The Decatur Minute

On Saturday, August 10th please join Chalice Thrift Store as they celebrate their first anniversary.  Everything in the store will be 50% off from 9am-2pm.

Chalice Thrift sells safe, clean, and inexpensive products with the proceeds supporting outreach ministries.

Chalice Thrift  is located at the First Christian Church in Decatur at 601 W. Ponce de Leon Avenue. The store is on the lower level of the church at 200a Nelson Ferry Rd.  Parking is available in the church parking lot.

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Sharrows (share arrows or shared lane markings) are being added to more streets in Decatur (see map below).  Sharrows will link Decatur north, south, east, and west to other bicycling routes outside the city limits.  Information about the purpose and design of sharrows can be found through the National Association of City Transportation Officials, or follow the link below.  Basically, sharrows remind everyone to share the lane.

http://nacto.org/cities-for-cycling/design-guide/bikeway-signing-marking/shared-lane-markings/

   Sharrows on South McDonough Street and on East Lake Avenue.

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Back by popular demand! The 3rd Annual Madison Avenue Soapbox Derby will be held in the Oakhurst neighborhood of Decatur on Saturday, September 21st from 12-5 p.m.  This exciting community event will feature 60 originally designed and built soapbox cars from entrants of all ages.  Drivers are separated into 3 categories: adults, children 17-7 years of age and children 6 and under.

Last year’s wildly rousing soapbox race drew a crowd of over 1000 spectators who lined Madison Avenue and cheered for their favorite cars.  The all-volunteer event organizers drew on the generosity of sponsors from Decatur and surrounding businesses to raise over $14,000 for Our House, a Childcare and Support Center for Homeless Families located in Decatur. Our goal this year is to raise even more money to benefit Oakhurt’s Samuel L. Jones Boys & Girls Club.

The Madison Avenue Soapbox Derby was started by a group of neighbors who got together and came up with the zany idea of bringing together their families and the community to have fun while raising money for a local charity.  By creating a family event that bonds kids and their families, we hope to make a difference in the lives of those we support.

For more information, check out the website http://madisonavesoapboxderby.org/

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City of Decatur wants your opinion on the current speed limits. To improve public health by creating safer streets that promote physical activity, city staff has conducted a review of speed limits and several other traffic related issues within the jurisdiction.  Based on this research and adopted policies, a proposal has been drafted to improve consistency and help make Decatur a safe, walkable and bike-friendly community for all ages. 

The draft proposal takes into account the findings of the 2009 Community Transportation Plan as well as other factors such as number of accidents and speeding summons, safe routes to school, and community facilities.

The City now needs your feedback on the draft proposal.  You are invited to review the proposal online and leave comments using an online form.  Additionally, we are hosting a public input session where staff will be available to discuss the proposal. 

Public Input Session #1: Speed Limit Study & Proposal
August 14th- 6pm-7:30pm
Decatur City Hall

Proposal available online at: http://www.decaturga.com/index.aspx?page=698

Online feedback form available at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/decaturspeedlimits

For more information, contact Lena Stevens at 404-370-4102 or lena.stevens@decaturga.com

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If you are a part of a Decatur-based non-profit group, be sure to submit your grant request to the 2013 Decatur Craft Beer Festival committee. The application can be found on the festival website. Here is a list of last year’s grant recipients:

MLK Service Project
Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta
I CARE
Decatur-area Emergency Assistance Ministry
Poverty is Real
Decatur Education Foundation
Our House
Wylde Center
The Global Village Project
On the Same Page
Housing Authority of the City of Decatur
DeKalb History Center
Literacy Volunteers of Atlanta
Ahimsa House
Woodland Gardens
Oakhurst Cooperative Preschool
DeKalb Rape Crisis Center

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 The City of Decatur Police Department is in the process of investigating a series of 13 day time burglaries that occurred from May 30 – June 26 that appear to be related.  The majority of the burglaries occurred in and around S. Candler Street including parts of the Oakhurst and Winnona Park neighborhoods.  The burglaries seem to be related to a significantly higher number of similar incidents in DeKalb County and the City of Atlanta.  All three jurisdictions are working on a coordinated approach and together have made one arrest, detained five juvenile perpetrators, recovered a stolen vehicle, and recovered stolen property.

The Decatur Police Department is also in the process of investigating an attempted robbery and two robberies that occurred in Oakhurst on July 1 & 2 and a car theft that occurred on Swanton Way in downtown Decatur on July 3 that resulted in the vehicle crashing at Kirk Rd. and South Candler Street.  A 15-year-old suspect is currently in custody.

According to information obtained from the witnesses and the victims, both the burglaries and the robberies are being committed by juveniles.  Decatur Police Chief Mike Booker said that there is no indication that the juveniles are Decatur residents.  He added that these appear to be crimes of opportunity with no regular pattern but that they do share common characteristics in terms of items stolen and the number and age of the suspects involved.

Chief Booker stated that “We are meeting and comparing information on a daily basis with both DeKalb County and City of Atlanta officers working the cases.”  He added “that in addition to the regular patrol shifts of five officers, the City has called in additional off-duty police officers and re-directed the four special unit officers to assignments related to addressing the current situation.” Officers are using marked and unmarked cars and implementing periodic roadblocks throughout the city.  Additional uniformed city staff, including firefighters, are assisting in the patrol of city parks, neighborhoods, and the business districts.  In addition to responding to all burglaries and processing all latent prints, the police are using the GBI sketch artist and anticipate the release of at least one sketch very soon.

Decatur Mayor Jim Baskett said, “We want to assure the community that resolving these incidents are a top priority for the City Commission, the Police Department and all City staff. We are confident that they are utilizing every available resource to catch the perpetrators.” 

Mayor Baskett continued, “The police regularly issue community advisories and update them as more information is available for release.  We encourage the community to read those advisories and follow the suggested safety precautions.”  Advisories are also posted on the City of Decatur website at www.decaturga.com.

Chief Booker and other police staff members will attend the Oakhurst Neighborhood Association Meeting on Monday, July 8 at 7 p.m. at The Solarium, 321W. Hill Street and the Winnona Park Neighbors Meeting on Tuesday, July 9 at 7 p.m. at the Decatur Recreation Center, 231 Sycamore Street.  They are also available to attend other neighborhood association meetings.  Call 404-373-6551 if you would like to request they attend your meeting.

The Decatur Police encourage the community to call if they see any suspicious activity.  The non-emergency number is 404-373-6551.  If you believe you are witnessing a crime, or have an emergency, dial 911.

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Didn’t make it to the budget expo? Can’t make it to the public hearing on June 17th? No worries! You can still have input into the City’s proposed FY13-14 budget by visiting the Open City Hall forum. The budget topic is posted here or you can click the “Join the Conversation” button on the bottom lefthand side of the City’s homepage.

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On May 31 the Decatur Police Department conducted a pedestrian crosswalk education initiative to follow up with the previous crosswalk education and enforcement activity on May 2 that addressed drivers.  Officers targeted crosswalks at the intersections of Commerce Drive and W. Ponce de Leon Ave.; Church Street and E. Trinity Place; and Church Street and Sycamore St.

Officers made contact with 30 pedestrians who were attempting to cross the roadway improperly.  They did not issue citations but did distribute a pamphlet created by the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety to educate those pedestrians and they answered questions concerning pedestrian safety.  They also distributed an additional 20 pamphlets to pedestrians who asked about what was happening.

Officers examined and identified problems at certain crosswalks, for example stickers covering crosswalk button instructions, a malfunctioning signal and missing push button, which are being addressed for correction and repair.

One of the main issues identified during this part of the overall initiative is pedestrians in Decatur who are not familiar with pedestrian crossing laws or who choose to ignore those laws when crossing streets.

Pedestrians should be mindful that crossing the street outside of a crosswalk and near it is dangerous.  Drivers do not expect to encounter a pedestrian there.  Remember to use a crosswalk if one is available.

Officers will continue their efforts to educate both drivers and pedestrians.

For more information click on these links to the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety and PEDS.

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Decatur, GA – Tonight’s 2013 Movies on the Square show presented by DeKalb Medical Maternity Services is cancelled because of impending inclement weather.

There is no rain date scheduled for this time.

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Just a quick reminder that logo submissions for the 2013 Decatur Craft Beer Festival are due by 5pm on June 7th.  Go to the festival website for more information. In case you haven’t marked it on your calendars yet, tickets go on sale at noon on Monday, September 16th.

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