COMMUNITY
SCENE
VOTE 2010
My Sister’s Closet Swap offers women on a budget cost-effective ways to change their wardrobe and dodge the economic blues. A5
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Aniston are one of the couples grappling with life in “He is not that Into You” showing at the library. A8
Early voting kicks off July 12 and it’s time to make a decision about which local, state and national officials represent us. Choose wisely. Section B
Fashionistas on a budget
Copyright © 2010 CrossRoadsNews, Inc.
Relationship muddle
July 10, 2010
Time to pick
Volume 16, Number 11
www.crossroadsnews.com
ARC taking comments for planned changes along I-20 By Jennifer Ffrench Parker
Big changes are on the way for I-20 through DeKalb County and now is the time for residents to weigh in on the discussion. The Atlanta Regional Commission is collecting comments on the region’s FY 20082013 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) through Aug. 1. Changes being considered in the amendment will affect I-20 Collector/Distributor Lanes in DeKalb County and the I-285/ Ashford Dunwoody interchange.
The amendment involves a new air quality and financial constraint conformity determination by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The plans call for $72.8 million of funding in FY 2011 to address major congestion chokepoints along I-20 in DeKalb. For the I-285 /Ashford Dunwoody interchange, the TIP is seeking to add a diverging diamond interchange at a cost of $5.8 million to relieve congestion. For both DeKalb projects, 80 percent of the funding would come from the federal
government and 20 percent from the state. The TIP is the mechanism by which federal, state and local funds are approved for all significant transportation projects and programs. The FY 2008-2013 TIP comprises the first six years of the Atlanta region’s longrange 2030 Envision6 Regional Transportation Plan which provides a blueprint to guide the region’s transportation decisions for at least 20 years. ARC must receive comments prior to midnight on Aug. 1 to be considered in the official record of comments. It has desig-
nated July 20 as TIP Amendment Day and will answer inquiries from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Inquiries can be made to 404-463-3272 or transportation@atlantaregional.com. ARC will also hold a public hearing about the amendment at a July 28 board meeting. Other opportunities for the public to learn more about specific changes being proposed. People or organizations desiring a briefing or discussion on the amendment should contact Judith Dovers at transportation@ atlantaregional.com or 404-463-3272.
Program to help families buy homes By Carla Parker
Some help is on the way for families looking to purchase a home for an affordable price when the National Neighborhood SHOcase Tour comes to Atlanta in August to give an edge to homeowners, rather than investors. At a July 7 press conference announcing the tour, representatives of APD Solutions, a national Neighborhood Revitalization firm, were joined by DeKalb Commissioner Larry Johnson, local partners, and other community leaders to announce the program’s Atlanta launch. Vaughn Irons, APD Solutions CEO, said The Neighborhood SHOcase is a Special Homeownership Opportunity (SHO) event that offers working families the opportunity to purchase real estate at Vaughn Irons an affordable price at an auction marketplace without competition from investors. It will roll into Atlanta on Aug.1 with 59 properties in the city of Atlanta, DeKalb and Fulton counties. DeKalb’s 12 properties are located in Decatur, Ellenwood, Lithonia and Tucker. Irons said the group’s goal is to put properties into the possession of neighborhood people who will live in them. But before the auction begins, APD Solutions prepares the prospective homeowners with the know-how to benefit from the auction. Irons said the primary beneficiary of the nation’s current housing market hasn’t been home buyers. “It’s been investors, who have gone in and purchased these properties and rent it to families instead of helping them own the properties,” he said. “What we’re all going to do is change that balance, to put more power in the hands of regular working people, the type of folks you would rather live next to instead of living next door to an empty, vacant, foreclosed property.” The national tour’s first stop will be in metro Atlanta, where Fulton and DeKalb counties lead the state in foreclosure. Over the last two years, Irons said that
The Neighborhood SHOcase tour favors homeowners and not investors. It shows families how to navigate home auctions and get the best price for their homes.
there have been nearly 2.9 million foreclosures. Projections indicate that number will increase to 11 million new foreclosures by 2012. APDS will host a series of homebuyer preparation seminars, starting through July 21 at different locations and through HomebyRequest.com, its consumer website. Irons said the workshops will prepare potential buyers on what to expect at the SHOcase and to ensure homeownership readiness. “We are trying to create a marketplace for homebuyers that present an opportunity to purchase their new home at a real value,” he said.
Johnson, whose Commission District 3 is home to hundreds of foreclosed properties, said he is really excited about the program and thinks DeKalb County is going to benefit from it. “We have neighborhoods who are off the charts in terms of homes boarded up; we got whole blocks,” he said. “This neighborhood showcase is an opportunity for us to take the blocks back, house by house.” The Aug. 1 auction will take place at 1 p.m. at the Legends Event Center,181 Ralph David Abernathy Blvd. in Atlanta. Free seminars will be held at Greenforest CDC, 3299 Rainbow Drive in Decatur. The following dates and times are:
Mortgage rates dip to 50-year low Mortgage rates dipped to their lowest point in five decades this week. The rates fell to 4.57 per cent, capping two straight weeks of decline. Rates have fallen over the past two months as investors, concerned with the European debt crisis, have poured money into Treasury bonds. But the new low rates have yet to fuel home sales because high unemployment have impaired people’s ability to buy, and many homeowners have lost equity in their homes and owe more on them. Banks are also skittish about lending. This week ‘s rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to an average of 4.07 percent, up from 4.04 percent last week, the lowest on records since September 1991. Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.75 percent, down from 3.79 percent a week earlier. Average rates on one-year adjustablerate mortgages fell to 3.75 percent from 3.80 percent. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points. A point is equal to 1 percent of the total loan amount. The nationwide fee for all types of loans in Freddie Mac’s survey averaged 0.7 a point. n July 13, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. n July 15, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. n July 17, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. n July 22, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
There is a $25 fee for a July 14 seminar at the Wesley Chapel –William C. Brown Library at 2861 Wesley Chapel Road in Decatur; and a $20 fee for a July 21 seminar at the Flat Shoals Library at 4022 Flat Shoals Parkway in Decatur. Both one-hour seminars start at 6 p.m. For webinar times and dates or to register for any seminars, visit www.homebyrequest. com. For more information about the SHOcase auction or APD Solutions, visit www.APDSolutions.com.