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Forsyth Your "Hometown County J Paper"Since 1908 News
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Vol. 96, No. 188
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Photo/Nancy Smallwood
bonanza
Shoppers out early for post-Thanksgiving bargains
By Nancy Smallwood
Associate Editor
With sales flyers in one hand
and blankets and pillows in
another, the Mitchell family
along with several others in
Cumming set out for the stores
early Friday morning.
While many dread the long
lines, lack of parking and carry¬
ing heavy packages, the
Mitchells have found a solution
to such inconveniences of day
after Thanksgiving shopping.
(( We girls rent a limo for the
day,” said Sue Mitchell. “We
start at 7 a.m. and shop for 12
hours.”
This is the second year for
the limo shopping trip. The idea
came about last year when the
women of the family decided
they needed a break after
preparing Thanksgiving dinner
for 40 family members and
cooked up the plan while map¬
ping out their day of sale shop¬
ping. Every year the group stud¬
ies advertising flyers and makes
gift lists before setting out for
the day.
“People moan and groan and
complain about shopping on the
day after Thanksgiving but we
have the perfect day,” said
Mitchell. “We have door to door
service so we don’t worry about
parking and have our packages
picked up at the door so we
don’t worry about carrying
them.
Planning for the limo day
starts months in advance and
invitations even are mailed out.
Several of Mitchell’s friends
have found out about the trip
and ask to go. Six family mem¬
bers and one friend joined the
Forsyth Central principal Kenny Foxx
reminisces as retirement approaches
By Crystal Ledford
Staff Writer
A lot has changed at Forsyth
Central High School since 1989 —
the year Kenny Foxx took the reins
as principal of the school.
Foxx, who recently announced he
will be retiring from his position in
June, said growth of the system —
and the school itself — has been
probably the greatest change he’s
noticed during his tenure.
“I followed Mike Weaver who left
to open South Forsyth High School
the year I came here,” said Foxx, who
moved to Central after working sev¬
eral years at schools in south
Georgia. ‘Then just a few years later,
North (Forsyth High) opened too.
And of course we’re about to open
West (Forsyth High). That growth
and changing demographics of our
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Copyright © 2005 Forsyth County Nows
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SUNDAY November 27,2005
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Photo/Ron Logan
Above, shoppers crowd the toy section of the Cumming Wal-Mart the day after
Thanksgiving looking for bargains. Top, the Mitchell family poses in front of the limo they
hired to drive them around for a full day of shopping Friday.
group this year with the
youngest member being
Mitchell’s 17-year-old niece,
Kendall Wright. The ladies were
headed to Phipps, Lenox and the
new Atlantic Station complex
Friday morning.
“We hope to have enough
time to get to the Dawsonville
outlet mall also,” said Mitchell.
“One year we went to
Commerce and it was pouring
down rain but it didn’t matter
county has been what really stands
out for me.”
Foxx said the growth at his school
also has affected him.
“Since I’ve been here, we’ve
added a new auditorium, a new gym
and a new science wing,” he said.
“Soon after I started here, Otwell
opened their new school and we
added the old school for our ninth
grade academy which helped us out a
lot. I remember a few years when a
lot of that construction was going on
was difficult for us just for logistical
reasons of getting around campus.
Foxx said he also noticed a differ¬
ence in the attitudes of students since
he began his job at Central.
“I remember the first month I
worked, we had 20 fights in that one
month,” he said. “Now we have
maybe two or three a year.”
Foxx said he believes the differ¬
INDEX
Abby Births 13C
4B
Classifieds ..3C
Deaths 2A
Forsyth Life IB
Opinion Horoscope. 13C
20A
Sports.... 1C
cause we were comfortable.”
The crew takes only one big
break in the day and that is
lunch.
“We try and eat a big lunch
— usually at the Cheese Cake
Factory or Bennies.
Grandmother of the group,
Marty Mitchell, said she was
planning on shopping for her
grandchildren. Siblings in the
family draw names and buy
gifts for each other every year,
ence has come because there’s now a
greater sense of pride among the stu¬
dents.
“I think we don’t have as many
discipline problems now because our
students are proud to be Central
Bulldogs,” he said. “That’s one thing I
do at the opening of every school year
— I call all the kids together and tell
them that if they bring drugs to school
or anything bad like that, they’re not a
Forsyth Central Bulldog anymore.”
Foxx said he is proud of the sense
of family that his school has devel¬
oped over the years.
“I really subscribe to the ‘TEAM’
theory — ‘Together Everybody
Achieves Much,”’ said Foxx. “I think
everyone — from the ladies who
serve lunch every day to the janitors
to the teachers is important to the
See FOXX, Page 2A
Local
UGA historian working
to save Forsyth log cabin
built in 1833.
Page 5A
according to Wendy Mitchell.
Usually we end up sending
the gifts home with each other
to wrap,” she said. “It’s a great
girls’ day out.”
Other shoppers hit the streets
even earlier than the Mitchell’s
departure time to find the great
deals. Many filled the Kohl’s
and Belk parking lots looking
for Christmas sales on clothing
See SHOPPING, Page 7A
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Sports
South rolls, Central
stumbles in second round
of ‘Shootout’,
Rage 1C
111 i,n,i..i
Public able
t
to comment
on Hwy. 9
Wal-Mart
Planning commission
expected to open hearings
From Staff Reports
The Forsyth County Planning Commission is
expected to open public hearings on new developments
that could lead to more than 300,000 square feet of
additional retail business the
and includes a
Super Wal-Mart.
Representatives from
Wal-Mart met with
residents earlier this
month to present
plans for a proposed
new 203,819-square
foot facility on the
east side of Hwy. 9
in the northeast cor¬
ner of the intersec¬
tion with Commerce
Boulevard.
Consultants at the meeting said the Wal-Mart sketch
plat was drawn with the county’s new big-box ordi¬
nance in mind. They said designs were rendered to mir¬
ror the architecture of a Publix grocery store in the area
while parking areas will be entwined with trees.
The county government has not yet approved the
big-box ordinance. Commissioners are expected to
address it in December.
The 5 acres of property for the proposed Super Wal
Mart is already zoned as commercial and, as such, falls
to the planning commission for the final decision
whether to approve the sketch plat.
It is one of four sketch plats coming before the plan¬
ning commission.
The other three are:
• A proposal from Arbor Hills Group LLC for a 56
lot residential community on the southeast side of Julian
Road northeast of the intersection with Antler Drive.
• Plans from Terra Nova Engineering Development
to build a 16-lot community on 5 acres located on the
east side of Bethel Road south of the intersection with
Lake Hollow Drive.
• A request from Forsyth County Schools for a new
elementary school on 5 acres on the east side of Old
Atlanta Road southeast of the intersection with St.
Mario Country Club Parkway.
Rezoning requests coming before the planning com¬
mission in public hearings for recommendations to the
board of commissioners include two for Master Planned
Districts (MPD) — a relatively new zoning category in
the local government’s code that combines residential
and commercial uses.
McGinnis Ferry IV LLC proposes an MPD of 82
townhouses and 70,000 square feet of retail space on 22
See PUBLIC, Page 2A
Rain LAME LANIER LEVELS
Date Level
Nov. 22 1069.21 ft
m iMu, Nov. r.24 23 25 1071.0(Ht 1069,15 1069.15 1069.16 ft ft ft
High in the high 50s. WMm
Low in the low 50s.
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B
num opens
Who: Forsyth County
Planning Commission
What: Public hearings
When: 6:30 p.m.,
Tuesday, Nov. 29
Where: Auditorium,
County Administration
Building
Forsyth
Central
High School
principal
Kenny Foxx
recently
announced
he will be
retiring from
his current
position
after serv¬
ing as prin¬
cipal of the
school for
17 years.
Photo/Crystal
Ledford