2010 has been a very busy and important year for Huntley Hills! Below is my attempt at summarizing some of the highlights. I know this is crazy long, but there is a lot to cover…

The year started with us having a 1-month extension to the traffic calming signature deadline. In December of 2009 we turned in more than the required number of signatures; however, many were not accepted because we did not have the correct names, according to the tax records. So we had to go back and get women to resign with their pre-married names, track down death certificates, mail petitions to out-of-state owners, etc. But we got it done! The final totals ended up being 80% supportive, 10% not supportive and 10% unable to be reached. In February of 2010 the Board of Commissioners approved our project. Then we waited…

While we were waiting, we found out that Montessori at Huntley Hills Elementary School was included in the proposed budget cuts planned by the DeKalb County School System. The parents at our school quickly organized and fought back – they dominated the school board discussions for many months and were often quoted in the media. The drama continued until June – when we found out definitively that Montessori would remain in DeKalb County schools.

In the mean time, a few of our neighbors were busy making sure our City of Chamblee Annexation legislation successfully passed through the Georgia State House and then the Senate. This effort was over 10 years in the works (as was traffic calming) and in February the State bill was signed, giving us an opportunity to vote on the issue in November.

Also in February, tragedy stuck our neighborhood and one of our long-time neighborhood families, when 11-year old Nick Sheffey suffered a senseless death. The Chamblee, Doraville and DeKalb County police worked together, round-the-clock and within days, all the suspects were arrested and have since been convicted – they will be in jail for a very, very long time. I’m proud of how our community responded and of the help and support we were able to provide to the family. Please continue to keep the entire Sheffey family in your thoughts and prayers, especially Nick’s younger brother Michael.

In March, another group of neighbors were working hard to start the first ever Chamblee Farmer’s Market. After many months of planning, the market opened in June. It has been a big success and a wonderful addition to the City of Chamblee!

The Huntley Hills Swim and Tennis Club (HHSTC) also had a very busy summer and one of the best seasons ever. Membership is at an all time high and the improvements to the club in the last 3 years are too many to list – if you haven’t been by in awhile, check it out. The influx of new members (and new Board members) has created a tremendous sense of ownership and pride in the club, which speaks volumes for the future of our neighborhood and community.

In early summer, our speed tables were installed and we all took great pleasure in watching the MARTA busses (and others) actually start to drive close to the 25 MPH speed limit.

Throughout the summer, Chamblee First United Methodist (behind Commodore Drive) underwent some major renovations and upgrades. The church and their preschool have been a tremendous asset to our neighborhood over many decades. Aside from attending services and school there, many of our residents and children also attend their community events, play on their playgrounds and use their Frisbee golf course. Their new facilities are terrific and we are all very happy to see their growth and success continue.

In late summer, our Neighborhood Watch Program got a jump-start when we got a new volunteer Coordinator and hosted a community meeting with DeKalb and Chamblee Police. Since then, the program has been completely revitalized and we now have 45 block captains, covering 81% of the neighborhood. Many thanks to all who are participating!

The Huntley Hills Neighborhood Association (HHNA) also got a necessary jolt of new blood and in July we elected 4 new members to the Board and resumed monthly meetings. The Board quickly published a long overdue newsletter and organized the 4th annual Neighborhood Night Out Party in August – where over 300 neighbors attended. The event was a big success and generated new memberships and interest in the Association. We are also now on Facebook! The future of HHNA is looking good – please let us know if you are interested in serving on next year’s Board.

In September, our neighborhood started gearing up for the City of Chamblee’s Annexation vote in November. Most of us assumed it to be a done deal, a no-brainer, so to speak. But then lots of misinformation was distributed and a small, but very vocal, group of businesses and citizens made it clear they did not want to be part of Chamblee. After an extensive Get Out the Vote effort by our neighbors and others, Annexation passed by 58%. Regardless of how you voted, I think everyone will be happy to see the Chamblee police patrolling our neighborhood come January 1st and the sanitation department sucking our leaves up from the curb in the not too distant future.

Halloween brought us the 3rd annual Huntley Hills Halloween party, sponsored by the Swim & Tennis Club. Attendance was the highest ever and afterwards a parade of kids descended upon our streets. Many thanks to everyone who decorated their homes and handed out candy – and a special thanks to those who went over the top with their awesome haunted houses!

Right before the November election we were informed that DeKalb County had an opportunity to replace our aging Chamblee high school with a brand new building, using a federal stimulus bond. Hundreds of people, including residents from Huntley Hills, emailed and called the DeKalb County School Board members and advocated for Chamblee. All of the efforts paid off – construction begins in 2011!

Later in November, we voted in a local run-off election for our District 1 School Board Representative. Nancy Jester ended up beating the incumbent and winning the Chamblee area vote by over 80%. We look forward to seeing her represent us for the next 4 years.

In early December, some of our neighbors created a new blog where we can now easily find neighborhood referrals and recommendations for anything from automobile repair to yard work – there are more than 30 categories and dozens and dozens of comments – all from your neighbors. Be sure to check it out and add your comments.

Last, but definitely not least, I can’t possibly talk about 2010 without mentioning the Yahoo email group. Between the beaver, coyote, circus, Chamblee Plaza, IHOP, neighborhood watch, gorilla, handyman, traffic calming, AT&T, stray dog, security alert, plumber, annexation, burglary, community food bank, school board election, etc. emails – for better or worse, it has forever changed the way our neighborhood communicates.

It was originally started as a small playgroup email list and in the Fall of 2009, I changed it to a general neighborhood group. Then I started auto-adding 10 people a day from the HHNA list (all that is allowed under Yahoo’s spam rules). Slowly, it has grown – we now have 5 moderators, including myself, and over 550 neighbors are sending/receiving the emails. It sure has helped make 2010 one of the most interesting years we’ve had!

I can only wonder what 2011 will bring to Huntley Hills. I expect the year will start on a good note, with the Chamblee police patrolling our entire neighborhood, the remaining traffic calming measures installed and construction of our new high school starting. Beyond that…who knows?

Thanks EVERYONE for a GREAT year!

-Leslie Freymann
HHNA and HHSTC Board Member

PS. I intentionally did not mention any names because there are just too many to list and I’m certain I would leave some out. But to those of you who were a part of any of the above (or any other things I didn’t mention) – you know who you are – please be proud of your accomplishments and for helping to make Huntley Hills a terrific community! To those of you who haven’t yet been involved, maybe 2011 will be your year to make a difference in Huntley Hills… ?

We have now put our membership list online and it’s current as of December 15, 2010. Please check and see if your address is listed. click here . THANKS!!!

The Huntley Hills Neighborhood Association is organizing our fourth annual Neighborhood Night Out and Huntley Hills block party. Please join us behind the pool and tennis courts on September 24 from 4 – 9 PM. Meet some new neighbors, see your friends and join us!
With outreach to many of the local restaurants, we have many generous donations.

Some of the restaurants that have confirmed donations so far include:

Chick-Fil-A Chamblee
Pizza Hut
Mad Italian
Pig and Chick
Gallas Pizza
Arbys
Vintage Pizza
And more to come!

Additionally scheduled to appear: a Dekalb County fire truck, several members of the Chamblee police department, and a bouncy house for the young kids (or those young at heart!)

We will have raffle items, including a beach house weekend, gift cards (many!), free car wash tickets, duffel bag from SunTrust, coffee from Starbucks and more!

This event is sponsored by your Huntley Hills Neighborhood Association. If you have not registered yet for the 2011-12 year, Feel free to bring your HHNA dues ($20) to the event or pay online through out new PayPal account: Click on the ‘Association Info’ tab above then click ‘Membership – Pay Dues.’ Click the PalPal ‘Buy Now’ button to begin/renew. So easy!!

Look for information to come through this group or through the upcoming newsletter. This year’s block party will be better than ever!

Kevin Shannon
2011-2012 HHNA President

We now have a new Yahoo email group for all of Huntley Hills!

This Yahoo group is where you can recommend a local roofer, post info about your lost pet, promote a fundraiser you are organizing, advertise your yard sale, etc. You can also use this email group to immediately report any suspicious vehicles in the neighborhood and/or share any other crime related information.

Here’s the link:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HuntleyHills

Click on the Join button (you will need a Yahoo ID to join).

Quick Summary:

All the streets in the neighborhood qualify to participate in some form of traffic calming solution (i.e. speed tables, center traffic islands, splitter traffic islands, bike lanes, and/or traffic circles).  The devices implemented and their locations are entirely up to us as a neighborhood to decide (within engineering guidelines). For those who like details, see my meeting notes at the bottom of this email.

Next action items:

If you want to be on the newly formed Traffic Calming Committee, please let me know ASAP. We need about 10 dedicated people who can meet weekly for 1-2 hours (see below schedule) for the next 2 months.
Begin talking to your neighbors about the project and collect their feedback, etc.
Participate in the neighborhood meetings listed below (and bolded).

Timeline:

Feb 8th (Sun) 7pm: 1st Committee meeting (develop VERY draft plan and discuss strategies/assignments)
Feb 15th (Sun) 7pm: Committee meeting
Feb 17th (Tues) 5:30 pm: Galla’s Pizza (neighborhood dinner out; discuss draft plan, get feedback)
Feb 22nd (Sun) 7pm Committee meeting

March 1st (Sunday) 4:00 pm: HHNA By-Laws Meeting (committee presents draft plan, Q & A, open discussion)
March 8th (Sun) 7pm: Committee meeting
March 15th (Sun) 7pm: Committee meeting
March 17th (Tues) 5:30 pm: Pig N Chik (neighborhood dinner out; discuss draft plan, get feedback)
March 22nd (Sun) 4:00 pm: HHNA meeting AND neighborhood party (present plan, Q & A, get feedback)
March 31st (Tues): Goal of presenting our plan to the county so they can formalize it

* The Sunday Committee meetings will be as needed and can change times/days of the week, depending on the schedules of the members.

Meeting Details:

We have a couple of months (or as long as it takes) to discuss all our options and come up with a draft plan for the County to formalize.
After the County presents a formal plan, we have 12 months to share it with neighbors, tweet it, etc. before it goes to the Board of Commission.
After the Commission vote, we have only 90 days to get all the signatures or the plan fails and we can try again in another 12 months.
The time frame is almost entirely dependant upon us; the county moves quickly once we make a decision and they have had plans take less than 6 months from start to finish.
Neighborhood input is CRITICAL and we need to do everything we can to give people a chance to comment before we finalize the plan.
We also need to be prepared to go door-to-door and share/sell the plan to all neighbors, BEFORE the 90 day time frame for signatures. We do not want any surprises or counter-petitions (which apparently is rather common).
Depending on the options we chose and where, the plan could be voted on and implemented in stages.
The 65% of Yes signatures must be from property owners, not renters; based on our very rough estimates, we will need over 400 signatures.
If we implement something on Admiral and/or Longview, some other streets might have to be included in the plan by default, depending on what is implemented and where. They would also included in the vote and $25/year assessment, but they do NOT have to get any traffic calming devices.
Streets can have one or more (or all) of the traffic calming devices. For example, Longview could have speed tables, traffic islands, bike lanes and potentially traffic circles – and the assessment remains at $25/house.
The county still has to evaluate certain intersections to see if traffic circles will fit.
The neighborhood is responsible for maintaining the grounds of the traffic islands/circles and nothing over 4ft high can be planted.
MARTA buses are not a factor; all devices are designed to accommodate buses. MARTA can choose to reroute.
Based on county statistics and LOTS of anecdotal evidence, traffic tables (as opposed to all other devices) have the greatest success at slowing down traffic and preventing cut-through traffic.
Possible incorporation into the City of Chamblee is not a factor; all traffic calming is done entirely through DeKalb County.
Speed tables are extended to the curbs (i.e. There is not a flat surface for bikes, wheelchairs, etc.).
Speed tables are not installed on grades >8%. This may eliminate portions of Admiral, but other options are still available.
Streets must be wider than 26ft (from one edge of the pavement to the other) in order to have bike lanes.
Bike lanes can be on one or both sides of the street (but it still must be 26ft wide).
Splitter traffic islands take out about 5 feet of county right-away space from yards on both sides.
Speed tables and traffic islands must be 350-500 ft apart from each other.
All traffic calming devices must be 5 ft away from sewer caps, utilities and driveways and 75-150 ft from stop signs or intersections.
In general, the county tries to maintain 10-11 feet of road for each travel lane.
Traffic islands are about 40ft long.
Speed tables are 4 inches high, 10 feet wide, and have 6 ft ramps on both sides (22ft wide total).

That’s all I’ve got for now. Thanks Everyone!

Leslie Freymann
2070 Plantation Lane
770-713-0350

Ps. Regarding sidewalks, LONG story short, it’s not going to happen anytime at all in the next few years due to massive budget shortfalls and very recent changes to the prioritization system. Incorporating into Chamblee might give us more of a chance, but still, funding would be a long way away. Unfortunately, we need to make the traffic calming decisions without the hopes of sidewalks.

Pps. However, I am hopeful the intersections of Longview/Seaman Circle and possibly Ellywn/Admiral will soon be approved to become 4-way stops.