By Kristi Reed

A permit has been issued for work to begin on a school safety project in the Dacula cluster.

The project, funded through the 2009 SPLOST, will include turn lanes and a signal at the intersection of Dacula Road and Broad Street near Dacula High School.

According to Gwinnett County Communications Director Joe Sorenson, a total of three turn lanes will be added: a right turn lane from Broad Street northbound to Dacula Road eastbound; a right turn lane from Dacula Road eastbound to Broad Street southbound; and a left turn lane from Dacula Road westbound to Broad Street southbound. Read more on GwinnettDailyPost.com.

By Kristi Reed

It has been three years since Gwinnett County commuters got their first taste of the Interstate 85 Express Lanes. Now, transportation officials are planning to add an additional 10 miles of toll lanes in Gwinnett County.

On Monday, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) hosted an open house at the Gwinnett Center in Duluth to provide details on the project that will extend the toll lanes from Old Peachtree Road to Hamilton Mill Road, adding a new lane in each direction between Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road and Hamilton Mill Road. The $110 million project will also add auxiliary lanes along southbound I-85 between the Mall of Georgia exit (exit 115) and Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road (exit 111) and along northbound I-85 from exit 115 to the planned exit at Gravel Springs Road. The auxiliary lanes, according to the GDOT, will be constructed between on- and off-ramps to make merging into traffic safer and improve traffic flow. Read more on GwinnettDailyPost.com.

By Kristi Reed

When the owner of a Buford gun club assured residents of a nearby subdivision that measures were being taken to reduce noise emanating from the range, Gary Nichols was relieved.

Nichols, who lives in Wynfield Point subdivision across the road from the Georgia Gun Club, said he used to enjoy peace and quiet in his backyard — until the club, located at 1951 Braselton Highway, opened. From that point forward, Nichols says he has lived with the pervasive sound of gunfire.

Nichols, along with other Wynfield Point residents, complained to county officials. Why, they asked, was the club being allowed to operate in what residents believe is a violation of the county noise ordinance? Read more on GwinnettDailyPost.com.

By Kristi Reed

According to Rep. Rob Woodall, the recent Congressional vote to support a military campaign against ISIS did virtually nothing to change American posture in that part of the Middle East. The vision presented by President Obama simply publicized existing policy.

“What he laid out is to do in public what we have been doing in private for over a year now,” Woodall told members of the Rotary Club of South Gwinnett on Thursday. Read more on GwinnettDailyPost.com.

By Kristi Reed

A $2.08 million allocation approved Tuesday by the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners will cover preliminary engineering costs for a new interstate interchange.

The agreement, Gwinnett Transportation Department Director Kim Conroy said during the Sept. 18 board work session, is a commitment to the Georgia Department of Transportation that county funds will be used during the project engineering phase and specifies certain procedures the county must follow in order to later obtain federal funding for a portion of the construction costs. Read more on GwinnettDailyPost.com. 

By Kristi Reed

If you are interested in meeting neighbors, taking part in the election process and earning some extra cash, a poll worker position may be just the right job according to Gwinnett County Elections Supervisor Lynn Ledford.

“It is a very good community opportunity for some folks to get together and talk with each other and get to know some of some of their neighbors,” she added. “It’s also just a very good civic experience, I believe, for the younger generation who aren’t quite as into it as the older generation.” Read more on GwinnettDailyPost.com. 

By Kristi Reed

Ray Stanjevich was born in Montenegro during the Cold War to anti-communist parents who moved to the United States in 1971. His partner, Suzanne Cartwright is a first-generation American born to a German mother. For both of them, the Berlin Wall was much more than just a barrier between the democratic powers in the west and socialist powers in the east. Read more on GwinnettDailyPost.com. 

By Kristi Reed

Forged voter registration applications, inaccurate information and forged signatures are among the illegal activities a voter registration group is suspected of having committed in Gwinnett and several other Georgia counties.

“Gwinnett County is one of the counties where we have evidence of what we think is voter registration fraud,” said Jared Thomas, spokesman for Secretary of State Brian Kemp.

According to Thomas, Kemp’s office has issued a subpoena to the New Georgia Project requesting documents to determine the extent of the fraud. Other counties, he said, which have reported fraudulent activity include Bartow, Butts, Coweta, DeKalb, Effingham, Henry, Marion, Muscogee, Tattnall, Terrell and Tombs. Read more.

By Kristi Reed

Ultimately, according to Gwinnett Fire and Emergency Services Chief Casey Snyder, meeting the needs of a growing population, is a matter of resources. In his Tuesday presentation to budget reviewers, Snyder outlined the resources needed by his department to meet the ever-increasing demands for service — resources which include the ability to hire and retain skilled employees. That ability, Snyder said, has been diminished in recent years due to inadequate increases in pay.

"For the first time, we’re seeing people leave for other departments,” he said. Read more.

By Kristi Reed

State mandates, the closure of a youth detention facility and the success of county treatment court programs are among the factors behind several 2015 budget requests by the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Department.

On Tuesday, Deputy Chief Mike Boyd presented a $73.8 million budget to reviewers. The budget — which covers jail operations, warrant service, maintaining the sex offender registry, inmate transport, general law enforcement activities and more — includes several new requests for personnel and equipment. Read more.