There's nothing of note from my Sept. 11 story. I was in third period Spanish when I first heard and started watching the events on TV. There might not be anything from yours, either. Maybe you too were simply at school or work when someone called, telling you to flip on the news. From that moment on, you started to pick up little details that you'd never forget. Non-news channels breaking from programming to offer thoughts and condolences. Maybe having a flight canceled from the airport groundings. Sports and other activities eventually returning from their hiatus. But for many others, the …

One year ago this week, I was given a Notice of Violation by the Cobb County Code Enforcement for having a dozen hens in my backyard. In Cobb County, you must have at least two acres of land to own poultry; I have only a half-acre. The neighbor that lives behind me in a different neighborhood was looking over my six-foot privacy fence and saw my enclosed chicken coop and hens. She had unsubstantiated fears that the poultry would ruin her property value and notified her county commissioner. In the year since, I have worked hard to change the 40-year-old law that essentially bans poultry in …

Did you know that if you are age 65 or more, you can lower your city property taxes by a substantial amount each year by answering a few questions and signing a form at City Hall? Through the Elderly Homestead Exemption, city of Powder Springs homeowners who are age 65 or older can qualify to have an additional $10,000 exempted from the value of their homes that is subject to city property tax. Lower valuation means less tax to be paid. See the receptionist at City Hall. Did you know that you can cut your city trash collection fee in half if you are age 65 or older? City residents typically …

I am new to reading the Patch and have found it to be much more informative and entertaining than any other news media I receive. I just wanted to say what a great job you are doing.  I look forward to sitting down with my coffee and reading the articles each day. Thanks for keeping this PS resident informed. —Pat Newman, Powder Springs  

Cobb County School Board member Alison Bartlett held a town hall at Harrison High School this past Saturday night. In an attempt to defend her opposition to the West Cobb Ninth Grade Center, as well as voter-approved SPLOST 3 projects, Mrs. Bartlett made herself available to the Harrison “Hoyas.” Principal Griggers moderated, and as usual for all Mrs. Bartlett Town Halls, questions were submitted on note cards, and verbal questions were not permitted. Principal Griggers received the questions and asked them aloud for Mrs. Bartlett to answer. At the very heart of this dispute is the …

It's hard to believe that it's been almost 20 years since Powder Springs embarked on its Community Enhancement Master Plan (CEMP).  Created in 1996 under the leadership of former Mayor Richard D. Sailors, the CEMP outlined a series of proposed projects, funded through a combination of federal dollars and matching funds from the city. The projects included bike and walking trails, streetscapes enhancement, sidewalks, transportation improvements and recreational development to name a few. The overriding goal of this plan was to reinforce the sense of community and special "small-town feel" …

After contacting Mr. Rick Eckert (City Manager) by email on Jan. 25, the following update was provided from Ms. Pam Conner (Community Development Department.) The city of Powder Springs received a letter (see attached letter) from the U.S. Postal Service dated Oct. 18 2011, addressed to Mayor Pat Vaughn. Mayor Vaughn passed the U.S. Postal Service letter on to staff (Ms. Pam Conners) to work the zip code issue. Ms. Conner stated in her email response to Mr. Eckert that she had been working with Cobb County for some time to obtain the requested information from the U.S. Postal Service, and …

In the recent Patch opinion article titled “What Are Priorities of Powder Springs?” published on Feb. 6, there are two errors that I would like to correct. 1. In the third paragraph, I was trying to compare the recent increase in elected officials retirement benefits to the recent one-time bonuses received by employees of the city. I had done this in a prior article and showed that every three months of the mayor’s retirement benefit after 20 years of part-time service would yield an additional $480 compared to a city employee receiving a one-time bonus of $500 after three-plus years of no …

We’ve just begun a new year and a “new” council, with three of the six elected official beginning new terms after the elections last November. What are they doing and where are they leading the city of Powder Springs? First order of business after the election: The “old” council raises their retirement pay. At a cost to the taxpayer of approximately $4,800 per year for 30 years, the mayor and council members will now receive $8 more per month on their retirement pay for each year of service as an elected official. The majority compared this increase favorably with a maximum one-time bonus of…

Let's go back to June 2011. Cobb schools board member David Banks puts a proposal before the Board of Education. It's a compromise calendar proposal, one that seeks to combine elements from both the "traditional" and the "balanced" calendars. Banks openly encourages the community to email the board with their opinions leading up to the vote. Ever wonder what became of that? First, let's go back even further. It's January 2011, and word is out that the newly elected board members may overturn the three-year balanced calendar plan. The board got emails back then, too. Board members Banks, …

Last month, the president of our Band Booster, Wendell Pope, passed away unexpectantly from a stroke. He was 40 years old and married to Dana Pope with two daughters.  One of his daughters, Alexis, is on the Lithia Springs High marching band. As a couple, the Popes have done so much for the kids in the band. I've never seen two more dedicated people. His death has been a great loss to not only his family, but our band family.  Unfortunately Mr. Pope died without any life insurance, and I'm sure you can imagine how hard that is on the family.  I am a consultant for Scentsy Wickless Candles and…

I would first like to express my heartfelt thanks to all of the readers of Patch, who expressed their thoughts of outrage through comments, emails, phone calls and blogs regarding my husband’s lack of recognition for 25 years on the Powder Springs police force. Jim started as a patrolman and worked his way through the ranks to lieutenant, patrol commander. Of course, I am really not surprised that this outrage did not bring our mayor or council members to stand up and acknowledge this “oversight” or “mistake”—call it what they may—to rectify this situation.  My husband worked hard during …

The City Council of the city of Powder Springs is set to vote on the dollar amount of the already-approved Stormwater Management Utility “Fee” on Monday at the regularly scheduled council meeting. There are things you need to know about this so-called “fee,” which I have called a tax—a tax based on the rain that falls on our property. Will we be taxed later on the number of trees that are on our property because the wind blows the leaves into the streets? The city says this is not a tax because it is not based on the value of the properties involved. I would disagree to the extent that the …

Mrs. Patricia Vaughn wrote an article that was published on Patch on Oct. 27 outlining the events of her being granted additional pay by the City Council. I was a member of the City Council at the time, and I would like to provide some thoughts as a participant in that action. On April 3, 2006, the Powder Springs City Council did go into an executive session called by Mayor Pro Tem Bob Farmer. The city has provided a copy of the affidavit, which must be signed before an executive session is entered, and it shows that all five City Council members were present. During this meeting, a …

Georgia, through its open-meetings laws, provides the legal framework for how various government agencies, cities included, must behave in providing citizens with information as to what is being discussed and how decisions are made that affect your tax dollars and the operations of the city. This can be reviewed at O.C.G.A. 50-14-1, or you can obtain a booklet from the Georgia Attorney General’s Office or through www.gfaf.org. The booklet was given to the mayor and each council member in February. These laws are centered on “meetings.” The definition of a “meeting” for the purposes of Georgia…

Mayor Pat Vaughn signed a letter dated April 27, 2011 that was addressed to Kate F. Wiley, district manager of the U.S. Postal Service. In the mayor's letter, she requested that residents who reside in Powder Springs but have the 30141 ZIP code be included in the 30127 ZIP code and delivery area. The mayor's letter dated April 27, 2011 was also sent to Ms. Sheila Davis from Congressman David Scott's office. I followed up with the mayor via the Powder Springs website in August 2011, requesting an update. The mayor did not contact me, but I did catch up with her at a Saturday breakfast at Off …

In 2010, a citizen’s committee was convened by the mayor and City Council to study and recommend a fee to offset the costs associated with the city having to pay for various studies and actions concerning storm water runoff. These “unfunded mandates” come from agencies of the state and federal governments. These are requirements that the city must undertake for which no money is provided to pay for these actions. The city has to come up with the money to do the studies and/or take the actions required. In July, the City Council voted to approve a “storm water utility." This new fee is to pay …

I would like to inform you of my terrible experience with the city of Powder Springs. I wanted to open a business in the city in August, and I ran into hurdles that I had never been faced with in my 35 years of business life.  The mayor is way out of line. I hope the residents of Powder Springs would realize her unprofessional behavior. She is running for a third time as a mayor. Even the U.S. president cannot serve more than two terms. This city is becoming more and more of an "Old Boys Club" that needs to be stopped. I wanted to expose her attitude with the local newspaper, the Messenger, …

I am an Ahmadi-Muslim, and I feel upset when Christians feel that 9/11 was inflicted on them because of "the Muslims" because we were living in New York when the Twin Towers went down and we experienced it, too.It didn't just happen to Christian-America. It happened to all Americans. I think Americans are ready to accept this after 10 years. My daughter contracted pneumonia, which was followed by a diagnosis of asthma because the garbage from 9/11 was taken by the ship load past our apartment to the Staten Island dump. We lived by the ferry, so all the fallout from the towers fell like snow …

I live at the corner of Cedar Ridge and Dogwood Drive. There seems to be a rash of home break-ins during the day around here. My neighbor's door was kicked in today. Our neighborhood is across from Compton Elementary School. Maybe we need a foot patrol. The new police station is right down the road! It's probably kids, don't know. Neighbors beware! —Joe Bourassa, Powder Springs