December 2025 Community Life - Woodstock Affordable Workforce Housing Being Considered for Cherokee CountyThe Cherokee County Board of Commissioners is considering a workforce housing overlay district that would provide more housing for residents who work in Cherokee County. In recent years, many large employers, including Northside Hospital, WellStar, the Cherokee County School District, and county and city leadership, have expressed concern that their employees cannot afford to live where they work. Additionally, many young professionals are struggling to find affordable housing after they move out of their parents’ house and/or return home from school. Cherokee County and leaders from cities, nonprofits, employers, and other interested parties have regularly met over the past two years to help find solutions to the affordable housing problem, learning from other jurisdictions and researching what has worked and what has not.The floating overlay would be the first of its kind, allowing flexibility with development regulations and providing more opportunities for affordable housing options for residents who work in the county. It could be applied in a residentially zoned area of Cherokee County and must meet several criteria: • Properties must be 10 acres or less in size. • Units will be reserved for residents making 80% or less of the area median income. • Public water and sewer must be accessible. • Properties must be within two miles of I-575, I-75, or Highway 92. • Seventy-five percent of surrounding properties shall be developed or under construction. • Properties must be located with a character area supporting residential as the primary land use. Housing could be attached or detached single-family residential, and the county could use tools such as deed or land use restriction agreements, confirmation of a second mortgage, and a good neighbor agreement, which acts as a covenant. If implemented, the review process would include a public hearing before the Board of Commissioners if one or more of the criteria are not met or as determined by the Planning and Zoning director. If all the criteria are met, the proposal would undergo an administrative review and could be approved by county staff. If the Board of Commissioners chooses to move forward, a public hearing to amend the zoning ordinance to add the floating overlay would be held.————————————————————Commissioners Approve Design/Build Contracts for New Fire Stations and Justice Center Expansion ProjectFire Stations 5 and 29 Replacements A design-build agreement to construct a replacement Fire Station 5 on East Cherokee Drive and a replacement Fire Station 29 on Cumming Highway, the former site of Buffington Elementary School, was approved. Once the new Station 5 is opened, the old station will be demolished.The Capital Projects Team and fire department leadership will work with the design-builder to re-task the historic structure of the former Buffington School while maintaining access to the adjacent cemetery. The former school building will be used by Fire & Emergency Services’ Fire Education Department, and a new Fire Station 29 will be constructed on the former campus.Justice Center Expansion ProjectA professional services agreement with Goodway Mills and Cawood and subconsultant Jericho Design Group to provide program and concept verification for the Justice Center Expansion Project to prepare schematic design documents suitable for use by a construction manager has been approved, with preliminary design services not to exceed $550,000.The goal is to construct a building addition along North Street first, starting as soon as the late second quarter or early third quarter of 2026, which will run parallel with a parking deck planned by the City of Canton as part of its North Street Redevelopment Project to serve both projects.————————————————————City of Woodstock Awarded 2026-2028 PlanFirst Designation The City of Woodstock is one of only 14 Georgia communities awarded the 2026–2028 PlanFirst designation by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. The designation recognizes local governments that demonstrate excellence in planning, community engagement, leadership, and implementation of their comprehensive plans. PlanFirst communities gain access to enhanced eligibility for state and federal grant opportunities, reduced-interest loans, and bonus points on applications for programs such as the Community Development Block Grant, Redevelopment Fund, and the Community HOME Investment Program.————————————————————Partnership for New Upscale Downtown Hotel Announced The City of Woodstock has signed a letter of intent for the construction of a new upscale hotel in the heart of its downtown. The landmark project will be a six-story, 130-room hotel, situated directly across from the Northside Hospital-Cherokee Amphitheater. The development is set to feature multiple food and beverage venues, a spa, ground-floor retail outlets, and 5,000 square feet of meeting and event space. This development is a key component of the city's strategy to enhance its economic vitality. The addition of high-quality lodging and meeting space is expected to attract new tourism and business opportunities, further solidifying Woodstock's reputation as one of the region's top destinations.————————————————————2025 Woodstock Municipal General Election Results Mayor: • Michael Caldwell (incumbent) - 3,915 votes • Martha Jean Schindler - 1,955 votesCouncil Member, Ward 1: • Warren Johnson (incumbent) - 3,442 votes • Trent Council - 2,111 votesCouncil Member, Ward 3: • Colin Ake (incumbent) - 4,780 votesCouncil Member, Ward 5: • Brian Wolfe (incumbent) - 3,418 votes • Gopi Govindaraj - 2,230 votesSenior Tax Exemption Surviving Spouse:Yes - 5,092 No - 801TSPLOST: Yes - 25,132 No - 16,479A Swearing-In Ceremony will take place at the start of the January 12, 2026, Regular Meeting of Mayor and Council. Terms of office begin January 1, 2026, and continue through December 31, 2029.————————————————————Recreation and Parks Honored With Agency of the Year Award For the seventh time, Cherokee County Recreation and Parks has been named the Georgia Recreation and Parks District 5 Class A Agency of the Year at the Georgia Recreation and Parks Association Awards Banquet, illustrating its exceptional delivery of quality parks, recreation, and programming opportunities for Cherokee County’s nearly 300,000 residents.————————————————————City of Canton Election ResultsIn the race to succeed Sandy McGrew as Ward 1 Councilor, Darrell Rice ran unopposed. For the Ward 2 Council seat, Bryan Roach (incumbent) was reelected with 2,510 votes (57.7%), while opponent Pennie L. Clopton received 1,841 votes (42.3%). In the Ward 3 race, Dwayne Waterman (incumbent) was reelected with 2,149 votes (50.2%), and opponent Todd Smith received 2,131 votes (49.8%). The winners of these three races will be sworn in for four-year terms at the January 8, 2026, council meeting.In the Cherokee County Special Election, the Transportation Special Purposes Local Option Sales Tax passed with 25,132 YES votes (60.4%) and 16,479 NO votes (39.6%). The Senior Homestead Exemption - Surviving Spouse Amendment passed with 36,380 YES votes (87.8%) and 5,051 NO votes (12.2%).————————————————————CHEROKEE COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT ANNOUNCEMENTSWoodstock MS Student Hopes to Inspire Others to Volunteer Woodstock MS 8th-grade cheerleader Katelyn Henderson demonstrated exceptional dedication by completing 92 hours of community service during this cheer season, far surpassing the 10-hour requirement. Henderson has volunteered at the YMCA cleanup, served meals to those in need, assisted her church with community events, and more. By exemplifying leadership, service, and school spirit, Henderson hopes to inspire other youth to volunteer in the community. Teacher Elected President of National Career Education Association Callie Davis, who leads the River Ridge HS Career Pathway Healthcare Science Program for Diagnostics: Clinical Laboratory Science, was selected by her peers to serve as president-elect of the Health Science Educators Association, the educator membership arm of the National Consortium for Health Science Education. Ten Students Win STEM ScholarshipsWinners of the Cherokee County NAACP 2026 STEM Scholarship Program are Kobe Fitzgerald, Cherokee HS; Anaya Lawrence, Creekview HS; Hannah Oduselu and Aneesa Turner, Etowah HS; Udi Gitau and Manuel Tombe Tamga, River Ridge HS; and Kaydence Edwards, Ashley Graham, Mmesomachi Igwilo, and Jori Jones, Woodstock HS. Optimists Honor CCSD Special Education Students and StaffThe Holly Springs Optimist Club recently honored outstanding special needs students and their supportive teachers and staff at its annual High School Awards breakfast. The 2025 honorees are:• Leah Weatherby - Cherokee HS• Billy Zambrano - Creekview HS• Israel Delgado-Mayo - Etowah HS• Parker Fick - River Ridge HS • Tylor Armstrong - Sequoyah HS • Jason Henderson - Tippens Education Center• Jack Brewer - Transition Academy • Ethan Simmons - Woodstock HS • Jordan Hofmeister - Tippens Education Center, Teacher award for Outstanding Achievement in Education • Jess Cardenas - Etowah HS, Paraprofessional of the Year Seniors Named National Merit Commended Students Thirteen seniors have been named National Merit Commended Students by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. They are among the only 2-3% of the Class of 2026 honored nationwide with the recognition, which is based on outstanding PSAT scores. They are now eligible for special National Merit Scholarships that will be awarded in the spring. Congratulations to Jacob Duncan, Mariana Federico, Joseph Jarvis, Grayson Prien, and Reese Wendel of Cherokee HS; Chase Johnson, Matthew Niles, and John Merrill Williams of Creekview HS; Hailey Yager of Etowah HS; Udi Gitau and Keshav Patchalla of River Ridge HS; James Driscoll of Sequoyah HS; and Aeneas Maniatis of Woodstock HS.Creekview HS Students Win at National Career Skills CompetitionThe Creekview HS team won sixth place in the country in the National FFA Convention’s veterinary science competition. The team members earned additional individual honors at the national event, with Nebel placing fifth overall and Hiett placing 14th among 180 contestants. Toney earned a Gold ranking and Giannini earned a Silver ranking. Macedonia ES Wins Top State Honor for Excellence in EducationMacedonia ES has won the prestigious School Bell Award from the Georgia Association of Elementary School Principals, which is presented to no more than 10 schools each year in recognition of outstanding curriculum and organizational leadership initiatives. Macedonia ES, led by Principal Dr. Carrie O’Bryant, earned the award for its initiative, “Redefining Professional Learning Communities: Shifting the Focus From Achievement to Student Growth to Increase Teacher Ownership.” The school’s assistant principals are Tracy Sparks and Melissa Venezia.
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