Serving DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale Counties
Volume 19 Number 5
www.ocgnews.com
june 1, 2013
FREE
Chess champion takes $20,000 challenge head-on By Valerie J. Morgan
City of Stonecrest organizers set first community-wide meeting By Valerie J. Morgan
The Stonecrest City Alliance will have a community-wide meeting on June 10, 6 to 8 p.m., at the Stonecrest Library, 3123 Klondike Road, Lithonia. The Alliance’s president, Jason Lary, is hosting the meeting for the community to discuss the possibility of creating a new city in the Jason Lary unincorporated areas of southeast DeKalb County. “We want people to express if they think it’s a viable idea, but primarily we want to educate people on the process for creating a city and discuss the benefits of smaller government,” said Lary. Lary said the Alliance will use the community meeting to recruit volunteers to serve on the board and sign up those who would like to represent their neighborhoods or homeowner’s groups and be a part of the planning stages. Although the exact boundaries for the new city are still being developed, the Alliance’s proposed map includes dozens of communities near the Panola, Evans Mill and Turner Hill road exits. Lary estimates the population of the new city at 50,000 to 55,000. Under Senate Bill 278, the Stonecrest City Council would be comprised of six elected members plus a mayor. State Sen. Ronald Ramsey, who represents District 43, which covers parts of DeKalb, Rockdale and Newton counties, filed the bill on behalf of Lary on the last day of the 2013 Legislative session following other DeKalb lawmakers who filed bills for new cities. “Basically, you’re looking at creating a community that would make its own decisions about those quality of life issues that are important to all of us—safer communities, clean thoroughfares, protecting our property values, providing adequate zoning and so forth,” said Lary. “If very small municipalities such as the City of Pine Lake with 1,000 people can exist, I think that a city of 50,000 to 55,000 people is very viable.” But lawmakers such as State Rep. Pam Stephenson, who represents District 90, aren’t so sure about the rush to create so many new cities. Although she filed HB 687 to create a City of DeKalb, she also filed HB 692 to prohibit annexation within three miles of a municipality, both measures aimed at slowing down the movement for more cities. Lary said that’s why he feels it is important to have the community weigh in on what it wants and why he’s seeking input. The Alliance’s executive board currently
See Stonecrest, page 6
STONE MOUNTAIN—Orrin Hudson is taking on Goliath and he likes his odds. Hudson must raise $10,000 this month in order for Be Someone, his youth mentoring organization, to receive a $20,000 challenge grant from a local family foundation. “A million people have told me I can’t raise $10,000 in such a short time, but God told me that I can. Beating the odds is what I was born to do,” said Hudson, a two-time World Open Speed Chess champion who has trained over 30,000 children across the U.S. and overseas. Hudson said he has been working the telephones every day to meet the goal for the challenge grant. He has contacted Facebook friends, community leaders and others and he has gone on a media blitz to push the campaign. “Every dollar counts,” he said. Hudson plans to use the money he raises and the challenge grant to provide leadership training this summer to 250 youths at the Be Someone Training Center in Stone
News..................P 3
Mountain. He also plans to hire additional support staff for the training center. The kids will learn chess at various levels—beginner, intermediate and advanced—in
addition to life skills. “We teach them how to
See Orrin, page 6
Some Rockdale businesses overcharging sales tax now reduced to 6 percent
T
By Joshua Smith
he next time you buy something in Rockdale, doublecheck the receipt. As of April 1, sales tax collected in Rockdale County decreased from 7 percent to 6 percent. The decrease is the result of the expiration of the 2008 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for education, or SPLOST III. Although the lowered tax percent became affective in April, some businesses are not complying. “They probably just don’t know there’s been a change,” said Richard Hill, On Common Ground News advertising manager after paying too much tax at two different Conyers restaurants recently. “I bought food at American Deli and they had no clue about the lowered tax. They went and asked other surrounding businesses about it, but still charged me 7 percent. A Subway here that charged $5.35 for a $5 meal should have charged $5.30 under the new sales tax. You do that through the course of a day for every customer that walks through the door for weeks at a time and it adds up. ” The state Department of Revenue (DOR) said it posted an online bulletin about the decrease in the Rockdale sales tax. According to Regional Manager Kerry Herndon, revenue agents are regularly in the field randomly checking to make sure that retailers are collecting the correct amount of sales tax. Herndon said his office has received some complaints from consumers who were charged too much tax but he didn’t know how many. “We update our website every quarter at etax.dor. ga.gov for businesses to remain aware of changes such as this one,” Herndon said. “If a customer reports that a business is collecting 7 percent instead of 6 percent, we will send out an agent to investigate. If the business continues to not comply and is still collecting the 7 percent after that, they are subject to an audit and the penalties that may come along with it. Any business still collecting 7 percent is required to remit those monies received to t to the Department of Revenue.” Rockdale County Tax Commissioner R.J. Hadley says he has been trying to notify local businesses about the sales tax changes by both word of mouth and online. On May 7, Hadley sent out an email to his community list, which
INSIDE: p Community
Orrin “Checkmate” Hudson trains a group of youths in the DeKalb 100 Black Men’s Leadership Academy program.
Richard Hill shows the receipt that he received from a Conyers SUBWAY, which charged 7 percent sales tax instead of 6 percent.
includes local homeowners associations and the ConyersRockdale Chamber of Commerce. “While this office is not responsible for the collection of sales tax, I wanted to respond to the numerous inquiries we had received on this issue. That’s what prompted me to send the e-mail,” said Hadley. “DOR does not actively notify each business owner of the sales tax change.” Hadley has some advice for residents who come in contact with business that are not complying with the change. “If residents come across a business still charging 7 percent sales tax in Rockdale, I suggest they inform the manager/owner of the change and ask for a correction. Showing the DOR bulletin may also be helpful,” said Hadley. The DOR Office of Special Investigations can be reached at 1-877-423-6711, Option 3.”
CONTACT THE NEWSROOM: Phone: (678) 526-1910 n Fax: (678) 526-1909 n E-mail: editor@ocgnews.com p People.............................P
11
p Business.........................P
12
p We
Worship.....................P 13
p Health
& Wellness...........P 14
p Classifieds.......................P
15