by Robin Kemp

Clayton County has a busy week ahead:

MONDAY, FEB. 7

  • 5:30 p.m.: The Clayton County Board of Education holds an executive session, followed by its regular meeting at 6 p.m. at 1058 Fifth Avenue, Jonesboro. Public participation is welcome. The board will discuss Black Lives Matter and Black History Month.
  • 6 p.m.: The Forest Park City Council holds its work session, followed by the regular meeting at 7 p.m. at 745 Forest Parkway. The council will consider transferring $29,213 in leftover 2019 Community Development Block Grant funds, originally awarded as part of $64,213 for engineering and design improvements to Rock Cut Road, to the 2021 Starr Park Improvements award. Clayton County HUD would have to approve the transfer. Otherwise, the money goes back to the county. Councilwoman Latresa Akins-Wells has asked the council to discuss disciplinary action taken against her for not calling in sick for the November 15, 2021 and December 6, 2021 work sessions and meetings. Akins-Wells said that she had had COVID-19. The council voted to dock her pay 10%.
  • 6 p.m.: The Jonesboro City Council holds its work session at 170 S. Main Street. On the agenda are proposed budget amendments,
  • several zoning items, including:
    • changes to the zoning code’s City Center Mixed-Use District, R-M multifamily residential district, and R-A Single Family Attached Residential District
    • map amendments for rezoning of three properties near the new City Center Complex–158 Smith Street (Parcel 13241A A006), Jonesboro, Georgia 30236, 160 Smith Street (Parcel 13241A A005), and 204 Fayetteville Road (Parcel 13241A A004) from Single-Family Residential (R-4) –as City Center Mixed Use
    • another map amendment for several rezonings, including:
      • Ordinance #2021-006 Map Amendment from “Single-Family Residential” to “Highway Commercial” – Batiste Garden Circle, owned by Tara Boulevard Storage  (Parcel 05240B A003)
      • Ordinance #2021-007 Annexation and Map Amendment from “General Business” (County) to “Highway Commercial” (City) – Highway 138, owned by Grimsby Development Inc., Parcel 13210B D006
      • Ordinance #2021-010 City Initiated Map Amendments from “Office-Institutional” to “City Center Mixed Use” – 155 Lee Street, 144 Smith Street; (parcel 13241A A016 owned by the Jonesboro Urban Redevelopment Authority and parcel 13241A A013 owned by the City of Jonesboro)
      • Ordinance #2021-011 City Initiated Map Amendments from “Single-Family Residential” to “City Center Mixed Use” – Burnett St, Smith St, Fayetteville Road; (Parcels 13241A A012, 13241A A011, 13241A A010, 13241A A009, 13241A A007 and 13241A A003, all owned by the City of Jonesboro, and Parcel 13241A A008, no owner shown in online tax assessor records).
      • Ordinance #2021-019 Annexation and Map Amendment from County “General Business” to City “Highway Commercial” – 795 North Avenue; Parcel No. 13210D A002, owned by BVC Crossroads South, LLC, a Delaware corporation with an address of 5 North Main Street, Florida, NY, 10921 and authorized by Jeff Rosenberg
      • Ordinance #2022-003 City Initiated Map Amendments from “Single-Family Residential” to “City Center Mixed Use” – 158 Smith Street (Parcel 13241A A006, owned by the City of Jonesboro), 160 Smith Street (Parcel 13241A A005, owned by Alonza and Delphine Y. Varner), and 204 Fayetteville Road (Parcel 13241A A004, owned by the City of Jonesboro)
    • a request to turn an office complex at 145 N. Main Street into single-family attached housing through a conditional use permit application (22-CU-002). The owner is Jonesboro Office Park LLC. State corporate filings show the company was cofounded by H. Lee Freeman, Jr., whose name also appears on the latest filing.
    • You can see the full packet with all the maps online at http://jonesboroga.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=1&ID=1384&Inline=True
    • A public hearing on the zoning changes will be held Feb. 14 at 6 p.m. at the Jonesboro Police Station, 170 S. Main Street, 2nd floor courtroom.
  • The city also is looking for some tech upgrades, including agreements with NetPlanner System Inc. for technology services,  Comcast Business for 2 GBps Ethernet Dedicated Internet, and Atlanta Recycling Solutions for “properly disposing [of] several decommissioned technology equipment.”
  • a curb cut at 212 W. Mill Street. According to City Manager Ricky Clark’s memo, “The city completed the sidewalk replacement on West Mill Street several years ago, however during the process a driveway was missed. In efforts to remedy this we will need to remove a twenty-foot section of sidewalk to lay way for a new driveway. In keeping with the procurement police, we reached out to three vendors, however due to the size of the project we have only received one quote back. C&C Lovejoy responded with a quote of $2,150.00. Staff is recommending approval of this bid by C&C Lovejoy. C&C has been our main service provider for concrete and sidewalk projects in the past.” C&C Lovejoy is owned by Lovejoy Mayor Bobby Cartwright, who also has served as Lovejoy’s city manager for the past several years.
  • Councilwoman Dr. Donya Sartor will have an update on the city’s plans for Juneteenth, as well as a request for Yoga on the Green.

TUESDAY, FEB. 8

  • 8 a.m.-4 p.m.: The Clayton County Board of Elections and Registration will take online public comments before the monthly meeting at 4:30 p.m. You can fill out an online comment form at https://bit.ly/3ouniA0
  • 4:30 p.m.: The Clayton County Board of Elections and Registration meets via Zoom. The registration link is https://bit.ly/34HHbgc . No agenda was available as of press time. However, the upcoming elections calendar, which has added pressure on elections offices statewide under SB 202, as well as ongoing efforts to relocate the Elections and Registration’s physical offices and Chairwoman Darlene Johnson’s  request to hire an elections and registration app company are likely topics for discussion. Read previous minutes at https://bit.ly/3ovaklC
  • 5:30 p.m.: The Clayton County Board of Commissioners holds its work session at 112 Smith Street, Jonesboro. Discussion items include:
    • ATL transit funding opportunities (this comes after Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock announced $970 million for the Clayton BRT study)
    • a Human Resources presentation on the 2021 Annual Stay Interview Survey, which is similar to the 120-day new employee survey and exit survey
    • a review of fees at International Park (The Beach renovations are nearing completion)
    • a proposed amendment that would have the Board of Commissioners follow Robert’s Rules of Order during meetings, as well as establish a Finance Committee of at least two commissioners that would “review those matters that are referred to the committee for further study by the board pertaining to the finances of the county,” as well as review or recommend “policies affecting the finances of the county,” and “review an issue or matter submitted to the chairman of the finance committee by any commissioner.” That committee also would be subject to Open Meetings law.
    • a discussion of a new fleet management program and county vehicle replacement
    • county support for nonprofits
    • a trash amnesty period
    • a Livable Cities Initiative Grant for U.S. 19/41
  • 6 p.m.: The Development Authority of Clayton County holds its monthly meeting at Arts Clayton, 136 South Main Street, Jonesboro. On the agenda:
    • the treasurer’s report
    • a report in Invest Clayton
    • a presentation on Clayton Works! (the board’s effort to link companies with job seekers)
    • Arts Clayton retreat
    • an update on the Mountain View project
    • an update on 5711 Jonesboro Road
    • an executive session on real estate, personnel and potential litigation, followed by a vote if needed on any of those items

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 9

  • 6 p.m.: State Rep. Sandra Scott holds a town hall on HB 35, the Ethical Policing Act, via Zoom. Joining Scott are Tomi Badejo, Rev. James Woodall, Helen Butler, John Moye, Lee Reid, Chief Kevin Roberts, and Chief Keith Meadow. HB 35 would establish citizen review boards statewide. We will update with the full Zoom address; the correct meeting ID, per Scott, is 882-5257-4706 and the passcode is 002654.

THURSDAY, FEB. 10

  • 8 a.m.: The Clayton County Pension Board holds its quarterly meeting. As of press time, no agenda had been published online.
  • 12 noon: MARTA’s Board of Directors holds a work session, followed by the 1:30 p.m. board meeting, at 2424 Piedmont Road NE, 6th floor board room, Atlanta. Masks are required. You also can attend via https://bit.ly/MARTAPublicMeeting . Topping the agenda: a briefing on “Upcoming A/E Consultant Procurement for Design Services for Clayton County Operations and Maintenance Facility,” which is slated for Old Dixie Road in Forest Park.
  • 1:30 p.m.: The City of Morrow and Clayton State University unveil CSU’s new logo (featuring Nessie) on the city’s water tank. The official ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at 6362 S. Lee Street. Nearby in Forest Park, that city and the Clayton County Water Authority recently repainted water tanks off Jonesboro Road with the city logo.

FRIDAY, FEB. 11

  • The Morrow Police Department will be cracking down on traffic violators starting today bat I-75 and Jonesboro Road. The move comes after two alleged DUI incidents, one of which killed a 7-month-old fetus and his 18-year-old mother, the other of which involved a head-0n collision with injuries on Reynolds Road. Expect more than three times the usual number of Morrow Police doing traffic duty looking for drunken or high drivers, speeders, distracted drivers, and seatbelt and child restraint violations.
  • 11 a.m.: Clayton County Fire and Emergency Services holds its annual Chili Cook-off, a morale builder for the department that pits stations and crews against each other for bragging rights and a day off.
  • 6:30 p.m.: The Clayton County Ethics Board meets at 112 Smith Street, Conference Room 2, Jonesboro. An online agenda was not available as of press time. See past meeting information at https://bit.ly/35X9A2o

As always, send events, corrections, and additions to editor@claytoncrescent.org. Please share this information with your friends, neighbors, and social media connections! Our mission is to keep you informed as citizens of Clayton County. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to hold your elected officials accountable by attending meetings and communicating your wishes to the people who hold government positions. Support our work with a weekly, monthly, quarterly, or one-time gift at https://donorbox.org/clayton-crescent as we upgrade this site for an even better reading experience!

Robin Kemp is executive editor and CEO of The Clayton Crescent, which she founded in 2020. She has worked for Gambit, CNN, The Weather Channel, Clayton News, Henry Herald, and numerous freelance outlets....

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