously operated under Saint Joseph’s Hospital. In all, $4,000 was spent for new signage with no other measurable costs. Emory Saint Joseph’s Hospital became a part of Emory Healthcare in 2012. Northeast Georgia Health System, based in Gainesville, opened a new $100 million hospital in Braselton this spring. The facility features 100 beds, 17 emergency room bays, seven operating rooms, two CATH labs and two endoscopy suites. Work continues on a $10.5 million radiation oncology unit. The project will add a linear accelerator in a new, external concrete vault, a new CT, three new exam rooms, and an ultrasound room. This new facility will be in Medical Plaza 1 on the NGMC Braselton campus and will open in November. A $16.2 million obstetrics unit is scheduled to open in September 2016.
Emory Johns Creek Hospital has added a wound care center in the second floor of the Physicians Immediate Med building in Cumming. The unit will be 22,700 square feet, and include 10 labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum rooms, two cesarean-section suites, a nursery, and support services. A new corporate plaza also opened recently in Oakwood, where the two centers are conducting all of their back-office operations. Just this summer, the Braselton hospital acquired a da Vinci Xi Surgical System. “We’ve performed robotic surgeries at NGMC Gainesville for the past seven years, and this new robot means we can perform the same surgeries better and faster than ever before,” said Alex Nguyen, a surgeon with Northeast Georgia Physicians Group. “The new design features robotic arms overhead, which gives us access to more of the patient’s body without stopping to reposition the patient or the robot. It’s amazing.” Like the original da Vinci Robotic Surgical System, the Xi is designed for performing minimally invasive surgery – similar to traditional laparoscopic surgery
– that can result in less pain, smaller scars and faster recovery compared to traditional surgeries. “With the addition of the da Vinci Xi in Braselton, our robotically trained surgeons can choose which facility is best for each patient,” says Andrew Green, MD, a surgeon with Northeast Georgia Physicians Group Gynecologic Oncology and medical director of Robotic Surgical Program at NGMC. “And having two robots in Gainesville and one in Braselton for use at the same time means we’ll be able to offer the benefits of robotic surgery to more patients when it’s right for them.” Beth Downs, public relations manager for the Braselton facility, said that from the time ground was broken, the hospital has been committed to using local vendors and labor for its construction and operation. “Whenever we find a need, we’ve been determined to use local businesses and become ingrained as part of the fabric of the Braselton community,” she said.
HEALTH & MEDICAL
18 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
The Hub:
New resource center connects needy to help Clearing house for mental illness, drug issues By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup.com JOHNS CREEK, Ga. – When Kate Boccia’s son, Daniel, 23, was found to have a drug problem, she didn’t know what to do. Daniel is currently serving a 15-year mandatory sentence in prison for armed robbery. “He had no priors, no weapons and stole nothing,” Boccia said. However, she said he was a heroin addict when he went to prison, where he was forced to get clean. “The reason my son is alive is because he is in prison,” she said. Only afterward did she find out an addiction specialist lived almost in her backyard. She is convinced her family would not be where they are now had she had a resource to help connect her to the help she needed. “My son wouldn’t be in prison if I had the Hub,” she said. The Hub Family Resource Center is a newly-formed nonprofit on State Bridge Road in Johns Creek. It aims to be the primary connecting point for families and the community in times of crisis
with entities that can help. When someone is in need of mental wellness help, or rehab from a drug problem, it can be difficult to find the appropriate entity that can help. Executive Director Remco Brommet and the people at the Hub want to be that clearinghouse, pointing people to the resources they need. Working with local police departments for several years, Brommet said he met people in all stages of distress. “I met a lot of families and individuals in a wide range of crises,” Brommet said. “Everything from suicides to house fires and court issues. I began to hear a common theme – people tell us to get help, but we don’t know where to get it and who to trust.” So the idea for the Hub was formed. The Hub hopes to help people and families find substance abuse recovery programs, psychological and counseling services and mental wellness programs, connecting them to nonprofits and educational programs that can help. “We want to be the central community place where families can come and be connected to service providers,”
Brommet said. The need is evident, he said. One recent issue is the one with which Boccia is familiar – heroin use. Prescription use of opioid drugs among teenagers has skyrocketed in recent years along with the similar drug, heroin. Brommet said most children are able to become addicted to the drug first through their own home’s medicine cabinet. Sending addicted teens and the mentally ill through the judicial process can be daunting and expensive. Public safety and legal service policy is changing across the country, Brommet said. It is becoming clear that many of society’s ills – drug use, domestic violence, crime – often have a mental health aspect. Milton Police Chief Steven Krokoff came to his post from Albany, New York. He said when he first started policing, the policy was to arrest drug offenders and fine them. If they cannot pay the fine, they get jail. “For a decade, the mantra was ‘the more you lock up, the better,’” he said. He then realized he was arresting the same people repeatedly, with jail having little effect on them. One day, he tried to assist one drug user in finding help. He spent a day trying to get help from
“People tell us to get help, but we don’t know where to get it and who to trust.” Remco Brommet, Executive director of The Hub Family Resource Center services and was told it would be 60 days before any rehab center could accept the man. Krokoff failed to help him because it was too difficult to find the right support. “The easiest way [to deal with an offender] is to arrest them,” he said. “We need to find an easy way to direct offenders to services.” Brommet said the Hub aims to be that easy way. The Hub is currently fundraising and hopes to open to the public in September 2015. For more information on The Hub Family Resource Center, visit them online at thehubfrc.org.
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HEALTH & MEDICAL
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 19
Grace Seoyoung Cruz, right, is GMC’s Korean patient liaison and the Southeast’s only Korean certified medical interpreter.
Hospital brings health care message to community By Patrick Fox pat@appenmediagroup.com GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga.– Community outreach is as much a part of a hospital’s mission as tending the sick. But when the community is as diverse as that in Gwinnett County, the task can be more challenging. Gwinnett has the most diverse population in the state, and possibly the Southeast. In 1990, minorities made up just under 10 percent of Gwinnett’s population. Twenty years later, in 2010, Gwinnett was one of a few counties in the nation with a majority-minority population. In all, the county’s 820,000 residents represent more than 120 countries. “Community-benefit programs are important to GMC because we exist to provide quality health care to our community,” said Martha Jordan, Director of Community Benefits and Research for Gwinnett Medical Center. “We strengthen communities by working to heal and make people and communities healthier. We’ve applied that philosophy since we started monitoring community health needs nearly 20 years ago.” Jordan said communication and collaboration between various health and community groups make the hospital’s programs effective. In fact, the county has been recognized by the Robert W. Johnson Foundation, which named Gwinnett Georgia’s second most healthy county in 2015. The foundation looked at health measurements and how they are impacted by work, family and community factors such as education, obesity, unemployment, air quality, poverty and teen birth rates. “Recognition by this foundation means our collaboration has created
“Communitybenefit programs are important to GMC because we exist to provide quality health care to our community.” Martha Jordan, Director of Community Benefits and Research for Gwinnett Medical Center.
and sustained programs that are wellmatched to the needs of the community,” Jordan said. “The Gwinnett Coalition for Health and Human Services, the local county health department and the employees of Gwinnett Medical Center have long worked together in such a capacity.” Some examples of effective programming include Korean patient services at GMC’s Duluth Hospital. There, three doctors, four X-ray technicians, a dietitian and many nurses speak Korean. Two Korean physicians are affiliated with GMC-Lawrenceville. The hospital’s Korean patient liaison is the Southeast’s only Korean certified medical interpreter. Other services include a Korean menu, Korean-language newspapers and television programming, and translated medical forms.
Find the exact care you need in Alpharetta The Alpharetta Chamber of Commerce is proud to represent 19 different businesses in the Alpharetta medical community. Whether you have a broken arm, broken tooth or anything in between The Alpharetta Chamber of Commerce and the businesses we represent are right here to help you. Advanced Cosmetic & Family Dentistry 4205 North Point Parkway Building D Alpharetta, GA 30022 Alpharetta Eye Clinic/Windward Eye Care 2725-B Old Milton Parkway Alpharetta, GA 30009 American CareSource Med Help 5304 Windward Parkway Suite 103 Alpharetta, GA 30004 The Atlanta Center for Dental Health 11190 Haynes Bridge Road Alpharetta, Georgia 30022 Autumn Leaves of Windward 3300 Webb Bridge Rd Alpharetta, GA 30005 Bianco Primary Care 12315 Crabapple Road Suite108 Alpharetta, GA 30004 Bloor Dentistry 45 Roswell Street Alpharetta, GA 30009
Kaiser Permanente 3495 Piedmont Road Atlanta, Georgia 30305 MedPost Urgent Care Crabapple location 12460 Crabapple Rd ste 901 Alpharetta, GA 30004 Milton Family Dental Care 12988 GA Hwy 9 Milton, GA 30004 Roswell Pediatric Center, P.C. 3400C Old Milton Parkway, Suite 545 Alpharetta, Georgia 30005 Steele Dermatology, L.L.C. 11500 Webb Bridge Way Suite 4A Alpharetta, GA 30005 Sunrise Detox Center Alpharetta 4500 North Point Pkwy Alpharetta, GA 30022 Vein Guys Atlanta 11680 Great Oaks Way Suite 150 Alpharetta, GA 30022
Cosmetic Dentistry Center 3070 Windward Plaza Suite R Alpharetta, GA 30009 eSnore & Sleep 5975 Shiloh Road Suite 114 Alpharetta, GA 30005 Eye Styles 5530 Windward Parkway Suite 1220I Alpharetta, GA 30004 Georgia Dermatology Center 1505 Northside Blvd. Suite 1500 Cumming, GA 30041 ICM 3440 Preston Ridge Road Ste 300 Alpharetta, GA 30005
Visit www.AlpharettaChamber.com and sign up today!
HEALTH & MEDICAL
20 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Need to manage health, not health care:
Leading health care exec Bardis bullish on Obamacare Although flawed, Affordable Care Act important key in taming rocketing costs By HATCHER HURD hatcher@appenmediagroup.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. – John Bardis is a maverick in the health care industry. Recently retired as president, chief executive officer and now chairman emeritus of MedAssets (see box), he sounds a loud and clear call for supporting the Affordable Care Act. A 30-year veteran of managing health care costs, Bardis says it is not only important to the health of everyone, but if we don’t get a grip on the true cause of skyrocketing health care costs, an economic crisis of epic proportions is unavoidable. So why is Bardis so sure he is right? “Well, what is clear and irrefutable is there are 40 million uninsured Americans, many of whom have no chance of ever being able to afford health insurance, and that number is growing for the same reasons,” Bardis said. Those reasons are founded in how the government originally began paying for health care with Medicare in the 1960s with a cost-plus system of payments, he said. But in the mid-80s, there was a cost split. The government capped the rising costs in Medicare of what are called diagnostic related groups (DRGs) and linked any rising costs to a cost-of-living figure. But DRGs in the private sector had no such cap, “So private sector costs continued to rise, until companies could no longer absorb those costs and passed them on to employees,” he said. “Now premium costs are so high, individuals have been driven out of the insurance market altogether.” The situation has become so bad, those who don’t have insurance cannot afford premiums on their own, and people with pre-existing conditions are in an even worse situation. Not only were their
By the numbers The reality is the country needed an answer to the insurance issue. An estimated 15 million people are covered today who were not before the law. Medicare/Medicaid rolls in 2015: 67 million Medicare/Medicaid rolls in 2025: 85 million World GDP = $77 trillion U.S. GDP = $18 trillion (40 percent) U.S. = 4 percent of world population U.S. consumes 40 percent world’s healthcare costs
“It was only a question of time before the affordability of health care versus wage and wealth growth would segment out the poor and the middle class. And that is exactly what has happened to us.” John Bardis, Chairman emeritus of MedAssets
premiums much higher, but often insurance could not be procured at any price. Today, health costs are growing at a much faster rate than wage growth or even economic growth. “It was only a question of time before the affordability of health care versus wage and wealth growth would segment out the poor and the middle class. And that is exactly what has happened to us,” he said. The Affordable Care Act is an attempt to rectify that, but Bardis says the law is “by no means perfect,” nor was the way the law was legislated. The disparity in costs are so great now between what wage earners can pay and what care costs, many of that 40 million uninsured do not seek care until they are at such a point of deterioration that they must walk into an emergency room. “There couldn’t be a more expensive place to get your primary care than the ER,” Bardis said. The reality is the country needed an answer to the insurance issue. An estimated 15 million people are covered today who were not before the law. Conservatives say the number of newly insured is nowhere near 15 million, but closer to 5 million. Bardis says no matter the number – and he says it is nearer the upper range – the next step is clear. “We have to manage health, not health care,” he said. “We’re in a much better place if we have an educated consumer in a transparent market.” In a market today of high deductibles, the economic forces should reward the person who chooses health care at the most reasonable cost. But Bardis says the consumer is snookered because there is an “opaqueness” on the cost side. Costs can be hidden in so many ways consumers can’t make an informed comparison decision. Meanwhile, the onset of the presidential campaign has brought more cloudiness to the issue. Conservatives agree health care needs fixing, but say first Obamacare must go. “That is unproductive, and there is nobody who believes that is going to
happen. But it is a tear-down political strategy – just tear down the other guy,” Bardis said. Rather, the conversation should be about what adjustments can be made to make the act better. States that rejected the Affordable Care Act have only hurt themselves, Bardis said. Those states have left more uninsured on the outside. “So I am waiting for someone to come up with a better idea,” he said. Bardis says he is a fiscal conservative, but 40 million uninsured is a looming social problem that cannot be ignored. MedAssets manages $400 billion in claims for U.S. hospitals, so this is a problem Bardis has wrestled with for the last 16 years. “We have a pretty good bird’s eye view of how payments and costs don’t coordinate with one another,” he said. Medicaid and Medicare today have 67 million on the rolls. That number will grow to 85 million by the 2020s. Part of this is the product of the good health care that Americans receive today. Life expectancy has gone up every year for 100 years except 1919 and its worldwide flu epidemic. That is an actuarial nightmare as more people are living longer. When Bardis compares the economic growth of about 1.2 percent to 1.5 percent and health care costs cruising at 5 percent a year, the economic train wreck is only a question of when. “We can’t get a handle on costs. And we can’t survive with wage and earnings growth at under 2 percent and health care growing at 5 percent. That’s nearly a 500 percent disparity,” he said. The great challenge is to bring health costs into line with economic growth. America is 4.1 percent of the world population and represents 40 percent of health care dollars. The world GDP is $77 trillion, and the United States accounts for $18 trillion of that, or 22 percent. But America spends 40 percent of the health care GDP. “That tells you we’re spending more than we should,” Bardis said. “We have 4 percent of the population consuming 40 percent of the global health care GDP.”
John Bardis brings 30 years of experience in health care to table ALPHARETTA, Ga. – John Bardis retired this year as chairman, president and chief executive officer of Alpharetta-based MedAssets Inc., the company he founded in 1999. That company – publicly traded since 2007 – provides products and services for 4,400 hospitals (that is four out of five hospitals in the country) and 122,000 non-acute care health centers across the United States. The company specializes in cost and clinical resource management as well as purchasing and revenue cycle management. MedAssets also provides change management consulting and data-driven analytic software. The company’s goal is to continually improve the operational and financial bottom line. The company is able to provide consulting insights based on data-driven insights. Thus, MedAssets challenges its clients to improve the quality and effectiveness of the health care they provide based on hard numbers and solutions the company can provide. After spending more than 30 years in the health care industry and attaining many senior management positions, Bardis has acquired not only the expertise but the relationships that are key to any business. He has been named by Modern Healthcare as one of the 100 Most Influential Leaders in Healthcare for the last four years (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014). Bardis was the 1995 Inc. Magazine Entrepreneur of the Year and was Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Southeast in 2012. Another disconnect in the economic balance is the United States has the largest pharmaceutical expenditure in the world, yet Americans also pay the highest price for drugs. In almost any other market, the largest buyer should be getting a discount. “These numbers tell me we can do better,” Bardis said. “And we have the resources to do it. We have the best medical infrastructure in the world. But by any measure, you have to conclude that America’s costs for health care are too high. “Costs will be the rule of thumb going forward,” he said. “You can’t have health care costs growing at five times that of the economy. That’s why costs have to be addressed.”
COBB COUNTY
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 21
WellStar Cobb Hospital is located at 3950 Austell Road SW, Austell.
WellStar to merge with multiple hospitals By KATHLEEN STURGEON kathleen@appenmediagroup.com COBB COUNTY, Ga. — WellStar Health System, based in Marietta, is in the mood to merge, it seems. In February, Emory University began talking about creating a new, unified health system with WellStar, but that has been dropped. The WellStar Board of Trustees “has determined a new strategic direction,” said Chair Gary Miller in a statement released in June. “WellStar has declined to enter the next stage of discussions with Emory University,” Miller said. “We respect Emory University as a leading, international academic medical center. WellStar will accelerate multiple horizontal and vertical integration opportunities with other potential partners.” A statement from Emory said the hospital regrets WellStar’s termination of the merger. “Emory continues to believe that the proposed combination of Emory Healthcare and WellStar Health System would
serve our communities well as a way to extend the benefits of our renowned academic medical center to a larger population of patients in metro Atlanta, as well as the state of Georgia and beyond,” the statement said. WellStar then moved on in May when West Georgia Health announced it signed a formal letter of intent to join with WellStar. West Georgia Health, based in LaGrange, will be able to use WellStar to continue its mission of providing top-quality health care for its community and patients. “We were looking for a strong partner, but we were also looking for a good fit – the right fit,” said Jerry Fulks, president and CEO of West Georgia Health. “WellStar is that fit. They’ve amassed the size and financial muscle you need to succeed in today’s health care world, and they’ve done that while keeping a sharp focus on patient care and employee satisfaction – and the relationship between those two. Culturally, I believe this is a very good marriage.” As not-for-profits, WellStar and West
Georgia Health have similar missions and commitments to their communities, said Reynold Jennings, CEO of WellStar. “WellStar was formed 20 years ago when five hospitals came together to create a new health system,” Jennings said. “By bringing West Georgia Health into the regional system, we are continuing our commitment to deliver world-class health care to the communities we serve. Through an in-depth review, we have been very impressed with the level of care that is delivered by the entire West Georgia Health team.” Now, WellStar is planning to buy Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare’s five hospitals in Georgia. The hospitals include Atlanta Medical Center, North Fulton Hospital, South Fulton Medical Center, Spalding Regional Medical Center and Sylvan Grove Hospital. “Tenet Healthcare and WellStar Health System have begun exclusive, non-binding discussions about a potential sale of Tenet’s Atlanta-area hospitals and associated facilities to WellStar,” Tenet and WellStar said in a joint state-
BRIEFS & SHORTS: Cobb County Office tower signs first tennant MARIETTA, Ga. — A Cobb-based accounting firm has signed on to lease out three floors of the new $75 million Riverwood 200 office tower when it opens in 2017. Bennett Thrasher LLC will have 62,000 square feet of space in the 14-story building on Cumberland Boulevard. Company officials said the move is part of its plan to
expand operations and hire new employees. The firm is currently based at One Overton Park. Construction on Riverwood 200 is expected to begin by the end of this year.
Franchise expo planned at Galleria MARIETTA, Ga. — Plans are under way for the annual
ment released July 23. “This is to ensure that these hospitals and facilities are best-positioned to meet the needs of their communities and continue delivering high-quality health care for many years to come. While these discussions continue, we will maintain our standard policy of not commenting on development activities until we have something definitive to announce.” The hospitals could reportedly sell for between $300 to $500 million. WellStar operates five community hospitals serving Bartow, Cherokee, Cobb, Douglas and Paulding counties. WellStar Medical Group, an entity within WellStar, consists of more than 800 physicians and advanced practitioners across more than 160 office locations. With nearly 14,000 team members, it also operates a 180-bed nursing home, 16 imaging centers, eight urgent care centers, two health parks, a pediatric center and two hospice facilities. For information on WellStar, visit www.wellstar.org.
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Franchise and Business Opportunities EXPO Sept. 1920 at the Cobb Galleria. The event will feature seminars offering direct access to industry professionals, including free legal, financial and business planning advice. Attendees can also meet with successful franchises and businesses looking for franchisees and dealers. Representatives from some of the hottest money-making opportunities will also be on hand to meet with visitors. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $8. Military personnel receive free admission with a valid ID.
CHEROKEE COUNTY
22 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Work continues on family film CANTON, Ga. — The Cherokee Office of Economic Development recently visited the set of Champion, a faith-based film focusing on three main themes: fatherhood, foster care and forgiveness. The delegation reported high praise from the production staff. “This is truly a Cherokee County production,” said Steve Hyland Producer. “Since this movie was in the idea stages, our community has come together to make it happen.” Hyland explained that along with the sponsors that provided meals and snacks, the majority of investors in the film live in Cherokee. He also credits Dixie Speedway, Capital Race Cars and First Baptist Church of Woodstock for their efforts. “We couldn’t have afforded to tell the Champion story without the generosity of these local partners,” said Hyland. Even the fire department stepped in to provide some on-demand rain for a scene shot in Downtown Woodstock.
U-verse with AT&T GigaPower launches in Woodstock Also available in Brookhaven, Dunwoody, Milton songs in less than a second, a TV show in three seconds or their favorite HD movie in less than 36 seconds. “Residents and small businesses want the latest technologies and AT&T is delivering,” said Beth Shiroishi, president of AT&T Georgia. “The AT&T GigaPower network facilitates a new wave of creativity and innovation through enhanced opportunities for education, health, research and small business growth.” The high-speed Internet service is
WOODSTOCK, Ga. – AT&T is expanding the availability of U-verse with AT&T GigaPower to residential and small business customers in Woodstock. Brookhaven, Dunwoody and Milton are also available for the upgrade. AT&T GigaPower offers internet speeds up to 1 gigabit per second. It can improve the experience for customers when connecting to the cloud, doing a videoconference, playing online games and more. Users are able to download 25
99.9 percent reliable. It offers the fastest, most powerful Wi-Fi signal with an upgraded home gateway using the latest technology. The new gateway connects more devices with faster speeds from nearly anywhere in the home or business. U-verse with AT&T GigaPower already is available in parts of Atlanta, Decatur, Newnan, Sandy Springs and surrounding communities. For more information on U-verse with AT&T GigaPower, or to check availability, please visit att.com/ gigapower.
Health &Wellness We have the prescription for growing you practice.
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May 28, 2014 | northfulton.com | 73,500 circulation Revue & News, Johns Creek Herald, Milton Herald & Forsyth Herald combined | 50¢ | Volume 9, No. 22
School board nixes armed staffers
No weapons allowed on school property ► PAGE 5
First lady touts child immunization Sandra Deal visits Emory Hospital, family ► PAGE 12
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Ga. 9 to be widened to county line
Where would new traffic lights go? • Walmart driveway • Genesis Way/Deerfield Place • Soneley Court/Keyingham Way • Sunfish Bend • Creek Club Drive
Bethany Bend intersection reworked By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@northfulton.com MILTON, Ga. – The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and city of Milton want to make major improvements to Ga. 9 in coming years. Those improvements, however, will not begin for almost a decade. At an open house May 21,
Saloni Sharma sits amid dozens of bags of school supplies donated by families of Sugar Mill subdivision in Johns Creek. The nonprofit she started, Project Darasani, helps needy Tanzanian students acquire the basic school supplies they need to get an education.
See CHANGES, Page 7
TUTORING
See ELECTIONS, Page 5
By HATCHER HURD hatcher@northfulton.com
The red dots indicate new or modifications to existing traffic signals along a section of Ga. 9.
DON’T LET YOUR CHILD’S LEARNING STOP JUST BECAUSE SUMMER STARTS.
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the public took their first look at the proposed improvements, which include widening Ga. 9 from Windward Parkway north to the Forsyth County line into a four-lane road – two in each direction. Included with these improvements will be the elimination of the center lane to be replaced with a center median
JOHNS CREEK, Ga. – In a tumultuous year of political bloodletting on the City Council, it ended with neither a bang nor a whimper. Instead, it ended July 22 with a calm, clean runoff election among four candidates for the last two council seats. The runoffs were won handily in the end by Steve Broadbent and Bob Gray for posts 6 and 4 respectively. A season of local politics that had burst on the usually quiet Johns Creek political scene the summer of 2013 ended quietly. Conventional wisdom says turnouts in runoff elections are usually light And this was a special election called in July – just a couple weeks before
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Milton honors fallen veteran Cpl. Harry Vaughan, inset right, graduated from Milton High School in 1967. Within a year, he was shipped over to Vietnam where he died. Local veterans honored him May 22 at the school. See story, page 28.
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17,000 households on Wednesdays Zip Codes: 30040, 30041. Forsyth county’s largest circulation newspaper. Est. 1998
20,000 households on Thursdays Zip Codes: 30022, 30097. Johns Creek’s primary news source. Est. 1997 Education Focus
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28,000 households on Thursdays Zip Codes: 30005, 30009, 30022, 30075, 30076. Alpharetta & Roswell’s primary news source. Alpharetta’s paper of record. Est. 1983
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JOHNS CREEK, Ga. – When Rupesh Sharma made the trip to Tanzania to hike up Mount Kilimanjaro, it became more than chance to cross off
a goal on his bucket list. He also saw a lot of poverty and how little the country could do for school-age children. Determined to do something, he knew he would return. When he came home and told his family about
what he had seen, he saw that his then 13-year-old daughter Saloni was moved by what he had seen. They talked about it and she said she wanted to go with him on
See SHARMA, Page 31
administer HUD grants Will still OK CDBG projects By HATCHER HURD hatcher@northfulton.com JOHNS CREEK, Ga. – Johns Creek will turn over administration of the city’s Commu-
nity Development Block Grant (CDBG) program to Fulton County, but the city does not cede control of the projects that are approved for Johns Creek. CDBG grants are federal dollars issued by the U.S. Department of Housing and
SANDY SPRINGS
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GWINNETT COUNTY
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 23
Northside Hospital, Gwinnett Medical Center to combine operations Deal could close early 2016 ATLANTA – Northside Hospital and Gwinnett Medical Center announced Sept. 2 that they wish to combine operations. Both have approved a non-binding letter of intent to begin exclusive discussions. If a final agreement is reached, the merger would create a major health care system serving rapidly growing areas of the Atlanta Region and North Georgia. Anchored by Northside Hospital in Sandy Springs and Gwinnett Medical Center in Lawrenceville, the system also would include hospitals in Canton, Cumming and Duluth, as well as cancer treatment centers, imaging centers, medical office buildings, urgent care centers and other outpatient locations throughout the state. Altogether, the Northside-Gwinnett
Medical combined system would have nearly 1,400 beds, more than 16,000 employees and close to 3,500 physicians on staff. Northside Hospital CEO Bob Quattrocchi and Gwinnett Medical Center CEO Philip Wolfe said they are targeting early 2016 as a potential closing date for the deal. If a final definitive agreement is reached, the proposed transaction will be submitted to the Georgia Office of the Attorney General for review and approval, including at least one public hearing. The leaders of the two systems said that the merger is the best way to prepare for the future needs of patients and their families. “A Northside Hospital and Gwinnett Medical Center combination is a strong and strategic fit on many levels,” Quattrocchi said. “We come to the table with very similar organizational cultures and unsurpassed commitments to patient safety and quality care.” Wolfe agreed.
“Our service offerings complement each other,” he said. “Northside Hospital is a regional and national leader in women’s health and cancer care, while Gwinnett Medical Center is a leader in cardiac care, trauma care and sports medicine. Going forward, our strategy will be to leverage our respective strengths in our expanded footprint and provide the total spectrum of health care to patients not only in our market area, but throughout Georgia and the Southeast.” Quattrocchi and Wolfe said the merger should create many opportunities for enhanced patient care, additional growth, professional development and fiscal strength. The Northside Hospital health care system is an 852-bed, not-for-profit health care provider with more than 150 locations across Georgia, including three acute care, state-of-the-art hospitals in Atlanta, Cherokee County and Forsyth County. Northside Hospital leads the United States in newborn deliveries, diagnoses and treats the most cancer
BRIEFS & SHORTS: Gwinnett County has lived in Lilburn with his wife and seven daughters for the past 25 years. He has pioneered the successful creation and management of CIDs throughout metro Atlanta. Morsberger is a graduate of Emory University and the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Finance.
Leadership Gwinnett convenes 2016 class DULUTH, Ga. — The Leadership Gwinnett Class of 2016 officially convened for its first session in August at the 1818 Club in Duluth. Forty leaders will spend the next nine months learning, connecting and preparing to take their place as community trustees. Armed with new knowledge, connections and perspectives, Leadership Gwinnett graduates are educated to take their place as effective community leaders. The program includes two overnight retreats, seven learning days covering topics such as leadership in a world class community, infrastructure, economics, education, health and human services, justice and regional relations, as well as monthly study groups, exclusive tours and hands-on experiences.
CID names Morsberger new executive director LILBURN, Ga. — The Lilburn CID has announced the appointment of Emory Morsberger as its new executive director. Morsberger, a former member of the Georgia House,
Primerica announces repurchase program DULUTH, Ga. — The board of directors of Primerica has announced the company plans to repurchase up to $200 million of its common stock through the remainder of the 2015 fiscal year. The decision comes on the heels of the company’s announcement that it has completed a previously announced $150 million share repurchased program for 2015. “Given our strong year-to-date performance in sales force growth, term life insurance sales, and Investment and Savings Products sales, our board determined that the timing is ideal to continue our share repurchase program,” said Glenn Williams, Primerica CEO. “This $200 million repurchase authority represents an incremental $50 million above our previously stated plan to annually return $150 million plus dividends to shareholders through 2016.” Primerica is a leading distributor of financial products to middle income households in North America.
WestRock to acquire SP Fiber Holdings NORCROSS, Ga. — WestRock Company has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire SP Fiber Hold-
cases in Georgia and performs the most surgeries in Georgia. Ranked No. 4 on the “U.S. News” list of the Best Hospitals in Georgia and the only Georgia hospital on the “Forbes” list of America’s Best Employers, Northside has more than 2,500 physicians and 11,000 employees who serve nearly 2 million patient visits annually. Gwinnett Hospital System employs 4,800 associates and has 800 affiliated physicians serving more than 400,000 patients annually. Gwinnett Medical Center is a nationally-recognized, not-for-profit healthcare network with acute-care hospitals in Lawrenceville and Duluth. Additional facilities include: the Gwinnett Women’s Pavilion, the Gwinnett Extended Care Center, Glancy Rehabilitation Center, outpatient health centers and surgical centers, imaging centers and outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy facilities. In 2014, GMC was recognized by “Georgia Trend” as the top large hospital in the state.
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ings, a producer of recycled containerboard and kraft and bag paper with mills located in Dublin, GA, and Newberg, OR. WestRock will also acquire SP Fiber’s 48 percent interest in Green Power Solutions of Georgia. GPS is a renewable energy joint venture providing energy to Georgia Power and steam to the paper mill in Dublin. The total value of the transaction is $288.5 million. “The Dublin and Newberg mills will balance the fiber mix of our mill system and the addition of kraft and bag paper will diversify our product offering,” said Steve Voorhees, chief executive officer of WestRock.
Suniva plans expansion of U.S. operations NORCROSS, Ga. — Solar cell manufacturer Suniva has announced plans to expand its American manufacturing capacity, bringing its U.S. total to more than 400MW. The expansion comes following the acquisition of a 63.13 percent share of Suniva by China’s, Shunfeng International Clean Energy. “High demand for our products continues to validate that as the U.S. solar market matures, sophisticated buyers are increasingly valuing power density and quality,” said John Baumstark, chairman and CEO of Suniva. “This expansion was encouraged by the U.S. market’s interest in high-quality, high-value American-made solar products.” As a U.S.-born, U.S.-operated company, Suniva employs the highest percentage of American workers among all other major solar module manufacturers. The new expansion will bring an additional 300 jobs to the U.S. solar manufacturing landscape.
FORSYTH COUNTY
24 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Forsyth County gets new logo, tag line By KATHLEEN STURGEON kathleen@appenmediagroup.com FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — The face — or at least the logo — of the Forsyth County Government system will be getting a makeover. The Board of Commissioners approved implementing a new county logo and tag line on Aug. 20. Jodi Gardner, director of communications for the county, said the BOC wanted a new logo a few years ago so a group was formed to focus on the county’s overall brand. The group primarily focused on highlighting the county’s natural resources and quality of life. The adopted tag line is “Your community, your future.” ““We are proud to adopt a logo and tag line that showcase the things for which Forsyth County is well known – our great natural resources like our parks and Lake Lanier, and being a family-friendly community that offers great quality of life and unparalleled opportunities,” said Commission Chairman R.J. (Pete) Amos. “The logo also includes
1832, the year Forsyth County was incorporated. Forsyth County is a great place to call home and I think the new logo and tag line really capture and represent that.” Last September, the BOC said Gardner and the group should work with a designer to create the new logo. The process included community input via an online survey conducted in 2014. “It was very important that at the beginning of this process we started by hearing from our residents and county employees to get their insight,” said County Manager Doug Derrer. “We appreciate the community’s participation in the survey, as it provided excellent direction for us in terms of developing
a tag line and new logo. The input received through the survey was an extremely valuable part of this process.” The survey results identified the county’s most valuable physical asset as Lake Lanier, ranked quality of life as the most important among all that Forsyth County offers, and identified “family-friendly” as the term that perfectly described the county. Peter Carpenter with Thoroughbred Designs in Alpharetta worked with the group to come up with the new logo options. The three choices all included a silhouette of a family and natural resources seen around the county including Lake Lanier, Sawnee Mountain and Big Creek Greenway.
BRIEFS & SHORTS: Forsyth County All 3 Northside Hospitals recognized for quality heart care FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — All three of the hospitals in the Northside Hospital health care system (Atlanta, Cherokee and Forsyth) were recognized in early August by the American Heart Association for providing highquality cardiovascular care. “I am very proud of our physicians and staff for their hard work in achieving these awards,” said Patricia Tyson, administrative director, Northside Hospital Heart & Vascular Institute. “These quality-improvement programs help our hospital teams provide the
Films: Continued from Page 8 but were still waiting for the final details. “So we were rushed, getting all the contracts signed. Then the snowstorm held us up a couple of days. But my main problem was about it being a new experience and I didn’t know what I was doing,” Jackson said. “But the main thing for me was to get traditionally artistic people from Hollywood to make a movie with our target market in mind and what they are going to like. “And we did that. We had a very collaborative relationship with the actors, director and writer. So it was a great first experience from my standpoint.” He did take full advantage of Geor-
most up-to-date, research-based guidelines with the goal of speedy recovery and reducing hospital readmissions.” Northside Hospital-Forsyth received AHA’s Mission: Lifeline STEMI Receiving Center Gold Level Recognition Award, which recognizes the hospital’s commitment and success in implementing exceptional standards of care for heart attack patients. Both Northside Hospital-Atlanta and Northside Hospital-Cherokee received Mission: Lifeline STEMI Receiving Center Bronze Level Recognition Awards. According to AHA, each year more than 500,000 Americans have a STEMI (ST-segment elevation myo-
gia’s “Camera Ready state” program in which the state provides financial incentives to the film industry to join with the film and TV professionals who make their living here from location scouts, catering, production and post-production facilities. Georgia’s diverse geography allowed Jackson to film “90 Minutes” in the Atlanta area, Lake Allatoona, and Red Top Mountain State Park in Coweta County. He was also able to use local actors from the large acting community in Atlanta. “They did a great job and some of them just stole the show when they were on screen,” he said. We have a lot of talent here. “The director [Michael Polish] said we have more ‘real people’ than you find in Hollywood. He said out there, all you see are those with star looks.”
“It has a unique shape giving the logo distinction and character and sets it apart from our counties’ or related logos,” Carpenter said. “The framed view shares Sawnee Mountain, Lake Lanier and a family enjoying the Big Creek Greenway. Strong contrasting colors and the overlapping tree invite the viewer to enter the scene and imagine the grandeur of our county.” Since approval, Gardner said the next step is working on developing a style guide and integrating the logo and tag line so it’s a consistent identifier for the public. “You will begin to see the new logo immediately on places such as the county’s website and Facebook page,” Gardner said. “The new logo will be incorporated on items such as letterhead and business cards after the existing supplies are depleted and those items are reordered. For other items such as signage, the new logo will be phased in over time.” The new logo replaces one that had been adopted in 1986.
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cardial infarction), out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, or both. The majority of these patients fail to receive appropriate treatment within recommended timeframes. Northside Hospital-Cherokee also was recognized with AHA’s Get With The Guidelines Silver Plus Quality Achievement Awards for heart failure and stroke. Northside Hospital-Atlanta and Northside HospitalForsyth were recognized with AHA’s Get With The Guidelines Gold Plus Quality Achievement Awards for heart failure and Silver Plus Quality Achievement Awards for stroke, as well as the ACTION Registry-Get With The Guidelines Gold Performance Achievement Awards for quality care in the treatment of acute myocardial infraction patients.vw
Jackson said with his producing and marketing the film, it will be in theaters much more quickly than if he had allowed traditional “Hollywood” to market it. It also means Giving Films maintains control of how the film is edited, which he did not want to surrender. “Because we paid for the movie ourselves and did the marketing, we were able to wrap up production in March and we’re doing our premiere next week. That’s light speed in Hollywood,” he said. Most of the marketing will be mostly digital, target-audience screenings, through churches and other groups. “It won’t be the brute force advertising that you see Hollywood use,” he said. What was key for Jackson was having the control to make the film he wanted. He had some concerns about the script,
which were borne out when they saw the first cut. “When we tested the film on screen a lot of those issues came out, and we were able to make those changes. The director did a good job of swallowing his ego to make improvements,” he said. That bumped the film’s approval rating with test audiences more than 30 percent. But Jackson said they had a good rapport on the set. It was a “leave the egos at the door” environment, so everyone concentrated on making the best film possible. “90 Minutes in Heaven” opens Sept. 11 in 15 to 20 theaters in the Atlanta area, and 800 screens nationally. Cast members have a scheduled appearance on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” For information, go to givingfilms.com.
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 25
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26 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
FULTON COUNTY
Colonial Pipeline conducts response drills on ’Hooch Response readiness a priority for Alpharettabased company By HATCHER HURD hatcher@appenmediagroup.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. – What comes to mind when someone mentions BP and the Exxon Valdez in the same breath? Oil spills come to mind if your memory is good. Well, Colonial Pipeline is working to ensure that its name never comes up in that conversation, as its safety drills out on the Chattahoochee River can attest. Colonial had teams of employees out on the river July 29 in Roswell doing some of the company’s on-water response training so they will be prepared to react quickly in an emergency. Colonial Communications Specialist Ryan Rogers said the exercise is one of about 40 to 50 such exercises the company does either on an annual or biannual basis in the 13 states in which it operates. “We have 5,500 miles of pipeline, beginning in Houston and running through those 13 states as far as the New Jersey side of New York Harbor. So we have a lot to be prepared for.” The particular on-water exercise on the Chattahoochee at Don White Memorial Park was to train employees and contractors on deploying and using a containment boom on the water. “The drills can be in a variety of environments – on water, on land or on rights of way. This particular one was one of the annual on-water drills,” Rogers said. Colonial also uses the exercises as a way to get to know the local authorities as well. “We coordinate our exercises with them. That kind of collaboration with state agencies and first responders pays off in other ways also,” he said.
Colonial personnel practice paying out a spill containment boom on the Chattahoochee. “We make an effort in all 13 states, every county, every town we operate in to have those kinds of relationships with local fire and police, local emergency units. We want to make those relationships now so we know who each other are.” There is a lot of collaboration and interaction among those agencies. You don’t want to have to make introductions with each other during an emergency, Rogers said. With Colonial’s headquarters in Alpharetta, many employees are brought here for all kinds of training, often including this sort of response operations. “All these training exercises are planned in advance to be learning experiences. But once a year there are unan-
Colonial Pipeline response team members analyze their boom deployment on the Chattahoochee River.
nounced drills where employees don’t know the date, don’t know where and don’t know what the scenario is going to be,” Rogers said. “The horn will go off at 3 in the morning and all have to haul off and get on a plane.” It may be New Jersey or Texas, but they have to get there and begin fulfilling their assigned roles. The number of employees reacting is in the hundreds. Always, the goal is to examine what is getting done well and zero in on what is not and correct it, he said. “So we do both regularly scheduled training as well as the unannounced drills. The best way to put it is training for emergency preparedness is a big part of our operations. It’s not an afterthought,” Rogers said. “It’s a focus for us.” For this exercise, Colonial invited the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, the nonprofit watchdog organization, to let them know what efforts Colonial is prepared to make in an emergency. “We think it is important that they are aware of our training. And it is important to get their feedback as well,” Rogers said. “We have a shared goal in keeping the river system clean.” Colonial does have pipelines that go under the river. But emergency response is only half of Colonial’s safety plan. Much of the effort goes into preventing any accidents before they can happen. Colonial uses a variety of methods to ensure the pipeline’s integrity on a 24/7 basis. These include flying planes over the rights of way to inspect visually and
Colonial Pipeline Associate Project Manager Maggie Schafer has a smile during the training exercise. inserting “smart” tools into the pipe on a regular basis to look for anomalies. Then they make corrosion tests on the pipes themselves and use recoats. “We have a pretty robust integrity program that makes sure our pipeline system is safe, that’s obviously the priority,” Rogers said. “But it is just as important to us to respond if we ever did have an incident.”
HALL COUNTY
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 27
LEGO exhibition features larger-than-life creatures GAINESVILLE, Ga. — The Atlanta Botanical Garden, Gainesville’s new woodland garden will provide the perfect backdrop for Nature Connects: Art with LEGO Bricks, a new sculpture exhibit open this fall. It features 14 installations comprised of 27 individual sculptures – all with a nature theme involving plants, animals or people and comprised of 375,000 LEGO bricks. The traveling exhibition runs from Sept. 19 to Jan. 3, 2016 and hosts largerthan-life sculptures made entirely of LEGO bricks, including a six-foot-tall praying mantis and a swallowtail butterfly with a five-foot wingspan, designed and built by Sean Kenney. The New York artist has created LEGO artwork for major corporations such as Google and Mazda, and has been featured in The New York Times and on ABC’s Good Morning America. The largest sculptures are designed with an internal structure of steel rods and plates to provide support for the pieces. Visitors will see a duck and ducklings next to the pond, the praying mantis (built with more than 42,000 LEGO bricks) peeking out from a drift of grasses in the Overlook Garden and
Sean Kenney constructing a LEGObutterfly.
the larger-than-life hummingbird with a trumpet flower (more than 31,500
bricks) off the Woodland Promenade. Opening day for the exhibition, locat-
BRIEFS & SHORTS: Hall County Gainesville financial adviser recognized for philanthropy GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Gregory V. Katulka, senior financial adviser and first vice president – Wealth Management at Merrill Lynch in Gainesville is one of three national finalists for the Volunteer of the Year Award, one of five categories in the ninth annual Invest in Others Community Leadership Awards. Katulka is being honored Katulka for his work with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hall County, which will receive a $5,000 donation from the charitable foundation. If Katulka wins his category, the donation will increase to $20,000. The Invest in Others Charitable Foundation established the awards to recognize the philanthropic achievements of financial advisers and financial services firms in communities around the world. Since 2009, Greg Katulka has contributed countless hours to helping the Boys & Girls Clubs of Hall County provide high-quality after-school and community outreach programs for the 5,500 youth it serves. Over the past three years, his leadership enabled the nonprofit to achieve more diversified financial growth, add new enrichment programs and launch five new club sites in the Gainesville City School System to serve 200 additional at-risk youth.
American Home Products to consolidate operations GAINESVILLE, Ga. — American Home Products, LLC, the holding company for The Louver Shop and Dan-
mer Custom Window Coverings, has announced it will consolidate its East Coast and portions of its West Coast operations to a new location in Gainesville-Hall County, including its corporate headquarters and manufacturing operations. The company anticipates employing 210 at the new location with an $8 million capital investment in land, building and equipment. The company recently completed the acquisition of a 300,000-square-foot building in Gainesville Industrial Park South at 1215 Palmour Drive in GainesvilleHall County. The building, unoccupied since 2009, includes 270,000-square-feet of manufacturing space and nearly 30,000-square-feet of office and administrative space. The company will be making capital improvements to the building to install new production lines, and AHP expects to begin production in late 2015 and complete the consolidation of the West Coast operations in 2016.
Master Craftsmen Awards scheduled for October GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Tradesmen, from plumbers to ornamental iron workers, will be honored Oct. 1 at the fourth annual Master Creaftsmen…Builder of America Awards. The event is part of the Featherbone Communiversity Master Series Program in partnership with Lanier Technical College. Master Craftsmen Awards showcase the construction industry and promote to young people and the community the importance of construction jobs in the economy while recognizing those individuals with outstanding skills in their trade. The Master Craftsmen program was designed to work in conjunction with Governor Nathan Deal’s “Go
ed at 1911 Sweetbay Drive in Gainesville, will include a family festival featuring music and games in the amphitheater, discovery stations and LEGO-related activities. Throughout the fall, special LEGO crafts and activities will be offered, including a LEGO construction contest.
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Build Georgia” campaign and the Construction Education Foundation of Georgia’s “Careers in Construction” program to spotlight those who have made a lasting impact on Northeast Georgia with their work while promoting careers in the construction industry. The event is at 8:30 a.m. at Featherbone Communiversity, Lanier Technical College Rotunda. There is no charge to attend, and the breakfast/ceremony is open to the public.
Wayback Burgers to open first Atlanta-area site BRASELTON, Ga. — Connecticut-based Wayback Burgers will open its first Atlanta area location in Braselton. The restaurant will be located in Mulberry Walk, 6323 Grand Hickory Drive and will bring approximately 35 new jobs to the local economy. Wayback Burgers offers hand-made burgers, cooked to order and milkshakes. The restaurant also will offer crispy and grilled chicken sandwiches, veggie burgers, turkey burgers, fresh salads and sides. The restaurant will encompass a 1,600 square-foot design, featuring a warm red barnboard interior with white and stainless steel accents, modeled after the great American roadside burger joint.
28 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
WOMEN IN BUSINESS
Women in business: Lynn Jackson Lynn Jackson, of Cumming, is the Northside Hospital-Forsyth administrator. She began her nursing career in 1978 and has more than 30 years of clinical and administrative health care experience. She has a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Regents University and a master’s degree in health care policy and administration from Mercer University. Prior to joining Northside, Jackson was vice president of nursing at Georgia Baptist Medical Center and administrator at Meriwether Hospital and Nursing Home. Jackson is a member of the Lanier Technical College board of directors and the Forsyth County Development Authority. She is an active board member of the Cumming-Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce, chairs the Healthcare Association of Forsyth County and is on the board of directors for Bald Ridge Lodge. What decision did you make that put you on the path to this career? I decided that nothing would deter me from my childhood dream of becoming a nurse and my confidence in that single decision carried me to a level of success that exceeded even my own career expectations. What obstacles, if any, did you face on your way up the corporate ladder? Not so much obstacles but opportunities arose for me to find new ways to express my sometimes overenthusiastic goals and aspirations for particular projects or assignments. I found an abundance of energy and due diligence was worth its weight in gold if a problem could be solved, dollars could be saved or better outcomes could be achieved. Setting a path focused on continuous improvement and having a personal storehouse of resilience and creativity seemed to overcome most any hurdle in the challenges that we have faced in the last quarter century of health care evolution. What gives you the most satisfaction at work? It is incredibly rewarding to know that our community is being served by a facility like Northside that has a mission to provide a lifetime of care! I am humbled to be a small part of the team that works every day to make
Tourism: Continued from Page 14 partners and hired them as employees. John Ditto, a board-certified otolaryngology head and neck surgeon, is one his newest hires. Ditto, who practices in Stockbridge, came to Georgia after working for HCA in Richmond, Va., where he was named Richmond’s Top Docs in Otolaryngology six times. Ditto said he grew frustrated with the hospital business model and welcomed the chance to practice medicine in an open environment. He also said services are much more affordable at ENTI, by far. “When I take a patient to the surgery center at ENTI for a tonsillectomy, they’re having to pay out much less than what they’d have to pay if they went to the hospital, and that’s across the board,”
sure that mission is being delivered and the evidence of success lies in the stories of those patients who we have the privilege to care for and about. What keeps you up at night? Knowing that there is still so much to be done in our community, our state and our nation around issues like the provision and payment for mental health services, the plague of loneliness that affects so many of the elderly, the burdens of illness being carried by so many families and worrying about the future of health care as the population ages and there are fewer providers than ever before. What advice would you give to young women interested in pursuing a career in business? Prepare adequately so that options and alternatives within your career path will be attainable. There is no greater disappointment career wise than to desire a job but be inadequately prepared for consideration as a candidate. Young women might find it in their best interest to work on developing a robust portfolio that reflects sufficient academic preparation, measureable career achievements and demonstrable communication skills. What degree do you think might prove most useful to students? It depends on the specialty and specificity of the career choice; however in general, the minimum entry-level degree for a chosen vocation might be a good start to build professional acumen and competency with more advanced degrees being achieved once the career path becomes more evident. I began my professional career with a bachelor’s degree in nursing but realized as I progressed in capability that I enjoyed and was drawn to leadership, so I subsequently completed a master’s degree in healthcare policy and administration, which allowed me to advance to positions similar to the one I hold currently. Where do you see the greatest opportunities for young people today? Although there is an abundance of choice for rewarding careers, perhaps the greatest opportunities can be found in building a career on skill sets not commonly found. Critical and creative thinking, along with the
Lynn Jackson, Northside Hospital-Forsyth administrator.
ability to collaborate within a diverse workplace, will give candidates a significant leading edge in career choices. In addition, there is significant opportunity for those willing to serve the needs of consumers in a diverse array of professions, disciplines and skilled trades. Of course I am biased in my belief that some of the greatest opportunities exist within the health care professions where young people can fulfill their passion for helping others, satisfy their desire to make a difference and realize strong job outlook and reasonably good salaries. This combination is a winning recipe for both a rewarding career and a successful life that knows no barriers and exceeds our dreams.
“When I take a patient to the surgery center at ENTI for a tonsillectomy, they’re having to pay out much less than what they’d have to pay if they went to the hospital, and that’s across the board.” John Ditto, Board-certified otolaryngology head and neck surgeon ENTI
he said. “It’s much better for me because, even though I don’t handle the financial aspect of it, when they do ask me, I can tell them.” People seem to be asking. ENTI has
already seen a 10 percent growth this year, and Gallups said he expects another 10-20 percent jump next year. The practice sees close to 100,000 patients a year from across the country
and the Caribbean who have shopped the services, he said. “You’d think it would be more prevalent nowadays, but people still are not really taking advantage of available consumerism in medicine,” Gallups said. “They can’t do it, because their standard of what to do is based on a hospital. Hospitals have no reason to give up the mega-amounts of money that pours into them from the insurance companies and federal government.” Gallups said that while hospitals serve a vital function, consumers need to delegate certain procedures to less costly providers. Outpatient surgery, he said, should never be performed in a hospital and under the payment rates hospitals charge. “The American way is for people to go out there and bargain for the best price they can get,” he said. “But the average consumer today does not feel empowered to be able to do that.”
MOVERS & SHAKERS
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 29
Crystal CEO Franklin recieves Patriot’s Award Recognizes exceptional care of National Guard and Reserve members DULUTH, Ga. – Roger Franklin, CEO of Crystal, a leader in network monitoring and management solutions, has been presented with the Patriot’s Award from the Employee Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) organization, an agency of the U.S. Department of Defense. The Patriot’s Award recognizes organizations for their support for National Guard and Reserve members in their role as a service member and an employee, relieving them of monthly obligations by allowing them time off as needed and
providing assistance upon return to civilian life. As part of the award program, National Guard and Reserve members across the U.S. are Franklin eligible to nominate their employers. Jason Chatham was the Reserve member who nominated Crystal based on the company’s support while he was deployed
and taking part in duty. Crystal not only maintained Chatham’s financial and job security benefits, but also increased his responsibilities upon return. “Roger went above and beyond and financially supported my family and me, as well as maintained my employee contract. That meant that I didn’t have as much stress as I would have had upon deployment,” said Chatham, VP of Professional Services at Crystal. “I was able to concentrate on the job at hand knowing my family was provided
Pinecrest alumnus hired as political reporter in DC WASHINGTON, DC — Pinecrest Academy alumnus, Nicholas Fouriezos ’10, and a graduate of the Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia, has been hired as the Washington, DC correspondent for Ozy.com, a global online magazine that reaches 20 Fouriezos million readers per month. Fouriezos, 23, will be covering national politics, after a seven-month freelancing assignment with the cuttingedge media outlet in Australia and Indonesia. Fouriezos will cover the 2016 elections, including wide-ranging features and fast forward pieces. He will be Ozy’s lead reporter on the elections and is the only reporter based in Washington, DC. He travels to Ozy headquarters in San Francisco for a month and then will relocate to DC in September to assume his new position. Prior to joining Ozy, Fouriezos interned with the “Atlanta Journal-Constitution” and served as a contract journalist, penning eight front page stories in a four-month span, and also covered the 2014 State elections in Georgia during his tenure. During his time at UGA, Fouriezos served as editor of the “Red and Black” newspaper and also worked as a sports intern for the “Baltimore Sun”.
Cioppa joins Towne Club Windermere staff CUMMING, Ga. – Towne Club Windermere, a resort-style tetirement community, is proud to welcome its new Director of Sales and Marketing, Karen Cioppa. Cioppa brings a wealth of experience in working with seniors to her new position. Previously she was in sales and marketing for the Cioppa online catalogue source, The Alzheimer’s Store, a senior advocate for Assisted Choice, and Community Relations coordinator for an assisted living community in Johns Creek. She also has sales experience in training and consulting. For additional information, please contact Towne Club Windermere at 770-844-7779, or at info@towneclubwindermere.com.
Bill Hamilton receives his award.
Tyler Edema receives his award.
Hamilton, Edema named certified FASTSIGNS sales execs GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga.– Bill Hamilton from FASTSIGNS of Norcross and Tyler Edema from FASTSIGNS of Duluth, have received the “Outside Sales Certification Award” at the 2015 FASTSIGNS Outside Sales Summit, recently held in Charlotte, North Carolina. “We’re very proud of all the Outside Sales Professionals who received recognition for their sales certification achievement,” said Mark Jameson, Executive Vice President of Franchise Support and Development. “Their hard work and dedication continues to make FASTSIGNS the leading sign and visual graphics provider.” The Outside Sales Certification Award is presented to Outside Sales Professionals who completed the certification program including curriculum and activities designed to heighten and expand sales skills. Upon completion of the program, Outside Sales Professionals receive the distinction of ‘Certified FASTSIGNS Sales Executive.’ FASTSIGNS is an independently owned and operated sign, graphics and visual communications company that provides comprehensive visual marketing solutions.
National nonprofit names new CEO CUMMING, Ga. – The board of directors of the Acoustic Neuroma Association has appointed Allison S. Feldman as chief executive officer. Feldman will replace retiring CEO Judy B. Vitucci who served the association for 10 years.
for.” “I am proud of Jason for fulfilling his commitment to the Navy and our country when they called him back into active duty from the Reserves. I admire his dedication and work ethic, and am pleased that I could support him and his family,” said Roger Franklin, CEO of Crystal. “He served his country well knowing that Crystal would continue that support upon his return, and we are fortunate to have him part of our team.” Chatham was gone a total of 15 months, nine of which were spent in Afghanistan.
The new appointment was made after a nationwide search and selection process for more than 70 candidates. Feldman has 10 years’ experience in strategic planning, management, fundraising and program planning in the non-profit sector. She earned her master’s degree in public administration from The University of Georgia and holds a BA in education from Emory University. Prior to joining Acoustic Neuroma Association, Feldman managed ALEF Fund, a Georgia Student Scholarship Organization. Based in Cumming, Acoustic Neuroma Association is a nonprofit organization founded in 1981 representing 5,000 acoustic neuroma patients, caregivers, family members and medical professionals worldwide. An acoustic neuroma is a rare benign tumor of the balance and hearing nerves.
Gladiators name Treft play-by-play broadcaster GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. – The Gwinnett Gladiators announced the hiring of Chris Treft as the club’s new play-by-play announcer for all regular and postseason games on the the Gladiators Broadcast Network. Treft will do additional work in maintaining contact with the Treft Metro-Atlanta media, producing in-arena entertainment elements, and contributing content to the official team website. The Fort Wayne, Indiana native spent last season as the number two broadcaster for the Adirondack Flames of the AHL. Prior to his year in Glens Falls, Treft worked as the TV color commentator and broadcasting intern for the Fort Wayne Komets of the ECHL. “We are thrilled to welcome Chris to the Gladiators family,” said Gladiators Vice President and General Manager of Business Operations Joe Gelderman. “He not only impressed us with his ability behind the mic, but also with his experience in sales and video production.”
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We want to hear about your new hire, promotion, board of director changes and recognitions, email a brief and headshot to business@appenmediagroup.com.
RESTAURANTS
30 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com
Restaurant weeks provide exposure and discounts By JOE PARKER news@appenmediagroup.com NORTH ATLANTA — Many cities and counties in the North Metro area have begun holding restaurant weeks, during which they promote their local restaurants in unique ways. Participating restaurants typically provide discounts to customers during the weeklong events, getting more people in the doors and expanding their customer bases. Meanwhile, consumers can try restaurants they have yet to dine in without breaking the bank. Alpharetta will be holding its secondannual restaurant week Sept. 5-12 with over 20 restaurants participating. For this year’s event, Alpharetta’s Chamber of Commerce has implemented a free restaurant card which can be downloaded as a PDF file or can be picked up at participating restaurants. The card is filled with discounts — from free items to several buy-one-get-one specials. Diners need only present the card during restaurant week to receive the offers. Lillian Morgado of the Alpharetta Chamber of Commerce said restaurant week makes it possible “to celebrate all the awesome restaurants we have in Alpharetta and try to get people to go somewhere they have never been before and try them.” Morgado said restaurant week benefits consumers and well as restaurants. “For the consumers, there are clearly savings, they have a great opportunity to save some money at good restaurants they may have never tried before. For the restaurants, it is an opportunity to get new customers and to put themselves out there and get new regulars.” Some of the upcoming discounts during Alpharetta’s restaurant week include a free donut with the purchase of a donut at Da Vinci’s Donuts, two “big plates” for $25 at Hudson Grille, 10 percent off at Ray’s at Killer Creek, a free gyro from Seven Seas Mediterranean Cafe, and more. As is the hope, these discounts are bound to attract Alpharetta’s citizens to restaurants as well as those outside of Alpharetta. The City of Woodstock has also implemented restaurant week that focuses on the restaurants along Downtown Woodstock’s Main Street. The response in Woodstock was so positive the city now conducts two restaurant weeks a year. Mitzi Saxon of the Woodstock Downtown Development Authority said Woodstock’s Restaurant Week is a fantastic way to showcase dining establishments in downtown Woodstock. “The benefits are the advertising [the restaurants] get. Restaurant week brings in people who normally don’t eat and drink here. The restaurants can also highlight different menus,” she said. “The response has been great. In fact, after the very first restaurant week, the restauranteurs said ‘Let’s do two a year, let’s keep this going.’” Saxon also believes that Woodstock’s
Da Vinci’s Donuts, part of Alpharetta’s Restaurant Week, offers unique flavors of donuts including maple bacon, M & M, salted carmel and many more.
More info on restaurant weeks Alpharetta: alpharettachamber.com Cobb: travelcobb.org/visitors/ restaurantweek/ Gwinnett: gcvb.org/restaurantweek/ Roswell: roswellrestaurantweek.com Sandy Springs visitsandysprings.org/ restaurantweek/ Woodstock: downtownwoodstock.org/ restaurant-week Downtown Restaurant Week provides an opportunity to bring in those who live elsewhere. “We have so many restaurants that are within walking distance to our downtown restaurants but we really want to attract other folks as well so that they can come into our town and we can benefit from their being here. They can then go back and tell their neighbors and friends the experience that they have had in our city. We want to show off our little town,” said Saxon. “We want [restaurant week] to be a unique and different way to attract people to our local businesses. Almost all of our restaurants are not franchises,
BurgerFi, part of Alpharetta’s Restaurant Week, is offering buy one burger get one burger free.
Fire Stone Wood Fired Pizza & Grill took part in Woodstock’s Restaurant Week. they are locally owned and operated.” Roswell, Sandy Springs, Cobb and Gwinnett County also hold restaurant
weeks, and if the trend continues, more cities could conduct their own restaurant weeks in the near future.
NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com • September 2015 • 31
We Have Exciting News! In the last five years (2008-2013) which media use is increasing? 47% 48%
17%
Survey Question: “Which of the following news sources would you say that you rely on the most for news about issues and problems in Johns Creek? 18%
15%
13% 5% 5%
Atlanta Journal Constitution
5/2/2013
10/1/2008
Johns Creek Herald
Johns Creek Patch*
9%
7% 3%
Johns TV Stations Creek From Neighbor** Atlanta
1%
Internet
4% Other
4%
5%
Unsure or Refused
APPEN MEDIA newspapers reach 40% more (over 30,000 more homes) in North Fulton / South Forsyth than the next closest competitor and is by far the preferred source for local news. If your business depends on reaching buyers in North Fulton or South Forsyth, we deliver. Why settle for less? Let us connect you. Call now for more advertising information 770-442-3278.
Circulation Comparison
AppenMediaGroup.com Survey of Voter Attitudes in Johns Creek, Georgia conducted from April 30 - May 2, 2013 by The Tarrance Group for the City of Johns Creek. Question #QD7. *Listed as Johns Creek Post in 2008 survey. ** Not included in 2008 survey.
AJC WEEKDAY 16,481
AJC SUNDAY 29,241
NEIGHBOR 43,250
APPEN 75,000
Data based on the following: 2013 CVC Audit for Appen, 2013 ABC Audit for the AJC, 2013 CAC Audit for the Neighbor. Comparison only of circulation in Alpharetta, Roswell, Milton, Johns Creek, and Forsyth county.
32 • September 2015 • NorthAtlantaBusinessPost.com