Macarolina writes in…

PMcG’s comment re his trivia efforts last night made me think a blurb discussing Decatur and Atlanta’s trivia culture might raise some good comments on where best places to play in Decatur are, do people shop around or go to a regular spot, are there any places for solo players to join forces, etc? Is trivia more popular in the Atlanta area than in other places people have lived?

From the City Schools of Decatur…

We are proud and excited to announce that Dianna Herron-Watson has been chosen to be the new principal at Glennwood Elementary for the 2010 – 2011 school year. Dianna has worked for City Schools of Decatur for fourteen years. She began teaching at College Heights Elementary in the Kinderheim program. Dianna taught at Clairemont Elementary and served as the Instructional Coach for two years. This is her second year at Winnona Park Elementary as the Instructional Coach and a member of the School Leadership Team. Dianna was selected after two interviews; one with staff and parents and a second with the Instructional Services personnel and the Superintendent.

Raised in Missouri, Dianna received her B.S. degree from Missouri State University in Community Commercial Recreation. Moving to Atlanta she worked at the Omni International Hotel, serving as Director of Reservations and Front Office Manager. After adopting her children, Dianna began working with Decatur First United Methodist Church Preschool.

Dianna attended Brenau University obtaining her initial teaching certificate and Master in Early Childhood Education. Currently, she is completing her Education Specialist degree with Valdosta State University.

Dianna is married to Robert Watson and has raised two children who attended City Schools of Decatur schools. In her spare time she enjoys gardening and kayaking.

Andisheh writes in…

I found out today Mrs. Gene Morse passed away Saturday. She was 90.

Even if you don’t know her name, I suspect you and many Decatur Metro readers know something about her. Woodland Gardens on Scott Boulevard was her home for the past 64 years. Over the decades, Gene and her late husband, Dr. Chester Morse, bought parcels adjacent to their original plot until they’d amassed about seven acres. Their intention was to keep the land as a nature preserve; an oasis of trees and plant life in an area that, even back when they bought it, was rapidly developing. Over the decades, the family turned down many offers by developers who tried to buy the land. In 2002, the family donated the land to the Decatur Preservation Alliance. They wanted to make it a public green space for the community. Even though Mrs. Morse lived in the house on the property, the garden has been open to visitors for years.

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If you didn’t have a chance to attend Decatur’s Strategic Plan “Open House” a couple Saturday’s back, you missed out on some excellent free food and refreshments.  You also missed the chance to get a sneak peak at the city’s 2010 Strategic Plan Goals, along with some very interesting development options for Decatur’s commercial districts.

Now if this were the 1998 Strategic Planning process and you missed the open house, you’d be SOL unless you wanted to make a trip downtown to City Hall.  However, this being the “age of accessibility”, you don’t even have to put any weight on your feet to go over the goals yourself.  You’ll find all four principles and goals after the jump; courtesy of the city and the good people at DecaturNext.  You may notice that many are quite similar to the 2000 goals, but there are a few new ones.  Applaud yourselves for being consistent!

As is mentioned on DecaturNext, the next step in the process will probably be the most interesting to you: coming up with specific projects to meet these goals.  DNext promises meetings in the new year to go over these.  To be sure, the city and consultants probably already have an extensive list of potential projects from the roundtables early this year, but take a look and feel free to reiterate what sort of projects you’d like to see under specific goals on the list.

For example, under Goal A2, I would probably suggest something like – provide a financial incentive to attract a grocery store/co-op to downtown Decatur.

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From WSB…

Decatur City Schools Delayed Opening Today 2 hours

Submitted at: 12:29 AM EST on Thursday, Dec 16

DeKalb County Schools Dekalb County

Delayed 2 hours, Buses Delayed 2 Hours