DeKalb's Lee May comes to Dunwoody and a bunch of other Dunwoody tidbits.

I enjoyed a little time away.

I stepped away from computers and work responsibilities to play in the sand in Orange Beach, AL with my family for a bit & I hope your spring break was as refreshing and joyous as mine.  Where did you go?

Sunday evening (April 12 @ 7:30 pm) I will be attending the monthly Dunwoody Homeowners Association Meeting where Interim DeKalb CEO Lee May will be in attendance giving us an update (I will be listening attentively) and there will be updates on the Dunwoody Village Parkway Condos and the Georgia Power Tree Cutting Program.  Trees Atlanta and the Stage Door Players will also be visiting to raise a few issues.  DeKalb Cultural Arts Center (Room 4) 5339 Chamblee-Dunwoody Road

I have attended the annual Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah) in the past at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta and the ceremony is quite moving.  This year the ceremony is Sunday April 12, 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

The intersection of Spalding Drive and Mount Vernon Road will close for road construction starting Monday, April 13, according to the city of Sandy Springs. Please use Dunwoody Club as a Detour.

Monday night is a Dunwoody City Council Meeting - I am excited about approving the next segment of the Brook Run Trail as well as installing another park.

Lemonade Days starts Wednesday April 15th and runs through the weekend.  I will probably be there every day of the event but if you have children who want to ride the rides; may I suggest that Wednesday & Thursday will be the easiest and most economical option if you can swing it.   Lines are short or non-existent compared to Fri / Sat / Sun.  Here is the $5 off coupon - in fact three. 

Sunday Conversation with Debbie Fuse, the Executive Director of the Dunwoody Preservation Trust

Dunwoody Food Truck Thursdays are back to Brook Run Park! King of Pops & The Blaxican are rated as Atlanta's best and they are regular visitors to Dunwoody.

Saturday April 18 - Paint Recycling Event at Dunwoody Nature Center.

MARTA’s efforts to extend access to transit to the Georgia 400 Corridor will move one step closer to reality - see plans - next meeting April 19.

Have you even been in the Brook Run Greenhouse or Barn?  The Dunwoody Community Garden and Orchard (DCGO) and the Dunwoody Fine Art Association (DFAA) will be selling plants and exhibiting Art from local artists at Brook Run Park at 4770 North Peachtree Road in Dunwoody, GA 30338 from Monday, April 20 thru the 26th at the Greenhouse complex, which is across from the skateboard facility. The hours will be from 9:00 AM to 5:00PM. The public is invited and there is no fee.

Tuesday Night Kids Swim Season is soon upon us and Rick Callahan is prognosticating once again as to who is going to beat whom.  The full schedule is here.   If you do not belong to a local swim tennis association but have a child who would like to swim on a swim team, please reach out to Dunwoody North as we welcome everybody!  If you live in the area and want to join what I consider the best swim tennis club in Dunwoody where my bride is the social director and I can be found playing water volleyball on weekends; please check us out.

Kudos to Dunwoody Crime Analyst Amanda Head - the behind the scenes numbers cruncher works to keep us all safe.   I bet many readers could guess where this story happened?

Things that make you go "Hmmm" - Chamber of Commerce, George Chidi predicts Dark Days & much Speculation,

1965 new home brochure from Dunwoody North subdivision showing various models and a list of orginal members of the swim tennis club.

Full Brochure pdf & jpg

DUNWOODY NORTH represents "The Ultimate in Luxury Living." There is none finer! Here you have an unsurpassed combination of features comprised of fine homes superlatively designed and meticulously constructed, select land with an abundance of gracious trees, and accessibility to downtown and all conveniences. Dunwoody North truly defies description and must be visited to be fully appreciated ... it's just that extraordinary! No effort or expense has been spared to establish Dunwoody North as a place to reside, absolutely without equal.

Another interesting discovery was the original list of members of the Dunwoody North Driving Club which is the neighborhood swim tennis association.  These original members, borrowed money / put their houses up for collateral to fund the construction of the facility as well as put in an extraordinary amount of their own labor to build the club.  I was told that Peachtree Industrial was just under construction during this time and the members hauled excess dirt from that project in their pickup trucks to fill what is now the four tennis courts.

https://www.facebook.com/DunwoodyNorthDrivingClub

Below is a historical account from one of the original members.

The Dunwoody North Subdivision was developed in 1963 / 1964 by Tom Cousins -- an area still considered "far out" to most of Atlanta's residents at that time. However, Mr. Cousins' first venture in residential development proved to be a huge success. The first homes were built on North Peachtree, East Kings Point Circle, Kingsfield Ct, Brookhurst, Huntington Circle, and Vintage Lane. At the initial development stage, East Kings Point Circle and Brookhurst ended at their intersection, and the southern segment of Huntington Circle extended to Stonington Road, which ended at that point. Original home owners (Davis, Ruffin, Griffith, Coley, Dimling, Curran, Welton, and Dierks to name a few) may still live in Dunwoody North, a tribute to the wonderful neighborhood we all share.

In 1964 shopping, restaurants and entertainment were not plentiful, or easily accessible, like Perimeter Mall is now. Chamblee Plaza was the only place to shop, and Sandy Springs and Brookhaven had the nearest restaurants. 1-285 only went from Roswell Road to Chamblee-Tucker, and Stonington Road had not been extended to Tilly Mill!

The beautiful area where our Driving Club is located was rough land with gullies, donated by Tom Cousins to the residents of Dunwoody North Subdivision with the stipulation that the Swim & Tennis Club to be built there would be used exclusively for the residents of Dunwoody North Subdivision. That way he could advertise his homes as having club facilities, while his competitor developers in Dunwoody Trails, Andover Estates, and Laurelwood Farms could not. That restriction was binding until all lots were sold and the residents of Dunwoody North paid off the note on land improvements, pool and tennis facilities. The second phase of Dunwoody North across Tilly Mill was developed as a result of the huge success of the first houses built on the North Peachtree side.

The story goes that Barbara Keel, a real estate agent and resident, was taking some paperwork to DeKalb County Courthouse to be filed for the club facility, The clerk asked her for the name of this new club facility, and being familiar with the Piedmont Driving Club and the prestige associated therewith, Ms. Keel gave the name Dunwoody North Driving Club. The name has remained and the club is still known as the "Driving Club."

The note for the original club facility was paid off in the mid-80's and membership to the Driving Club opened up to the adjacent subdivisions. This came at a time when members were aging and their children were leaving home and not using the pool facilities. The Club lost members and struggled to maintain itself. Then membership was opened up to anyone who wanted to join, providing they were sponsored by a member in good standing. In 1990, a new clubhouse, designed by our neighbor, Steve Lyman, was added to the Driving Club to attract more members and make the Club membership more attractive to residents who wanted more than just swimming and tennis.

The original residents worked harder than we can imagine to develop this area into the beautiful neighborhood we now take for granted. It took a lot of foresight, determination, and pure physical labor to get things going. For instance, the pool and driveway area at the club were located in a ravine. Arrangements were made with DOT for the dirt being removed from the Chamblee-Tucker/1-85 interchange to be brought in to fill the area. Well, guess who had to get it smoothed out and packed down!

The first pool was treated with chemicals in buckets. It wasn't until the early 70's that a chlorine system was installed and enough money was available to upgrade the bath house facility. Around 1970 the first two tennis courts were built, with lights added later. Peachtree High School was completed in 1969, two years ahead of schedule, due to the diligent work of neighborhood parents who completed a survey of the area showing the number and ages of every child in the area. They took this information to the County proving enough enrollment potential for the school to be completed. Before Peachtree High opened, students attended Sequoia in Chamblee and elementary children went to Hightower on Tilly Mill. Chesnut Elementary was opened in the early 70's.

Over the years Dunwoody North had an active Civic Association overseeing area development and keeping a watchful eye on zoning to maintain the residential character of our community. Everything was quiet and under control in the late 1980's when the Civic Association went dormant for about five years. In 1993 nude clubs, traffic, and air plane noise were the dominant topics that brought the Civic Association to life again. One of the first items on the agenda was to add the adjacent subdivisions of Dunwoody Trails, Laurelwood Farms, Andover Estates, Briars North and Brafferton to the Dunwoody North Community.

Today our neighborhood is thriving and real estate prices are soaring because of our "close in" location. New houses are being built along Tilly Mill and young families are revitalizing the area schools. Just recently the parents of Chesnut Elementary elected to convert to a Charter School where the Parents are setting the standards and helping the administration run the school. The Dunwoody North Driving Club has just completed a major overhaul of the facilities by resurfacing the pool, renovating the pool house and reconstructing the four tennis courts. The Club also has the highest membership total in the thirty five years of existence.

What once started out as a "far out" suburb has now become the premier location in all of Atlanta to live. We have easy access to transportation, shopping and dining, yet are just minutes from the high tech commercial and medical districts of the Atlanta metro area. We have mature tree lined streets with good schools, low crime, well built housing and nearby recreational facilities. Dunwoody North has it all going for it, and the Civic Association is working hard to make sure that it doesn’t change.

Note: Information for this article was provided by Frank Welton, one of the Founding Residents and his information was originally published in a 1994 Civic Association article.

Tuesday is Dunwoody Swim Team Night and Rick Callihan has a running tally of the results and matchups on his Dunwoody Talk Blog.

Dunwoody Week 1 Swim Results May 2013 

Below is the excerpt from the Dunwoody North / Dunwoody Country Club swim meet recap where Rick knows that water volleyball is an important part of the Dunwoody North summer experience.  Check the link above or here, for Rick's full Dunwoody recap.

Dunwoody North 408  Dunwoody Country Club 373
A few days ago we predicted a close match, and close it was on Tuesday.  Dunwoody North starts the season strong and visits rival Kingsley next week. The Dunwoody North versus Kingsley match-up will be a close match.  It will be broadcast on Dunwoody's public access channel (Comcast channel 24) live and then in replay throughout the week.  Dunwoody North has a chance to go 4-1 or possibly 5-0 this season.  We had many emails looking for info on the Dunwoody North Memorial Day pool volleyball games, but sorry, we did not have a staff member there.  We have no official results of the Dunwoody North volleyball, but we heard of several face plants.  Also, a kid named Jimmy set a new Memorial Day record playing 4-Square at Dunwoody North. He held the 'king' square for 12 minutes, knocking out 37 kids in a row.  Congrats to the Dunwoody North 4-Square players.  DCC visits Roxboro next week and visits Kingsley in Week 5.

A little light reading - Dunwoody related.

June 21st - Brook Run Skate Park

Johnathan Clark of Dunwoody Elementary is moving on.  Link - Dunwoody School Daze

Sen. Fran Millar Criticizes DeKalb Schools Link - DeKalb School Watch

DeKalb School System and AdvancED and Texas Education Agency  Link - Dunwoody Talk

Dunwoody Restaurant Week, June 23 to 30 offers some great deals.  Link - CVB

Dunwoody Swim Teams - Week 3    Link - Dunwoody Talk

Tax Assessments Still To Be Sorted Out   Link - Dunwoody Patch

So, you want to appeal your DeKalb Co. Property Appraisal?    Link - I'm Just Saying

Bike lanes spark dissent in Dunwoody Link - AJC

Dog parks (Brook Run) require a dose of caution  Link - AJC

Fran Millar is part of the Ethics Pledge discussion whereby I also know that he has no problem with the $100 gift limitation but states that a lot more than this one item will be in the final bill and it will need to be reviewed in its entirety before saying yes or no.    I enjoyed this presentation on the subject.

Big Night for Dunwoody - Local Swim Meets

As I sat though a Dunwoody City Council Meeting on a rare Tuesday night, my friend Rick Callihan and a large contingent of the Dunwoody community attended one of the many local swim meets in the area.  The Callihan's are a big swimming family who take the subject very seriously, while besides cheering on my three run of the mill swimmers, my biggest joy of the season will probably be seeing my 6 year old Declan graduate from the "pre-team" by completely swimming across the pool during a competition where the goal is to not drown.  My son's main motivation in completing this feat is that he knows that once this happens, he will have earned the right to sport a mohawk like he has seen his brother's sporting earlier in life.

Rick wrote a nice article highlighting all of the Tuesday night swim meet results and if he gets enough positive feedback maybe he will cover the entire season.  Below is a taste of the full article, so please read the rest on his Dunwoody Talk Blog.

There are events during the year that stick with us, and last night was one of them. Thousands of people, all bonding behind a single issue, come together. Lots of time and money involved. Tough decisions to be made. People going on the record, people struggling to finish a job started. Parents and kids involved. And it's a race against not only the clock, but against friends and neighbors:

Welcome to Swim Season 2012. Who swims the IM? What kid will be in lane 3 of the first relay? How many hamburgers do we cook? Do we have fresh batteries in the stop watches? Where is the bullpen parent? Why did your kid go to the playground and miss his relay? Why is my swimmer in race 19 then not in the pool again until race 79?

Yes, it's time to dedicate the next few Tuesdays to the swim meet. Last night some local teams had their swim caps pulled over their eyes then received a royal dunking.

Continue to http://dunwoodytalk.blogspot.com/2012/05/big-night-for-dunwoody.html

Tuesday Nights are Swim Meet Nights in Dunwoody - 10 feet allows Safe Parking for Safe Swimming

Last year I attended one of my children's swim meets at an away pool and as is usually the case, I was running late and I parked what seemed like several blocks away. As I walked closer to the event, vehicles were parked on both sides of the street leading up to the pool whereby a firetruck or ambulance would not have had enough room to squeeze by the cars to make to it to the pool in the case of an emergency.

Remembering that event, I requested that the City of Dunwoody partner with all ten of the swim tennis communities to make them aware of the issue and each was offered a customized flyer like you see above for my home pool. (Go DNDC Fins!)

I am told that each organization’s strategies to encourage safe parking is a little different, from e-mailing all members, to posting signs at their club houses, to even emailing their flyer to visiting teams. If your involved with your swim team's communications and have not seen your customized City of Dunwoody flyer, please contact Ms. Edie Damann at 678-382-6712 and she will happily email you the electronic document early Tuesday morning after the holiday.

So when you are running late to your children's swim meet, like I know I will, please remember to keep this ten foot spacing lane in mind as the safety of the event and the surrounding community are directly at stake.

Thanks.

An indoor Water Park in the Winter can't be beat for a change of pace.

In order to reintroduce my 4 yr old to a pool so that he is semi prepared for his first official swimming lesson (at Dunwoody Baptist), I gave my wife a number of prime shopping hours by herself on Sunday as I treated my three boys to the Bethesda Park Aquatic Center in Gwinnett County. The facilities are fantastic for a wide variety of children's ages. My 10 yr old loved the big slide, the 8 yr old enjoyed the river and whirlpool and my 4 yr old enjoyed the water playground made for little tikes. The indoor leisure play pool is normally open from 3 pm to 8:30 pm Monday through Thursday though they are closed for a few days starting this Thursday the 24th. Weekend hours are earlier opening at 11 on Saturday and 1 on Sunday.  Check this website for full dates and times.

Where: 225 Bethesda Church Road, Lawrenceville 678-924-6334

Cost:
Under 3 is $2
4 - 10 is $4
11 - 49 is $5
50 + is $2
Lockers are free but bring a few quarters to obtain the key as they don't carry much change on site. 


Watch Video

Comprehensive Land Use Plan meeting on Transportation moved to Wednesday, June 24th

Breaking News - I will not have to miss a Swim Meet.

From: Jennifer Peterson
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2009 9:49 AM
To: Council Members
Subject: RE: Comprehensive Plan Meetings

Dear Council,

As requested by some Council and members of the community, the second public outreach meeting date has been changed to Wednesday June 24^th.

If you could assist me in spreading that message, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks,

Jennifer A. Peterson
Community Development Director
City of Dunwoody
P.O. Box 888074
Dunwoody, GA 30356
Office: 678.382.6700/ Fax: 678.382.6701
jennifer.peterson@dunwoodyga.gov
www.dunwoodyga.gov

Walking Wednesday in support of Safe Route to Schools was a tremendous success at Kingsley Elementary.

Kingsley's first Walking Wednesday was a tremendous success!

More than 100 students participated in Kingsley's inaugural walk to school event on April 1st, joined by over 50 parents, Kingsley Principal Karen Graham, City Councilman John Heneghan, Dunwoody Police Chief Billy Grogan and several members of the Dunwoody Police Department. It was a wonderful sight to see the walkers form a mini-parade as they steadily marched down N. Peachtree Road on their way to school.

Mother Nature must have appreciated our efforts, providing dry and pleasant conditions for our walk. Early morning showers stopped shortly before our walkers gathered together, with the rain resuming just after we arrived to school.

Our police escort was a great help, slowing down some early morning commuters and providing safe passage across Mt. Vernon Hwy. and N. Peachtree Rd.

Kingsley will continue its Walking Wednesday program this year, with walks scheduled for this Wednesday and 5/13. I hope that Kingsley's success will inspire other Dunwoody schools to establish similar programs, and that children walking to school will soon be a common sight on Dunwoody.

Join the biggest and best run Neighborhood Swim Team in Dunwoody

The Dunwoody North "Fins" Swim Team accepts swimmers who are not members of the DNDC Swim/Tennis Club and not even part of the immediate community (based on availability), therefore the swim team is one of the largest and most competitive in Dunwoody.

Early Bird Registration: Sunday, March 29th from 3 p.m. until 5 p.m. at DNDC Clubhouse (Open to all returning swimmers/families and to all DNDC members)

Open Registration: Thursday, April 23rd from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. at DNDC Clubhouse (Open to non-members if there is availability)

May Practice: Monday May 11th – Thursday May 21st
Pre-team (those who cannot yet swim 1 length of the pool) 2:45-3:15 p.m.
6 and under 3:15 – 3:45 p.m.
7/8 and 9/10 – 4:00 – 4:45 p.m.
11 and up 5:00 – 5:45 p.m.

Time Trials: Tuesday May 26th
6 and under start at 8:30 a.m.
Everyone else be at the pool at 8:45 a.m.

Summer Practice: From May 27th until the end of the season.
M/Tu/Th/Fr: Pre-team and 6 and under: 8:30 – 9:00 a.m.
7/8: 9:00 – 9:45 a.m.
9/10: 9:45 – 10:30 a.m.
11 and up: 10:30 – 11:15 a.m.
Wednesdays: Doughnuts and Ribbons from 9:00 a.m. – 11 a.m.

DNDC Swim Team Dues for the 2009 season are:

• Please register your child with NASA On-line BEFORE You Come to Registration this Year by going to the following link: www.atlantaswimming.com.
  
  
• Early Bird Registration Special of $80.00 per swimmer ($200 family maximum) if registered on Sunday, March 29th. This date is reserved for returning DNDC swimmers and also returning non-member swimmers. This date is also available to all DNDC members who are new to the team.
  
  
• Standard Registration Fee of $85.00 per swimmer ($215 family maximum) if registered on Thursday, April 23rd. This date is open to new non-members if there is space on the team.
  
  
• Late Registration Fee of $90.00 ($230 family maximum) after April 23rd. DNDC members who register for the swim team after April 23rd may need to be waitlisted – so register at the early bird or standard dates!
  
  
• Swimmers who are 15 and older on June 1 MUST register with NASA on-line and pay their registration fee of $17. Although these older swimmers must complete all registration DNDC registration forms, they will not be charged a DNDC registration fee.
  
  
• Non-members may join the swim team for an additional $50.00 per swimmer with a family max of $200/$215/$230. The additional $50.00 fee applies to each swimmer, is not part of the max and is not refundable.
  
  
• Only registered and paid swimmers (with DNDC and NASA records and payment complete) can participate at practice and meets. If your swimmer needs a trial period, we can hold checks until Wednesday, May 27th.
  
  
• One person from each swimmer’s family is required to volunteer during one half of each meet. You can sign up for specific positions at the March 29th and April 23rd registrations.

Registration Form Available Here

Dunwoody North Swim Team Schedule

DNDC Swim Team starts practices on Wednesday, May 14th after school.

Swim Meet Schedule
Thursday, May 29th against Kingsley (home meet)
Tuesday, June 3 against Mill Glen (away meet)
Tuesday, June 10 against Vermack (home meet)
Tuesday, June 17th against Roxboro (away meet)
Tuesday, June 24th against Gainsborough (away meet)

Picture day is Monday, June 2 during practice.

If you have not already registered, please turn in your forms to Kristie Van Winkle asap. The deadline for avoiding a late fee is May 1. However, it looks like we may have to start a waiting list due to our team’s size which cannot exceed 150 swimmers. Any forms that come in between now and May 1 will give priority to club members (anyone who has already registered is on our roster). After May 1 we cannot assure a spot for those who have not already registered, so please turn in forms now!!

If you have questions, please call Carolyn Facteau at 770-936-8633 .

Swim, Kids, Swim on the Dunwoody North Swim Team. Non-Members Welcome

2008 DNDC Fins swim team registration is this Sunday, February 24th from 3:00 to 5:00 at the Dunwoody North Clubhouse.

Dues for the 2008 season are $95.00 for club members if received by May 1st. After May 1st, dues are $105.00. Family maximum is $240.00.

Non-members may join the swim team for an additional $50.00 per swimmer with a family max of $240.00. The additional $50.00 fee applies to each swimmer and is not part of the max.

Only registered and paid swimmers can participate at practice and meets. If your swimmer needs a trial period, we can hold checks until Wednesday May 28th. One person from each swimmer’s family is required to volunteer during one half of each meet. You can sign up for specific positions at the February 24th registration.

If you have any questions please contact Carolyn Facteau at 770-936-8633