Opponents make their case to halt Gulch bond issuance

CHAFIN, Harold William

Age 81, of Huntsville, passed away Dec. 20, 2018. Services Dec. 23, 3:00PM at First United Methodist Church of Lawrenceville. Wages & Sons Funeral Home, Lawrenceville, GA.

COLLINS, Joann

Age 71, of Covington, passed away Dec. 20, 2018. Service Dec. 22, 1 p.m. at Henry Funeral Home, Lithonia, GA.

COWART, Keith Allen

Passed away Dec. 19, 2018. Services Dec. 29, 2:00 PM at Floral Hills Funeral Home and Memory Gardens. Floral Hills Funeral Home & Cremation Services, Tucker, GA.

DICKSON, LoJieri Lee

Mr. LoJieri Lee Dickson

Celebration of Life Service, Saturday, Dec. 22, 2018, 11am at Willie A. Watkins Douglasville, 8312 Dallas Highway, Douglasville, GA. Pastor Le’Zaire Reese, Eulogist. Interment, Peaceful Meadows Cemetery. Viewing 1 hour prior to service, day of service 10-11am. Willie A. Watkins Douglasville Chapel 770.489.6751.

EGAN, Joseph

Age 82, of Cumming, passed away Dec. Services will be held in Des Moines, Iowa on a McDonald and Son Funeral Home, Cumming, GA.

GOWENS, JoAnn

Mrs. JoAnn Rogers Gowens, age 76, of Centre, Alabama, passed away Wednesday, December 19, 2018 the daughter of the late Russell Rogers, and Louise Rogers.

In addition to her parents she is preceded in death by her husband, Mr. William Gowens; children, Michael Robin Parks, and Norman Roger Parks; brothers, Joe Rogers, Allen Rogers, and Donald Ray Rogers; sister, Janice White.

She is survived by her sons and daughter-in-law’s, Bobby Ray and Tammy Parks of Centre, Alabama, Dwight “Randy” and Rebecca Parks of Acworth, Georgia; seven grandchildren, twelve great grandchildren; numerous nieces and nephews also survive.

The family will receive friends at Jones-Wynn Funeral Home on Saturday, December 22, 2018 from 4:00 PM until 8:00 PM. Funeral services will be conducted on Sunday, December 23, 2018 at 2:00 PM from the Chapel of Jones-Wynn Funeral Home of Douglasville. Interment will follow at Riverview Memorial Gardens.

HAIST, Joshua

Of Blairsville, passed away Dec. 17, 2018. Cremation Services of Atlanta, Conyers, GA.

HEARN (Dahlberg), Ann

Age 83, of Buford, passed away Nov. 20, 2018. Services Dec. 29, 11:00 AM at Hamilton Mill Memorial Chapel, Buford, GA.

HENRY, Bennie Frank

Of Winston, passed away Douglasville, GA.

HOOD (Wesley), Lou Oma

Age 88, of Stone Mountain, passed away Dec. 18, 2018. Service Dec. 21, 2 p.m. at Hamilton Mill Memorial Gardens. Hamilton Mill Memorial Chapel, Buford, GA.

HUTCHINSON, Ronald

Age 95, of Decatur, passed away Dec. 18, 2018. Services pending. Gregory B. Levett & Sons Funeral Home, Decatur, GA.

INCH, Priscilla Judy

Age 67, of Gainesville, passed away Dec. 21, 2018. No services. McDonald and Son Funeral Home, Cumming, GA.

KENNEDY, Doris Evelyn

Dec.

City attorneys and Gulch critics sparred in court Friday over a portion of the public financing package for the huge downtown project.

The two sides appeared in Fulton County Superior Court before Judge Robert McBurney during one of several bond validation hearings required by state law before a government body can issue bonds.

While such legal proceedings are typically a routine matter, in the high-profile Gulch case, opponents have seized on the courtroom as another place to halt tax incentives for the project.

The Atlanta City Council in November approved an up to $1.9 billion public financing package to aid in development of the Gulch. The financing comes from two pots of public money – a portion of future sales taxes and property taxes created within the development.

The sales tax revenue will

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Willie

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A.

Watkins, Doris Evelyn Kennedy age 91 of Lawrenceville, GA passed away at home on Thursday, December 20, 2018. She was preceded in death by her husband, Chester Ray Kennedy; her parents, Otis and Lillie McElvany Johnson; two sisters, Runette Kirby and Avis Crowe. She is survived by several nieces and nephews.

Doris was a native of Lawrenceville and was a longtime employee of Genesco Shoe Co. She was an active and longtime member of New Hope Christian Church. A Funeral Service honoring the Life of Doris Kennedy will be held on Sunday, December 23, 2018 at 2:00PM at Tom M. Wages Lawrenceville Chapel. Rev. James Shelton will officiate. Interment will follow at Gwinnett Memorial Park. The family will receive friends on Sunday, December 23, 2018 from12 Noon until 2:00PM at the funeral home. Condolences may be sent to or viewed at www.wagesfuneralhome.com. Tom M. Wages Funeral Service LLC, “A Family Company” 120 Scenic Hwy Lawrenceville, GA 770-963-2411. be used to support up to $1.25 billion in bonds for future infrastructure needed at the 40-acre site, where developer CIM Group plans office towers, apartments, hotels and retail. It was about this funding stream that the two sides argued on Friday and during another court hearing earlier this week.

The Gulch area has been deemed as an Enterprise Zone, allowing the developer to fund infrastructure improvements via bonds that are repaid by five cents of the local 8.9-cent sales taxes created within the development zone.

Under the plan, the city, through its Downtown Development Authority, would issue up to $1.25 billion bonds to be repaid by the future sales taxes.

Opponents on Friday pushed back on projections about the amount of tax revenue the project would generate and if that revenue is enough to support the bonds.

“It’s highly speculative and no evidence has been brought to bear... to support any of these numbers,”

McKINLEY, Jr., Hall

Hall Forbes

McKinley Jr. passed away with his family at his side on December 20, 2018.

Hall was born on June 19, 1930 in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He was raised in the NY/NJ area where he met and married his high school sweet heart, Virginia Louise Richter, to whom he was married almost 50 years.

He played college tennis at Lehigh University and served in the U.S. Army in the Korean War, and was stationed in Japan. He had a long career with IBM which ultimately brought him and his family to the Atlanta area. He retired from IBM after 30 years and then did consulting work in New Haven, Boston, Minneapolis and London before settling back into Atlanta where he enjoyed the last 20 years with his entire family nearby. He was an avid reader of history and all things WW II and Churchill. He was predeceased by his wife Virginia Richter McKinley and his daughter-in-law Rebecca Cox McKinley. He is survived by his sons Hall Forbes McKinley III and Randall James McKinley (Lee), his daughter Barbara McKinley Reilly (Jeff), and eight wonderful grandchildren Allison, Jeffrey (Amanda), Hall IV, Caroline, Anna, Caroline, Nick and Rich. Hall remained mentally strong even as his physical health declined and the family would like to thank his wonderful supporter Barbara Hembrick, along with Denise Glover and Marcus Carter, who allowed Hall to live at home up to his last day. Arrangements will be handled by Southern Cremations and Funerals, and a family funeral will be planned in January.

MCLARTY (Hunter), Imogene H.

Age 88, of Douglasville, passed away Dec. 19, 2018. Service Dec. 22, (today), 3 p.m. at J. Hoyt Thomas Funeral Home Villa Rica, GA.

McNELLY, DiMaggio

Age 53, of McDonough, passed away Dec. 6, 2018. Services today, 1:00 PM at Hattie G. Watkins Memorial Chapel. Watkins Funeral Home Jonesboro, GA.

MERCER, Jo Ellen

Age 79, of McDonough, passed away Dec. 18, 2018. Services Dec. 27, 2:00 PM at the Sanctuary of McDonough Presbyterian Church. Cannon Cleveland Funeral Directors, McDonough, GA.

ROBERTS (Brown), NMI Claudine

Age 79, of Cleveland, OH, passed away December 11, 2018. No Services. Southern Cremations at Cheatham Hill, Marietta, GA.

TAUBE (Baker), Ashley

Age 37, of Hoschton, passed away Dec. 20, 2018. Services Dec. 28, 7:00 PM at 12 Stone Church-Lawrenceville Campus, Lawrenceville, GA. Lawson Funeral Home, Hoschton, GA.

THORNTON, Ozza

Celebration of Life Service for Mr. Ozza Thornton will be held on Sunday, December 23, 2018 at 1:00 P.M. in our Chapel. Visitation will be Today at the Funeral Home. Interment at Lakeside Cemetery. Smith, Dennis-Smith Funeral Home 3047 Campbellton Rd. S.W. Atlanta, Ga. 30311. 404-349-2400.

TOOKES, Derward D.

Derward D. Tookes, 54, passed December 21, 2018. Funeral will be announced later. Meadows Mortuary, Inc., 419 Flat Shoals Ave., S.E., Atlanta, GA 30316 404-522-7478.

WALKER, III, J. Henry

Age 93, of Griffin, passed away Dec. 21, 2018. Services Dec. 27. Haisten McCullough Funeral Home, Griffin, GA.

WEBBS, Riva Lee

Age 83, of Fairburn, passed away Watkins, Douglasville, GA.

WILDER, Michael

Age 59, of Greenville, GA., passed away Dec. 17, 2018. Services will be announced later. Gus Thornhill’s Funeral Home, East Point, GA.

WILLIAMS, Charles L.

Age 64, of Union Point, passed away October 17, 2018. Services Dec. 22, 1:00 p.m. at Randolph Baptist Church, Union Point, GA. Watts Funeral Home, Union Point, GA.

WOODALL, Ruth Lee

testified Julian Bene, a vocal Gulch critic.

The consulting firm Municap drafted a report that projected the future Gulch development could create more than $600 million in future sales tax revenue to fund bonds. The projection was characterized as conservative by a Municap executive earlier in the week.

On Friday, Ralph Dickerson, a city finance executive, was asked by an attorney for developer what happens if projections don’t come true.

“That risk falls squarely upon the developer,” Dickerson said.

CIM Group would be the purchaser of the bonds, at least initially, meaning the company would be on the hook if the future sales taxes aren’t sufficient to pay off the bonds, the city has said.

But the city must prove to the judge the bonds are sound, reasonable and feasible. The court hearing lasted into Friday evening. A hearing regarding the property tax portion of the public financing project is scheduled for January.

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Willie

A. Age 88, of Cumming, passed away Dec. 20, 2018. Services Dec. 23, 1:00 PM at the Ingram Funeral Home Chapel. Ingram Funeral Home and Crematory, Cumming, GA.