Oconee County, GA Politics

A gun bill returns with a vengeance | Political Insider blog

Prep roundup: Channell's 23 points pushes North Oconee past Oconee County | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

Water main break in Oconee sparks advisory to boil drinking water | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

Oconee County blotter

The South isn't sold on Medicaid expansion

Daily Kos: Keith Olbermann: They're killing dogs in Sochi

Georgia island considers whether birds would be harmed if wind turbine is built (2/1/14 12:23 pm)

Legislation aims to up demand for solar technology

From: Pat Priest ppriest@charter.net Subject: [oconee] "Power Lines" Date: February 6, 2014 at 8:11:38 AM EST To: Oconee County Democrats < oconee@yahoogroups.com > Reply-To: oconee@yahoogroups.com Here's a book I hope you'll pick up and take time to read: "Power   Lines." The author is our bright and dynamic gubernatorial candidate for   governor in Georgia: Jason Carter. "Power Lines" covers his two-year Peace Corps stint in South Africa.   Readers learn about that country's troubled history -- and about Carter,   too, as he works in challenging situations to improve schools, help the   poor, and to connect across racial lines. There's also a lovely introduction by Jason's grandfather Jimmy Carter,   who writes about his mother Lillian's Peace Corps service in India. The Oconee Democrats' community book group will meet to discuss "Power   Lines" on Wednesday, February 26th, upstairs at Cho...

Oconee County Observations: Oconee County Chamber Of Commerce Not Taking Stand... : Favors Referendum While the Oconee County Chamber of Commerce provided Epps Bridge Centre developer Frank Bishop the platform to go public...

Oconee County Observations: Caterpillar Created 364 Full-Time Jobs At Its New ... : Agreement Required Only 100 During 2013, Caterpillar created 364 of the 1,400 full-time jobs it has said it eventually will have at its ne...

Breakdown of Athens-area signings | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

The Editor's Desk: No reason to rush Plan of Watkinsville toward reality

Warm Reception for Downtown Watkinsville Plan

Santamaria ready to compete for starting job at Virginia Tech

Oconee County Observations: Oconee County Judge Sweat Congratulated Architect ... : Crowd Enthusiastic Architect Robert Smith got a warm reception Sunday afternoon from the 35 people who turned out for his second presentat...

Athens-Clarke police officer has strong communications skills | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

A fundraising effort to help the owners of most of the 18 horses killed in Friday’s devastating fire at Brookwood Equestrian Center in Bishop was started Monday. “The plan is for a silent auction, but because it’s so soon, we really haven’t worked out the details,” said Marie Greer of Covered Bridge Equine in Watkinsville, which is spearheading the effort. A fire early Friday destroyed a stable, killing 18 horses at the Brookwood facility, located off Union Church Road. People have already been offering donations for the auction, which will benefit the horse owners, Greer said. Only about two of the horses were insured, and the benefit is aimed at helping those who boarded horses at the farm and not the farm itself, according to King Howington, who owns the farm with his wife, Melanie. The state fire marshal sent an investigator to the scene, who established an electrical origin for the fire based on a burn pattern indicating it started at an electrical panel, state I...

WATKINSVILLE | A plan for the future development of downtown Watkinsville designed, in the words of its creator, “to accommodate growth ... and still keep it like a small town,” has gotten a largely positive response at two recent presentations, each of which attracted dozens of people. The proposal, from fourth-generation Watkinsville resident Robert Smith — son of former state Rep. Bob Smith — could become a point of discussion at an upcoming public meeting on Oconee County’s plans for May 20 referendum on a 1 percent special-purpose local option sales tax, although it is not included in any plans for SPLOST funding. Smith, who developed the plan in a semester-long process on the way to obtaining a master’s degree in architecture at Notre Dame, is a member of the Congress for the New Urbanism, and his proposal incorporates the walkable, neighborhood-based model promoted by the New Urbanism approach to development. Briefly, the plan, available online at http://...

ATLANTA – The League of Women Voters slammed legislation Tuesday requested by small cities to shorten early-voting periods from 21 days to six, including one Saturday. Cities complain that staffing three people as poll workers for days when almost no one shows up to vote is too costly for local taxpayers, according to Tom Gehl, a lobbyist for the Georgia Municipal Association. “The requirement that they stay open can be really expensive, especially with a part-time staff,” he said. That argument doesn’t wash with Elizabeth Poythress, president of the League of Women Voters of Georgia. “At what price is it worth disenfranchising eligible Georgians to participate in their own self government?” she asked. “This bill would be a giant step backwards for the election process in Georgia. It is an obvious attempt to limit voting and a clear byproduct of the controversial Supreme Court decision to eliminate prior approval of changes to election laws in Georgia under the Voti...

Subject: Clarke County Democrats Hosting Jason Carter and Connie Stokes Dear Dan, I hope you have heard that the Clarke County Democratic Committee is hosting Jason Carter and Connie Stokes for our biennial fundraiser on February 27 at the Classic Center in  Athens.  This event begins with the reception at 6 p.m. followed by dinner. Below and attached is our flyer for this event. I hope you will consider not only publicizing this event to your other Democratic friends and relatives but also attending this event!  :) Tickets can be purchased at www.ClarkeDemocrats.com . Also attached is information about host and sponsorship opportunities available for this event. Please let me know if you have any questions. Sincerely, Karen Solheim CCDC Vice Chair for Communications

Date: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 14:13:58 -0500 From: flowersliz123@gmail.com To: danmatt@hotmail.com Subject: Release - Senate Dems Call for Earlier Emergency Response CC: MEDIA ADVISORY January 31, 2014 For Immediate Release Contact: Liz Flowers Senate Democratic Caucus 404-291-4755 flowersliz123@gmail.com Senate Dems Call for Earlier Emergency Response, Better Comms Cite continued pattern of poor decision-making Atlanta, Ga. - January 31, 2014  - Senate Democrats today criticized the state government's handling of the this weeks weather-induced traffic crisis that left Georgians trapped in a traffic nightmare, students sleeping on school buses and gym floors, and people stranded on roads for up to 23 hours. Democrats called for earlier emergency response and greater cross-agency communication. "The state government's response this week demonstrates a cont...

Sincerely,  Dan Matthews Subject: AJC: Nathan Deal triggered cascading failures From: bryan@bettergeorgia.com To: danmatt@hotmail.com Date: Mon, 3 Feb 2014 13:02:33 +0000 Better Georgia - Progressive News --> The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published a stinging rebuke of Gov. Nathan Deal's complete lack of leadership during one of the governor's biggest tests. The AJC concluded that Gov. Deal failed the test . Here is the first paragraph to Sunday's top story: "Gov. Nathan Deal's delay in taking charge during Tuesday's snow catastrophe triggered a series of cascading failures, leaving hundreds of thousands of motorists abandoned and desperate for food, water and shelter." Read more: Leadership failures left Atlanta in chaos Other cities have planned for, and survived, worse Gov. Deal's icy Tuesday: From photo opps to snow chaos While we encourage you to read the comple...

From: Pastures Rose Creek Date:02/03/2014 12:12 PM (GMT-05:00) To: Subject: The Pastures of Rose Creek: A Presidential Plate Greetings folks!  Hope everyone was able to stay nice and warm last week - luckily we Oconee-ans and Athenians skirted the snow-jam that poor, arrested Atlanta experienced.  And this week we come to you with more breaking news from the Piedmont.... Headline:  Piedmontese Beef Graces the Presidential Plate From the Piedmont of Italy to Main Course at the White House - Piedmontese beef was served at the State of the Union Address Luncheon...an esteemed luncheon reserved only for select journalists and news anchors from the most notable news sources.  The menu that is served at such a luncheon is of course, the upper echelon of food quality and style... cuisine to make even the highest highfalutin connoisseur's taste buds light up like a pinball machine!  "...There is no better food on planet Earth than wha...

The Atlanta Falcons will host a free youth football clinic for kids age 6-14 on Feb. 13 in Watkinsville. The event will be held at Oconee Veterans Park, 3500 Hog Mountain Road, with an information session from 6:15-7:15 p.m. and a clinic from 6-8:30 p.m. The non-contact clinic will focus on proper tackling technique along with other football and life skills based on USA Football's Heads Up Football Program. The information session, led by former Falcons linebacker and USA Football Master Trainer Buddy Curry, will focus on proper equipment fitting, concussion awareness and tackling technique. Food will be provided for parents at the session. Children must be registered to participate and space is limited. To sign up, visit www.atlantafalcons.com/community/community-programs/youth-football/heads... . Other clinics are tentatively planned in Augusta, Macon, Albany, Columbus and Savannah.

Education events | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

Monday local briefs | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

Cross-dressing man suspected of Oconee Walmart armed robbery | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

Building permits issued in Athens-Clarke and Oconee counties Jan. 20-24 | Athens Banner Herald Mobile

Bread For Life accepting applications for training program | Athens Banner Herald Mobile