Bar Rentals & Bartender Staffing inAlpharetta, GA

(RestaurantNews.com) On Tuesday, September 27, 2022, the Georgia Restaurant Association (GRA) announced the winners of their Restaurant Association Crystal of Excellence (GRACE) Awards. All finalists are peer-nominated, ensuring the most deserving in the industry are recognized. Winners are chosen by the GRACE Academy, comprised of former GRACE finalists and honorees as well as current GRA Board members.

Casa Nuova Italian Restaurant owners took home two of these prestigious awards, including Restaurant Manager of the Year (Pepe Fundora) and the Hall of Fame award (the late Tony Fondora):

Restaurant Manager of the Year Jose “Pepe” Fundora

2022’s Restaurant Manager of the Year attributes his love of hospitality to his parents while growing up in the restaurant business. Having worked in the industry for 24 years, he is the co-owner of his family’s restaurant as well as a certified sommelier. He believes that nothing is impossible through hard work and by taking risks, you will see outcomes. Such is true with serving guests with grace and a smile as they choose to return time and again to dine and celebrate special occasions.

Pepe is also owner of Cork & Glass Wine Shop. Pepe is accredited through The Court of Master Sommeliers (Level 1 in 2016; Level 2 {Certified Sommelier} in 2018) and is currently studying to become an Advanced Sommelier (Level 3) and eventually will finish at Master Sommelier (Level 4) in the future. Pepe works to bring his passion of wine to others with the idea of “Making Wine Accessible”.

Hall of Fame – Mario Antonio “Tony” Fundora

The GRACE Academy is honored to include Tony Fundora in the GRACE Awards Hall of Fame posthumously. Fundora left a legacy of hospitality and community service in the Atlanta metro food scene. Originally immigrating from Cuba in 1962, he opened numerous restaurants with the love of his life and wife Maria at his side. In 1998, they built their dream restaurant Casa Nuova Italian Restaurant in Alpharetta. Fundora spread his love for food by sharing it with the community. His passion for fresh food inspired him to grow his own fruits, vegetables, and flowers on his farm in North Fulton, which he loved sharing with everyone that came to the restaurant. He would say “I am not better than anyone else as they are no better than me. And everyone in this world deserves respect and kindness.”

About the GRA: The GRA’s mission is to serve as the voice for Georgia’s Restaurants in Advocacy, Education and Awareness. The GRA is sanctioned by the National Restaurant Association (NRA) to operate Georgia’s only not-for-profit representing the state’s foodservice industry. From large chains to start-ups, the GRA helps make Georgia a better place for restaurants to do business and helps make restaurants better for Georgia. For more information, visit garestaurants.org.

The GRACE Awards Gala, an inclusive event honoring those who have made outstanding contributions to Georgia’s restaurant industry, took place at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta and awarded Restaurateur of the Year, Industry Partner of the Year, Hospitality Hero of the Year (formerly Distinguished Service), Restaurant Manager of the Year, Restaurant Employee of the Year and ProStart® Student of the Year. New to 2022, the GRA added Restaurateur Rookie of the Year and the GRA Hall of Fame as well as a new category nominated and voted on by the Georgia restaurant community – “Georgia On My Mind” People’s Choice Awards.

“While Georgia’s restaurants are still recovering from the pandemic, the GRACE Awards Gala is an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the incredible individuals and companies that created a more hospitable and familiar world during one of the most challenging periods in recent memory,” said Karen Bremer, President + CEO of the Georgia Restaurant Association. “Our industry epitomizes resilience.”

For more information, visit garestaurants.org/grace.

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The Fulton County Voter Education Outreach Team is traveling the county to educate voters.

National Voter Education Week, which begins Monday, October 3, and runs through Friday, October 7, 2022, is a week-long initiative to promote voter registration and preparation for election days. In recognition, the Fulton County Department of Registration and Elections’ Voter Education Outreach team is hosting a series of events to equip voters with the tools, information, and confidence they need to cast their ballots.

“As the November 8, 2022 General Election approaches, it is vital that the Fulton County Department of Registration and Elections continues providing voters with accurate information and resources,” said Voter Outreach Education Manager LaShandra Little. “National Voter Education Week will be another excellent opportunity to once again reach out to voters to answer questions, encourage voter registration, and to continue our efforts to recruit poll workers.”

In recognition of National Voter Education Week, Fulton County will visit the following locations:

10/3/2022 Buckhead Library 269 Buckhead Avenue Atlanta, GA 30305 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

10/3/2022 Addington Place of Roswell 550 Barrington Drive Roswell, GA 30075 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

10/3/2022 Georgia State University University Commons 141 Piedmont Avenue NE, Atlanta, GA 30303 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

10/4/2022 Deputy Registrar Chattahoochee High School, 5230 Taylor Road Johns Creek, GA 30022 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

10/4/2022 City of Union City 5047 Union Street Union City, GA 30291 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

10/4/2022 Georgia State University 3775 Brookside Parkway, Alpharetta, GA 30022 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

10/5/2022 Alpharetta Library 10 Park Plaza Alpharetta, GA 30009 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

10/5/2022 Georgia State University 55 Gilmer Street SE Atlanta, GA 30303 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

10/5/2022 Morehouse College 830 Westview Drive, Atlanta GA in LOT B near Tennis Courts 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

10/6/2022 CAU Votes – Clark Atlanta University 223 James P Brawley Drive SW, Atlanta, GA 30314 Student Center Lobby and Bus on Student Movement Blvd next to the Student Center, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.

10/6/2022 Georgia State University Piedmont North 175 Piedmont Avenue NE Atlanta GA 30303 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

10/6/2022 Midtown High School 929 Charles Allen Drive NE Atlanta, GA 30309 10:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.

10/6/2022 Lutheran Towers Senior Community 727 Juniper Street NE Atlanta, GA 30308 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

10/7/2022 Georgia Institute of Technology349 Ferst Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30332 (Tech green in central campus) 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

10/7/2022 Helen S. Mills Senior Facility 515 John Wesley Dobbs Avenue NE. Atlanta, GA 30312 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

10/7/2022 Canterbury Court 3750 Peachtree Road NE Atlanta, GA. 30319 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

10/7/2022 Signature Health Care of Buckhead 54 Peachtree Park Drive, NE Atlanta, GA 30309 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

10/7/2022 Northeast /Spruill Oaks Branch 9560 Spruill Road Johns Creek, GA 30022 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Fulton County residents can also register to vote at each of Fulton County’s 34 library branches. Additionally, Georgia offers online voter registration. Voters can register by mail to vote in Georgia by printing a voter registration form, filling it out, and mailing it to your local election office. You can also register to vote in person if you prefer. If you have already registered to vote, you can check your registration and remind family and friends to also get registered.

Early voting in Fulton County begins October 17 and ends November 4, 2022. For more information about how to register to vote, log onto https://registertovote.sos.ga.gov/GAOLVR/welcometoga.do#no-back-button

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — The Alpharetta City Council has denied a developer’s plan to revitalize North Point Mall, citing concerns about how the project would unfold and questioning whether it would be enough to rescue the aging district.

Councilmembers voted down the plans by national developer Trademark Properties at a meeting Monday, Nov. 7 after five hours of discussion, presentations and public comment.

The City Council action comes after years of uncertainty about the future of North Point Mall, and an intense PR campaign by Trademark Properties, who proposed big changes and an investment of about $550 million into the property over 10 years.

The redeveloped North Point Mall would have included 315,00 feet of new retail and restaurant space, a hotel, and nearly 1,000 rental and for-sale units on the 84-acre mall property. To make those additions work, Trademark would have demolished large sections of the existing mall space to construct an “outdoor walkable village” on half of the property.

Other sections of the mall would have been left standing, but would have been revitalized and updated, Trademark CEO Terry Montesi said.

“If our plan is approved, it improves the quality of life in this community with a new walkable, mixed-use neighborhood that's different from Avalon,” Montesi said. “It funds important community infrastructure and is a catalyst for the growth of a future vibrant North Point district.”

But even after Montesi’s presentation, most councilmembers said they weren’t convinced and questioned if the plan was right for the future of Alpharetta and the North Point Parkway area.

“There's nothing going in over there we need,” Councilman Dan Merkel said. “We've got plenty of hotels, we've got plenty of office space … apartments, we've got them and they’re coming …. that leaves us with a dying mall, and you want to cut it in half and tell me about putting in 900 apartments like that's a game changer to save the mall. I don't see it.”

Merkel also questioned the narrative that North Point Mall is somehow on the precipice of collapse, pointing to home sales in the area surrounding the mall, business and restaurants relocating to the area, and potential growth spurred by the upcoming North Point Streetscape project.

“This has been going on for 18 months … and I'm sitting here looking at the same thing I was looking at 18 months ago,” he said. “This is the only project we've seen, but yet we're being told this is the best project. We've never seen anything else.”

Other councilmembers took issue with the pushback they received on the number of rental units proposed for the project. The project was recommended for approval with 650 rental units by city staff, but Trademark representatives have insisted the development will not work without close to 900 rental units.

“I want to do what I can to encourage a project to come forward, that doesn't end up being 900 apartments sitting outside of a closed mall and nothing else,” Councilman John Hipes said. “Trademark isn't going to look in that crystal ball and tell you the mall’s gonna be there 10 years, because they can't.”

Hipes also said he was disappointed that Trademark was unwilling to commit to building other proposed phases of the project, like the office space and hotel, which could keep the project alive, even if the mall did lose one or several of it’s large chain stores and declined even faster.

“If the mall dies, I want to know that there's a true mixed use outside the mall, that will carry the day,” Hipes said. “The only commitment I got out of Trademark is they want to build 875 apartments … and the reason is, in their crystal ball they know that's a profitable cash flow business model for them and for the owners.”

Not everyone on the council stood against the proposal. Councilmen Donald Mitchell and Brian Will stressed the economic impact a revitalized mall would have on the community, calling the potential $550 million investment by Trademark and mall owner New York Life, a windfall that the community shouldn’t pass up.

“Nine hundred jobs, $6.5 million dollars to Fulton County Schools, millions of dollars in tax revenues for the City of Alpharetta,” Will said, listing off his reasons for supporting the project.

Mitchell said much like this project, Avalon and the City Center had uncertainties and pieces which had to be worked out along the way, but each of those projects was successful and made Alpharetta the economic powerhouse it is today.

After thanking the crowd, which filled the council chambers, for spending their night supporting the project, Mitchell took the rest of the council to task for not seeing the “vision” of what the project could do for the North Point area.

“I've listened tonight to a council that has no vision,” he said. “If people can't see that vision in November, you'll get a chance to vote them out of office. Because if they can't see the vision and how important that is for our city, don't vote for’em in office again.”

After each of the council members and Mayor Jim Gilvin shared their thoughts on the project, the council voted on the project.

A motion to approve the project with multiple conditions and amendments failed 2-5, with Mitchell and Will voting in favor and all others opposed. A second motion, to deny the application, without prejudice, then passed unanimously.

City officials said that because the application was denied without prejudice, Trademark Properties can return to the City Council with a new proposal in six months.

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — According to a letter signed by Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul, the monthslong battle between Fulton County and its 15 cities over the Local Option Sales Tax has come to an end.

The LOST one-penny sales tax is used by local governments to fund services like public safety, parks and recreation, libraries, courts, and other services, and by county governments to fund state-mandated services like county courts, jails, health departments and elections.

A new agreement for the $3 billion sales tax will grant Fulton County about 10 percent of total revenues generated over the 10-year life of LOST, documents obtained by Appen Media show.

“It is our hope and intent that this offer is received, considered, and accepted by the County effectively ending the required decennial renegotiation of the distribution of proceeds collected under the Local Option Sales Tax with a positive resolution to negotiations,” the letter said.

Signed by Dickens and Paul Nov. 1, who represent municipalities with a combined population of over 50 percent of county residents, the agreement was also reportedly approved by Fulton County Commissioners at their Nov. 2 meeting, with Commission Chair Robb Pitts and Commissioner Khadijah Abdur-Rahman abstaining and Commissioner Marvin S. Arrington, Jr. absent from the vote.

In a statement to Appen Media, Vice Chairman Liz Hausmann said she was pleased the two parties were able to reach a “positive conclusion” after the lengthy negotiation process.

“Under the new formula, the cities will remain whole, the county will share the increase, and the financial needs of both parties will be met,” Hausmann said. “Most importantly, Fulton County taxpayers are protected from tax increases from both Fulton County and their City.”

Prior to this agreement, city and county officials spent several months in official and unofficial negotiation and mediation sessions, debating whether Fulton County should receive a much larger portion of the tax revenues than it has received in recent years.

County negotiators initially argued for returning to a pre-2000 LOST distribution rate split of 35 percent to the county and 65 percent the cities, which raised an immediate outcry from city officials and residents.

On Friday, Paul said that he was exhausted by the negotiation process, but relieved by the agreement and is ready to move forward with other things facing his city.

“I think we worked out the best deal that we possibly reach, given the constraints and the fact that Fulton County had a veto,” Paul said. “They could have simply walked away and revenues to all of us would have disappeared, which would have been catastrophic. So, I think under the circumstances, we worked out the best deal that could be made.”

With this agreement now seemingly finalized, Fulton County city leaders will need to decide how the remaining 90 percent of total revenues will be divided. Most often, the pot is generally apportioned based on each city’s population, while the county keeps a small portion for administrative fees.

After that is decided, the cities and county will formally sign an agreement that will need to be filed with state officials before the Dec. 30 deadline.

City leaders were scheduled to meet with the Fulton County Board of Commissioners at a Specially called meeting on Friday, Nov. 4, but that meeting has since been removed from Fulton County’s calendar. Instead, city representatives met Friday in a closed session to discuss municipal LOST distributions.

Following that discussion, several north Fulton County mayors shared their appreciation that the negotiation process is almost finally over. But said some important questions still remain.

The biggest of those questions, beyond how the city portion of revenues will be divided, is how the LOST negotiation process can be streamlined in the future.

“We do a disservice to future city leaders 10 years from now, if we don't try to get this cleaned up in the legislature, before everybody forgets that we went through all this,” Alpharetta Mayor Jim Gilvin said.

Gilvin, and other municipal leaders, said they were forced to devote countless hours to LOST during the six-month negotiation process that could have been spent on other city business, due to what they believe is a broken system.

And the simple fact that the $3 billion LOST could have gone away, if things played out differently, is enough reason for the state legislature to act on it, they said.

“I think it's irresponsible for us to continue making such a critical decision in such a haphazard way,” he said.

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — The Alpharetta City Council rejected a $500 million plan to redevelop the aging North Point Mall, voting 7-0 Monday to deny rezoning the 100-acre property.

North Point Mall in Alpharetta, which opened in 1993, has struggled in recent years, especially with the arrival of Avalon, a nearby mixed-use development.

Plans called for demolishing 464,000 square feet of North Point Mall and creating an outdoor-centered village environment. The development would also have featured a 120,000-square-foot office building and an upscale hotel, along with 18 acres of green space.

“People living here, people working here, people staying here overnight, people enjoying the public spaces, none of which is happening today,” Terry Montesi, the CEO of Trademark Property Company, said in October.

“What we voted was to deny a project that didn’t bring anything of value to the city as far as what we currently have and maybe what we currently need,” Alpharetta Mayor Pro Tem Dan Merkel said. “A hotel, apartments, some shopping – it just wasn’t creative enough. And it didn’t bring enough of anything of value that was new to the city.”

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One point of contention between the city and the developer was the number of rental homes. Trademark proposed 875 apartments and 103 for-sale homes. During the City Council meeting Monday night, Montesi defended the number of rental units. “In this district, more is better,” he said. “To help the retail, it’s better. To help office space in the future, it’s better. The location is super important. This is the right location for multifamily housing.”

The Alpharetta Planning Commission already approved the project, but it still needed a vote from the City Council. If the project was not approved, Montesi has said, the entire mall property would likely have to shut down.

Mayor Jim Gilvin described the ratio of apartments to for-sale homes as “a little bit out of whack.” But Montesi has said fewer apartments would not make the project viable.

“The business climate today just doesn’t allow them to do a project with the components that we’ve learned need to be there for a successful mixed-use development,” Gilvin said.

A spokesperson for Trademark said Montesi was not available for comment Tuesday. The developer has at least six months to submit another proposal for the property.

As for the future of North Point Mall, Gilvin said “it’s been a top priority for us in the city.”

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