Milton Herald - July 24, 2025

New rec programs on tap this fall in Milton

BY SARAH COYNE sarah@appenmedia.com

MILTON, Ga. — Milton residents can look forward to two new youth and adult programs that will be offered this fall, following approval from the Milton Parks and Recreation Advisory Board July 17.

The seven-member board meets

monthly to review and offer guidance for Milton’s parks and recreation system.

Beginning in October, the city will offer a dance program through Little River Ballet. Kelsey Shackleford, owner, spent 11 years as a professional dancer with the Georgia Ballet and has more than a decade in teaching experience.

“There would be two semesters, October to December and then January

to May,” Shackleford said. “And each semester would end with a ballet performance at the end of the classes.”

The school will offer classes such as creative movement, pre-ballet, beginner ballet and beginner contemporary for ages 3 to 10-years-old. Tuition will range from $10 to $22.50 per class.

See PROGRAMS, Page 20

Cities join Milton in bid to reverse law suit decision

By SARAH COYNE sarah@appenmedia.com

MILTON, Ga. — More than 61 cities have signed onto a friend of the court brief supporting the City of Milton in a $35 million wrongful death lawsuit. The joint amicus brief, or letter of support, comes as the Georgia Supreme Court is poised to review the case sometime in late October. The case is Chang v. City of Milton.

On Nov. 18, 2016, Josh Chang, a Yale University student, was killed in a single-car accident after his car struck a concrete planter on the shoulder of Batesville Road in Milton. Chang’s parents sued the city for wrongful death and won after a Fulton County State Court jury ruled in their favor, ordering the city to pay more than $32.5 million in damages. According to the ruling, the court found enough evidence of negligence and cited inconsistent testimony on the part of Milton.

See LAWSUIT, Page 21

SARAH COYNE/APPEN MEDIA

From left, Outdoor Recreation Supervisor Jen Young inducts 7-year-old Pranav Sujesh into the Junior Ranger program at the Milton Parks and Recreation Advisory Board meeting July 17.

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POLICE BLOTTER

All crime reports published by Appen Media Group are compiled from public records. Neither the law enforcement agencies nor Appen Media Group implies any guilt by publishing these names. None of the persons listed has been convicted of the alleged crimes.

Police probe threat to retirement facility

MILTON, Ga. — Police responded to a bomb threat at a retirement community July 9.

An employee with the facility told police that a young woman accused the workers of abusing her grandfather. Police were provided with an audio recording of the call.

During the phone call, the woman threatened to cause physical harm to the employee and made threats to come to the business with a weapon and a bomb.

Police ran the phone number through a search base and were unable to retrieve any useful information. Police did state that the Alpharetta Police Department received phone calls the same day regarding juveniles claiming that there was a bank robbery. It is unknown if these incidents are related.

The investigation is still ongoing.

— Sarah Coyne

Man files fraud report involving forged checks

MILTON, Ga. — A Milton resident reported more than 30 checks forged and altered July 10.

The man told police that he got a call July 9 from his broker that 20 unusual checks were issued from his account. He told the broker that the checks were fraudulent.

He advised police that he wrote a check to the Georgia Department of Revenue for $2,150 and dropped off the check at a postal store on Crabapple Road June 9 or 10. The check was never cashed.

More than 30 checks were forged

and signed in amounts varying from 4 cents to $1,800 from July 2 to 9. The total amount stolen is approximately $14,666.

The investigation is ongoing. — Sarah Coyne

Copper wiring stolen from vacant retail site

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Police received a report June 30 of about $20,000 in copper wiring stolen from a vacant North Point area retail space.

The property manager said he noticed on June 26 the building, which was being renovated, had been burglarized.

A lock on a side door was broken. Copper wires from fuse boxes and conduits were cut and taken. Investigators searched for fingerprints.

The incident was classified as a felony burglary of a business.

— Jon Wilcox

Home improvement store thwarts attempted theft

ROSWELL, Ga. — Roswell police are investigating an attempted theft of around $4,000 in merchandise from a home improvement store off Holcomb Bridge Road July 9 after loss prevention stopped a patron at check-out.

The caller told an officer that the suspect attempted to conceal merchandise totaling $3,958 from a cashier. The employee said the cashier saw the customer attempt to conceal items in her cart by arranging the merchandise to hide more expensive goods.

When the cashier attempted to scan the items, the woman told him that she no longer wanted to purchase them.

The suspect is described as Romanian female with blonde hair, wearing a blue and white sundress. The employee said she left the store on foot toward Holcomb Bridge Road.

The officer said store employees reported the incident because of an ongoing shoplifting issue at several Metro Atlanta locations.

One employee said the same female suspect attempted to shoplift from a store in Greenville, South Carolina, using the same method.

— Hayden Sumlin

Money left at poolside reported stolen from bag

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A 45-year-old Cartersville woman reported $2,000 stolen while staying at a hotel on Haynes Bridge Road July 4.

Alpharetta police said officers were dispatched to the scene about 6 p.m.

After spending a day at the pool, the woman returned to her room to take a nap. After waking, she realized she had left two envelopes of the money in a bag at the pool.

She found the bag but failed to locate the envelopes after going to the pool to retrieve the money.

The hotel had no cameras in the pool area and declined to provide recordings in the building without a subpoena.

The incident was classified as a felony theft by taking, greater than $1,500.

— Jon Wilcox

Visitor reports fraud totaling close to $4,000

ROSWELL, Ga. — Roswell police met with a 26-year-old man from Clarksville, Tennessee, July 8 after he reported falling victim to a deceptive and fraudulent scheme.

The victim told officers at Roswell Police Headquarters that he was visiting a friend from out of town and staying at an Airbnb within the city. He said he was deceived into transferring $3,469.55 into a fraudulent account, given to him by an unidentified suspect.

The police report said the incident remains under investigation, and a supplemental report from the Criminal Investigations Division that might have provided more detail was omitted.

— Sarah Coyne

THE PICTURE FRAMER

Sandy Springs used cameras to assist ICE, data shows

By CARL APPEN carl@appenmedia.com

SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. — Sandy Springs Police have used the city’s contracts with a data collection firm to assist the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) immigration investigations, according to public records and interviews with agency officials.

The practice of local agencies using Flock on behalf of federal partners in this fashion was first reported by 404 Media in May.

Data obtained through public records requests, “shows more than 4,000 nation and statewide lookups by local and state police done either at the behest of the federal government or as an ‘informal’ favor to federal law enforcement, or with a potential immigration focus,” the outlet reported.

Included in that group of assisting agencies was the Sandy Springs Police Department, according to a review of the data by Appen Media.

As with most neighboring cities, Sandy Springs uses products from Flock Safety, an automated license-plate reader (ALPR) and security software company based in Atlanta. Police departments use ALPRs to identify and log vehicles moving through town, framing the tools as a way to investigate criminal activity.

For example, agencies can maintain a

“hotlist” of reportedly stolen vehicles and receive alerts if cameras spot them.

Law enforcement can also perform searches of identifying information – such as license plate numbers or descriptions – to help locate vehicles they suspect are connected to criminal activity. When departments make these queries, they can search certain databases of other agencies as well, tapping into a nationwide network of sources.

The Flock system, “is trusted by more than 5,000 communities across the country,” according to the company. That number includes all 10 of the cities and counties Appen Media covers in north Metro Atlanta.

The surveillance technology is big business.

The City of Sandy Springs alone spent more than $400,000 with Flock in 2024, according to public records obtained by Appen Media.

According to 404 Media, DHS Immigration and Customs Enforcement does not have its own contract with Flock. If ICE wants to investigate something using the national network of data, they must get another agency that pays for the service to do it on their behalf.

Data at the source of the reporting came from a police department in Danville, Illinois.

The agency had given researchers a

copy of their Flock “Network Audit,” which is a record of each time another department searched Danville’s data.

When law enforcement performs searches in Flock they must record a reason for the query.

Appen Media identified 10 searches Sandy Springs police made of Danville’s network for “ero,” or ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations, in March.

When asked about the queries, Sandy Springs officials told Appen Media they were not aware of any recent assistance the department had given for ERO efforts.

Police representatives said the officer recorded as making the searches is a detective assigned to the department’s FBI task force. They added that Flock inquiries, “are conducted within policy during various criminal investigations, drug investigations and locating wanted individuals.”

As with other local departments, Sandy Springs assigns officers to standing groups that partner with federal law enforcement agencies. SSPD says they have personnel on task forces with the FBI, DHS’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Appen Media asked why it would be the FBI attachment, and not the HSI detective, assisting with removal operations considering ICE falls under Homeland Security.

Police representatives said they were unsure but suggested it could be part of a joint operation.

FBI officials told Appen Media that the Atlanta office has been working with DHS on immigration operations since the end of January, “which includes assigning a number of our special agents to work with them daily.”

“That assistance requires providing investigative and technical support to HSI with the resources that we and our partners have access to,” they said.

FBI officials said they could not speak to the specifics of the Sandy Springs officer’s use of Flock other than the general nature of collaborative work.

“We approach public safety as a collaborative effort, using all available law enforcement tools and resources to achieve the common goal of removing violent offenders from our streets,” they offered.

Following 404 Media’s reporting, Flock began to dampen the system’s data-sharing functions. The company stopped agencies from searching the camera networks of departments inside Illinois, California and Virginia.

In a June statement CEO Garret Langley wrote that the burden is on law enforcement to use the software responsibly: “The point is: it is a local decision. Not my decision, and not Flock’s decision.”

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Water conservation method pays homeowner dividends

By SARAH COYNE sarah@appenmedia.com

ROSWELL, Ga. — Community members along with 25 rain barrels rolled into the Bill Johnson Community Active Building at Roswell Area Park for a workshop July 12.

The free workshop coordinated by the City of Roswell, Keep Roswell Beautiful, Fulton County and the City of Alpharetta invited community members to come out and learn about the benefits of rain barrels.

City of Roswell Environmental Education Coordinator Liberti Gates helped host the event to educate the attendees about the conservation method.

Gates said that the goal of the workshops is to teach attendees how to install the barrels and why they’re so important.

“Water is a very important resource, but it is finite,” Gates said.

The Environmental and Public Works department staff chose to collaborate on the workshop to promote environmental stewardship and the importance of conservation.

Rain barrels collect rainwater from rooftops via gutters or downspouts. While the water is not potable, the collection can be used for watering

yards, plants and gardens.

“This water is coming from the sky anyways, so why not use it,” Gates said.

Twenty-five people attended the class.

Keep Roswell Beautiful board member Rip Campbell said he was happy to find out that there was a waitlist.

“I think it's because we partnered with Fulton County, and we're grateful for that relationship, too,” he said.

The group, actively looking for new members, cultivates environmental stewardship within the community.

The rain barrel workshop is just one of the many ways the group educates the community.

The attendees were given barrels, an installation kit and a presentation on the water conservation method.

Keep Roswell Beautiful board member Nancy Womack helped round up the barrels through her employer, Greif. In between orders for customers, the company creates swirl barrels, which are the incorrect colors. The imperfect barrels are donated to Keep Roswell Beautiful and the city.

Those who were unable to attend the workshop can purchase a rain barrel and kit for $65 at keeproswellbeautiful.org.

SARAH COYNE/APPEN MEDIA City of Roswell Environmental Education Coordinator Liberti Gates teaches community members about rain barrels at a workshop in the Bill Johnson Community Active Building at Roswell Area Park July 12.

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Data: Sandy Springs police involved in more pursuits

By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com

NORTH METRO ATLANTA — The Sandy Springs Police Department has a more aggressive vehicle pursuit policy than surrounding jurisdictions, leading to more high-speed chases and risky maneuvers to stop suspects.

In 2024, Sandy Springs officers engaged in more than twice the number of car chases than police in Alpharetta, Dunwoody and Roswell combined, according to interviews and an analysis by Appen Media.

Law enforcement officials agree that the decision to pursue fleeing motorists is a balancing act; departments must weigh the risk for officers, suspects and bystanders against the danger of not apprehending the suspect at that time.

How Sandy Springs police make that calculation is what sets them apart from neighboring cities.

Guidance from the Department of Justice in 2023 recommends that pursuits should take place when two conditions are met, “(1) A violent crime has been committed and (2) the suspect poses an imminent threat to commit

another violent crime.”

The DOJ report also recommends law enforcement officials set policies for their departments that detail the requirements to initiate a pursuit, how to evaluate whether it should continue and instructions on documenting incidents.

Sandy Springs’ policy says the goal of a pursuit is to reduce the danger to the public by stopping a fleeing vehicle as soon as possible. Neighboring police departments have different philosophies.

Alpharetta, Roswell and Dunwoody policies prohibit officers from pursuing vehicles based on traffic charges alone.

Following the DOJ’s direction, Alpharetta and Roswell also say pursuits should be avoided if it’s evident the suspect could be apprehended at a later time.

Sandy Springs relies on a more situational approach, allowing pursuits based on the “totality of circumstances.”

In 2024, Alpharetta reported five police pursuits, Roswell documented 10 and Dunwoody logged two.

Sandy Springs officers engaged in at least 41 car chases in 2024, according to an Appen Media analysis.

That’s up from 2023, when Sandy Springs reported 17 pursuits.

PUBLIC NOTICE

QUALIFYING PERIOD FOR MUNICIPAL GENERAL ELECTION FOR THE CITY OF MILTON

In accordance with O.C.G.A. § 21-2-132, notice is hereby given that the Qualifying Period for the City of Milton’s Non-Partisan Municipal General Election, scheduled for November 4, 2025, will take place at Milton City Hall, located at 2006 Heritage Walk, Milton, Georgia 30004.

Qualifying will begin at 8:30 A.M. on Monday, August 18, 2025 , and will close at 4:30 P.M. on Friday, August 22, 2025 . Daily qualifying hours are as follows:

·8:30 A.M. to 12:00 P.M.

·1:00 P.M. to 4:30 P.M.

The positions up for election are:

Mayor (At-Large) - Incumbent, Peyton Jamison - Qualifying Fee: $894.00

Council District 1, Post 1 - Incumbent - Andrea Verhoff - Qualifying Fee: $594.00

Council District 2, Post 1 - Incumbent - Juliette Johnson - Qualifying Fee: $594.00

Council District 3, Post 1 - Incumbent - Jan C. Jacobus - Qualifying Fee: $594.00

Residents who wish to qualify as a candidate must file a Notice of Candidacy with the Office of the City Clerk during the qualifying period listed above. All candidates must declare the specific post for which they are qualifying at the time of filing.

Submitted by: Tammy Lowit City Clerk

Major policy change Department officials attributed the rise to a “major policy change” in 2024. The new, amended policy allows for more discretion or freedom for officers, allowing them to pursue a fleeing vehicle if they have reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed or is about to occur.

Available data on the pursuits are scant.

Of the 41 chases identified by Appen Media, the city provided Vehicle Pursuit Reports on 13.

It withheld the remaining documents, saying the underlying cases were pending investigation.

In the 13 provided reports, there were a range of suspected crimes at the pursuits’ inception, from speeding and improper license plates to outstanding warrants and armed robbery.

Officers caught and arrested suspects in about half the cases. The others got away.

Sandy Springs officers conducted PIT, box-in or other forced termination techniques in at least 12 of those pursuits.

A PIT, or precision immobilization technique, is a method used by law enforcement to make contact with a vehicle, forcing it to abruptly turn 180 degrees and stall.

Alpharetta, Roswell and Dunwoody officials told Appen Media they conducted zero forced termination maneuvers in 2024.

“I can’t remember the last time we did a PIT,” Alpharetta Police Captain J. Braithwaite said.

Appen Media asked Sandy Springs Police spokesman Sgt. Leon Millholland why the department has a more aggressive pursuit policy than surrounding cities.

“We’re not going to tolerate crime in the city. We have the support from our city officials, and the chief wants crime delt with,” Millholland said. “That’s where it comes from, its leadership. The

citizens of Sandy Springs … we continually hear that’s what they want.”

Appen Media published two stories in December 2024 and January 2025 about the Sandy Springs Police Department conducting high-speed chases on state highways and interstates and executing PIT maneuvers.

The Sandy Springs Police Department has posted footage of some its pursuits, ending in box-ins or PIT maneuvers on its Facebook page.

Most comments show support for the officers’ actions and the department’s policies.

Others bring up the danger posed to bystanders and the public.

Risks of injuries

The DOJ’s report cited, “there were two serious injuries and 10 minor injuries for every 100 pursuits,” from 2009 to 2013.

Hugh Clements, director of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, said high-speed chases should not be a routine part of law enforcement work.

“The safety of fleeing suspects, their passengers, pursuing officers and uninvolved bystanders are too important to risk on a regular basis,” Clements wrote. “But there are times when the importance of apprehending the suspect in a timely manner means that pursuit is necessary despite these dangers.”

The Sandy Springs Police Department’s policy states “officers who engage in vehicle pursuits must continually balance the need to pursue against all known or apparent risks posed to the general public.”

In July 2024, two Sandy Springs officers pursued a vehicle into the City of Roswell. One officer drove off the road, disabling his vehicle, attempting to make a turn at 80 mph. A second officer negotiated the turn, but the police supervisor canceled the pursuit.

See POLICE, Page 21

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Medley contractors at work on Johns Creek’s ‘third place’

By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — Medley is making its mark on Johns Creek, repurposing an old corporate campus to create a destination.

Medley is a $560 million mixeduse project within a 42-acre triangle within McGinnis Ferry Road, Lakefield Drive and Johns Creek Parkway. It’s set to feature 200,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment; 110,000 square feet of Class A office space; 150 owner-occupied townhomes; a 175-key boutique hotel and 750 luxury apartments.

After groundbreaking this January, a tentative grand opening is set for Oct. 29, 2026.

Medley is part of a larger 192-acre Town Center masterplan, which is set to include City Hall, public parks and pathways on both sides of Johns Creek Parkway.

Before he branched out on his own, Mark Toro led development of North American Properties’ mixeduse destination Avalon off Ga. 400 at Windward Parkway in Alpharetta. Now, Toro Development Company is working to bring some of its

strategies to create a “third place” in Johns Creek.

Sociologists refer to a third place as a social environment where people can build community bonds, which is not in their homes (first place) or at work (second place).

While the larger Avalon will remain a regional draw for Metro Atlantans, developers say Medley is about culture, community, connection, convenience and charm for the people of Johns Creek.

Johns Creek native Allie Cyr, who toured the construction site in early July with Appen Media, said having a spot close to home for neighbors to build connections is exciting.

Brian Keaton, senior superintendent at Hoar Construction, will manage construction.

Keaton, who started his career installing door frames at the State Farm office campus on the same site in 1990, said a lot has changed in the woods between Peachtree Corners and Alpharetta.

“It is so fulfilling to return to the same site I worked on 35 years ago,” Keaton said. “There has been so much

See MEDLEY, Page 15

Hoar Construction Senior Superintendent Brian Keaton and Toro Development Company Partner John Kelley stand in front of the heart of Medley, a 43-acre mixed-use destination in Johns Creek.

HAYDEN SUMLIN/APPEN MEDIA

Empty nester creates her own community boutique

By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com

DUNWOODY, Ga — Nida Mudd has slowed down enough now to talk about her new retail business.

“In May of 2024, I was very deep into trying to get everything set up … it couldn’t have been a busier time in my life,” Mudd said. “I do feel like someone above was definitely helping me get to where I am today because I couldn’t have done it without my friends and, you know, some outside force helping me.”

Judy & Grace Boutique is a new women’s fashion destination within the Shops of Dunwoody in the Village on the west side of Chamblee Dunwoody Road.

Nida Mudd and her husband Todd met as college students at Mizzou, the University of Missouri. They have lived on the Dunwoody-Sandy Springs border for more than three decades, sending their four children to Saint Jude the Apostle Catholic Church and then the Marist School.

“When my oldest child was going into his senior year, I had decided, ‘you know what, I think I'm going to stop working all together and just pursue the mommy track,’” she said. “But what I found is that I was just busier than ever working on things for the school, you know, doing various things on various boards.”

The idea for a boutique came a couple of years ago when her youngest child and only daughter, Mattie Grace, was a junior in high school.

“I was just reflecting and thinking to myself, ‘what am I going to do next?’ I’m kind of a worker person,” she said. “I'm not a sit around at home, cleaning … you know, just domestic. That just wasn’t in my blood.”

Nida said the name of the boutique honors the two most important women in her life: her mother, Judy, and

Mattie Grace. After giving her a little seed money for the business, Nida said she decided to put her mother’s name in the store.

“She’s in her mid-80s, and I know that there’s going to be a day that she's not going to be with me,” Nida said. “I wanted her name in my store name in order to for me to remember her always.”

Nida said Judy & Grace Boutique is geared toward women with a “stylish, timeless and fabulous” vibe.

Mudd approached her husband, Todd, with the idea of opening a boutique, and he suggested she first get some experience working in a store. So, she approached the owner of Nancy’s Boutique, which she frequently patronized, with an offer of working as a substitute employee without pay.

“I started subbing at Nancy's for a little bit,” Nida said. “After working there for three or four months, I decided ‘you know what, this is something I would like to pursue.’”

Nancy’s Boutique closed its doors when the owner retired amid health concerns in January 2024, leaving Nida without someone experienced to bounce ideas off of.

“I don't know how I did it, now that I'm talking to you about it, I honestly am not sure how it all happened,” she said. “I hired a couple of consultants, [and] they became my friends… and I couldn't have done all that because I had really had no idea.”

JANE KONG PHOTOGRAPHY/PROVIDED

The team at Judy & Grace Boutique gathers behind the checkout counter Feb. 26 during the grand opening of the women’s fashion destination. From left, Judy & Grace Boutique owner Nida Mudd is all smiles with her six employees Angie Houghton, Sue Benedikt, Karen Oates, Susan DiChiara, Patricia Seimetz, Mary Peterka and Jennifer Morris.

Boutique:

Continued from Page 10

While she didn’t have retail experience, her career background is in sales and marketing. Nida said she was extremely busy buying fixtures, hiring people and selecting inventory in the first half of 2024.

“I had inventory, but having to steam [out wrinkles in] the inventory, unbox it, count it, put it into a system, find a point-of-sale system, purchase one, print the prices and stick them on all the clothing,” she said. “I mean, if you can just think of that process, I knew none of it.”

Nida said she was eyeing a lease of Nancy’s former space for her own shop, but the popular chain Summit Coffee was a more attractive tenant to the shopping center’s leasing team.

The popular coffee spot has been a boon for surrounding businesses at the Shops of Dunwoody with increased foot traffic, Nida said.

Last April, she signed a lease of 1,250 square feet between Palm Beach Tan and the Dunwoody Tavern.

“I don’t like to take no for an answer, and I’m willing to take on a challenge,” Nida said. “If I don’t know something, I’m going to do what I can to try to learn about it. A lot of it is just my girlfriends just being there and saying, ‘you can do this and let’s do it.’”

After a soft opening in November 2024, the boutique had its official grand

opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony with Dunwoody officials and community leaders in late February.

When Dunwoody Mayor Lynn Deutsch asked her if she was a city resident, Nida said they had a laugh because technically her home is in Sandy Springs. However, Nida identifies as a Dunwoodian.

“What’s so funny is that Dunwoody incorporated after I moved here,” she said. “So, when I moved here, I was technically in Dunwoody … it’s just where they drew the line.”

Monsignor Joe Corbett from Saint Jude the Apostle Catholic Church and Rabbi Brian Glusman from the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta gave blessings at the ribbon-cutting at Nida’s invitation.

She said there’s no other place she would have raised her children than Central Perimeter. Her identity is intertwined with her church community, friends throughout Dunwoody and work with a local Jewish educational nonprofit.

Judy & Grace Boutique invites Metro Atlanta women to visit and enjoy a warm, welcoming atmosphere with a “girlfriend vibe” that sets the tone for shopping.

The boutique is open Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., or by appointment.

For more information, contact the store at 770-680-5213 or visit judyandgraceboutique.com/home.

For the latest updates, visit @judyandgraceboutique on Instagram.

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Each week Appen Media asks a staff reporter to profile a business, nonprofit or commerce group they find interesting. The selection can be from anywhere in the Metro Atlanta area. The decision is up to the reporter and is made entirely independent of the sales department. Find other pieces at appenmedia.com/business.

Do you have an idea for a future profile? Send tips and story leads to newsroom@appenmedia.com.

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Wait, so you’re saying I have slug bacteria on my face from kissing my new boyfriend

Nemaslug® is a snail and slug pestcontrol product sold in England and Canada but not available in the United States. I first learned about this product while investigating a skin infection of a patient, and what I learned emphasizes that our connections with our creepy crawly garden neighbors are a little too close for comfort.

A female in her early 20s presented to clinic with a sore on her face that had been present a few days. It was solitary, several millimeters in size and did not seem like a lesion typical of acne. She was prescribed hydrocortisone 2.5% cream and mupirocin 2% ointment (an antibiotic), and a culture was performed to identify the type of bacteria present. Three days later, the results returned positive for Moraxella osloensis (M. osloensis). We were prepared to prescribe an oral antibiotic, but she was asymptomatic with the lesion having resolved with topical therapy.

der worms that infect a wide variety of animals and humans. The type of worm that infects salmon meat is in fact a nematode and is the reason one should only eat raw fish if it has been sufficiently frozen beforehand.

Accepting new patients.

Moraxella is a genus of gram negative bacteria that normally colonize the human respiratory tract. In medical school, we typically learn about Moraxella catarrhalis, which is a frequent cause of ear infection and pneumonia. Its cousin M. osloensis is almost never discussed due to its rarity. However, there are over fifty case reports in the medical literature of M. osloensis causing infections in both children and adults. Infections range from pneumonia to blood infections, genital sores and even brain infection. Sometimes, this bacteria has been found in the area of a cancer. One case report of a brain tumor found to contain M. osloensis pointed out that it is not known whether the bacteria caused the tumor or whether the tumor provided a hospitable environment for the infection.

Most interestingly, M. osloensis does not just piggyback on cancers. Rather, this type of Moraxella likes to piggyback on worms – nematodes to be precise.

Nematodes, also called “eelworms” or “threadworms” are small round slen-

The same bacteria that infected our patient is actually sold commercially in certain countries outside the United States. Nemaslug® 2.0 contains the nematode P. californica and the bacteria M. osloensis. This nematode infects snails or slugs, but it can only complete its lifecycle and kill the snail if the bacteria M. osloensis is also present. Scientists believe that M. osloensis helps the nematode kill the snail by releasing a bacterial toxin that causes blood poisoning and death. The nematode and its side-kick M. osloensis both replicate and proliferate. The nematode needs the bacteria to kill the snail. The bacteria needs the nematode because the nematode is mobile and can wriggle its way to its next snail or slug. Nemaslug® 2.0 is not sold in the United States out of concern that it could harm our native and sometimes helpful snail and slug species with specific concern for species in the Pacific Northwest.

Our patient did not use Nemaslug® 2.0 on her face. She did mention having a new boyfriend. Because M. osloensis is a normal colonizer of the human respiratory tract, it is possible that our patient already had this bacteria in her own respiratory tract and happened to infect her own skin. However, since she had not experienced a similar lesion in the past, it is more likely that that she accidentally came into contact with this bacteria during contact with another human such as her new boyfriend.

From case reports in the medical literature, we know that M. osloensis can very rarely cause blood poisoning in humans. Perhaps we are more closely related to snails than we would like, or perhaps M. osloensis just makes a toxin that is highly effective across vastly different species. Regardless, I know I am not kissing snails anytime soon, especially if they look under the weather.

Dr. Brent Taylor

Kathryn Filipek, PA-C

Brought to you by – Premier Dermatology

Roswell Police Department 5K to commemorate fallen officer

ROSWELL, Ga. — The Roswell Police Department will host a memorial 5K dedicated to Officer Jeremy Labonte Aug. 23.

The community is invited to run or walk the first annual 5K, while taking time to remember his legacy, his service and stand united in support and love.

Officer Labonte was killed in the line of duty Feb. 7 while responding to a suspicious person report off Holcomb Bridge Road.

Through the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, a non-profit which honors military and first responders who make

CITY OF MILTON

NOTICE OF PROPERTY TAX INCREASE DETAILED EXPLANATION

the ultimate sacrifice, the Roswell Police Department hopes to raise $10,000.

The run/walk will begin at 8 a.m. at Riverside Park 575 Riverside Road.

To learn more, visit bit.ly/ LabonteMemorial5K.

— Sarah Coyne

City staff will present 2025 millage rate options at three public hearings in August. The State-required notice below reflects a rate of 4.193 mills, which supports a proposed balanced budget and represents a 4.47% decrease from the 2024 rate of 4.389 mills.

The data below references a “tentatively adopted millage rate” for maintenance and operating purposes and a corresponding collection increase associated with reassessments of existing property (please note, the sample calculations exclude homestead exemption considerations).

Over the coming weeks, Council will review the proposed budget to determine a final millage rate and may adopt any rate up to 4.193 mills without requiring additional advertising or public hearings.

A final decision will be made at the August 11, 2025, Special Called City Council Meeting

CITY OF MILTON

NOTICE OF PROPERTY TAX INCREASE AS REQUIRED BY STATE LAW

The City of Milton has tentatively adopted a millage rate which will require an increase in property taxes by 6.88 percent.

All concerned citizens are invited to the public hearings on this tax increase to be held at the City of Milton Council Chambers, 2006 Heritage Walk, Milton, Georgia, 30004, on the following dates and times:

August 4, 2025 at 9:00 AM

August 4, 2025 at 6:00 PM

August 11, 2025 immediately following the work session at 6:00 PM

This tentative increase will result in a millage rate of 4.193 mills, an increase of 0.270 mills. Without this tentative tax increase, the millage rate will be no more than 3.923 mills. The proposed tax increase for a home with a fair market value of $925,000 is approximately $99.90 and the proposed tax increase for non-homestead property with a fair market value of $900,000 is approximately $97.20.

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Northern Ridge District welcomes May Eagle Scouts

ALPHARETTA, Ga.— The Northern Ridge Boy Scout District (cities of Roswell, Alpharetta, Johns Creek, Milton) is proud to announce a new round of Eagle Scouts who completed their Eagle Board of Review May 22 at Alpharetta Presbyterian Church.

Top row, left to right:

Samuel Hadjiconstantinitis, of Troop 51, sponsored by American Legion Post 20. His project was the design and construction of an outdoor firewood storage shed, 2 benches, and a general cleanup of the firepit/picnic area of Alpharetta Presbyterian Church.

Brody Shields, of Troop 51, sponsored by American Legion Post 201. His project was the design and construction of a rock patio with benches for the congregation of Temple Beth Tikvah.

Elias Kidd, of Troop 51, sponsored by American Legion Post 201. His project was the design and construction of two dirt berms and armoring the trail with large stones and gravel at the mountain bike trail at Big Creek Park.

Jackson Barker, of Troop 3000, sponsored by Birmingham United Methodist

Church. His project was the design and construction of three picnic tables, three benches, and leading the cleanup of the nature trails at Milton High School.

Jay Hackett, of Troop 69, sponsored by Alpharetta First United Methodist Church. His project was the collection of books for the Friends of Alpharetta Library Program, to use for their book sales. Jay collected more than 2000 books for the book sale and more than 700 books that were not sellable but instead donated to Books for Africa to help students in Africa.

Bottom row, left to right:

Samuel Ansley, of Troop 2000, sponsored by Johns Creek Presbyterian Church. His project was the design and construction of two percussion shelves and a podium for the Concert Band of Pinecrest Academy.

Aryan Shetty, of Troop 2000, sponsored by Johns Creek Presbyterian Church. His project was the renovation of the outdoor shed at Johns Creek Presbyterian Church. Aryan scraped and repainted the double swinging doors, resetting and

replacing the wooden window/sill, replacing damaged sheets of plywood on the shed, and replacing the fascia and part of the roof from a previous truck accident.

Srikar Jujala, of Troop 1459, sponsored by St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church. His project was the design and construction of 2 benches and a fence, with a gate around the garden area at River Eves Elementary School.

Zachary Anderson, of Troop 841, sponsored by St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church. His project was the design and construction of a rain barrel collection system, including stands, educational signs about rain barrel collection systems for three City of Milton Facilities.

Evan Clements, of Troop 431, sponsored by Roswell United Methodist Church. His project was the design and construction of wooden trail markers, every quarter mile for Alpharetta Parks Greenway Trail. Evan also designed and constructed a bench for the trail.

Brady Berry, of Troop 1486, sponsored by North River Baptist Church. His project was the design and construction of two picnic tables for Fellowship Christian School.

Medley:

Continued from Page 9

change since then — I remember standing in line in the rain for my physical paper check and testing the robotic mail cart to make sure it could fit through the doors.”

To make way for the new project, the team has demolished one of the State Farm buildings and is incorporating the other into the Medley site plan. The remaining building is being repurposed to include ground-level retail on both sides with other floors remaining office space.

“I am proud to be back at this site where it all began and play a larger

role in transforming this property into a mixed-use destination that we know will serve the incredible community of Johns Creek,” Keaton said.

He knocked out one of his longstanding traditions earlier this year by tossing a coin into the first slab of concrete poured on the site for good luck.

Because of the site’s elevation changes, the main plaza is above portions of the site abutting McGinnis Ferry Road and Lakefield Drive. While most of the construction work and infrastructure is underground, the exciting stuff is beginning to sprout.

Building heights are capped at four stories for the office and multifamily buildings on both sides of the planned Medley Boulevard, cutting through the center of the site. It will resemble

Avalon, with pedestrian friendly streetscapes, “jewel box” retailers with activated rooftops, open-air shops and restaurants with outdoor patios.

In early July, Hoar Construction made progress on the first floor and foundation of the multifamily building with hundreds of construction workers on-site.

Keaton said finding labor is difficult, but it’s a nationwide problem. He said his team does a great job, glancing over to his son and smiling.

Dividing the townhomes from the retail hub, offices and main plaza are a set of two-story buildings, allowing patrons to use a staircase to trek between the two sections of Medley.

Empire Communities is building some 150 townhomes on the

southern end of the site, while Hoar Construction has the reins of Medley’s first phase of mixed-use development.

While most trees on the site have been cleared, developers plan to replant more than a thousand and have saved a pine oak near the main boulevard and a couple of others around the site.

The two entities are not partners, but the concepts support one another.

Caroline Simmel, senior vice president of sales and marketing at Empire, said Medley’s residences represent a new category in housing — upscale homes that offer owners all the benefits of an urban lifestyle, while still living in the suburbs.

To learn more and keep up with Medley’s construction, visit medleyjohnscreek.com.

Haynes Bridge Road, a vital artery not well known

Many roads in Georgia are named after early pioneers. Dirt roads connected farms with small communities. Sometimes we know a lot about the roads, especially when they are long and important. The histories of less significant roads are not often told.

Haynes Bridge Road is just 5 miles long, too short to generate much historic interest. The starting point is Academy Street in downtown Alpharetta. It runs behind the Alpharetta City Hall and library, crosses Old Milton Parkway and terminates at Old Alabama Road in Johns Creek. While it is a vital connector road today, its story is not well known. Today’s column will put a little meat on the bare bone.

Richard London Haynes (1773-1844) and Abigail Ragan Haynes (1781-1853) were early pioneer settlers who moved from Virginia to Cobb County in the early 1800s and later moved to what is Alpharetta today. Both are buried in Old Big Creek Cemetery in Alpharetta.

Their son Richard Luther Haynes, Jr. (1818-1894), the youngest of 11 children, was born in Oglethorpe County, Georgia. He married twice, first to Martha Mayfield Tate (1816-1862) in 1838. That marriage started a long relationship between the Haynes and Mayfield families. Richard Luther’s second wife was Sara Hooks (1814-1892). Both wives are buried in the Haynes family cemetery in Alpharetta, while Richard Luther is buried in Old Big Creek Cemetery with his parents.

Like most pioneer settlers, both Haynes’ generations were farmers. Richard Luther owned a farm of 240 acres probably inherited from his father. The Haynes home place was where North Point Mall in Alpharetta is today.

In 1894 Richard Luther Haynes, Jr. died, and his land was divided and sold. The 30 acres that Haynes Bridge Middle School occupies today was a part of Haynes’ farm. Haynes Bridge Middle School was opened in 1983 for six through eighth grade students. In 2000, a chimney

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

hearing that “Mr. Haynes had three boys who one night rode their horses into the local church during a service. They got into a lot of trouble,” she says. “My sister Edna and her husband Leroy Strickland built a house across the street from Mr. Haynes. I was born in an old farmhouse on the same hill.” She notes that the county rebuilt the original bridge prior to World War ll when she was a little girl.

Elsie’s parents were Talmage and Lunette Burgess. Talmage owned a sawmill and cotton gin. He worked for many years in the gin which was located across the street from Resthaven Cemetery in downtown Alpharetta. In the mid-1900s he owned the Talmage Burgess Grocery at 1 South Main St. Prior to that, the building housed the Jones Grocery, Lively Grocery and the John A. Oliver Store. John was Elsie’s great grandfather. Lunette taught school at the Newtown School which no longer exists. She had to quit teaching when she married Talmage because married women were not allowed to teach at that time.

from Richard and Abigale’s farm dating back to the late 1700s or early 1800s was relocated and installed near the garden area of the Haynes Bridge Middle School. The move, restoration and relocation of that historic marker were made possible by a $10,000 grant from the Atlanta JournalConstitution’s Honor Teacher Grant Award to Christie Pratt, a teacher at the school.

In December 2012, the relocation of a section of Haynes Bridge Road in downtown Alpharetta between Old Milton Parkway and Academy Street was completed to make room for the new city hall and library as part of the City Center project. A new library was built on a 3-acre site donated by the city adjacent to the new city hall which was completed in

September 2014. The new library broke ground in March 2014 and opened July 30, 2015. The relocation of Haynes Bridge Road made it possible to create a unified city center rather than a collection of isolated structures.

Unlike some other local bridges that began near ferry boat operations, the original Haynes Bridge was a rather modest affair, possibly made of wood and primarily built to serve the Haynes farm and other nearby farms. It crossed Big Creek or a tributary and was built in the second half of the 1800s.

Elsie Knight, a longtime Alpharetta resident, grew up on Haynes Bridge Road, which was a dirt road until circa the 1950s, according to Elsie. She recalls

Thank you Meyers for Sibley column

To the editor, I thoroughly enjoyed Bob Meyers's article on Celestine Sibley.

I loved her articles in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. I shared her concerned

that Crabapple was losing its charm and Southern roots with "unchecked growth.”

I was honored to meet her when my leadership North Fulton toured the Atlanta Journal Constitution, and met

many of the writers including the very talented editorial cartoonist, Mike Lukovich. Thank you, Bob for a wonderful article.

– Marsha Spear

Elsie remembers some of her neighbors from the early days. “Daisy and Nick Bailey lived beside us on Haynes Bridge Road. Daisy cooked for Alpharetta schools and was the best cook ever. Bob and Elsie Shaw lived three houses up the hill. Bob was my uncle and was overseas in World War ll. After the war Bob and Elsie delivered morning newspapers for the rest of their lives. Cliff and Florence Thomas lived four houses up the road. They had a huge flower garden. Uncle Bud Isiac Shaw lived across the street. He kept foxes in his barn and turned one loose every Sunday and set his dogs after them. The dogs would tree the fox but never killed it. Uncle Bud thought that was fun.”

Thanks to Connie Mashburn; Donna Alexander, assistant principal, Haynes Bridge Middle School for their help with this column and the unknown reader who suggested this week’s topic.

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.

Opinions

Appen Media aims to present a variety of views in its opinion pages. Send your thoughts, questions and letters to newsroom@appenmedia.com.

BOB MEYERS Columnist

BOB MEYERS/APPEN MEDIA

Big Creek, an important historic waterway, taken from a bridge on Haynes Bridge Road. Settlers built bridges across Big Creek in the early 1800s. None of the original bridges still exist.

in line 1 are 5, 4 and 5 letters). The clues are numbered 1 through 7, with each number containing 3 clues for the 3 answers on the line. But here’s the catch! The clues are not in order - so the first clue in Line 1 may (or may not) actually be for the second or third answer in that line. Got it? Good luck!

TYPES

1. Big sandwich. Cheeky. Type of puppy.

2. Type of energy. Pond organism. Fizzy drink.

3. Lackluster. Peruvian beast. Type of eagle.

4. Egress. Barbershop request. Type of enemy.

5. Hirsute. Kind of knife. Sailing vessel with two masts.

6. Kind of brush. Avian chatterbox. Weakling.

7. Attention-getter. In the know. Type of toast.

1 Big sandwich. Cheeky. Type of puppy

2. Type of energy. Pond organism. Fizzy drink.

How to Solve: Each line in the puzzle above has three clues and three answers. The last letter in the first answer on each line is the first letter of the second answer, and so on. The connecting letter is outlined, giving you the correct number of letters for each answer (the answers in line 1 are 4, 5 and 5 letters). The clues are numbered 1 through 7, which each number containing 3 clues for the 3 answers on the line. But here’s the catch! The clues are not in order - so the first clue in Line 1 may (or may not) actually be for the second or third answer in that line. Got it? Good luck!

3. Lackluster. Peruvian beast. Type of eagle

4. Egress. Barbershop request. Type of enemy.

5. Hirsute. Kind of knife. Sailing vessel with two masts

6. Kind of brush. Avian chatterbox. Weakling. 7. Attention-getter. In the know. Type of toast

Notes about summers connecting at the beach

Our three grandchildren stayed with us this week for “Papa-Tina” camp at the beach. They are 10, 8, and 5.

They do not selfentertain all that much, but we knew that. Actually, I’m not sure that any kids do at those ages.

Food is a big deal. So is going to bed, taking baths and brushing teeth. And by “big deal” I don’t necessarily mean “problem.” I mean those things are mission-critical and, well, sometimes are embraced and at other times, not so much.

“Why I remember when” (fill in the blank) and compare it to today’s kids – their behavior, their awareness, their attitudes and such. If you dare.

Christina (“Tina”) checks on 5-year-old Annie who is in the shower:

“OK Annie, it’s time to get out. It’s bedtime.”

“I only shampooed so I haven’t finished bathing the rest of me.”

“That’s OK, the shampoo ran down the rest of you so you’re clean now.”

Annie just looks at Christina and shakes her head, “I don’t think it works that way, Tina.”

Huh? How old are you?

But that made me remember the story from years ago about the youngest child

PAST TENSE

of one of our friends – 5-year-old Sammie – that took place outside the Louvre in Paris. There had been an “issue” and Sammie was in timeout – with her mother sitting next to her – on the bench outside of the museum, while dad and the other kids were inside taking in all the art. After a considerable amount of time, Sammie turns to mom: “I bet you’re sorry you gave me this punishment now.”

Huh? Yeah, no words. Sure.

I remember the times when I had to order four copies of each new Harry Potter book – all seven of them – in order to avoid World War III from my kids fighting over who got to read it first. And as I recall, the book releases seemed to frequently fall during the summer, so we would take delivery at the beach – where we spent most summers – and each kid would retreat to their own particular space and not move for days while they devoured each book. And, of course, we would then have the issue of the fastest reader sharing what happened to Harry in the book and, of course, World War III would break out anyway.

You know you really can’t win, right? I think eldest son Hans recently finished (re)reading all seven Harry Potter books to daughter Phoebe. How cool is that? Makes me want to revisit them. And, well, maybe World War III isn’t so bad after all if that is the type of collateral “damage” that results down the road?

Beach time is always special. Memories made at the beach often last forever. And

usually what makes it special are not big things; it is the little ones – top bunk or bottom; Frisbee or football; only one sandflea net and three kids wanting to catch sand fleas; badminton versus volleyball. Summer beach romances. Freedom. New friends. No schoolwork. Bloody games of Risk, puzzles, book reading, sleeping in, cards, no TV, kite-flying, bare feet the whole time, late night snacks, uncombed hair, of course, fishing.

We have an old not fancy “cracker” Florida beach house we’ve owned now going on 26 years. It’s on a barrier island about 5 miles out in the Gulf of Mexico. You get there by boat or plane. There are no stores, no restaurants, no paved roads, no stop lights, no traffic, no hotels or condos, no law enforcement or medical facilities – just sand, shells, arrowheads, pine trees with scars from sap harvesting early in the 20th century, occasionally wrecks of old Spanish sailing vessels, sand fleas, moccasins, gators, raccoons, dunes and about 80 houses – of which maybe 6 are permanent residents.

Everyone knows each other. You know each other’s boats, dogs and favorite beverages. My kids have friends they only ever see at the beach – beach friends only. Most of those kids are now adults now. But they still come back. For years we successfully avoided having a TV so everyone did “analog” stuff, like read books and play games. I think our kids learned how to connect there – how to be

just kids. That hasn’t changed, somehow miraculously on the island. It almost seems to stand still – time.

People meet and catch up at the mail kiosk – three times a week when the mail boat delivers the mail. We pop a squat on the dock in the harbor and just visit. We invite each other to dinner all the time. We’re almost never in a hurry; no one is out there. We watch weather. We watch tides, and it’s a big deal to know wind direction and speed. The weather can change hourly and it’s like going to the movies sometimes – only you and your surroundings are the script.

I think today, loneliness is epidemic, and a hollowness to be connected to something real, something meaningful is pervasive. We know we’re missing something. The loneliness is not just for each other but also for connection to a natural world.

Beach-time reminds us. It is, albeit temporary, an antidote. It is a salve, a tonic, an elixir. It heals. It nurtures. It makes memories we don’t forget. It connects.

“Time passes slowly up here in the mountain

We sit beside the bridges and walk beside the fountains

Catch the wild fishes that float through the stream

Time passes slowly when you’re lost in a dream.”

“Time Passes Slowly”— Bob Dylan

Residents have remained loyal to Dunwoody North

After I wrote about the Dunwoody North subdivision, readers reached out to share reasons why they love their neighborhood and have remained there for many years. Lisa DierksUnkefer’s parents bought a house on Huntington Circle in 1964. She remembers that Stonington Road was a gravel road at the time. “There were countless families that had children for me and my siblings to play with and hang out with all the time,” Lisa said.

In 2000, Lisa and her husband bought the house. She has an o riginal Dunwoody North brochure and an original Dunwoody North Driving Club membership book, given to her by Frank Walton. She shared it with City Councilman John Heneghan, who also

lives in Dunwoody North.

Heneghan has posted about the neighborhood many times on his blog, dunwoodynorthblogspot.com, including in 2014 with the headline, “Dunwoody North-a close knit community where residents welcome you with brownies.”

When Lisa Dierks-Unkefer shared her original neighborhood brochure, Heneghan posted it on his blog.

The 1964 brochure shows home models available including the Imperial, “a sumptuous split-level”; Citation, a two story with a Williamsburg motif; Summit, a charming tri-level home; the two-story Premier; and Revere, distinctive Early American tri-level.

Heneghan has lived in Dunwoody North since 1996, moving to a different home within the community in 2010. He says there are several families who have moved from one Dunwoody North home to another.

One reader has been in the neighborhood for 49 years. The family

purchased a home in the section of Dunwoody North to the east of Tilly Mill Road. Her children attended Hightower Elementary School. She taught at nearby Kingsley Elementary School for over 30 years.

The family became members of the Dunwoody North Driving Club and still maintain and enjoy that membership today. She also continues to work out at Marcus Jewish Community Center.

Geraldine Penn has been in the subdivision for 44 years. Her Dunwoody North home was constructed in 1968, ready for occupancy in 1969. The Penn family bought the home in 1981 and were the third owners of the property. That house became the first in the neighborhood to have air conditioning in 1971.

There was an A&P grocery store in the triangle at Mt. Vernon Road, Dunwoody Club Drive and Jett Ferry Road, where Geraldine Penn remembers shopping. The A&P was in the same space where LIDL (also Harris Teeter, Ace Hardware,

Sprouts) were previously located and Big Play is coming soon. She recalls cow pastures along Ashford Dunwoody Road near I-285 where Best Buy and hotels are today.

The Penn home was also on the east side of Tilly Mill Road, so their children went to Hightower Elementary. By 1981, elementary age children in all parts of Dunwoody North attended Chesnut Elementary School.

Geraldine recalls when the family first moved into their Dunwoody North home, there was a farm along Tilly Mill Road between Laurelwood Road and Binghamton Drive. In the 1990s, this land was sold to Warren Jolly where he built homes along Madison Place Lane.

Award-winning author Valerie Biggerstaff is a longtime columnist for Appen Media and the Dunwoody Crier. She lives in Atlanta. You can email Valerie at pasttensega@gmail.com or visit her website at pasttensega.com.

VALERIE BIGGERSTAFF Columnist

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Kimberly Verska

Carol Williams

Programs:

Continued from Page 1

The board also approved a baking class taught by local baker Karen Bates. Her bakery, Karen B Cakes, will provide cupcake decorating and everyday sourdough courses.

“I especially love creating custom cakes and cupcakes,” Bates said. “That is my thing, and I love being able to teach people how to do it and giving that passion to other people.”

Bates said she hopes through her cupcake decorating course, parents will be able to foster a connection with their children and create a new tradition. In the course, attendees will learn how to fill a piping bag, create designs, decorate with sprinkles and create colored buttercream. The course will be held once a month, on a Saturday, from 10-11 a.m.

“All supplies and everything would be all ready to go, so parents wouldn’t have to worry about a thing,” she said.

The sourdough course simplifies the process of making homemade bread. Bates will teach attendees how to feed the starter, how to bake sourdough bread on a schedule and how to mix, fold and score dough and what

equipment is needed. Classes will be held one Saturday each month at 7 p.m.

The tuition for cupcake decorating classes is $55 per child and parent, with an additional $20 for each sibling. The sourdough course will be $60 per registrant.

Sign-ups for Little River Ballet and Karen B Cakes courses will be available soon at miltonga.gov.

In other matters at the meeting, Parks & Recreation Program Supervisor Thomas Rhodes gave updates on the future of Milton’s Legacy Park and the Milton City Park and Preserve. The updates come after the department held an open house for neighbors to express their opinions on the proposed site plans.

Neighbors joined the open house to voice their concerns over noise and safety. Otherwise, most feedback has been good, Parks and Recreation Director Tom McKlveen has said.

The department has plans to complete both parks in 2026.

“It's all in the works, it's coming down the pipeline,” Rhodes said. “The department wants to move it along as fast as we can, but we can only do so much.”

Switching gears, Outdoor Recreation Supervisor Jen Young, better known as Ranger Jen, inducted 7-year-old Pranav Sujesh into the Junior Ranger Program. Young honored Sujesh with a badge during the ceremony.

The Junior Ranger program, designed for 2nd through 6th graders, gets Milton residents to engage in hands-on activities and learn about Milton’s parks through a workbook provided on the city’s website. When the workbook is completed, children can join a Parks and Recreation Advisory Board meeting to be recognized.

Police:

Continued from Page 8

Meanwhile, another officer, just off duty, had turned around on his way home to join the pursuit, at one point reaching speeds of 87 mph on Riverside Drive, 88 mph on Dunwoody Place and 93 mph on Roswell Road.

He continued on the chase for another 30 seconds after the pursuit was canceled, according to the department’s analysis of the incident.

In that report, the department critiqued two additional officers who responded to the scene despite being “not within the vicinity of the pursuit.” One of those officers were clocked at 124 mph on Ga. 400. The other officer, a detective, reached a speed of 90 mph and continued with emergency equipment on for 21 seconds after the supervisor’s cancelation announcement.

The vehicle escaped.

Another pursuit in December over a broken tag light ended in two PIT

Lawsuit:

Continued from Page 1

The City of Milton appealed the decision but was unsuccessful after the Georgia Court of Appeals upheld the lower court’s ruling last September. An attorney for the Chang family said at the time he estimated the interest accrued on the award was around $3.5 million and would continue to grow around

maneuvers conducted in an apartment complex parking lot off Cimarron Parkway. Police Chief DeSimone ruled the officer’s actions were “unnecessary PIT attempt and not within policy.”

Pursuit training delayed

Sandy Springs schedules pursuit trainings for its officers every two years to keep up with legal updates and changes in techniques or vehicles, Police Sgt. Millholland said.

“It’s not a recertification; it’s a refamiliarization because we’re not required by law to be certified in PIT maneuvers,” Milholland told Appen Media. “The training that we do every two years is a brief familiarization [with] any legal updates, any change in techniques or that have been discovered, or any change in vehicles, you know, anything that needs to be addressed.

Because of an increase in mandated training hours from 400 to 800, Millholland said Sandy Springs is still attempting to schedule its “refamiliar -

$10,000 a day.

After the decision, more than 58 cities joined an amicus brief to have the Georgia Supreme Court review and overturn the verdict. In late June, the court agreed to hear the case and has assigned it to the October 2025 oral argument calendar. The trial could be held on either Oct. 21, 22 or 23.

The cities of Sandy Springs, Roswell, Tucker, Johns Creek and Dunwoody are among those who have approved participation in the brief.

Request for Proposals Citywide Janitorial Services

RFP NUMBER

25-PW07

Proposal Due Date:

August 13, 2025, by 2:00PM Local Time Electronic submission via: https://www.miltonga.gov/government/finance/bidsrfps

Names for submissions received will be publicly announced via a virtual bid opening at approximately 2:30 PM at the City of Milton City Hall located at 2006 Heritage Walk, Milton, GA 30004. The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals. If the contract is awarded, it will be awarded to the highest scoring Offeror whose proposal meets the requirements and criteria set forth in the request for proposals.

The City of Milton is seeking proposals from qualified vendors to provide janitorial services for various facilities owned and operated by the City of Milton, Georgia. The work covered in this specification includes furnishing all labor, equipment and supervision necessary for complete janitorial services. It shall be understood that in addition to these services, all tasks incidental to cleaning functions, not specifically listed but normally included in general janitorial practices, will be provided.

All qualified proposals will receive consideration without regard to age, handicap, religion, creed or belief, political affiliation, race, color, sex, or national origin.

The request for electronic proposals for RFP 25-PW07, Citywide Janitorial Services will be posted on the following websites the week of July 17, 2025: https://www.miltonga.gov/government/finance/bids-rfps and https://ssl.doas.state.ga.us/gpr/

ization” at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center (GPSTC) in the city of Forsyth.

“Right now, our training division is reaching out, and they’ve got a couple of possibilities going right now,” Millholland said. “We will get this scheduled second half of this year to do this refamiliarization … it’s in the process of being scheduled.”

PUBLIC NOTICE

THE CITY OF MILTON WILL HOLD A

SPECIAL CALLED COUNCIL MEETING

AUGUST 4, 2025 9:00 AM AT

CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS 2006 HERITAGE WALK MILTON, GEORGIA 30004

Request for Proposals

PUBLIC NOTICE

THE CITY OF MILTON WILL HOLD A SPECIAL CALLED COUNCIL MEETING to IMMEDIATELY FOLLOW THE CONCLUSION OF THE REGULARLY SCHEDULED WORK SESSION

AUGUST 11, 2025 6:00 PM AT CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS

2006 HERITAGE WALK MILTON, GEORGIA 30004

Milton Comprehensive Plan Five-Year Update RFP NUMBER 25-CD01

Proposal Due Date: August 14, 2025, by 2:00PM Local Time Electronic submission via: https://www.miltonga.gov/government/finance/bidsrfps

Names for submissions received will be publicly announced via a virtual bid opening at approximately 2:30 PM at the City of Milton City Hall located at 2006 Heritage Walk, Milton, GA 30004. The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals. If the contract is awarded, it will be awarded to the highest scoring Offeror whose proposal meets the requirements and criteria set forth in the request for proposals.

The City of Milton is seeking proposals from qualified consultants to assist with the five- year update of its 2040 Comprehensive Plan, as required by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA). This effort will involve working with City staff, the Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee (CPAC), and the community to update the Community Work Program, review progress since the last plan, and revise goals, needs, and opportunities as needed. The selected consultant will be responsible for delivering the updated plan in accordance with the DCA's schedule and the City's timeline.

All qualified proposals will receive consideration without regard to age, handicap, religion, creed or belief, political affiliation, race, color, sex, or national origin.

The request for electronic proposals for RFP 25-CD01, Milton Comprehensive Plan Five- Year Update will be posted on the following websites the week of July 17, 2025: https://www.miltonga.gov/government/finance/bids-rfps and https://ssl.doas.state.ga.us/gpr/

Vice President of Client Programs

NFCC is seeking a qualified candidate to fill the fulltime Vice President of Client Programs position. The Vice President of Client Programs (VPCP) is a senior leader responsible for creating and implementing the Client Services department strategy for NFCC. This includes creating programs and services, monitoring their effectiveness and ensuring funds are distributed appropriately. The VPCP also leads a team of 13 client services staff who handle client intake, case management, impact and outcomes data, education (GED/English classes) and workforce development programs.

If this sounds like the role for you, we’d love to hear from you! Please submit your resume to jobs@nfcchelp.org

Workforce Development Coordinator

NFCC is seeking a qualified candidate to fill the fulltime Workforce Development Coordinator position. The Workforce Development Coordinator serves as a crucial link between NFCC clients, Volunteer Coaches, and local employers.

The Coordinator collaborates with community businesses to identify hiring opportunities while working closely with Volunteer Coaches who deliver career readiness services including resume writing, job application assistance, and interview preparation. Through these efforts, the Coordinator helps clients improve their employment prospects that may lead to greater financial stability.

If this sounds like the role for you, we’d love to hear from you! Please submit your resume to jobs@nfcchelp.org

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