Author: On Common Ground News

Georgians can now add driver’s license renewal and other licensing transactions to their grocery List. The Department of Driver Services (DDS) has joined the Georgia Department of Revenue (DOR) vehicle registration self-service kiosks located at select Kroger and Publix stores, allowing customers to take care of their driver services transactions while shopping. “DDS encourages customers to take advantage of this service making the process of renewing driver’s licenses and identification cards more convenient, secure and efficient than ever before,” DDS Commissioner Spencer R. Moore said. DDS has now joined 53 existing DOR self-service kiosks at Kroger locations and five at Publix…

Bus shuttles provided from Brookhaven to Lenox and Chamblee Stations  ATLANTA –MARTA trains will temporarily skip stop Brookhaven Station from Oct. 7 to Nov. 15 so construction crews can replace the 40-year-old pavers on the rail station platform. Rail service on the Gold Line will operate as scheduled, but trains will not stop at Brookhaven Station.  Because there is no track work associated with this project, just platform work, trains can travel through the station but will not stop. MARTA will provide bus shuttle service between Brookhaven and Lenox Station to the south and Brookhaven and Chamblee Station to the north. Local bus service (Routes 8,…

CONYERS, GA – Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04) issued the following statement after closely monitoring the BioLab fire in conjunction with local, state, and federal officials, meeting with residents and considering the plant’s safety record: “As the number of people living in and around Conyers and the surrounding area continues to grow, this plant – which stores toxic chemicals – has become a threat to public health and should no longer be allowed to operate at its current location,” said Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04). “I’m not only calling for stronger federal regulations around the storage of hazard chemicals with reactive properties,…

DECATUR, GA – In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene’s devastating impact across Georgia, the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office has set up a donation center to assist residents in Uvalda and Augusta. Donations will be accepted starting today through Tuesday, Oct. 8, 8:30  a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at the DeKalb County Jail, the agency’s headquarters, 4415 Memorial Drive, Decatur. “Hurricane Helene has passed, but its effects are still being felt throughout the state. We are proud to collaborate with our community partner, renowned record producer Nitti Beatz, to collect essential items for those in Uvalda and Augusta, two communities greatly impacted by…

DECATUR, GA—DeKalb County Cooperative Extension will host two virtual  Family and Consumer Sciences in October. The free Fall classes will be held on Oct. 14 and Oct.  28 at 11:30 a.m. See the flier below for more details:  

DECATUR, G A—DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond and the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners are sending 5,000 boxes of food and emergency supplies to Augusta, GA to support the region’s Hurricane Helene recovery efforts. “DeKalb County is honored to support Mayor Johnson and our neighbors in Augusta who are struggling to recover from the devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene,” Thurmond said. The Good Neighbor Express will leave for Augusta at 4 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 4, to deliver 5,000 boxes containing Georgia-grown fruits, vegetables and produce that can be consumed without cooking, sanitizers, masks and COVID-19 tests. The 10 18-wheelers…

(UPDATED) City of Stonecrest Planning and Zoning Legal Notice – Oct. 8, 2024

ROCKDALE COUNTY, GA– Overnight, monitoring around the Bio Lab facility detected some exceedances above the action level for chlorine, officials said today, Oct. 2. The current weather models show the winds will begin to shift from the east to the west after sunset Wednesday. Smoke is predicted to settle toward the ground as it moves toward Atlanta. There is a high likelihood that people across metro Atlanta will wake up on Thursday morning seeing haze and smelling chlorine. The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD), Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH), in coordination with the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security…

President Biden to visit North Carolina, Vice President Harris to visit Georgia  WASHINGTON –Today, President Biden will be in North Carolina and Vice President Harris will be in Georgia meeting with community leaders and first responders as rescue operations continue to assist thousands of Hurricane Helene survivors jumpstart their recoveries with more than $10 million in flexible, upfront federal funding. More than 4,800 personnel from across the federal workforce are deployed and more than 1,000 are from the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA). To date, FEMA has shipped over 8.8 million meals, more than 7.4 million liters of water, 150 generators…

GWINNETT COUNTY, GA– The Gwinnett County Police Department is seeking information from the public concerning a hit-and-run collision that resulted in the death of a pedestrian. On Sept. 27, at approximately 4 a.m., Mecha Woodard, 24, Sandy Springs pulled her vehicle over and began walking in the gore zone between State Route 316 and the entrance ramp from Boggs Road when she was struck by an unknown vehicle. The gore zone is a triangular area where a road merges with a larger road. The suspect vehicle suffered damage to the front passenger-side bumper and headlight. Investigators with our Accident Investigation…