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EH
ATHENS NEWS AND VIEWS
Eat Up: Looking ahead, the news is out that a
strong collaboration centered in the local-food
crowd is laying the groundwork for a real-deal,
bigger and better, local and sustainable farm
ers' market in Athens. Keep an eye out for
more details in upcoming issues of Flagpole.
but know for now that it's looking like an
every-Saturday-until-wintertime thing starting
on May 17 at Bishop Park. Learn more from
point-man Craig Page at www.localplace.org.
[Ben Emanuel]
Y Athens Design Development, or ADD, has
come up with the design for cigarette litter
receptacles (CLRs—pronounced ''clears") to
help downtown smokers discard their butts
without littering. In a trial area scoped out
by a study of the heaviest outdoor smoking
points, the CLRs were affixed Thursday, Apr.
10, to 40 parking meters and power poles on
Washington. Lumpkin
and Clayton streets.
ADD members even
helped with the
installation. In the
photo, Carol John
puts the finishing
touches on a CLR
outside the Nowhere
Bar. As part of
Greenfest, documents
detailing the design
process will be on
display upstairs at
the Lyndon House
until June 7. Learn
more about ADD at
http://add411.org.
[BE]
One Note from
Earlier in the Month:
Before this item
gets out of sight and
out of mind, it's worth nothing that toward
the end of their Apr. 1 voting meeting, ACC
Commissioners raised landfill fees from $34
to $42 per ton, bringing Athens-Clarke's "tip
ping fee" closer to those at other regional
landfills. Some commissioners thought fees
should be even higher, to encourage people
to recycle more. But Matthew de Palma,
owner of AAA Sanitation, told commissioners
"everybody's trying very hard to recycle more
and more," and that more than 100 custom
ers a month have been requesting recycle
bins. Meanwhile, he said, illegal dumping
has been increasing at local businesses.
Commissioners Carl Jordan and Kelly Girtz
proposed a higher ($48 per ton) fee, along
with a "voucher" system that would give haul
ers credit for recyclables they bring in. But
Manager Alan Reddish warned that such a high
fee might discourage trash haulers from using
Clarke County's dump at all—and that might
hurt the recycling programs that dump fees
help support. [John Huie]
If It Bleeds, It Leads: Middle-class fears—
justified or not—play into how police patrols
are assigned in Athens, Police Chief Jack
Lumpkin said last week. "Studies tell us that
middle-class America is fearful of crime.
Well, statistically, middle-class America is
not touched by crime," the Chief told the
Federation of Neighborhoods (see City Pages
for more). While Athens is "relatively safe"
statistically, burglaries have jumped up lately.
"It's not affecting every neighborhood...
Rental neighborhoods are really getting hit
hard, and working-class neighborhoods are
getting hit hard," Lumpkin said. But "whether
we have crimes or not, we have to come to
your neighborhood and reassure you that
we are there," he said. "We call it 'flying the
flag.'"
Lumpkin thinks that people's inordinate
fear of crime comes from television news.
"Most Atlanta stations lead with something
violent... If they can't find it in Georgia,
they're going to find it somewhere in the
South or the United States—to show you why
you ought to be afraid every night." ACC stats
are far lower for violent crime than Atlanta's
per-capita rate, police figures say—and also
lower than comparably sized cities'. Property
crimes here—burglary, theft, shoplifting, car
thefts—are comparable to other cities' rates.
But many young people don't protect their
possessions very well,
Lumpkin believes.
"Our people con
stantly find billfolds,
pocket books, iPods,
laptops, etc., just
lying in the front seat
of cars—either open,
or the window's been
broken and they've
stolen it." [JH]
It Ain't Over Yet: As
of press time, there'd
been no public
unveiling of the new
plan at Linger Longer,
Inc. for redeveloping
Jekyll Island. The
latest news was good
news—Linger Longer
and the Jekyll Island
Authority finally
caved on the beach-
access issue—but there's reason to worry
that more fights are ahead. After all, if they
can't build down by the beach, they're going
to push into the live oak forest on the other
side of the dunes, and more than likely there
won't be a day when everyone's happy with
the plan. [BE]
Happening This Week: Hitting Athens on the
lecture circuit this week are former CIA agent
Valerie Plame Wilson (see the Calendar
Pick on p. 15), and a guy called Gene Baur
who started the national organization Farm
Sanctuary and wrote a book of the same
name. Baur will be on campus on Tuesday, Apr.
22, and you can learn more about him in the
Calendar Pick found at flagpole.com. [BE]
Good on Ya: Congrats go out to Elizabeth
Little and R.E.M., winners of this year's Alec
Little Environmental Awards in Athens-Clarke
County. Elizabeth is no relation to the late
Alec Little, whose passion for protecting the
environment inspired the creation of the
annual award after his death in 1991. She
is, however, a tireless advocate for all that
contributes to a sustainable community. Since
Flagpole already had Stipe on the cover this
month, that leaves Elizabeth for next week's
issue, though she's probably too publicity-shy
to do it. Oh, well. [BE]
Ben Emanuel & John Huie
Send your city dope to ben@flagpole.com.
Carol John and one of the new CLRs
edge.
exposure.
style.
service.
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NEWS & FEATURES I CALENDAR I MOVIES I A&E I MUSIC I COMICS & ADVICE I CLASSIFIEDS
APRIL 16,2008 • FLAGPOLE.COM 5