Everyone Who Thinks They are Going to Take the GA 400 Toll Away, Take One Step Forward

Officials are meeting this week to determine wheter they will keep the toll booths on GA 400 in North Metro Atlanta when the bonds are paid off in 2011.

When the toll booths were installed almost twenty years ago I remember telling a friend of mine they will never take those booths down, even though by law they are supposed to in 2011.

Now they say they needto keep the tolls going because there are other road projects to do, many of which have nothing to do with GA 400 and its use.

Why should those that use GA 400 be forced to pay for projects all over Fulton County?  The toll booths should come down in 2011, or at the very least a vote should be put to the people to see if they want the toll money to be used for future road projects.  And if approved they should be used for projects that help make GA 400 a better highway and take away some of the congestion that plagues this road every day.

 

Kid Rock's Atlanta Trial Goes to Jury

A jury of 11 will deliberate the Kid Rock Waffle House fight case beginning Friday morning in Atlanta.

The Decatur man suing the musician said Kid Rock and his five co-defendants attacked him without warning during a fight nearly three years ago at a Buford Highway Waffle House.

Harlen Akins, 41, is the man who says he was punched and kicked repeatedly by the rocker's crew and feared for his life.

Kid Rock said his crew was in defense mode, portraying Akins as an eager agitator. "We didn't beat up [Akins]," the singer testified.

The musician stopped at the restaurant following an October 2007 performance at The Tabernacle in Atlanta. He pleaded guilty in March 2008 to a misdemeanor charge of simple battery.

Akins is seeking restitution of roughly $6,000 in medical costs plus an unspecified amount for pain and suffering. The former music promoter followed Kid Rock on the stand as testimony concluded in the three-day-long civil trial.

 "Independent eyewitnesses, not once, but twice said Kid Rock started the fight," the plaintiff's attorney said. "[Kid Rock] told you if someone insults him, he'll punch him. All you have to do is be in at the wrong place at the wrong time and say the wrong thing."

Plane Lands on Metro Atlanta Golf Course

What better place to make an emergency landing in a plane than on a golf course.

A small plane made an emergency landing in a Paulding County neighborhood Sunday afternoon, police said.  No injuries are reported.  The plane landed on the golf course in the Bentwater community off Cedarcrest Road in north Paulding, Cpl. Brandon Gurley with the Paulding County Sheriff's Office told the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

The plane went down shortly after 5 p.m.

Firefighters and deputies accessed the crash site through the parking lot of the nearby Primrose school.
Cedarcrest Road is off Cobb Parkway near Acworth.

The plane was a white Cessna that took off from McCollum Field in Kennesaw with an instructor and pilot aboard, said MaryAnn Phipps, a Paulding county emergency management spokesperson.

The plane lost power and they made an emergency landing by the 10th hole of the golf course, she said.

Here's a map of where I believe the plane landed.

Update on Sunday, August 29, 2010 at 8:00PM by Rick C.Limpert

Now being reported that this is the 13th hole.

Say it Ain't So... Varsity Jr. in Atlanta to Close

The Varsity Jr. in Atlanta is closing it's doors after 45 years in the same location. A big blow for the restaurant and fans of nekkid dogs and frosted oranges.

The family that owns The Varsity has told 11Alive in Atlanta they will close The Varsity Jr. at Lindbergh and Cheshire Bridge in two weeks. The family wanted to build a new Varsity Jr. on the Lindbergh lot. The wanted to demolish the old facility and move it back on the property. Included in the new design, a playground, a green space, bike racks and trees. After months of negotiations with the city of Atlanta, talks broke off.

The family has decided to move it's Varsity Jr. to Dawson County. They will take the same plans that were to be used in Atlanta and instead build across from The North Georgia Outlet Malls.

The Varsity Jr. is expected to close August 23rd.

Atlanta Loses Spring NASCAR Race

Atlanta's loss might be Kentucky's gain as Atlanta Motor Speedway has been informed it has lost their annual spring NASCAR race. 

Atlanta Motor Speedway announced Thursday that it will hold onto the Labor Day Weekend event on Sept 2-4. It will be the first time in 50 years that the 1.5-mile track, owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc., hasn't hosted two Cup events.

Kentucky Speedway, an SMI track, has scheduled a news conference for Tuesday, when it is expected to announce it has secured a Sprint Cup date.

Sources have confirmed Kentucky will replace Atlanta on the schedule, but not on the March weekend that Atlanta traditionally has hosted its first race. Multiple reports over the weekend said Kentucky would host a date in July.

"Atlanta Motor Speedway has provided top-quality racing entertainment to spectators from across the nation and around the world for 50 years," Atlanta president Ed Clark said in a statement. "While our schedule will change, our commitment to the racing fans who have been the heart and soul of Atlanta Motor Speedway through these years will be stronger than ever.

"Our entire staff will be even more driven to produce the top annual sporting event in Georgia for many years to come."

Kentucky already hosts NASCAR Nationwide and Truck Series events, as well as an IndyCar race. Plans are already in place to expand seating from 65,000 to around 100,000.