Newspaper Page Text
City planning commission
recommends box retail
By Crystal Ledford
Staff Writer
A new 55 acre shopping and
entertainment complex is one
step closer to construction with¬
in the Dimming city limits.
Members of the city’s plan¬
ning and zoning commission
voted unanimously to recom¬
mend — with conditions the
rezoning of the complex at their
regular meeting Tuesday. The
property is located between
Buford Dam Road and Mary
Alice Park Road, parallel to Ga.
400.
Sembler Co., a Florida
based developer, submitted a
request to rezone the property
earlier this year. The land did
have a mixed zoning of
office/commercial/multi-stor¬
age, as well as planned shop¬
ping center. However, Sembler
representatives wished to rezone
the property to a planned shop¬
ping center.
“The office/commercial/
multi-storage zoning includes
more office building type devel¬
opments and Sembler wants to
go to a zoning completely for
retail business space,” explained
Scott Morgan, Cumming
Planning and Zoning director, in
May. “Changing the zoning will
Adelphia owner’s prison sentence
won’t affect local cable TV service
By KRT News Service and
Crystal Ledford
Staff Writer
City officials say the recent
sentencing of Adelphia Cable
founder John Rigas will not
have an impact on local cable
services.
Rigas, 80, was sentenced
Monday to 15 years in prison
for pillaging his company.
Rigas’ son, Timothy, 48, was
given‘a 20-year prison sen¬
tence. Timothy Rigas served
as Adelphia’s chief financial
officer. Both were found
guilty of securities fraud,
bank fraud and conspiracy
after a 16-week trial last year
that came to symbolize corpo¬
rate greed run amok.
Adelphia declared bank¬
ruptcy in 2002 after the fraud
was discovered and is now
trying to unload its cable fran¬
chises. Comcast Cable has
agreed to take over operations
of Adelphia’s franchise in
Mack to attend conference in Hawaii
From Staff Reports
GAINESVILLE A
County commissioner plans
attend next month’s
county officials’ conference
Hawaii, a gathering that
drawn criticism from
across the country.
County Public
Officer Jodi Gardner
Forsyth County
have no plans to attend
conference.
However,
Deborah Mack, who
the Gainesville district, is
to go to the
Association of Counties
conference July 15-19
Honolulu.
The trip will cost the
ty about $1,664,
clerk Michelle
said. Funding will come
the general ftind allocation
administration.
Mack’s hotel room
will total $600. The
registration fee was $415.
Mack contributed
to airfare, leaving the
HIGHWAY
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678-208-4444
12>12 Nationwide Warranty
k
allow them to develop whatever
type of retail spaces they want.”
While nothing has yet been
confirmed, some of the retailers
that may be moving into the site
include Dick’s Sporting Goods,
Best Buy, JoAnn’s, Linens ‘n
Things, Steinmart, TJ Maxx and
Old Navy.
The site plan for the devel¬
opment includes eight “big
box” sites ranging in size from
10,000 to 45,000 square feet,
five smaller retail sites of 4,800
to 5,600 square feet, three out
parcels which are typically used
for restaurants, and a 45,000
square foot movie theater near
Ga.400.
While the commission did
vote Tuesday to recommend the
rezoning to the city council,
they listed a few conditions they
felt were necessary for Sembler
to meet.
The development includes
an extension of Marketplace
Boulevard, which currently
dead ends at the intersection
with Buford Dam Road, to
Mary Alice Park Road.
However, commission members
felt that the city should not be
responsible for funding any
relocation of Market Place
Blvd.
The commission also
Cumming and Forsyth
County.
Cumming Assistant City
Administrator Steve Bennett
Tuesday said he and other city
officials met with representa¬
tives from Comcast last week
to discuss a franchise agree¬
ment to replace the current
agreement with Adelphia.
“The guy (from Comcast)
said they would be assuming
control probably during the
first quarter of next year,” said
Bennett. “So people won’t see
any changes in their cable
anytime in the near future.”
Bennett said Cumming
leaders got the first look at the
new franchise agreement on
June 15 and have 120 days to
respond.
Bennett said the Comcast
franchise agreement has been
negoitated on behalf of a
number of Georgia cities that
had agreements with Adelphia
through Georgia Municipal
Association. “We just turned
to cover the remaining
$648.40.
Mack always pays for her
own mea i s when on county
business, Smallwood said.
The Associated Press has
reported that newspapers
nationwide have questioned
the use of tax dollars to attend
the Hawaii conference.
County officials in
at Public
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requested the donation of the
right of way along Buford Dam
Road throughout the entire
length of the project to the city;
that all exits onto the extension
of Marketplace Blvd. have both
left and right turning lanes; and
that developers continue to
work with traffic engineers in
the design of the extension of
Marketplace Blvd.
Sembler representatives
agreed to the conditions set by
the commission.
The Planning and Zoning
Commission’s recommendation
will now go before the
Cumming City Council for final
approval or rejection at their
July 19 meeting. Since the the
final decision has yet to be
made, no time line for construc¬
tion has been discussed.
Sembler Company, which
has developed and managed
profitable retail centers through¬
out the southeast for more than
40 years, also developed the
BJ’s Wholesale Club and Target
sites in Cumming.
Sembler has offices in St.
Petersburg, Fla., Atlanta and
Puerto Rico. The company has
received the Top Retail
Developer in Atlanta Award
from the Atlanta Business
Chronicle since 2001.
the whole thing over to them
(GMA),” said Bennett.
Prosecutors in the Rigases’
case, Richard Owens and
Christopher Clark, said the
Rigases wildly spent Adelphia
money to buy timberland and
build a golf course, and used
the corporate jet like a taxi.
John Rigas used the cash
to buy fancy cars, priceless
antiques, massages and a
Columbia House Record Club
membership.
Prosecutors said Timothy
Rigas billed Adelphia for 100
bedroom slippers, a $700 golf
club membership and had the
Adelphia jet fly to the
Caribbean to meet an actress
he was trying to impress —
Peta Wilson, star of cable
TV’s “La Femme Nikita.”
The only way John Rigas,
who has a heart problem and
bladder cancer, can get out
early is if the Bureau of
Prisons determines he has less
than three months to live. “
Alabama, Illinois, North
Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia
and Wisconsin have aban
doned the trip, citing similar
concerns,
Mack, however, said the
conference is a great opportu
nity to get new ideas for Hall,
Mack attended last year’s
conference in Phoenix at a cost
of $1,395.
FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS — Thursday, Jun« 23,2005
State Farm sponsors hurricane
awareness conference
l| m
1 §m
lip# mm
hM
Photos/Ron Logan
Right, State Farm Insurance Underwriting Specialist Ann Arnold discusses the
aspects of loss mitigation during a hurricane awareness conference at the State
Farm Regional Office in Johns Creek recently. Below, from right, State Farm
Public Affairs Officers Ebony Lincoln and Renate Dugans look over some
brochures by the Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Service Truck during the
conference.
(fly W i.
T
EMERGENCY DISASTER SBMS «t
GEORGIA DIVISION
ATLANTA GEORGIA
:*1
Parsons of Cumming
EVENT CENTER
EXTRAVAGANZA
Thurs., June 23rd - Sat., June 25th
- Held monthly on the last weekend of the month -
P-gfffr A
EVERYTHING
40% TO 80% OFF
• Decorative Accessories
• Candles Kitchen Decor
• Framed Art Garden Decor
and So Much More!
Located next door to the
Main Store Location
Lakeland Plaza
Cumming
770 - 887-9991
CELEBRATING 80 YEARS
■W " - - GA 400 EXIT 14,
LAKELAND PLAZA
V Cumming Mon. - Fri. 10am - 7pm
Sat. 10am - 6 pm
- PAGE 3A