Marietta Daily Journal
Best of Cobb
It was a packed house at Jim Miller Park Thursday night celebrating Cobb’s top businesses and service providers. Cobb Life Magazine’s Best of Cobb 2026 Showcase event, presented by Superior Plumbing, recognized winners of its reader-decided contest...
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‘Spiritual siblings’
EAST COBB — More than 80 residents gathered Wednesday at the Catholic Church of St. Ann for an interfaith program designed to bring Christians and Jews together by exploring the Jewish roots of the Last Supper and its connection to Passover. Just...
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State of the City
AUSTELL — Austell can “see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Mayor Ollie Clemons Jr. said during his State of the City Address this week. Clemons held two addresses, one in the morning and one in the evening to provide updates and answer questions...
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Diamond anniversary
TRUIST PARK — First pitch of the Atlanta Braves’ 2026 season is Friday and Truist Park is bringing in a slew of new experiences, stadium spaces and foods for baseball fans. For the first time since 2022, the Braves will kick off their season at home...
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Fun is a shoe-in
MARIETTA — Marietta Middle School students traded backpacks for bow ties and dresses Saturday night at the annual Sneaker Ball, a free spring dance coordinated by the school’s Parent Teacher Student Association for seventh- and eighth-graders. “They...
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‘Outrageous’: Drivers react as gas prices jump in weeks
MARIETTA — Local drivers say the rising cost of gas is hitting their wallets hard. At a local gas station, several residents and commuters described sharp increases in what they pay at the pump, with some saying prices have jumped dramatically in just...
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Like father, like son
MARIETTA — Nearly 30 years after his father was sworn in as president of the Cobb Bar Association, Marietta attorney Ryan Ingram is taking up the same mantle. Ingram, a partner with the Marietta firm Moore, Ingram, Johnson and Steele, took the oath as...
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The $28M plan
ACWORTH — For Acworth officials, infrastructure and walkability top the list of proposed sales tax-funded projects on the ballot this November. Voters will have the opportunity to renew a countywide 1% sales tax, called a Special Purpose Local Option...
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Mascotmania
SMYRNA — Second graders at Russell Elementary School got a chance to leave their mark on the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office Tuesday, helping officially name the office’s new community mascot during a lively event. The mascot was unveiled after students...
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WHEELER BRINGS TITLE HOME TO COBB
Wheeler celebrates as head coach Larry Thompson is interviewed after their win over Pebblebrook in Saturday night’s Class AAAAAA state championship game at the Macon Coliseum.
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GOP gubernatorial candidate Jackson draws crowd at rally
SMYRNA — Supporters and undecided voters alike gathered at a campaign rally for Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson over the weekend. The rally was held at Adventure Outdoors, a popular campaign stop for Republican candidates that boasts...
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Makeover creates calming retreat for teachers
Teachers at Sawyer Road Elementary now have a new place to recharge during the school day — thanks to a makeover led by Piedmont Church. Through its Love Does initiative, the church redesigned the school’s staff lounge into a calming retreat with soft...
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Road relocation
The National Park Service has approved the relocation of a section of Old 41 Highway after finding no significant environmental impacts for the road project running through Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park. The approval puts the Old 41...
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‘For everyone’
MARIETTA — Gamers, cosplayers, artists and puzzle enthusiasts gathered Saturday in Marietta Square for Marietta the Gathering. Named in inspiration of the popular trading card game “Magic: The Gathering,” the festival celebrates geek culture through...
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‘A huge, huge honor’
EAST COBB — Amanda Dillard, a special education teacher from Pope High School and the Cobb School District’s 2026 Teacher of the Year, was named a top 10 finalist in the annual statewide Teacher of the Year competition Wednesday State Superintendent...
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‘Makes our heart happy’
Every year, Kennesaw Mountain High School hosts the Special Education Dance, welcoming middle and high school students with special needs from across Cobb County for a joyful day of celebration, inclusion and community. This year’s dance took place on...
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Rhoden named Citizen of the Year
TODAY’S WEATHER TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK /B6 70 | 44 PARTLY SUNNY GET SOCIAL @MDJOnline 74 | 52 MOSTLY SUNNY /MDJOnline CUMBERLAND — The Marietta Daily Journal presented Jim Rhoden, known for a lifetime of service and community building, with the Cobb...
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Cantrell to bring ‘small business lens’
CUMBERLAND — From age 11, Melissa Cantrell knew she wanted to be an architect. “I decided in high school I wanted to design schools because I wanted to impact children, because they are our futures,” Cantrell said. That early sense of purpose has...
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Shooting for the top
MARIETTA — Having served as Georgia’s attorney general since 2016, Chris Carr has now set his sights on the governor’s mansion, launching a bid to succeed Brian Kemp as the state’s chief executive. Carr sat down with the Marietta Daily Journal last...
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‘Best kept secret’
MARIETTA — Just over 100 days into his tenure as president and CEO, Ketul Patel has reached a firm conclusion about Wellstar Health System. “We are the best kept secret in healthcare,” he said. Patel speaks about Wellstar with the conviction of...
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‘Putting in the work’
MARIETTA — With less than a year left in his final term in office, Gov. Brian Kemp told Marietta Rotarians he wants to enact the lessons he learned in high school football: “to leave everything on the field. “That’s exactly what I plan on doing,” Kemp...
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DEAREST GENTLE READERS: A BALL AMONG THE BOOKS
A crowd turned out for a “Bridgerton” themed ball at the North Cobb Regional Library, where organizers transformed the space into a Regency-era setting for an evening of dancing, crafts and music. The free event, held Feb. 20 at the library, was...
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‘Uninhabitable’
Three people are dead and approximately 30 have been displaced from their homes after a fire broke out at a Smyrna apartment complex late Sunday night, Cobb Fire reports. In total, eight units at the Concord Crossing Apartments complex were “heavily...
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Chillin’ for charity
ACWORTH — Braving the chilly waters of Lake Acworth, law enforcement officers, athletes and area residents came together Saturday for a fundraising event in support of the Special Olympics Games. The event featured a costume contest, a game of...
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New name, same mission
MARIETTA — It’s the dawn of a new era for historic Roswell Street Baptist Church as it prepares for its upcoming merger with a Woodstock megachurch after years of declining attendance. What was once one of the largest and most influential Southern...
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On the rise
VININGS — Grab a tray and a pair of tongs: a new café promises rows of sugar-dusted doughnuts, flaky croissants and cakes made fresh daily just off South Atlanta Road. The soft opening of Paris Baguette, a South Korea-based Parisian bakery and café, is...
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Clogged Cloverleaf
The interchange of Interstate 75 at I-285 North near The Battery — known as the Cobb Cloverleaf — has once again been identified as one of the most congested freight corridors in the country, according to the latest Top 100 Truck Bottlenecks report...
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Market expansion
Kroger has begun a $23 million expansion to East Cobb’s Parkaire Landing location, adding new amenities including new service counters and a fuel station. The expanded Kroger, located at 4880 Lower Roswell Road, will total 85,000 square feet and fill...
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A new course
MARIETTA — In what district leaders described as one of the strongest applications in recent memory, the Cobb Board of Education voted 6-0-1 last week to approve a new charter school aimed at serving students in south Cobb. Board member Becky Sayler...
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Marietta’s story
MARIETTA — The Marietta History Center is celebrating three decades of preserving local history with a new exhibit that traces the museum’s own journey — from a volunteer-driven startup to the city of Marietta’s official historical...
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A day for flowers
Valentine’s Day is the busiest day of the year at owner Mike Whittle’s florist shop, and red roses are the most popular choice, to no surprise — but his favorite is daffodils. MIKE WHITTLE, DAFFODIL Whittle, 68, has been in the floral industry for 55...
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Top of the craft
MARIETTA — Chloe Muse started in the taproom as a bartender at Atlanta Hard Cider Company. Now, she’s one floor below in the lab as the lead cidermaker — and she’s winning awards. Muse is the 2026 recipient of the Peter Mitchell Award for Educational...
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Retail retreat
TOWN CENTER — Faded department store signs, plywood-covered entrances and rows of gated storefronts now greet visitors to Town Center Mall, once a flagship economic engine for Cobb County. Nearly 40 years after its 1986 debut, the mall is grappling...
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‘Progress doesn’t happen by accident’
MARIETTA — The Cobb District Attorney’s Office held its second annual Black History Month Avant Garde Award ceremony on Tuesday. While this was formally an award ceremony, in practice it was so much more: a true celebration of the contributions of...
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World Cup expected to bring economic boost
MARIETTA — After a busy year of hosting major sporting events in 2025, Cobb and Atlanta’s hosting duties will catapult to the global level this year when the FIFA World Cup — the world’s biggest sporting event — comes to town. Holly Quinlan, president...
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Acworth native to run new local Chick-fil-A
The Acworth area is getting a new Chick-fil-A restaurant, and it will be run by one of the city’s own. The opening of the location also brings with it 250 new jobs, according to an announcement by Chick-fil-A. The doors will open Thursday at 6 a.m....
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‘City-lite’ model
MABLETON — Mayor Michael Owens and Lisa Cupid, chair of the Cobb Board of Commissioners, said they expect negotiations for service agreements to be complete before the end of March. They spoke this week during a town hall at the Cobb County Public...
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Cobb advances Atlanta Road apartment proposal
MARIETTA — After more than a year of deliberation, a proposed four-story apartment complex will be considered by the county Board of Commissioners. In a 4-1 vote with Fred Beloin opposed, the Cobb Planning Commission advanced a proposed 249-unit...
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Walking tour explores Marietta’s Black history
Sunday was the first day of Black History Month, and Cobb Landmarks & Historical Society has compiled a tour for residents to learn more about Black history in the Gem City. The organization’s Black History Walking Tour in Marietta is a 1.5-mile-long...
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Walking tour reflects on Black history in Marietta
Sunday was the first day of Black History Month, and local historic preservation group Cobb Landmarks has compiled a tour for residents to learn more about racial history in the Gem City. The organization’s Black History Walking Tour in Marietta is a...
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SATURDAY/SUNDAY, JANUARY 31/FEBRUARY 1, 2026
INSIDE TODAY: Forecast is published annually by the MDJ and distributed to homes and businesses throughout Cobb County.
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Cobb Democrats encourage student ICE walkouts
The Cobb County Democratic Committee is backing students who wish to protest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), despite disciplinary warnings from Cobb and Marietta Schools regarding unauthorized walkouts planned during school hours...
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Downtown fire
MARIETTA — Marietta Police and Fire responded to a fire inside a Lawrence Street law practice just off Marietta Square on Wednesday afternoon. Ten law enforcement vehicles blocked the street from City Hall to the United States Postal Service office on...
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City planning
MARIETTA — Projects on the city’s proposed 1% sales tax list include widening part of Whitlock Avenue, two fire station remodels and a new park. The Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) is projected to collect $1.15 billion countywide, with...
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Icy weekend
Cobb County and Marietta City Schools, as well as city and county government offices, will resume normal operations Tuesday after weekend winter weather brought icy conditions and cancellations to the county. By Monday, the Cobb County Department of...
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Fern brings glazing of ice over much of Cobb County
Though roads in Cobb County did not see much ice Saturday night into Sunday morning, additional rainfall was expected to cause freezing overnight into Monday morning as Winter Storm Fern continued to move across the country, the National Weather...
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INCOMING
MARIETTA — Salt and brine trucks with the Cobb Department of Transportation are filled and ready to go, officials say, as a major ice storm makes its way to Cobb. Meteorologists anticipate there to be major impacts from the storm including “dangerous...
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Cobb School District cancels weekend extracurriculars
All Cobb County School District extracurricular activities scheduled for this weekend have been canceled due to potential inclement winter weather, according to Superintendent Chris Ragsdale. “As everyone has seen — that’s not been living under a rock...
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Hands-on learning
MARIETTA — Students, educators and supporters gathered as NAPA Auto Parts announced a $250,000 check for the Cobb Innovation and Technology Academy at Osborne to strengthen the school’s automotive program on Wednesday. The funds will go toward...
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Rally on campus
KENNESAW — Hundreds of Kennesaw State University students joined a nationwide walkout Tuesday, gathering on campus to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement on the anniversary of President Donald Trump’s second inauguration and to call for justice...
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‘No reason in the world to be mean’
MARIETTA — During his more than 13 years on the Cobb Superior Court bench, former Chief Judge A. Gregory Poole never tried changing his personality. Even as a Cobb Juvenile Court judge, Poole never wanted to be a judge people feared or loathed. “When...
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First shots fired
The first shots have fired at the county’s new $21.5 million firing range, a joint facility of the Cobb Sheriff’s Office and Cobb Police Department. Each agency performed their own “first shot” ceremonies, where officers and deputies, along with Cobb...
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Marietta’s Ted talk
MARIETTA — Last week’s announcement that Ted’s Montana Grill is pulling out of its planned location on Marietta Square has left many wondering what will become of the long-vacant lot at 77 North Park Square and whether bison burgers will ever be part...
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Cobb protest calls to end ICE after deadly shooting
EAST COBB — More than 100 protesters took to the streets Sunday afternoon to rally against recent deadly and violent uses of force by agents with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Organized by local progressive group Indivisible Cobb, the rally...
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Wood you believe it?
MARIETTA — The Marietta-Cobb Museum of Art has two new exhibitions debuting in its galleries Saturday. The first, titled “Georgia Wood Artists,” features 50 different wood works from 39 Georgia artists, while the other is the debut solo exhibition of...
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‘A place for readers’
KENNESAW — Big Shanty booklovers have a new reading spot with the opening of The Brown Dog Bookshop. Located at 2940 Dallas Street across the street from Kennesaw First Baptist Church, the shop features over 2,000 books across a variety of genres with...
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Fresh start to 2026
MARIETTA — In its first meeting of the year, the Marietta City Council made a bundle of leadership appointments while also increasing its travel budget. The council voted 5-2, with newly elected council members Byron “Tee” Anderson and Daniel Gaddis...
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Cobb lawmakers react to U.S. strike on Venezuela
Lawmakers representing Cobb County are reacting to the United States’ lightning military strike on Venezuela on Saturday morning that ended with the U.S. capturing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. U.S. Attorney General...
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The cost of living
Sandra Lloyd was worried. Like many Americans, she stressed about her largest monthly expense — rent. Lloyd, an administrative assistant in the city of Marietta’s Planning and Zoning Department, has worked for the city since 2014. She had previously...
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Cobb’s new police chief outlines vision
MARIETTA — During his nearly three decades with Cobb Police, James “Dan” Ferrell served in almost every division in the department, except administration. That changed in October, when Ferrell was sworn in as police chief following nearly six months of...
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Fun for all ages
MARIETTA — Children rang in the new year 12 hours early Wednesday, chasing bubbles and counting down to a balloon drop at the Cobb County Public Library’s Noon Year’s Eve party. The library invited people of all ages to the family-friendly celebration...
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Leading the way
MARIETTA — The Cobb Young Republicans will be under new leadership in January as newly elected 25-year-old Andre Stafford takes his place as the group’s chairman. Stafford will succeed current chairwoman Kelly Cash. Cobb Young Republicans, a branch...
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‘All the way in’
MARIETTA — The Cobb Young Republicans will be under new leadership in January as newly elected 25-year-old Andre Stafford takes his place as the group’s chairman. Stafford will succeed current chairwoman Kelly Cash. Cobb Young Republicans, a branch...
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‘Bloom where you’re planted’
MARIETTA — Walking through Burruss Elementary School, Laura Holder seems to know everyone, greeting teachers, administrators and staff. Not only does she live nearby with two of her three children enrolled at the school, but years of volunteer work...
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Setting goals
MARIETTA — Marietta’s newest Ward 6 school board member, Christina Rogers, is OK with being put in a box. “I feel like I am in a box. I am me. I’ve never strayed from who I am,” Rogers said. “I’m very progressive — I always have been — but I’m also...
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HOLIDAY MAGIC COMES TO WELLSTAR COBB’S TINIEST PATIENTS
Santa’s making a special stop for the Wellstar NICU babies and their parents this Christmas. These tiniest elves at the Wellstar Cobb Medical Center NICU are off to a joyful holiday season. Wellstar’s nurses dressed the infants in their best holiday...
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Smyrna OKs $5.7M deal for safety expansion
The Smyrna City Council has approved a deal with Flock Safety for 75 additional license plate reader cameras and two drones. The city is paying approximately $5.7 million over a span of 10 years for Flock’s City Safe Program initiative, anticipated to...
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