Johns Creek Herald - February 1, 2024

North Fulton crew counts homeless in annual census ► PAGE 6

Fe b r u a r y 1 , 2 0 2 4 | A p p e n M e d i a . c o m | A n A p p e n M e d i a G r o u p P u b l i c a t i o n | 5 0 ¢ | Vo l u m e 2 8 , N o . 5

Transportation chief provides upbeat account of road projects

By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com

See TSPLOST, Page 29

AMBER PERRY/APPEN MEDIA

The Johns Creek City Council stands on tiered seating looking onto the Chattahoochee River in Columbus, Georgia, while on a walking tour of the city at its annual planning retreat Jan. 28.

City Council plans strategy based on long-term goals Officials tour Columbus during weekend retreat

By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com SCREENSHOT

Mindy Sanders, Johns Creek TSPLOST program manager, provides an annual update to the City Council on completed and active transportation projects at its work session Jan. 22.

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focused on what it takes to maintain the quality of life in Johns Creek,” Greer said.

The council drafted five strategic priorities — arts and culture, economic development, public safety, recreation and parks, and transportation/connectivity.

Initially on the list, the city’s stormwater system was decided to be more an issue of maintenance.

See RETREAT, Page 28

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COLUMBUS, Ga. — City councilmembers were asked to revisit the city’s vision and mission for the first time at their annual planning retreat Jan. 27, diving into an existential discussion on why Johns

Creek should be more than just an “exceptional city.”

Interim City Manager Kimberly Greer’s introduction into more visionary thinking laid the groundwork for the council to also rethink the definition of strategic priorities, from specific projects to ongoing goals.

“To get us to the next level, we need to actually be less focused on projects and more focused on infinite priorities, so taking that long view and staying

APPE

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — Several transportation projects in Johns Creek are slated for completion this year, and dozens more are on their way.

Mindy Sanders, Johns Creek TSPLOST program manager, presented an annual update to the City Council at its work session Jan. 22, detailing more than 20 projects either completed or still in the works across the city’s TSPLOST I and II budgets.

In 2016 and 2021, voters passed a special transportation sales tax that is estimated to bring to the city close to $150 million in revenue.

2 | February 1, 2024 | Johns Creek Herald | AppenMedia.com/Johns_Creek

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JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — A Johns Creek man reported to police Jan. 15 that his car had been stolen from his driveway on Georgian Manor Court, but later found parked elsewhere in the same neighborhood.

The owner told police he had last seen his 2015 Mazda 3 Jan. 14, and a woman living in the house noticed the vehicle was missing the next morning at 7 a.m. The key fob was left in the vehicle, which was unlocked, the incident report says.

Two hours later after the owner had reported the vehicle missing, he located it parked just down the street in the same neighborhood.

Woman defrauded by fake bondsmen JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — A Johns Creek woman reported to police Jan. 18 that she paid more than $1,000 to someone posing as a bondsman.

The woman told police her daughter had been arrested earlier that morning, and that she had been on a three-way call with her son-in-law and an alleged bondsman. The suspect, who claimed to be an officer with the Forsyth Police Department, told the woman to pay $1,035 to bond her daughter out that day, according to the incident report.

The woman told police she sent the money through Venmo to the suspect, whose account had a different name attached. She said Venmo is investigating the transaction, the report says.

Man robbed, threatened during sale of sneakers JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — A Johns Creek man reported to police Jan. 20 that he

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PUBLIC SAFETY had been robbed by two suspects while attempting to sell a pair of shoes in the Kroger parking lot on State Bridge Road.

Police spoke to the man at the intersection of Indian Village Drive and Braided Blanket Bluff, who said he located the suspect’s vehicle in a nearby cul-de-sac.

The man told police he had followed the suspects, two males, after they left without paying for the shoes, a $175 pair of Jordan 3 Muslins, and that the suspects had threatened him with an unidentified weapon. He told police he lost sight of the suspect vehicle, but located and followed it to Braided Blanket Bluff.

But, when police approached the alleged suspect in his vehicle, he appeared confused and said he had just been at Kroger buying groceries, providing a receipt, the incident report says. Police detained him throughout the investigation but later released him because he did not match the description the man provided.

Detectives are investigating the case.

Burglaries reported at café, restaurant ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Alpharetta police are searching for four men suspected of burglarizing a café and a restaurant on North Main Street Jan. 10.

The café owner told officers he found his glass front door shattered when he arrived to open the business.

He reported reviewing his security footage and seeing two male suspects enter the café around 4:30 a.m., take $1,000 in cash and leave a minute later. He also reported a cash drawer was stolen.

The suspects reportedly caused between $400 and $500 in damage, and they shattered the front door with a springloaded punch.

Security footage at the restaurant next door showed one of the suspects breaking the front door with a spring-loaded punch before handing it off to another suspect to break into the café, the report states.

The footage showed two suspects entering the restaurant and stealing two cash

drawers that held some $300. One of the suspects also swiped the restaurant’s Samsung Galaxy, the report states.

The suspects reportedly fled in a black sedan.

The total value stolen from the two businesses was reported at $1,800.

The café owner told officers three men came to the café to ask for a job Jan. 9, which was confirmed by the neighboring restaurant’s security footage. Officers reported it appeared that one of the men was wearing the same clothes as a suspect in the burglary.

No suspects have been identified.

Mother’s car burglarized in preschool parking lot ROSWELL, Ga. — Roswell Police are investigating a car break-in Jan. 17 at Parker Chase Preschool on Holcomb Bridge Road The victim said someone broke into her Jeep Grand Cherokee and took her purse while she was inside her child’s preschool.

The victim’s purse contained her laptop, tablet, wallet, credit cards and other items, valued at more than $2,000.

While officers were speaking with the victim, she began receiving notifications that someone was using her credit cards at the Dollar Tree on Holcomb Bridge Road and Dollar General on Jimmy Carter Boulevard.

Officers who responded to Dollar Tree said the suspect was described as a White male with a mustache, wearing a black beanie and black hoodie.

Norcross Police were unable to identify a suspect at the Dollar General.

A Roswell officer said the school did not have security cameras in the parking lot and checked surrounding businesses.

Another officer met with employees of Puppy Haven on Holcomb Bridge Road to review their security footage.

The officer said he identified a black sport utility vehicle but could not read the license plate.

Pictures of the suspect and their vehicle were sent to records, officers said.

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AppenMedia.com/Johns_Creek | Johns Creek Herald | February 1, 2024 | 3

Civil Rights activist describes experience in campaign for voting rights

By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com

death of Jimmie Lee Jackson, killed in a protest the preceding February.

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — It made sense for John Suttles to join in on the fight for voting rights as a preteen in Selma, Alabama, in the early ’60s.

Soon after he and his mother moved to Sheffield, Suttles moved from having fun, building things and blowing things up with firecrackers with other boys, to an involvement in Civil Rights.

“At the age of 12, 13 years old, I was hooked,” Suttles told members of the Rotary Club of Johns Creek North Fulton Jan. 24 in an interview with Kaaryn Walker, who’s heavily involved in Johns Creek. “I went to a mass meeting, and I listened to some of the speakers. I went back a couple of times and heard Dr. King speak, and that was it. I was in — in it to win it, so to speak.”

He and his newfound group of young activists would talk about how to bring along the community and help the community, how things should be done.

Suttles, a self-described “diplomat” of his family growing up, said he preferred a non-violent approach.

But, in the first attempt to march from Selma to Montgomery on March 7, 1965, there was a lot of violence — from police. The effort was prompted by the

Bloody Sunday When 600 peaceful foot soldiers, from all different backgrounds, crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge, a sea of state troopers were waiting at the bottom.

“Everything around us just stopped moving,” said Suttles, who was 16 years old at the time. “The air stopped moving.

Everything got quiet … We knew that it was different. We knew this may take a few of us out. But, we [were] committed.”

Suttles and many more were hospitalized. His own blood soaked the army jacket he wore, which his uncle gave him earlier that day, after Suttles told him he was headed “to Mongomery to talk to George Wallace.” The garment is on display at a national interpretive center.

“John Lewis said, ‘We’re going to say a prayer first,’ and just as soon as he started kneeling, then it broke loose,” Suttles said. “And, that was the beginning of Bloody Sunday … a day that I’ll never forget. I’m 75 now, and I remember it like yesterday.”

There would be a second, but unsuccessful attempt to march to Montogomery, coined “Turnaround Tuesday,”

See SUTTLES, Page 12

AMBER PERRY/APPEN MEDIA

Civil Rights activist John Suttles, right, describes his experience as a 16-year-old boy on Bloody Sunday on March 7, 1965, when police attacked him and other foot soldiers in a march from Selma, Alabama, to Montgomery for voting rights. Kaaryn Walker, left, interviewed Suttles for the event, hosted by the Rotary Club of Johns Creek North Fulton at St. Ives Country Club Jan. 24.

4 | February 1, 2024 | Johns Creek Herald | AppenMedia.com/Johns_Creek

NEWS

Scout leader honors late son in fighting human trafficking

By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com

PHOTOS BY AMBER PERRY/APPEN MEDIA

Boy Scout leader Tom Reitz welcomes an audience of about 50 people to a panel on human trafficking Jan. 24 at Johns Creek Presbyterian Church, moderated by senior Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. Reitz organized the event in honor of his late son Matthew Reitz, who had avidly fought against oppression and participated in a senior seminar on human trafficking in his last semester at Georgia State University.

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — Tom Reitz said his late son Matthew was someone committed to advocacy, but not just talking about it.

Matthew Reitz, who died in 2018 at 27 years old, was spunky and unfiltered.

Reitz said he would say and do the things others wouldn’t, and he was loyal, defending and protecting those he cared about.

“Everything about Matt was about fighting oppression,” Reitz said in an interview.

Reitz hosted a panel at Johns Creek Presybeterian Church with experts on human trafficking Jan. 24 in memory of his son, moderated by senior Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts who had been trained in the subject. Matt joined Boy Scouts as a Cub, and Reitz is still involved.

In his last semester at Georgia State University, studying political science, Matt took a senior seminar on human trafficking. Reitz would pick him up from the North Springs MARTA station, and on the way back home, Matt shared all about what he was learning. The family now lives in Roswell but lived in Johns Creek for more than two decades.

But, Reitz said he wouldn’t talk about his senior seminar, and so, he questioned him on it.

“He got really stiff and really angry, and he said, ‘Papa … there are some things that you can talk about, but human trafficking — I’m doing something about it,’” Reitz recalled. “And, that was that.”

Matt had been a leading member of Georgia State Unversity’s Model Arab League, a program where students learn the politics and history of the Arab world, and the art of diplomacy and speech. He had also jumped at the opportunity to study in India, to celebrate his “quartercentury mark,” and witnessed a number of issues there, particularly poverty.

Matt had plans to further his studies in graduate school in international affairs.

After Matt passed, Reitz went into his room and picked a book off his shelf, and it was about sex trafficking. He said he sat on the floor, reading it for more than four hours, engrossed in a story about the trafficking problem in Nepal, where some fathers had sold their daughters, as young as 4 years old, to brothels.

“After I read the book, I said, ‘You know, I’ve got to do something about this because Matt is not here to do it,’” Reitz said.

Four experts on human trafficking participated in the panel. About 50 people, many Scouts and their parents, were listening and looking at one another as information about the realities of human trafficking were exposed.

On the panel was Maja Hasic with Tapestri, a Tucker-based nonprofit dedi-

Faythe Kadona, subject matter expert with the nonprofit Street Grace, shares her experience as a sex trafficking survivor on a panel at Johns Creek Presbyterian Church Jan. 24. The panel also included Maja Hasic of Tapestri, Alia El-Sawi with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Investigations team and Dave McCleary, who founded Rotary Action Group Against Slavery. cated to ending violence and oppression in immigrant and refugee communities; and Faythe Kadona, a sex trafficking survivor and subject matter expert with Street Grace, a Norcross-based nonprofit committed to ending the sexual exploitation of minors.

Alia El-Sawi, a victims assistance specialist for Homeland Security Investigations, also provided expertise on the subject as well as Dave McCleary, who founded the Rotary Action Group Against Slavery.

Topics spanned from how parents can keep their children safe online and in real life, to false promises given to immigrants, lured into domestic servitude, to federal programs in place that prevent human trafficking.

Kardona said she had experienced childhood sexual abuse by a family member from 5 to 10 years old, and eventually was sold for sex at age 18 by her best friend’s mother, to be placed in an Atlanta massage parlor. She said her exploitation didn’t end until she was 37.

Asked how parents can know if their child is being exploited, Kardona said it’s a matter of staying involved in their life.

“I used to tell my son and my daughter, ‘I’m going to get in your Kool Aid, and I know every flavor, so it doesn’t matter what you try to say that it is…’” Kardona said.

“Your own lived experience is a powerful tool with your children. Talk about the stories of the things that you went through.”

For resources on human trafficking, call Georgia’s hotline at 1-866-363-4842 or visit endhtga.org. The Georgia Coalition to Combat Human Trafficking provides leadership, direction and best practices for all forms of human trafficking in Georgia, promoting a coordinated, victim-centered and trauma-informed response throughout the state.

AppenMedia.com/Johns_Creek | Johns Creek Herald | February 1, 2024 | 5

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NEWS

Volunteers canvass North Fulton to log annual homeless numbers

By SHELBY ISRAEL shelby@appenmedia.com

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. — More than 50 volunteers set out from Mary Hall Freedom Village in Sandy Springs Jan. 23 to survey the area’s unsheltered population for the annual Fulton County Continuum of Care Point in Time Count.

Point in time counts provide lawmakers and funding organizations with information on the number, demographics and characteristics of people experiencing homelessness.

In Fulton County, the Continuum of Care promotes funding and programs to combat homelessness in Fulton cities.

Atlanta has its own continuum of care.

Data is then sent to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which uses the results to determine federal funding to address homelessness.

The organized count covered the cities of Johns Creek, Sandy Springs, Milton, Alpharetta and Roswell. Mountain Park will also be canvassed through Jan. 30 when the Point in Time formally ends.

South Fulton County canvassing was scheduled for Jan. 24.

Fulton County Senior Public Affairs Officer Mark Baucom said 126 volunteers were registered for the Point in Time Count as of Jan. 17.

While the Point in Time is critical for securing funding to address homelessness, Dawn Butler said it is not comprehensive. Butler serves as the Fulton County Department of Community Development Health and Human Services division manager.

“We’re not expected to count every homeless person, but we want to count as many homeless people, and it is a snapshot,” she said.

Butler said her department also uses the data from the Point in Time to adjust their focus throughout the year. The count can determine which populations have the most need or which have increased since the previous year.

Butler said the Point in Time gathers important data for the government, but it also spurs community outreach.

Local nonprofits are involved in the effort. North Fulton Community Charities provided dozens of hygiene and snack kits to be distributed during the count.

The venue where volunteers gathered before the count, Mary Hall Freedom Village, offers services for women, children and veterans who are struggling with homelessness, addiction or poverty.

North Fulton Improvement Network Chairman Jack Murphy emphasized the

See FULTON, Page 26

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Volunteers assemble at Mary Hall Freedom Village before the annual Fulton County Continuum of Care Point in Time Count Jan. 23. More than 50 volunteers split up into nine teams to survey North Fulton’s unsheltered population from 8 to 11 p.m.

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AppenMedia.com/Johns_Creek | Johns Creek Herald | February 1, 2024 | 7

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Erika Gabrielson, sophomore at Northview High School, and Marcela Vega, sophomore at Johns Creek High School, are preparing for their trip to study abroad after receiving $25,000 scholarships from the Rotary Club of Johns Creek North Fulton.

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Rotary Club awards scholarships Senior Independent Living to sophomores for study abroad

By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — Two high school students in Johns Creek are looking forward to their study abroad programs next school year, an immersive experience where little English will be used.

The Rotary Club of Johns Creek North Fulton awarded Erika Gabrielson, a sophomore at Northview High School, and Marcela Vega, a sophomore at Johns Creek High School, $25,000 scholarships for the experience.

The application process was intensive, with background checks, referrals and a series of interviews, which culminated in an event called “The Big Reveal” in December. Gabrielson and Vega didn’t know where they were headed until they popped some balloons which held the name of their destinations.

For about 10 months, Gabrielson will be in Brazil, and Vega, in Sweden, each rotating through the homes of three host families with help from Rotarians along the way. In preparation, they’ve been learning the language of their respective countries.

Bob MacDonald, the youth exchange officer for the Rotary Club of Johns Creek North Fulton, said Rotary International has been coordinating the study abroad program for about a century and unlike others, it’s

volunteer-run. This year, he said more than 9,000 students all over the world have received $25,000 in-kind scholarships.

“The concept is: Send someone to a different country, get immersed in the local culture,” MacDonald said. “In the process, we’re kind of creating peace and understanding one student at the time.”

Gabrielson said she is ready for the food in Brazil, meeting new people and learning Portuguese more while being immersed.

Her mother, Angel Gabrielson, was beside her, both having just listened to Civil Rights activist and Johns Creek resident John Suttles share his story Jan. 24. Part of the deal is attending a rotary event once a month, but also participating in a service project prior to departure.

Angel said her anxiety about her daughter leaving for another country for the better part of year is decreasing, but she’s learning about it, and she’s excited.

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Angel said.

Vega said she’s interested in seeing the lifestyle in Sweden and the ways in which language shapes thoughts and ways of self-expression.

“I'm looking forward to seeing how … language, culture affects us as human beings and how the interaction can even change you as a person,” Vega said.

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8 | Johns Creek Herald | February 1, 2024

Gathering at South Forsyth builds up government steam

By SHELBY ISRAEL shelby@appenmedia.com FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — The Forsyth County Commission is set to formalize the terms of The Gathering at South Forsyth in the coming weeks.

Plans for the proposed development on some 100 acres near Union Hill Road, Ronald Reagan Boulevard and Ga. 400 include 1.6 million square feet of commercial and retail space, a 750,000-square-foot arena, a community center and 450 hotel rooms.

At a Jan. 18 Development Authority meeting, County Manager David McKee said the county was in the process of finalizing the deal points for The Gathering.

“And then there's some contingencies that have to be met,” McKee said. “But I think the most important part is, is if this deal goes forward, that everything is contingent on the National Hockey League landing a franchise at that facility.”

But, McKee emphasized nothing is finalized until approved by the County Commission, and the agreement is still in a draft form.

In a phone call with Appen Media, County Communications Director Russell Brown said there is no promise of a hockey team as yet, and details are subject to change pending formal agreement.

The agreement and further details were scheduled to be presented at a specialcalled Board of Commissioners work session Jan. 31.

At the Jan. 18 meeting, McKee said the NHL will open a franchise application in March or April, and the process could take as long as a year.

See GATHERING, Page 9

SHELBY ISRAEL/APPEN MEDIA

Forsyth County Manager David McKee shares an update on The Gathering at South Forsyth at a Development Authority meeting Jan. 18. McKee said a forthcoming agreement will outline the project’s contingencies, including a possible NHL franchise at the development.

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The Forsyth County Commission is set to formalize the terms of the development with an agreement in the coming weeks.

Gathering: Continued from Page 8 Project staff first presented conceptual plans for The Gathering at a Forsyth County Board of Commissioners work session April 25.

At that meeting, project staff estimated The Gathering could produce more than 12,000 long-term employment opportunities, as well as more than 20,000 construction jobs during its 10-year development.

The 100-acre project is the dream of Vernon Krause, CEO of Krause Auto Group, which operates a collection of family-owned dealerships across four states in the Southeast.

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PHOTOS BY AMBER PERRY/APPEN MEDIA

Kaaryn Walker, in an interview with Civil Rights activist John Suttles, describes her father’s experience in the Orangeburg Massacre in 1968 when police shot and killed three student protesters and wounded 28 more on the campus of South Carolina State University.

See solution Page 29 CLUES ACROSS

CLUES DOWN

Suttles:

Continued from Page 3 which Martin Luther King Jr. joined.

In a third attempt about two weeks later, 25,000 participants successfully made the 54-mile trek. Suttles walked in all of them.

“That was so impressive to the president, they started talking about the voters’ bill,” Suttles said.

The Voting Rights Act was signed into law by President L yndon B. Johnson that August.

Sharing experience Walker, who interviewed Suttles, shared her father’s experience in the 1968 Orangeburg Massacre when police shot and killed three student protesters and wounded 28 more on the campus of South Carolina State University.

She said her father, who had survived three gunshots by police in the protest, refuses to attend anniversary events there. Her father had been invited to the 50th anniversary of the Orangeburg Massacre by Bakari Sellers, political strategist and son of Cleveland Sellers, who had been the only individual convicted and jailed for what took place.

“I could not understand why he didn’t want to share his experience to the world,” Walker said.

Empathizing with Walker’s father, Suttles said it was probably too pain-

Bob MacDonald, member of the Rotary Club of Johns Creek North Fulton, introduces Civil Rights activist John Suttles. At the Jan. 24 event, Suttles spoke about his experience participating in a march from Selma, Alabama, to Montgomery for voting rights in 1965. Two more marches would follow, contributing to the passage of the Voting Rights Act later that year. ful for him. Though Suttles had been beaten, he said he was not shot.

“I thank people like you for continuing to not just share your story but to have a positive outlook for our country, of not just where we came from and what we were, but how far we have come and the great things that we have the opportunity to aspire to be,” Walker told Suttles.

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REAL ESTATE REPORT • Sponsored Section

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REAL ESTATE REPORT • Sponsored Section AppenMedia.com/Johns_Creek | Johns Creek Herald | February 1, 2024 | 19

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REAL ESTATE REPORT • Sponsored Section

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Five strategies for a winter home detox Brought to you by – Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty As the winter season settles in, consider using the extra time indoors Bill Rawlings to freshen up and Sherri Conrad your living space. Winter decluttering helps make your home feel warmer and more inviting and promotes a sense of order and control. It also helps you organize season-specific items such as holiday decorations, warm clothing and coldweather gear. Efficiently managing these items sets the stage for a smoother transition into the new year.

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Compiled and edited by Angela Valente, Marketing Copywriter/ Copyeditor

REAL ESTATE REPORT • Sponsored Section AppenMedia.com/Johns_Creek | Johns Creek Herald | February 1, 2024 | 23

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PRESERVING THE PAST

OPINION

The amazing Rucker family of North Fulton Celestine Sibley, the famous author and syndicated columnist, once said “Give your family a gift of stories told and written.”

Crabapple resident Sheila Rucker BOB MEYERS Chapman, who Columnist knows many Rucker family stories, says “Our family stories are part of the glue that holds our families together.” This week’s column will go beyond the celebrated Nap and Johnny Rucker baseball legends to highlight some lesser-known facts about this amazing family.

The Rucker family is numerous and widespread. According to House of Names, there are some 30,000 people with the last name Rucker in the United States.

There are two towns named Ruckersville in the U.S. Ruckersville, Virginia near Charlottesville was founded in 1732 with a population today of about 1,200. Ruckersville, Georgia, in Elbert County was founded in 1773. The town’s historic Rucker House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The local family’s story begins with Peter Rucker who arrived in Virginia in the late 1600s. His grandson George Rucker and his wife Catherine Ehart were the first Ruckers to settle in Georgia, but they did not settle in this part of the state. Their son Simeon Blueford Rucker and his wife Jane Barnwell were the first settlers locally. Their house, built circa 1833 still stands on the corner of Old Rucker Road and Broadwell Road in Alpharetta. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as “an excellent intact example of early 19th-century log house construction in north Georgia.” Such homes were once quite common but now are very rare.

Simeon and Jane had nine children.

One of them, John, inherited the house after the Civil War. John and his wife Sarah Hembree Jameson also had nine children including George Napoleon, who became the famous professional baseball player Nap Rucker. Nap’s nephew John also played professional baseball, with the NY Giants and was featured on the April 1, 1940 Life magazine cover with the caption “Spring Training: Rookie Rucker.”

Another of John and Sarah’s children was Joel Jackson Rucker who married Lenora Rusk and founded the Rucker Cotton Seed Company and built the Crabapple Cotton Gin. B.Y.

Historical marker on the exterior wall of the historic Simeon Blueford Rucker house. The National Register states “The Rucker Log House is significant … for its direct historical associations with the first wave of Euro-American settlement in this part of the state.”

PHOTOS BY BOB MEYERS/APPEN MEDIA

The historic Simeon Blueford Rucker log house was built circa 1833. Among its features are heart of pine floors, walls and ceilings and two small rooms on the front for traveling pastors.

Representatives of North Fulton early pioneer families are buried in the Rucker family cemetery. Of special note are James Dorris and his Cherokee wife Nancy Cooke Dorris who were well known in the area. Nancy avoided going on the infamous Trail of Tears because she was married to a wealthy white man.

Coleman, descendant of one of the pioneer families in Crabapple, remembers that “around October you could hear the gin crank up. Noise was not a problem because not many people lived nearby.” Joel Jackson lived in the original Simeon Blueford house until he and Lenora built a house of their own across the street from the original house. That house also still exists.

Rucker Road which extends for 3 miles from the intersection of Crabapple Road and Arnold Mill Road to

the intersection of Old Milton Parkway and Wills Road was home to numerous Rucker families. The Queen Ann style Troy and Edith Rucker house with an Alpharetta historical marker beside it is one example. Troy was a cotton farmer and cotton inspector for the state of Georgia.

B.Y. Coleman remembers when a bridge was built on Rucker Road over Foe Killer Creek.

“Before then we had to ford it. Rocks were placed in the water for wagons and cars,” he says.

B.Y.’s son Mark Coleman recalls swimming in Foe Killer Creek which crosses Rucker Road near the Troy Rucker house and catching crawfish and tadpoles as a boy. He recalls when Rucker Road was first paved in the early 1950s.

The Old Rucker Farm community garden occupies 10.7 acres purchased by the City of Alpharetta in 2017 to serve as a garden center where adults and students can grow vegetables, flowers, fruits and herbs and can take classes. Any profit generated goes to the North Fulton Community Charities Food Pantry. For more information about the farm go to https://alpharetta-community-agriculture-program. square.site/ Finally, I want to note the Rucker private family cemetery in Wallace Woods off Rucker Road. It dates back to 1835 and, according to Find a Grave, has 62 memorials. It also has a number of unmarked graves. Some of our earliest pioneer family members are buried there. Of note are the graves of James Dorris (1801-1877) and his Cherokee wife Nancy Cooke Dorris (1799-1877).

The couple were among the Crabapple area’s first settlers. James owned a general store in today’s Crabapple. Because Nancy was married to a wealthy white man, she was not forced to take part in the infamous Trail of Tears in 1838 and 1839.

Bob is director emeritus of the Milton Historical Society and a Member of the City of Alpharetta Historic Preservation Commission. You can email him at bobmey@bellsouth.net. Bob welcomes suggestions for future columns about local history.

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OPINION: THE INVESTMENT COACH

Market forecast: Strap in for possible turbulence Readers are urged to regard “early in the year” stock market and economic forecasts as a form of entertainment. No one really knows what will do.

LEWIS J. WALKER, CFP markets Forecasts are Columnist educated opinThe Investment Coach ions at best.

Last year, the inflation rate was accelerating and the Federal Reserve Bank aggressively raised interest rates. Many economists predicted a significant slowdown, a bear market, even a potential recession in the second half of the year.

Many investors fled Wall Street in favor of rising yields in FDIC guaranteed savings vehicles, as the bond market struggled with rising interest rates.

When interest rates rise, bond values decline.

But the bear went into hibernation. A bull appeared and the market surprised to the upside. On Dec. 30, 2023, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed just shy of its all-time record high of 37710.10 set two days prior on Dec. 28. The S&P 500 Index closed a shade below its all-time high set on Jan. 3, 2022. The Nasdaq Composite Index closed about 1000 points below its record high. Major indexes have waffled during the initial trading days of 2024 as some headlines warn investors to “buckle up for a potential bumpy 2024.”

“Buckle up” is good advice whether driving, riding as a passenger in a

Fulton: Continued from Page 6 importance of the Point in Time. Murphy also serves as senior account executive for the Metro Atlanta Chamber.

“One of the reasons why we got involved was because there’s not enough funding for homeless services in North Fulton,” Murphy said. “And this is one of the ways that HUD determines funding, so we want this to be accurate. We don’t want it to be inflated.”

Typically, Fulton County solicits volunteers for the Point in Time. Murphy said this year, the county enlisted the help of nonprofits that already work with volunteers to expand its outreach. One such nonprofit was United Way of Greater Atlanta.

vehicle or when flying. As a frequent flyer I often see little ones on an airplane bouncing around unbuckled because they can’t sit still. After this writer left the U.S. Air Force, I worked for a major airline for a number of years, initially in a two-year management training program. On two occasions I experienced a pilot training exercise in dealing with a simulated “explosive decompression” in the passenger cabin, such as occurred on Jan. 5, 2024, on an Alaska Airlines plane at 16,000 feet when a faulty door plug blew out. Airplanes often fly at altitudes above 35,000 feet in very thin air. While securely buckled up, a planned deep dive decline from over 36,000 feet to below 10,000 feet in mere minutes in a Boeing 727 jet was an amazing experience! Thankfully, decompressions are extremely rare, but pilots are trained to deal with such emergencies and others.

On the Alaska flight, the row where the door plug blew out was not occupied, fortunately. If an unbuckled child had been sitting looking out of the window when a massive hole emerged with explosive force, most likely the infant would have been sucked out into the night sky blackness over 3 miles in the air. The mere thought of that is horrifying. Yet flying is one of the safer forms of travel.

There were no fatal aircraft accidents in 2023 involving international flights or passenger jets. Over 19,000 people died in U.S. traffic accidents in 2023, yet we think nothing of driving virtually every day. Traffic fatalities are down compared to prior years because more people are buckling up. Nevertheless,

per the National Highway Safety Traffic Administration, about 37 people a day in the U.S. die in drunk-driving crashes, about one person every 39 minutes. That’s why seat belts and car seats for kiddies are recommended.

You may not be drinking, but other drivers may.

Because stock market averages are subject to unexpected market turbulence, to the downside as well as the upside, “financial seatbelts” are recommended. There are certain things that should be in place as one embarks on a long-term investment program. A written comprehensive life-centered financial plan should guide all financial strategies. A person or couple ideally should have at least six months to a year’s worth of living expenses in a guaranteed or otherwise conservative liquid money market account before embarking on a long-range market centered asset accumulation program. However, from day one, enroll in the matching program of an employer’s retirement plan if available so as not to forfeit “free money.”

A comprehensive legally documented living and testamentary estate planning program should deal with the ever present risk of injury, illness, disability, and death.

Investing in the stock market is a long-term strategy. The best time to invest is when you have the money!

“Market timing” really doesn’t work. You will never catch markets at the bottom.

But if you buy when stocks appear to be on sale, over the long run you’re likely to look like a genius. With stocks it’s about “time,” not timing.

Alternative investments, often subject to net worth restrictions, can

provide diversification to a portfolio in addition to stocks, bonds, and money market instruments. Do not “bet the house” on any one investment. Diversification counts. One goal of investors as they pass age 50 or so on the way to whatever retirement will be is to build an income and dividend generating portfolio, along with the potential for growth over time.

Even during market dips, when you don’t want to sell stocks if you can avoid it, it’s a good idea to have cash reserves to see you through along with good dividend flows. If you live long enough, you want to have financial peace of mind and a sense of purpose to sustain you, along with faith in God and His eternal promises of salvation as the ultimate reward no matter how crazy the world around you seems or becomes.

Scary headlines, sadly, are not rare.

Inflation is still running at 3.5% annualized, and between inflation and taxation your net buying power is under attack. There’s a major leak in your financial bathtub. A solid tax planning strategy is very important, working with your financial advisor and your tax advisor.

Here’s wishing you and yours a happy and blessed 2024!

Equipped with flashlights and reflective vests, the 54 volunteers were divided into nine teams and assigned areas across the five cities known to have homeless populations. Some groups set out in transit vans, while others canvassed the streets in personal vehicles.

The first shift of canvassing ran from 8 to 11 p.m., followed by a second, smaller shift from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m.

One group, team three, was assigned to the Holcomb Bridge Road area in east Roswell, with three stops in Johns Creek and Sandy Springs.

Team three had nine marked stops, including East Roswell Park, the Holcomb Bridge Ga. 400 overpass, bus shelters and across from a subdivision in Sandy Springs.

While each route had marked locations to visit, volunteers were also asked to follow their judgment and search in

unmarked places. Recommendations included post offices, parking lots, gyms, parks, gas stations and restaurants.

Each team was given some 20 hygiene kits and flyers about warming centers, temporary shelters that open when the temperature drops below freezing, to be distributed to those surveyed.

The county asked volunteers to download the Counting Us app to conduct surveys. If a person agreed to be surveyed, the volunteer would ask questions about their experience. If they refused, the volunteer recorded their location and basic demographic information.

The Point in Time counts only people who are unsheltered. Those living in hotels or motels, transitional housing, emergency shelters, hospitals and jails are not tallied.

By 10:30 p.m., team three did not locate any unsheltered persons in east

Roswell.

In the 2023 count, the Continuum of Care recorded 128 unsheltered individuals, a 26 percent increase from 2022. The totals from the 2024 count will be released

by March 21.

Lewis Walker, CFP®, is a life centered financial planning strategist with Capital Insight Group (CIG); 770-4413553; lewis@capitalinsightgrp.com.

Securities & advisory services offered through The Strategic Financial Alliance, Inc. (SFA), which is otherwise unaffiliated with CIG. Lewis a Gallup Certified Clifton Strengths Coach and Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA).

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Retreat:

The Johns Creek City Council is set to discuss whether to conduct its first self-run municipal election in 2025 at its work session Feb. 12. Based on estimates that had been presented at the City Council’s retreat Jan. 27, a two-year cycle would cost the city $1.3 million which includes an in-house staffing structure. Fulton County charged Johns Creek $462,309 for its 2023 general municipal election.

Continued from Page 1 Public safety as priority Public safety made it to the list of strategic priorities only after Greer urged the council to think about the implications of leaving it out.

While public safety makes up about half the city’s operating budget, the council’s overall posture was that Johns Creek is already safe and stable.

Historically, strategic priorities have been created out of new needs, like last year when councilmembers chose to advance the city’s Town Center area and Creekside Park.

“I’m putting my city manager hat on and telling you that your employees look at your strategic priorities,” Greer said. “Your public safety team — I can’t tell you the number of, from officers up to deputy chiefs, that have [said], ‘Council doesn’t actually care about us because we’re not a priority.’ To me, if I only get one on your list, it’s public safety.”

Mayor John Bradberry agreed, saying the city shouldn’t rest on the Public Safety Department’s widely recognized high levels of service.

“It’s … not a bad thing, both for the residents and for our team members that are on the frontlines every day fighting fire or fighting crime, that we remind them of how valued they are,” Bradberry said.

Even so, when councilmembers were asked to make a wish list for each of the five strategic priorities, items were called out for public safety.

New public safety initiatives included reducing administrative burdens with innovative technology. Councilman Chris Coughlin’s affinity for artificial intelligence, a tool he suggested for city services about half a dozen times, became a running joke.

The council also requested more investment in staff, equipment and vehicles; novel techniques to reduce recidivism; continued support for the city’s new full-time behavioral health clinician and officer in the Police Department’s Clinician and Officer Response Team; an employee assistance program for public safety personnel; and support for the Johns Creek Public Safety Foundation.

The city’s estimate is expected to drop about $153,000 in future cycles with one-time costs out of the way, increasing again with replacements for election equipment.

AMBER PERRY/APPEN MEDIA

The Johns Creek City Council provides potential initiatives for its new slate of strategic priorities at its annual planning retreat Jan. 27 in Columbus, Georgia.

Capital Improvement Plan New initiatives for public safety and the other 2024 strategic priorities were add-ons to projects slated for the oncoming Capital Improvement Plan.

In late November, Assistant City Manager Ron Bennett presented an initiative to develop a Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan. The idea is the result of concerns raised by councilmembers related to the city’s budgeting process, where the City Council typically selects capital projects on an ad-hoc basis.

The document, to be reviewed every year, will exclude expenses like maintenance and personnel related to capital projects. The council is set to revisit the plan in a March work session.

Councilmembers reviewed nearly 30 funded projects, mostly related to transportation, and agreed to move forward with 20 projects that currently have no funding sources, which were lifted from pre-existing plans.

Unfunded projects spanned themes mostly in step with the council’s new list of strategic priorities with additions of stormwater-related projects and municipal elections, a topic that will be discussed further at the council’s work session Feb. 12.

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Many will be placed on a “conveyor belt” for years to come, Greer said, as part of the Capital Improvement Plan.

Greer also presented a new Capital Project Dashboard, where these initiatives will live online. The dashboard will include maps, descriptions and implementation timelines.

Ideas for Town Center The council wrapped up its retreat weekend in Columbus, Georgia, Jan. 28 with a tour of the city. Greer researched the host area for features the city could pull as inspiration for its own Town Center, a 192-acre area along Medlock Bridge Road that will feature a mixedused retail district and Creekside Park.

Greer pointed out sidewalks and streetscapes in Columbus’ entertainment district, or “Uptown,” asking the City Council whether they want to make a conscious choice about the Town Center’s brand. Since 2013, Columbus’ Business Improvement District has invested $725 million into projects, upkeep and maintenance to promote the downtown, which is renewed every decade after a certain threshold of businesses elect to self-tax.

Greer also emphasized Columbus’ focus on history, describing the city as a “very-strong-in-history kind of community.” The city adopted a Historic District, with historic buildings that had been repurposed, like the City Council’s hotel, once a grist mill.

Johns Creek has yet to adopt a historic preservation ordinance.

The City Council also spent time along Columbus’ Riverwalk, where Greer described the city’s partnerships with the business sector “to do more than they can do on their own.”

She cited the Riverwalk’s Island as an

example, an area where people walk for an up-close viewpoint on the river.

Near the Riverwalk and pedestrian bridge that connects to Phenix City, Alabama, Greer explained Columbus’ expansive Dragonfly Trail System with nearly 30 miles of paths developed through a partnership with a nonprofit.

As Johns Creek works on its oncoming trail network, from Cauley Creek to the Town Center, Greer asked the City Council to think about how to make trails a “destination” with treatment and descriptions.

Arts and culture On the walking tour, Greer highlighted several public art pieces as the Johns Creek City Council determines how to implement its new Public Art Policy.

“Public art is a big part of Columbus,” Greer said, describing a sculpture made of Turkish rock.

Some councilmembers asked whether the sculptures and murals around Columbus’ Uptown should be considered art, and whether they would translate well into the Johns Creek community.

Stops also included the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts, a 250,000-square foot facility with a black box-style experimental theater and two concert halls, the largest with 2,000 seats.

RiverCenter is operated and maintained by a nonprofit that led a fundraising campaign for its construction, collecting more than $100 million, with a $25 matching pledge from a private business and a $17 million state appropriation. The center is owned by the Department of Natural Resources.

The City Council had given the goahead setting aside funds for a new performing arts center, initially proposed by the Legacy Center Task Force. The task force is a separate organization that had been led by the late Johns Creek Symphony Orchestra founder and conductor J. Wayne Baughman for close to a decade.

Continued from Page 1

Engineering phase: • Medlock Bridge Road at State Bridge Road long-term intersection improvement • Medlock Bridge Road at McGinnis Ferry Road intersection improvement Right-of-way phase: • Jones Bridge Road at Douglas Road intersection improvement • Medlock Bridge Road trail from Johns Creek Parkway to McGinnis Ferry Road • McGinnis Ferry Road widening Construction phase: • Barnwell Road at Holcomb Bridge Road intersection improvement - Ribbon-cutting in early 2024 • Jones Bridge Road multimodal improvements between Douglas Road and McGinnis Ferry Road - Ribbon-cutting in early 2024 • Medlock Bridge Road at Johns Creek Parkway intersection improvement - Ribbon-cutting in early 2024 • Medlock Bridge Road at Skyway the fiscal impact of a current millage rate and a rollback rate; and an unassigned fund balance.

The council agreed to revise the budget policy to set the floor of unassigned funds at 25 percent of annual general fund revenue and the ceiling at 35 percent. Other topics related to the city’s unassigned funds will be discussed at a future work session.

At the regular meeting following the work session, councilmembers approved a zoning variance that will allow a 69,192-square-foot commercial development in the city’s Town Center area along Medlock Bridge Road. The site will include a daycare, restaurants, a liquor store, retail and medical offices and provide new connectivity points by foot, bicycle and car to adjacent properties and Creek-

Drive, Abbotts Bridge Road and Bell Road intersection improvements - Ribbon-cutting in late 2024 • Jones Bridge Road widening from Waters Road to State Bridge Road - Ribbon-cutting in summer 2025 Engineering phase: • Town Center Main Street – Lakefield Drive • Chattahoochee Greenway Phase II • Old Alabama Road over Johns Creek • Old Alabama Road over Chattahoochee Tributary • Nesbit Ferry Road at Holcomb Bridge Road • Nesbit Ferry Road sidewalk • Nesbit Ferry Road trail • Bell Road fiber connectivity • Barnwell Road, from Rivermont Parkway to North Peak Drive, trail • Barnwell Road, from Niblick Drive to Rivermont Parkway, trail • Nesbit Ferry Road at Colony Club Drive Right-of-Way phase: • Sargent Road at Ashwick Place/Bar-

ton Place intersection improvement • Abbotts Bridge Road widening • Rogers Bridge Road, from Bell Road to Amberleigh Way, trail • Buice Road, from Spruill Road to Johns Creek, trail • Town Center – Lakefield Drive at Johns Creek Parkway roundabout • Town Center – Creekside Trail • Town Center – Creekside Park North Pond Trail • Town Center – Pedestrian crossing of Medlock Bridge Road • McGinnis Ferry widening • Barnwell Road at Niblick Drive intersection improvement Construction phase: • Old Alabama Road fiber connectivity - Ribbon-cutting in February • Parsons Road guardrail • Completion in February • Old Alabama Road, from Autrey Mill Nature Preserve to Spruill Road, trail - Ribbon-cutting in spring 2024 • Buice Road, from Twingate Drive to Kingston Crossing, sidewalk - Ribbon-cutting in spring 2024

side Park.

“I think it’s very interesting. It looks great,” Mayor John Bradberry told the applicant. “I very much appre-

ciate y’all bringing it to Johns Creek and look forward to being able to patronize your establishment when it gets opened.”

RESS NP

Office Space for Lease

TSPLOST II projects

A

UB CL

“It’s a lot of projects going on at once … Are you alright?” Councilman Chris Coughlin asked Public Works Director Chris Haggard.

A total of nine projects have been completed with TSPLOST I funds, most recently the $5 million intersection improvement at Haynes Bridge and Old Alabama roads which added turn lanes and an additional through lane for a portion of Haynes Bridge Road.

The long-term intersection improvement at Medlock Bridge and State Bridge roads, in its engineering phase, received the most airtime in the TSPLOST I discussion. No longer financing the project, the Georgia Department of Transportation has allowed the city to add triple left turn lanes and a third northbound through lane.

For GDOT to fund the project, Haggard said it would have to maintain good traffic flow at least 20 years past the day it opens. But, he said data showed congestion would start ramping up again after a dozen years.

Of the 25 active projects funded, at least in part by TSPLOST II, four are scheduled for completion this year.

In other matters at the work session, the City Council made headway on adjusting its budget policy as it relates to unassigned funds, to address the $2.2 million that had been accumulated past its required reserve ceiling of $30 million. City policy calls for a reserve minimum of 25 percent of operating expenditures for working capital and cash flow.

Unassigned funds include a threemonth cash reserve; cash flow stabilization, or funds used to cover the cash shortfall created by the timing of millage rate adoption and the subsequent tax billing and collections process; property tax millage rate stabilization, or funds used to bridge

TSPLOST I projects

APPE

TSPLOST:

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FURNITURE & ACCESSORY SALE!

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