Bridging the gap between community and police

APD official hopes Neighborhood Watch event will help.

given out pamphlets on home, vehicle and personal safety. We have conducted lectures. Now we are actually going to demonstrate how to be safe. Our code enforcement unit will be there to talk about how to keep your home and neighborhoods safe and what resources are available for blighted properties. The fire department will provide information about fire safety and demonstrate how to use fire extinguishers and smoke detectors.

Vendors will be doing demonstrations, too?

Demonstrations will be given by vendors such as Home Depot, Lowes, Stoddard’s Range and Guns, Divas in Defense and many more. Can anyone attend? We are gearing the demonstrations toward city of Atlanta residents but anyone is welcome. We are requesting that anyone who plans to come to please register.

You expect people from neighborhood watch groups. What do these groups bring to crime prevention?

We are trying to stress the creation of even more groups so we can have more eyes in the community. When I grew up, we knew everyone on the street and I feel that made for a stronger community. We have gotten away from that. Neighborhood watches are all about knowing who your neighbors are, watching out for one another. What is everyone’s responsibility when it comes to preventing crime? As you know, the police cannot Atlanta Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit is hosting an expo featuring demonstrations on personal and home safety. The free event takes place Saturday, July 23, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Atlanta’s City Hall Atrium, 55 Trinity Ave. SW, Atlanta, GA 30303. Members of Atlanta’s various neighborhood watch organizations will receive credit for attending. The event is open to the public but attendees need to register. To sign up or for more information, contact Inspector C. Hines at cyhines@atlantaga.gov or 404-546-5713. be everywhere all the time, and, of course, the bad guys know when the police are not around. Everyone has their own responsibility to make their home and themselves safer. Our leading crime in the city is larceny from vehicles. One of our biggest campaigns is the Clean Car Campaign, educating the public to keep everything in your vehicles out of sight. The biggest responsibility that everyone has is to be aware of their surroundings. We have people walking around oblivious, on cellphones talking or texting. They have no idea that perpetrators are looking for that vulnerable victim. You have to be vigilant.

Marietta board members to get pay hikes in 2018

Marietta residents, who serve on some of the city’s boards, will receive monthly pay increases, beginning Jan. 1, 2018.

This decision was made Wednesday by the Marietta City Council with Councilwoman Michelle Cooper Kelly absent. These monthly raises will be:

Marietta Board of Lights and Water Works from $300 to $350

Planning Commission from $150 to $175

Board of Zoning Appeals and Civil Service Board from $100 to $125

Board of Appeals for Construction from $50 to $75 Information: www.mariettaga. gov/city/cityhall/committees.

School board sets millage hearings

The Henry County Board of Education will host three meetings in the upcoming weeks regarding the adoption of the millage rate for the 2016-2017 school year. There is no proposed increase as the millage rate is already at its current limit of 20 mills, which has been in effect since 2007. The hearings are required because higher property values mean an increase in tax revenue.

The first two meetings are Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. The third meeting is Tuesday, July 26, at 5:30 p.m. with the final adoption of the millage rate set for 6 p.m.

All of the public hearings will be at the school board’s central offices, 33 N. Zack Hinton Parkway in McDonough.

Fayette board supports six-year SPLOST

The Fayette County Board of Commissioners voted 5-0 Thursday in favor of a proposed six-year SPLOST that would generate millions of dollars for infrastructure projects. The one-cent sales tax measure, which will be on the November ballot, was extended from four years to six because of the number and cost of repairs for roads, bridges, stormwater and other county facilities.

Representatives from all five Fayette municipalities were on hand to back the plan, which will require an intergovernmental agreement for distributing the funds. The commission dropped plans to allocate $3.5 million for a new performing arts center, but promised to revisit the idea in the future.