About Dawson County news. (Dawsonville, Georgia) 2015-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 24, 2022)
4A I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I dawsonnews.com Wednesday, August 24,2022 Daughter of reality TV show star arrested in Forsyth on DUI charges Zolciak Photo submitted to DCN Dawson County envisions future Styles Park after land donation By Kelly Whitmire DCN Regional Staff The daughter of a reality TV star was recently arrested in Forsyth County and charged with driving under the influence, according to a report from the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office. Per the report, Ariana Lenee Zolciak, 20, of Alpharetta was arrested early on the morning of Saturday, Aug. 13, on charges of DUI, improper/ erratic lane change and underage consumption of alcohol following a wreck at the intersection of Peachtree Parkway and Ga. 400. Zolciak is the daughter By Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com A longtime dog kennel can now proceed with planned expansions at its facility on Elliott Family Parkway in Dawson County. The B oard of Commissioners unani mously approved a spe cial use permit on Aug. 18 for Happy Dog Retreat’s proposed expan sions, with stipulations for indoor air condition ing and heating and soundproofing. The land encompassing the kennel is zoned Residential Agriculture, which falls within the purview of special use. During their July meet ing, the Dawson County Planning Commission recommended approval for the special use permit. Current owner Laura of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” star Kim Zolciak-Biermann. Deputies responded to the wreck at about 1 a.m. on Saturday, where a driver said he had been travel ing in the right lane of the southbound exit of Ga. 400 attempting to turn right onto Peachtree Parkway, when a Mercedes G-Wagon in the left lane, driven by Zolciak, “attempted to make a right turn onto Peachtree Parkway and hit his vehi cle.” The responding officer said he then spoke with Zolciak, who confirmed Manner told the commis sioners she bought it five years ago and added the previous owner operated the facility for 20 years before that. Proposed additions to the kennel include a new office building, about 612 square feet, with an extra three dog spaces for spe cial needs or sensitive dogs, and a 1,548-square foot indoor recreation building. Manner said the relo cated office is necessary because it can be hard to answer phones and do similar business with dogs moving and being exercised so close to the current office. She explained that an existing cement pad would be the basis for a closed-in recreational area. District 1 Commissioner Sharon she had made the right turn and struck the other vehicle, and reported he “could smell the odor of alcoholic beverage coming from her breath as she spoke to me,” which Zolciak allegedly denied. “She stated that the odor was possibly coming from her clothing. Ariana stated she had smoked a THC vape pen the night before but did not drink,” the responding officer wrote in the report. “I conducted field sobriety evaluations with Ariana and observed signs of impairment. I observed she had notice- Fausett wanted to make sure the new indoor dog recreation facility would also have heating, and Manner and Farrell clari fied that the building would be climate con trolled for the winter, too. “We have a lot of dogs. We have a lot of yard space,” said Manner, “but we don’t have a closed-in area so we can give these dogs proper activity dur ing the cold, heat, snow and rain that Dawsonville gets.” Manner also shared that her kennel holds an aver age of 35-45 dogs, but that number can fluctuate depending on how many dogs, including singles, doubles and/or triple-dog families, check in at a time. During holidays, week ends or other times when people go on vacation, the kennel has boarded up able sway during the evalu ations.” After searching the car, the deputy “located a black vape pen in her purse.” Another deputy per formed a horizontal gaze nystagmus, or HGN, eye test on Zolciak and said she showed four out of six clues for impairment. She reportedly also refused to provide a sample for a pre liminary breath test. According to the report, Zolciak first consented to a blood test before later say ing she “no longer wanted to consent to the blood test.” Zolciak’s mother shared a statement disputing the incident on her Instagram page. to 70-75 dogs, though the capacity is slightly higher than that, Manner added. “I’ve been doing this [type of business] almost 20 years, and I don’t care to add dogs or keep them at a high level because it’s more about their care,” Manner said. “If we start looking to add dogs, we’re going to water down what we have (as a service) and I don’t want that.” There haven’t been noise complaints for the facility, as it’s surrounded by woods and pastures, Manner said. “I believe she cares about her animals,” said Fausett. “I do,” Manner said. “You can’t fake a busi ness like this. You’ve gotta be in it with your heart. That’s why I’d like to see those improve ments for the dogs.” By Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com The Dawson County Board of Commissioners approved the accep tance of 120 acres of donated land for a future park during its Aug. 4 voting session. This land, which is being donated by Anne Styles, is located along Elliott Family Parkway and Rock Cellar Road in the county. On Aug. 4, county attorney Angela Davis said District 1 Commissioner Sharon Fausett, who wasn’t able to attend, had been “working diligently on this for the past six months.” “This is a situation where Mrs. Styles approached the county and graciously wanted to donate some property to the county for the county’s use,” Davis said. BOC Chairman Billy Thurmond voiced his gratitude, calling Styles a “longtime Dawson County resident.” Upon accepting the donation, the county entered into a 90-day due diligence period, during which time a survey and environmen tal site assessment will be performed. An estimated amount of $16,500 will be needed to move forward with the work, said County Manager David Headley during the Aug. 18 BOC work ses sion. Closing is expect ed to happen sometime between November and Dec. 2, according to Public Affairs Officer Laura Fulcher. “I think Commissioner Fausett would say this is a won derful opportunity for the county, that it’s very gracious of the Styles family for thinking of the county with this land donation,” Davis added. “It’s something I think everybody has reason to be excited about coming to frui tion.” District 3 Commissioner Tim Satterfield thanked Fausett, Styles and Davis’ staff for their efforts. “I think this’ll be a good place for a park for a long time,” Satterfield said. Dawson dog kennel can now proceed with adding more play, office spaces Because Coffee event raises $2,900 for school program By Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com Dawson County’s excep tional students will now be able to have more sensory learning opportunities thanks to a local coffee shop’s key partnership. From its third annual “Birthaversary” event in May, Because Coffee raised $2,900 for Dawson County Schools’ Community-Based Instruction (CBI) program, which serves exceptional students in the county’s public schools. Alexandria Williams from Modern Woodmen of America partnered with the coffee shop again to raise $1,531 of that total. Previously, Because Coffee has served as a work site for exceptional students to work at twice weekly and learn Julia Fechter Dawson County News Local businesses Because Coffee and Modern Woodmen of America raised $2,900 for Dawson County Schools' Community-Based Instruction program through the coffee shop's May fundraiser. Modern Woodmen presented the CBI program with a check on Aug. 16. essential skills like bagging versing with customers, said and stamping items and con- Dawson County High School CBI Coordinator Ashley Caray. During Modern Woodmen’s check presentation Tuesday, Caray explained that CBI edu cation helps teach students life skills. So far, Dawson’s CBI program has some unique ways it’s going to put the money raised to good use. Caray explained that the money will in part be used for tower gardens at the county’s elementary, middle, junior high and high schools. These types of gardens can help teach the “farm to table” con cept, she said. More details linked on Because Coffee’s website stated that the tower gardens use aeroponic gardening for increased plant yields, all the while using LED lights, less water and ground space. Gardens can be moved around on a dolly to wherever stu dents are. The funds raised will also go toward the forthcoming music and art therapy initia tives CBI is building, Caray said. In total, Dawson’s CBI pro gram is looking to offer music and art therapies to all 85 of its children, which is project ed to cost about $30,000 for a whole school year, she added. The amount raised in 2022 is over triple what the coffee shop’s event raised for the CBI program last year. Because Coffee owner Doug Cole credited the fund raising’s success to communi ty members “showing up big” to his store’s “Birthaversary” party. “They all showed up big and opened up their wallets and their hearts,” Cole said. NOTICE OF ELECTION CANCELLATION Pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 21-2-291, notice is hereby given that the Dawson County Board of Education, Special Election scheduled for November 8, 2022, is cancelled. The following candidate has qualified for office and is unopposed: Board of Education, District 4 Barry Slaton - Incumbent The above unopposed candidate shall be deemed to have voted for himself. This, the 12th day of August, 2022. Glenda Ferguson, Election Superintendent Dawson County GEORGIA RACING HALL OF FAME *1 3fa* / linhiAiaif F 415 Highway 53 E Dawsonville, GA SEPT 3 8AM-3PM REGISTRATION Until Aug 29: $25 After Aug 29: $30 Vendor/Craft Space $250 t/> Best Engine $100 o Best Paint - $100 □C < Bill Elliott’s Pick-$100 i Best In Show - $200 < P(u& muty cuocOicfc! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter for up-to-the minute information! georgiaracinghof.com For more information please call or email the GEORGIA RACING HALL OF FAME 706-216-7223 info@georgiaracinghof.com ◄
