The Decatur Minute

The City of Decatur is hosting another Community Budget Gathering on Tuesday, April 16^th from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Big Tex Cantina, 308 West Ponce de Leon Avenue. Join Budget Manager Meredith Roark, Assistant City Manager Andrea Arnold and others interested in learning about the city’s budget process.

This is your chance to find out how the budget process works and give your input. This is the second of three meetings. The third meeting will be at City Hall in May. Click here to find the current 2012-2013 budget. Space is limited so sign up today with Meredith, Meredith.Roark@decaturga.com or call 404-370-4102.

Read Full Post »

The City recently received a letter from Barbara Boyarsky, Vice President and General Manager of American Water Resources alerting us of a “Notice of Mailing to Decatur Homeowners” with the following text:

“We are writing to you as a municipal leader in the Decatur area to inform you of our upcoming mailing and educational efforts.

As you may know, most property owners are not aware that they are responsible for the water lines running through their property. American Water Resources will soon send a letter to Decatur residents, informing them of this service line maintenance responsibility. The mailing will explain that: (i) normal wear and tear can cause water line leaks or breaks, (ii) property owners are responsible for making the necessary repairs, and (iii) repairs can cost thousands of dollars. AWR’s Water Line Protection Program provides property owners with an optional means to protect themselves affordably from the expense and aggravation of water line repairs.

Please be assured that this letter explains that our programs are offered by AWR and that we are independent of Decatur and the local utility.”

The letter includes a list of bullet points about American Water Resources.  It ends with an invitation for the city to partner with American Water Resources “to jointly educate property owners” and “receive a licensing fee and create a new revenue stream.”

Please know that the City of Decatur is NOT partnering with Atlanta Water Resources and their mailing to Decatur Homeowners is not officially affiliated with the City of Decatur in any way.

Read Full Post »

Read Full Post »

The safe pictured here is estimated to be from the World War I era.

Most of you know that Decatur has a long and rich history, dating back to the early nineteenth century. Over the years, the City has made an effort to preserve the historic documents that help tell Decatur’s story. These documents include everything from cemetery records to school records dating back to the late nineteenth century to City Commission meeting minutes, and even scrapbooks detailing Decatur’s political history. Currently, efforts are being made to have some of these records digitized and made more accessible to the public. For now, if you are interested in learning more about Decatur’s history, you can access the City’s collection at DeKalb History Center, through Ancestry.com. Here you will find hundreds of documents, many from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, all the way up to the 1980s. Documents include building permits, cemetery purchases, City Clerk records from the 1890s, news from Decatur churches, and meeting minutes detailing the activities of the police and fire departments, the school system, and the City library. Records are indexed and searchable by name, so if you are looking for information on a particular Decatur politician or officer, you just might be able to find it. There are some interesting tidbits to be found. For instance, in April 1939 the City received a letter from the Secretary of Ripley’s Believe It or Not, Louise Ripley, “requesting a snapshot of (Decatur’s) White Street as Mr. Ripley had been informed that no white person lives there, only negro families.” The record notes that the photo was sent as requested. Another interesting record, from February 1920, is a motion to hire an architect to provide plans for the future City Hall, a project with a budget of $20,000- hard to believe today. These records provide a fascinating glimpse into Decatur’s past and offer endless research possibilities.

Anyone interested in searching Decatur’s online records can find them at http://publish.ancestry.com/Collection/102794/Gallery or through DeKalb History Center’s Ancestry.com collection at http://publish.ancestry.com/Group/100907/Profile.

Read Full Post »

Its time for the Decatur Old House Fair again!  In its 5th year, this event is a one of a kind event in the Southeast and offers owners of historic homes the chance to learn from experts on all sorts of old house issues like basement moisture, restoring historic chimneys and fireplaces, energy efficiency, and tax credits for older homes.  In addition, we have our short bites and style bites (30 minute sessions) that will explain electrical, plumbing, wood floors, aging in place along with delving into styles of homes like Craftsman, American small, American Foursquare, and Ranch.  So many sessions with so much information!

But wait!  There’s more!  We have an exhibit area filled with craftsmen, contractors, and specialty tradespeople that love old houses and provide great services to historic homeowners.  Meet, greet, and walk away with a treat at the Decatur Old House Fair

The event is this Saturday, Feb 2nd from 9 am to 4 pm.  Tickets can be purchased online at www.decaturoldhousefair.com and they are $10 in advance and $15 at the door.  Today is the last day to take advantage of the Living Social Deal-buy one get one free.  So, don’t wait!  Go to https://www.livingsocial.com/events/569782-2013-decatur-old-house-fair-tickets and score your deal!

Read Full Post »

For those of you who couldn’t make it last night, check out this video that was shown at the State of the City:

A big thank you to all the city staff that worked on this and to Lampe-Farley Communications!

Read Full Post »

Little Shop of Stories Super Sale is happening this weekend!
Friday, January 18th | to January 21st
We are clearing out to make room for new stuff! Select books, toys, and games will be on sale at 30% off this weekend only!

Read Full Post »