1st Annual Butterfly House & Pollinator Exhibit

Tails on Trails

Club encourages four-legged friends on park trails

Georgia State Parks & Historic Sites has launched a dog walking club, “Tails on Trails.” Hikers and their four-legged companions are challenged to hike seven trails at Georgia state parks and upon completion, dogs earn a bandana and their owners earn a T-shirt for logging the miles. Dog walkers have always been welcome in Georgia state parks, and the Tails on Trails club offers a way for owners and their dogs to accomplish designated hikes. Those who would like to join can purchase a $15 membership card at any of the seven participating parks’ visitor centers or online at GaStateParks.org/TailsOnTrails.

Owners must abide by state parks rules: keep dogs on a leash no more than 6-feet, clean up after dogs, and never leave dogs unattended in campsites, cottages or vehicles. Georgia state parks offer several dog-friendly cottages, which are available to book online at GaStateParks.org/ TailsOnTrails. These select cottages often fill quickly, so reservations are highly recommended. A $45 fee per dog (limit 2) is charged.

The following seven trails are part of the “Tails on Trails” club:

Fort Mountain State Park (Chatsworth)

Explore a shaded forest and a serene creek valley along the 1.1-mile stretch of Fort Mountain’s Lake Trail. The trail is short and mostly flat, making a great running loop for owners and their dog.

F.D. Roosevelt State Park (Pine Mountain)

Dogs will enjoy roaming on the gentle, rolling mountains of F.D. Roosevelt, Georgia’s largest state park. The Mountain Creek Trail is one of the most scenic, and passes through several plant habitats such as pine and hardwood forests.

Don Carter State Park (Gainesville)

The hike on the Lakeview Loop Trail showcases Don Carter State Park’s prime location on the 38,000-acre Lake Lanier, and is paved for stroller and wheelchair accessibility. Dog owners who are seeking shade can venture into the forest to hike the Woodland Loop Trail.

Sweetwater Creek State Park (Lithia Springs)

Sweetwater Creek features two trails for “Tails on Trails” club members, and both lead to the ruins from the New Manchester Manufacturing Company. The Red Trail, 2 miles, is the most frequently used trail and leads directly to the mill ruins. For a longer hike through the park’s wildlife and plant communities, members can hike along Sweetwater Creek’s rocky banks on the 5-mile White Trail.

High Falls State Park (Jackson)

Dogs can frolic along the Towliga River accompanied by the sound of the upcoming High Falls. The 1.5-mile Falls Trail is a moderately challenging trek through hilly forests that offers a rewarding waterfall view.

Fort McAllister State Park (Richmond Hill)

Stroll on the 3.1-mile Redbird Creek Trail under the cover of Spanish moss and discover scenic views of salt marshes, coastal wetlands and nature-viewing opportunities at Fort McAllister State Park.

Red Top Mountain State Park (Cartersville)

The White Tail Trail of Red Top Mountain State Park meanders through hardwood forest to a beautiful overlook of Lake Allatoona.

Additional Georgia state parks with dog trails are listed at GaStateParks.org/Dog-Walking living in the mountains is the people. “They’re so friendly and willing to help with anything and always smiling,” she said. “There’s great energy here that’s not found in many areas.”

Like many others, Jackie and Jonathan Griffin fell in love with the scenery, cooler weather and friendly people of north Georgia. They found the mountain homes had just the right balance of warm-and-cozy with trendy new touches – rustic meeting industrial with a splash of modern features. They strolled through towns that had a very cool vibe and a hip/urban culture.

The couple is still working, but plan to retire in the next five years. Their plan includes a home in the mountains, so they had one built; it was completed and became theirs at the end of March this year. They expected, and got, a relaxing retreat. What they didn’t expect was that they could still enjoy all the modern conveniences of city life.

“Moving from a city to the mountains, it was a natural concern that I would not be able to get a Starbucks coffee when I wanted one, and that my favorite shoes would be a day trip of shopping away,” Jackie said. “Surprise! Starbucks is around the corner… and I traded in my favorite shoes for new favorite hiking boots.”

In fact, the mountains have provided them with lots of new experiences. Jonathan and Jackie have discovered kayaking down the river, fishing in the stream and hiking the mountain trails. In the evening, they enjoy trying out the variety of restaurants, each featuring unique menu items. “It’s surprising that there are so many things to do in a very small town,” added Jonathan. “We’ve discovered something new each week, and yet we live in the peaceful quiet of the mountains.”

“When we first started looking for a ‘cabin’ in the mountains, we didn’t really know what we were looking for,” said Debbie Prantl. She and her husband Jim kept looking, and the more they saw, the more they determined that the view was key. Debbie said that Realtor Suzi Henry was kind enough to work with them for months, and although they saw many lovely homes, none were the right fit.

They decided that they wanted a view of Lake Blue Ridge and the mountain ranges. That’s when they found Realtor Nathan Fitts and his group.

“At the time, the land was still full of trees and we couldn’t see the view,” Debbie said. “We were going on faith and Nathan’s word that our perfect view was out there. Once we saw the aerial photos taken by a drone, we knew he was right, and we fell in love with it.”

The building of their perfect mountain retreat was complete in May of last year, and their dream was realized. Since Jim is still working, he sometimes commutes to Atlanta or they occasionally stay in their Atlanta home.

But Jim and Debbie can’t get enough of the peace and beauty of the mountains. They wake up to the sounds of birds singing in the morning, and see families of deer strolling through their yard in the evening. During the day, they sit on their deck and enjoy the view, or take a ride into town and browse through the many shops. They dine at the area’s fabulous restaurants, or engage in some of the many activities – like golf, hiking, boating and rafting. They’ve also attended the community theater in Blue Ridge, and highly recommend it.

“I think we’re really surprised at how much we feel at home here. We never want to leave,” Debbie said. “We’ve been informed by our son that we can never sell this home because it has a history already. Last Fourth of July, he proposed to his girlfriend here on our ‘Juliette balcony.’ Hopefully, it will stay in the family for many years to come.”

In 2000, Natalie Sharp found herself in need of a hobby as stress relief to her hectic career in the orthodontic industry. She visited Blue Ridge and cast her way into a new hobby of fly fishing. “After a short weekend learning the sport, it was apparent that the beauty of the mountains and the small town of Blue Ridge were tugging at my heart,” she said.

The beauty of the mountains, rivers and creeks touched Natalie deeply. She loved the quaintness of the Blue Ridge community, its town and the ease of meeting and making friends. Fly fishing and the north Georgia mountains quickly became her passion. Throughout the next year, all of her free time and holidays were spent in a rented cabin so she could further explore mountain living and enjoy a simple, peaceful way of life.

Natalie met Nathan Fitts, a meeting that eventually led to her purchase of a mountain home under construction. In 2002, she relocated to Blue Ridge from the Atlanta area. Natalie credits Nathan’s knowledge of the area for her wonderful mountain home and mountain life. According to her, Nathan has an understanding of the area that helped him locate just the right mountain home to meet her needs.

“I moved to the mountains to escape the city traffic and find a quieter lifestyle,” Natalie said. “Lifestyle is really a choice in Blue Ridge; you can sit back and relax or stay busy. Fly fishing is my passion and way to relax, so my free time is usually spent on or around water. But I also enjoy gardening, going to the farmers markets and learning to can jellies, jams and other vegetables.”

Even though she’s enjoying her mountain ‘retirement,’ Natalie found that she needs to stay active and can’t ever imagine not working. She surprised herself when her fly fishing hobby turned into a part-time business in 2002. It was then that she started SharperBites.com, “fly fishing with a gourmet bite.” SharperBites caters each fly fishing experience to meet the needs of clients, for corporate teambuilding events, ladies’ fly fishing clubs, couple or family outings or just friends getting together for a relaxing day on the water.

“Fishing private water is ‘where fly fishing meets a touch of heaven,’ and living in Blue

Ridge is as close as you can get to heaven on Earth,” Natalie explained. “The quality of life, the people and the mountain way of life here are a true blessings.”

Escape To The North Georgia Mountains

Pollack Shores Real Estate Group has released a rendering of a new mixed-use development it will build on Spring Street in Midtown. The new development, called 1270 Spring Street , will have 259 luxury apartments, 14,000 square feet of retail space and 3,000 square feet of live/work space. A coffee shop and restaurant concept are being eyed to anchor the retail portion. The one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments reflect modern luxury amenities including large balconies, plank flooring, large kitchen islands, granite and quartz countertops, under mount sinks and pendant lighting. 1270 Spring Street is scheduled to have the first units available by March 2018 with the final completion expected to be early summer 2018. Matrix Residential, the multi-family residential management of Pollack Shores, will manage the residential portion of the property. Pollack Shores is also currently developing Millworks, a 345unit community in Buckhead, and is spearheading the residential portion of The Atlanta Braves mixed-use development in Cobb County called Battery Atlanta.

Developer Trillist and sbe are proposing to build SLS Atlanta Hotel & Residences , a new 42-story building at 1122 Crescent Avenue in Midtown. The development would include 213 hotel rooms and 56 condominiums.

A mixed-use apartment, hotel and retail high-rise called Ascent Midtown has broken ground at West Peachtree and Spring streets. Designed by R2L:Architects and being built by Greystar, the development will feature 176 hotel rooms and 328 apartments. Ground floor retail space will also be part of the final project.

Loundermilk Cos. has unveiled an 18-story condo tower in the heart of Buckhead Village. The building would go up across from Charlie Loudermilk Park and Buckhead Theatre, just behind the building that houses Mitchell Gold+Bob Williams furniture. Designed by locally based firm Lord Aeck Sargent, the building is slated to include 57 two- and three-bedroom condo units atop three levels of parking and 30,000 square feet of retail space.

Sixty11th, a 20-story mixed-use development, located between 11th and 12th streets on Crescent Avenue, is now leasing all studio, one-, two- and three- bedroom apartment homes. Features include quartz countertops, Energy Star appliances, designer fixtures, USB charging outlets, floor-to-ceiling window walls and panoramic city views. Sixty11th is a gigabyte-connected facility which will accommodate heavy streaming content users. Monthly rental rates begin at $1,638 for studio apartments, $1,771 for one-bedroom homes, $2,844 for two-bedroom homes and $3,879 for three-bedroom homes. For more information, visit sixty11th. com.

Chattanooga-based Compass Auctions & Real Estate, LLC has been selected by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to list and sell a group of properties in 40 parcels adjacent to Turner Field in Downtown. The 40 parcels equal 4.67 acres and are located between Hank Aaron Drive and Georgia Avenue. While Georgia State University and its partners are purchasing the Turner Field property to transform it into a football stadium and mixed-use development, Compass will handle the sale of the remaining 40 parcels. The properties are zoned MRC-1-C, which stands for Mixed Residential Commercial District

Thousands

Meet Christie Kinsaul, who moved to Canterbury Court to downsize and simplify her life. Little did she know how much she would love her new lifestyle.

“Maintaining a two-story townhouse and everything in it was taking considerable time and effort. I was ready for some changes, and I wanted to make the move on my own terms.”

Christie didn’t expect to find such luxurious living in a one-bedroom apartment, which she says “is plenty big” and comes with full services and amenities. She was also delighted to discover an abundance of activities designed for resident interests, including outings to local events. As a retired music teacher, she’s especially fond of going to the Atlanta Symphony and the opera.

Along with more flexibility to spend her time as she chooses, Christie’s move to Canterbury Court has given her peace of mind knowing that on-site health services are available, should she ever need them.

Isadora Pennington

Forward Warrior, an annual live painting performance, was back to Cabbagetown last month as artists painted large-scale murals near Krog Street Tunnel. Pictured clockwise from left: Daniel Scoggins, Johnny Warren, William Bruce Mitchell and work in progress by Benito Ferro.