GNB PHOTO EXTRA--Businesswoman announces run for Albany mayor

Business owner B.J. Fletcher addresses spectators at the Downtown Fresh Market in Albany.  She announced on Tuesday that she plans to run for mayor of Albany.  She joins two other candidates, Kirk Smith, as well as city commissioner Dorothy Hubbard as candidates to replace the outgoing mayor, Willie Adams, who announced he would not seek re-election earlier this year.

Photo courtesy of G.E.M.S. Communications

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

So long, Thrashers

It's official.  The Atlanta Thrashers are moving to Canada.  Officials with True North Sports & Entertainment reached an agreement Tuesday to move the team to Winnipeg.  It's the second time Atlanta has lost an NHL franchise to a Canadian city.  The Atlanta Flames spent eight seasons in Georgia before moving to Calgary in 1980.

Click any of the following links below for more coverage:

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

CBS Atlanta

WAGA (Fox 5)

WSB

WXIA

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

Public transportation plans move forward in Cobb County

20 groups have filed proposals for public transportation service in Cobb County.  The Marietta Daily Journal reports that the Northwest Atlanta Corridor Alternative Analysis Study for Cobb Community Transit will look at multiple options for transportation in Cobb County.  The study has more than $1.5 million in funding.

Click here for the full story, courtesy of the Marietta Daily Journal

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com

Georgia Music Hall of Fame closes

Say goodbye to the Georgia Music Hall of Fame.  Macon.com reports that the hall of fame authority voted 4-3 to officially close the troubled facility in downtown Macon on June 12.  The collections will be moved to the University of Georgia.

Click here for the full story, courtesy of Macon.com

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com

Lawmakers meet to keep charter schools open

Lawmakers throughout Georgia will soon meet in hopes of keeping state commissioned charter schools open.  GPB News reports that the Senate Education Committee will meet next week to determine strategies to stop the closure of 16 schools statewide.  The Georgia Supreme Court ruled that charter schools were unconstitutional on May 16.

Click here for the full story, courtesy of GPB News.

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

GNB PHOTO EXTRA: Redrawing Georgia's political districts

Georgia House District 152 Representative Ed Rynders (R-Albany) points to a spot on the current state house district map, with others looking on, during a redistricting hearing on the campus of Albany State University in Albany on Monday, May 23, 2011.

Photo courtesy of G.E.M.S. Communications

Atlanta resident announces run for president

A current Atlanta resident says he'll make a run the White House in 2012.  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that former Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain announced his intentions to seek the Republican nomination for President at a press conference Saturday. He made the announcement with a promise to defeat current President Barack Obama.


Click here for the full story, courtesy of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

New WalMart opens in Albany

The newest WalMart store in Georgia opened its doors in Albany early Wednesday morning.  Click on any or all of the following links below for complete coverage of the grand opening.

Albany Herald

WALB

WFXL


GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.


 

Cordele to get new inland port

Southwest Georgia could soon become the beneficiary of a new inland port. The Albany Herald reports that Cordele Intermodal Services has purchased more than 1,100 acres of land near a series of railroads and highways in Cordele.  The company will take in more than 6,000 containers in the coming weeks.

Click here for the full story, courtesy of the Albany Herald

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

Clayton County schools off probation

The Clayton County School System is off the hook...of probation. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools restored full accreditation to the south metro Atlanta district Friday.  SACS took away Clayton's accreditation in 2008, only to restore it one year later on a probationary basis.

Click here for the full story, courtesy of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

Reaction to Darton College 4-year status

Darton College of Albany has officially become a four-year institution.  The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved the move at its monthly
meeting Tuesday.  Darton was one of four two-year colleges in the state to become a state college, with Atlanta Metropolitan College in Atlanta, Georgia Highlands College in Rome, and Georgia Perimeter College in DeKalb County being the others.


Click here for the full story, including reactions from Albany area leaders, courtesy of the Albany Journal

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

Board of Regents OK's four-year status for four colleges

Add four new schools to the ranks of four-year institutions across Georgia.  The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia voted Tuesday to allow Georgia Highlands College of Rome, Atlanta Metropolitan College in Atlanta, and Darton College in Albany to become state colleges. Another metro Atlanta two-year institution, Georgia Perimeter College in DeKalb County, will also become a state college. 

Click any of the following links below to read coverage of the Board of Regents decision.

Albany Herald

Associated Press

Atlanta Business Chronicle

Atlanta Journal-Constitution 

Rome News-Tribune

University System of Georgia

WALB Albany

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.

CB&T closes three branches in Columbus area

Columbus Bank & Trust (CB&T) is closing three of its branches.  Two of them shut down Friday, with a third coming next week.  That leaves CB&T with 15 branches in the Columbus area alone.

Click here for the full story, courtesy of Ledger-Enquirer.com.

GNB is online at georgianewsbeat.blogspot.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/georgianewsbeat, on Facebook, and can be contacted via e-mail at georgianewsbeat@gmail.com.