J u n e 2 3 , 2 0 2 2 | 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 1 7 , N o . 2 5
Former solicitor threatens to sue Milton, Alpharetta By CHAMIAN CRUZ chamian@appenmedia.com
JAKE DRUKMAN/APPEN MEDIA
Members of Milton’s Municipal Election Feasibility Committee gather on the second floor of City Hall for their inaugural meeting June 15. From left are: Mark Amick, Tammy Lowit, Stacey Inglis, Lisa Cauley, Rick Mohrig and Paul Moore.
Milton opens election talks Commission to study feasibility of running own balloting process
MILTON, Ga. — Seeking greater oversight and cost savings, Milton’s new Municipal Election Feasibility Commit-
tee held its inaugural meeting June 15 to study whether the city should run its own municipal elections. The committee will work to determine whether it is practical for the city to operate its own elections for city positions, rather than outsourcing the operations to Fulton County, as it has done in the past. Regardless of the outcome, county, state and federal elections would still be run at the county
level. A group of residents petitioned the City Council last summer to oppose the city’s agreement to have Fulton County run its municipal elections. The group cited integrity concerns and costs to taxpayers. Elected officials moved forward with the county contract, but informally agreed later in the year to identify a group to study the issue. On
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Early-day farmer known for hard work
By JAKE DRUKMAN jake@appenmedia.com
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See COMMITTEE, Page 18
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ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A former employee of Alpharetta and Milton is threatening legal action after she was passed over to fill the position of solicitor. In a demand-letter sent to the cities’ mayors and staff on May 5, Fran Shoenthal McQueen says that in selecting a “much younger replacement,” the City of Alpharetta violated its own charter. It also claims Alpharetta misclassified McQueen as an independent contractor to avoid paying her fringe benefits such as group health insurance, retirement benefits, sick days and paid holidays during the 20 years she spent working for the city. Appen Media obtained a copy of the 10-page letter by McQueen’s attorney, Debra Schwartz with Shwartz Rollins Employment Law, through an open records request. In a June 10 email to Appen Media, both cities confirmed they had received the demand-letter but
See SOLICITOR, Page 17