Arrests are pending in a July 14 incident that virtually destroyed and home at 304 West Broad Street in Fairburn and took the life of the family’s dog.

Union City conducted the third of several public hearings July 10, designed to solicit input for the city’s South Fulton Parkway Corridor Study. Expected to be completed later this summer, the corridor study is anticipated to provide a template for municipal decisions through 2027 that will directly affect the 6.5-mile stretch of the parkway annexed by Union City last summer.

Mounting public concerns expressed at Union City council meetings during the past few months came to a head Tuesday night as residents called for Mayor Ralph Moore and Councilwoman Angelette Mealing to resign their elected positions. Residents also announced that a recall movement for removal of the two had begun.

Skies threatened but not a drop of rain fell July 7 as Atlanta Symphony Orchestra performed in south Fulton at the Wolf Creek Amphitheater. More than 1,000 enjoyed the music, sponsored by Partnership for Tomorrow, Fulton County Commission and a number of corporate sponsors. Photo/Special.

The much anticipated move to place the South Fulton Parkway into the hands of Georgia Dept. of Transportation (GDOT) came to fruition Wednesday. Being designated a state highway should preserve the parkway’s limited access as it becomes a major traffic corridor in the fast growing area of west metro Atlanta.

A resolution to the standoff between members of South Fulton Municipal Regional Water & Sewer Authority came to an end Tuesday as representatives of Palmetto and Union City agreed to refinance the authority’s $41.7 million bond and use the savings to pay down the principal and interest.

The U.S. Dept. of Justice has cleared the way for the vote on the city of South Fulton, likely to be held in September. The clearance came in a July 10 letter to Georgia Attorney General Thurbert Baker.

Fulton County erosion control inspector Don Mitchell faces up to 10 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines after pleading guilty to soliciting and taking cash and other bribes from a contractor during the course of his job.

Fairburn Police are seeking two men in connection with the armed robbery Tuesday at Hampton Inn on Ga. Highway 74 and Oakley Industrial Boulevard.

Topics as diverse as a new hotel on Ga. Highway 74 and a proposed garbage transfer station dotted the landscape at the Tuesday meeting of the Fairburn City Council. Approval of the conceptual site plan for Holiday Inn Express was voted in by the council, while the future of the transfer station on Bohannon Road was put on hold until August.

Members of the South Fulton and Fayette Community Task Force refuse to give up. It is now a full year since hundreds became ill after breathing the onion-like odor that state and federal investigators later said were emissions of the chemical odorant Propyl mercaptan from the Phillip Services Corp. plant near Fairburn. Residents say they are more committed than ever to pressing those same state and federal agencies to maintain medical follow-ups on the health status of affected citizens.

The much anticipated move to place the South Fulton Parkway into the hands of Georgia Dept. of Transportation (DOT) came to fruition Wednesday. Being designated a state highway should preserve the parkway’s limited access as it becomes a major traffic corridor in the fast growing area of west metro Atlanta.

U.S. Dept. of Justice (DOJ) has cleared the way for the vote on the city of South Fulton, likely to be held in September. The clearance came in a July 10 letter to Georgia Attorney General Thurbert Baker.

A Fairburn man died of multiple gunshot wounds in the early morning hours June 30 near the Union City residence of his former girlfriend. Twenty-three year-old Dontarious Shackleford was reportedly throwing items at the woman’s house when eight males exited the residence, chased and beat him before two of the males fired several shots into his upper body.

Fulton County Board of Commissioners June 20 announced a general fund millage rate decrease of 1.126 mills and a South Fulton Tax District reduction of .072 mills over last year’s rate. The new general fund rate will come within just over one-tenth mill of amounting to no net tax increase. Figures for the impact on the Special Service District are under review.

The hotel business continues to keep I-85 and Ga. Highway 74 in its crosshairs. That attention was evidenced Tuesday as Fairburn Planning Commission agreed to recommend a conceptual site plan for a 75-room, four-story Holiday Inn Express on the southside of the interchange.

A Fairburn man died of multiple gunshot wounds in the early morning hours June 30 near the Union City residence of his former girlfriend. Twenty-three year-old Dontarious Shackleford was reportedly throwing items at the woman’s house when eight males exited the residence, chased and beat him before two of the males fired several shots into his upper body, said Union City Police spokesman Sgt. George Louth.

Nearly four dozen Palmetto residents attend a June 26 meeting of the city’s recently formed Neighborhood Watch group.

Linda Sharko always has something delicious at Fairburn Farmers Market. The market is open Saturday mornings at the old depot and features an array of fresh fruit and vegetables, crafts and live plants provided by local growers and artisans. Photo/Ben Nelms.

Palmetto residents came together a few months ago to explore ways to address crime issues in their neighborhoods. Those meetings led to the formation of a Neighborhood Watch group. Today, they have begun daytime patrols in some neighborhoods and are looking to expand their presence into the nighttime hours.

For Alpharetta developer John Blankenship, it might be better to take his high density residential development somewhere in north Fulton instead of bringing it to south Fulton. A request to rezone 18.63 acres on Ga. Highway 138 and Jonesboro Road met with strong concerns by residents and unanimous defeat June 25 when Union City Planning commissioners turned down the request to build 60 homes separated only by storage sheds. Next stop for the request will be the City Council on July 17.

Owners of the Union City Comfort Inn during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina have been indicted in federal court on charges of mail fraud related to a scheme to defraud the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of more than $20,000 allocated for hurricane victims.

A Fairburn man was arrested June 25 on first-degree arson and aggravated assault charges after striking his girlfriend and setting fire to their apartment.

It’s a family affair. Making her mark on her husband Bob Justice’s promotion to Lieutenant with Fairburn Police, Betty Justice does the pinning honors outside Fairburn City Hall after the June 11 council meeting.

History was made June 19 in south Fulton County as Chatt Hills residents gave overwhelming approval to form the new city of Chattahoochee Hill Country. A turn out of more than 47 percent of registered voters resulted in 83 percent approving the charter of the new city, set to begin operations in December.

What a difference a year makes. A plan last year to put rent-adjusted apartments on South Fulton Parkway when the area was in unincorporated Fulton County met with adamant opposition from area residents. But one year later, with the area now annexed into Union City, the plan gained approval on a 2-1 vote at the June 19 council meeting.

People by the thousands have been moving into south Fulton in the past few years. Now catching up with that growth is the construction of the first of several commercial developments that will serve the fast-growing area in coming years. The development is Parkway Village, located on the northeast corner of South Fulton Parkway and Ga. Highway 92.

Fairburn just refuses to budge. But so does Union City and Palmetto. At stake is a resolution on the next move for South Fulton Municipal Water & Sewer Authority’s plan to eventually build a reservoir in the new city of Chattahoochee Hill Country to serve the increasing water needs of Palmetto, Union City and Fairburn.

It is a morning full of smiles and song and food Thursday as Fairburn Seniors Center celebrates Community Appreciation Day.

It was one of those back and forth things with everyone standing their ground. The South Fulton Municipal Regional Water & Sewer Authority hit another impasse Tuesday over the question of what to do with the funds that will come from refinancing the authority’s $41.7 million bond. The 2003 bond is to be used to construct a reservoir and provide drinking water to Union City, Fairburn and Palmetto.