A while back someone openly wondered in the comments what would be the fewest number of words that could get a conversation going on DM.  I mulled it on and off for a bit and came up with this “versus” idea.

The idea is quite simple.  Put up two competing people, places, things and let people argue which is superior.

It’s a pretty quiet day on the Decatur front, so I figure we give it a shot.  If popular, subsequent “Versus” posts will be little more than the post title.

If you have suggestions for “Versus” topics, send ‘em in!

Hot off a Decatur Book Festival press release…

The AJC Decatur Book Festival Presented by DeKalb Medical (AJC DBF) has named Young Adult Author Terra Elan McVoy to the role of Program Director, succeeding Festival co-founder Thomas Bell, AJC DBF Executive Director Daren Wang announced today.

“ I’ ve known and admired Terra since the days when the festival was just a hare-brained scheme,” said Wang. “ I continue to be in awe of the energy she brings to all of her endeavors, and look forward to working with her to plan the best book festival yet.”

Bell, who along with Wang co-founded the festival in 2006, is partner at Chronicle LLC, an editorial and creative services company firm under contract with the Festival to manage programming. Bell will continue to be active with Festival planning and supervise McVoy in her Program Director role.

McVoy, author of Pure and After the Kiss, will take charge of planning all curated author events at the Festival. She was an early volunteer with the festival and, with Little Shop of Stories co-owner Diane Capriola, planned all children’ s programming at the Festival since 2006.

In 2008, she created The Escape, the festival’ s dedicated stage and program track for teenagers. In 2010, McVoy left her position as manager of Little Shop of Stories to become the Festival’ s first Assistant Program Director. In that role she created and formalized more efficient processes for festival planning and execution. She also originated the “ Homegrown Goodness” track of author events, a very popular series of authors speaking on topics such as home gardening, locavore eating, and practical crafts.

The HOST case is back!

A press release announces that the decade-long HOST (Homestead Option Sales Tax) dispute between Decatur (and other DeKalb cities) versus DeKalb County over millions of dollars in HOST money will heard by the Georgia Supreme Court for a third time next Tuesday, February 8th.  Here’s all the background on the case, courtesy of the release.  Also it’s good to know that by last estimate, Decatur was owed $10 million in back HOST/capital improvement money by DeKalb County.

CITY OF DECATUR ET AL. V. DEKALB COUNTY (S11A0354)

This appeal stems from a dispute between four cities in DeKalb County and the county government over the distribution and expenditure of tax revenues. This is the third time this case has come to the Georgia Supreme Court.

FACTS: In 1998, the cities of Decatur, Chamblee, Doraville and Stone Mountain, along with other DeKalb municipalities, entered into a 49-year intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the county to provide for the distribution of millions of dollars in sales tax proceeds. The agreement required the county to share with the cities a portion of Homestead Option Sales and Use Tax (HOST) money. HOST is a countywide one-cent sales tax approved by voters in 1997 to help offset property taxes. Under the HOST statute, 80 percent of the revenues must be used for that purpose, with the remaining 20 percent to be used to fund capital improvements. Under the agreement, the cities could use the money as they pleased as long as they were used for “capital outlay projects” within county boundaries.

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Local historic districts, development in commercial districts and potential live-work housing are key components of Decatur Strategic Plan Goal #3…

Goal 3: Protect existing neighborhoods while promoting growth in desired areas and adopting standards that guide future growth

Decatur’s neighborhoods are the foundation for the high quality of life that the city enjoys today, and must be preserved and protected. However, if the city is to adequately respond to changing demographics, it must accommodate new housing and retail options. The community expressed the desire to accommodate new growth and protect existing neighborhoods by continued emphasis on appropriately scaled and designed development within existing commercial districts.

Task 3A Adopt new transitional design standards.

In recent decades, Decatur has used buffers and height limits to transition between existing neighborhoods and new development. These have focused on separating such areas, rather than unifying them. As an alternative, new design techniques should be explored to provide appropriate connection between new development and existing neighborhoods, such as improved architectural design, scale and massing, and landscaping.

Task 3B Continue to encourage private residential, retail, and commercial development in existing commercial districts.

Commercial districts are ideally suited to accommodate the housing types needed to serve Decatur’s future. Development here should provide multifamily units for sale or rent, townhouses, live-work units, senior housing, and other options.

Task 3C Encourage the creation of new local historic districts.

The creation of local historic districts is the best tool at Decatur’s disposal for ensuring the physical preservation of historic neighborhoods. The City should support efforts to establish additional historic districts.

Task 3D Strive to realize long-term build-out visions for commercial areas expressed in the Concept Plans.

Please see the Concept Plans for examples of how new development in these areas could occur.

Task 3E Reexamine historic design standards and restrictions against historic home demolition.

The preservation of neighborhood character is as much about protecting historic homes as it is ensuring compatible new construction. While new construction is now regulated by zoning, retaining the historic character of existing homes is also critical. A citywide reexamination of regulations affecting the preservation of historic homes should be undertaken, and regulatory changes made, if appropriate.

Task 3F: Study if live-work housing can be implemented in existing neighborhoods without a negative impact on nearby homes.

As technology and employment continue to evolve, more Decatur residents are running small businesses from their homes. Although current zoning regulates the types of home businesses that can occur, these may need to be reviewed or modified periodically to ensure their relevance.

Task 3G: Improve the predictability and efficiency of the process for new development approval by establishing development standards and requirements that are consistent with the goals of the strategic plan.

The AJC reports unprecedented optimism surrounding legislation that would allow the Sunday sale of liquor in the state of Georgia…

The chances of success for legislation letting voters legalize Sunday alcohol sales at stores got a lot better Wednesday when it easily zipped through a Senate committee.

In a dramatic contrast to past years, no one spoke out against the bill when it came before the Senate State and Local Governmental Operations Committee on Wednesday, and it passed on a 6-1 vote about 40 minutes after the meeting began.

The bill, if passed by both houses and signed by the Governor, would let city and county commissions set Sunday sales elections.