From Decatur’s Casie Yoder…

Construction at Trinity and E. Howard will begin in full on Monday, September 29.

Here is what travelers need to know:

· E. Howard will be closed for bike-ped-car traffic including the PATH trail for an 18-24 month period starting this weekend.
· In addition, there will be no sidewalk service on the south side of Trinity Street between Church Street and E. Howard Avenue. For this reason, there will be no mid-block crossing on Trinity.
Alternate routes will be posted on the street this weekend. Here is a snapshot of those alternate routes:

· The alternate PATH bike route will be on Church Street and E. Ponce de Leon Avenue.
· The alternate pedestrian routes for the E. Howard will be on Church Street and E. College Street.
For more information, please contact the City of Decatur, Design, Environment & Construction Division at 678.553.6570.

From Decatur Police Sgt. Jennifer Ross…

This Saturday, September 27th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. drop by and turn in your unused or expired medication for safe disposal in front of the Decatur Police Department, located at 420 West Trinity Place, Decatur, GA 30030. The goal of the DEA “Drug Take Back” program is to prevent pill abuse and theft by giving everyone the opportunity to turn in potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs for disposal. Decatur last participated in the drug take back program in April 2014 and took in 150 pounds of prescription drugs.

West Ponce de Leon Ave, Decatur GA

With a number of new residences being built downtown, it seemed only a matter of time before a neighborhood association popped up.  And here it is!  George writes in…

I am working to create a downtown decatur neighborhood association and would appreciate your support in publicizing the organizational meeting scheduled for November 12 at 7:00 at the Decatur Recreation Center.  I have been working with the planning department and Commissioner Scott Drake, as well as other residents.

The Facebook page is Decatur Downtown Neighbors.  I am happy to discuss with you if you need additional information.

On the site’s Facebook page you begin to a get a sense already of some of the groups’ initial concerns.  Here’s a post accompanied with pictures of the city’s vacant parking lots…

Despite all the development underway, there are many sites whose future has not been decided. The new residents will need new amenities (like a park), and the City should look at these sites to ensure a good quality of life for the growing number of downtown residents.

Photo of future development site – Callaway Building – courtesy of Downtown Neighborhood Assoc. Facebook page

Feel free to use this post to make comments and ask questions about local topics not discussed here over the past week.

Comments close on Monday.

It sounds like the City of Decatur and Medlock Park have finally had an official meeting to discuss annexation.

Reporting out of a meeting between MANA board members and Decatur City Manager Peggy Merriss, Mayor Baskett and Commissioner Boykin, MANA acting President Lynn Ganim stated in a recent post on the Medlock Area Neighborhood Association website…

The gist of Decatur’s response is that they are not interested in annexing the Medlock neighborhood or any other significant residential area because of the effect on the Decatur schools. There were no qualifications in their response. That door (or should we say “gateway”) is not open to us.

So what are Medlock’s options at this point?  According to Ganim…

It appears that at this point our choices include being annexed into Atlanta (assuming Clairmont Heights and Druid Hills also decide on the same course of action), being included in a new city (whatever compromise Lakeside and Briarcliff or the legislature determines,) or remaining in a possibly dramatically smaller unincorporated DeKalb County.

Yea! returns for a second year!  From the Decatur Arts Alliance’s Angie Macon…

The Decatur Arts Alliance (DAA) announces the return of YEA!, a popular new event designed to celebrate the talents of young artists and musicians in Decatur. On Saturday, Sept. 27th more than 60 young Decatur artists (grades K-12) set up an artists market on the square in downtown Decatur offering their creative works for sale, and musicians will perform. The festival hours are noon-4 pm. The event is free and open to the public.

Here is the musical line up:

12:00 p.m. Waldorf Chamber Orchestra

12:20 p.m. Nelson Jones and Max Moore

12:45 p.m.  Kinder Fűnf

1:15 p.m.  Rings of Saturn

1:45 p.m.  The Stray Kittens

2:15 p.m.  Robin Tucker

2:45 p.m.  Emerson Barrett

3:20 p.m.  Scene of the Crime

3:45 p.m.  No Komment