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By Katie Fallon katiefallon@reporternewspapers.net A local rheumatologist has made CPR education his priority since his own heart crisis put him in the position of being the patient instead of doctor. Dr. Sam Schatten, a Sandy Springs resident, formed the CLEAR (Cardiac Life Extension and Rescue) Coalition in April of last year after he went into cardiac arrest at a bar mitzvah the previous December. Since then, he and the coalition have served as an advocacy group for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the benefits of having access to an Automated External Defibrillator (AED). Schatten’s journey began at what should have been a joyous occasion. “I was perfectly healthy until December 10, 2005,” Schatten said. “I was dancing at a bar mitzvah and I got very dizzy and my heart stopped. I went into cardiac arrest.” Fortunately for Schatten, three doctor friends were attending the same bar mitzvah and were able to perform CPR and revive the 53-year-old father of four sons. When he arrived at Piedmont Hospital, Schatten said doctors initially thought he had a blood clot, but it turned out to be cancer that was blocking his pulmonary artery. “Six days later, the surgeons took out this big mass that turned out to be a pulmonary artery sarcoma, which is a very rare type of cancer,” Schatten said. “Because of that, I got chemotherapy and radiation and subsequently went...

Sandy Springs residents pay 21 percent more for the drinking water they get from the city of Atlanta than residents of Atlanta pay and Sandy Springs Mayor Eva Galambos wants that changed. This is not a new issue. However, now that the city is incorporated the mayor feels it has the bargaining power residents previously did not have when they lived in an unincorporated part of Fulton County. What really angers Mayor Galambos is that, while Sandy Springs residents pay higher water rates than the residents of Atlanta, the water Sandy Springs gets is cheaper to deliver. She told a gathering of more than 40 Harry Norman Realtors agents and managers on Aug. 8 (see related story on page 15) that the water that comes to Sandy Springs, through the city of Atlanta’s Department of Watershed Management, actually comes from a plant in North Fulton that is an exceedingly more efficient and less costly operating plant than the Hemphill Plant that provides most of the water for Atlanta residents. The mayor indicated she intends to challenge the city of Atlanta regarding those higher water charges and evaluate alternatives that might result in lower water costs for Sandy Springs residents. –John...

By Katie Fallon katiefallon@reporternewspapers.net Metropolis Homes developer Jason Yowell won a hard-fought fight at the Aug. 21 City Council meeting to develop 28 single family homes on 7.28 acres along Glenridge Drive between Johnson Ferry Road and Hammond Drive. The site includes what is known as the Wagon Stop house, which is believed to be one of the oldest surviving homes in what is now the city of Sandy Springs. The home, which has been added on to, is located on one of the seven lots Yowell is redeveloping for a subdivision that will be called Austin Place. It was built in 1835 and served as a rest stop for travelers and the area’s first courtroom. The approval, which came with a 4 to 2 vote, came only after councilmen Tibby DeJulio and Rusty Paul accused Yowell of threatening the council by saying he could sell the area within the development that he had promised to preserve as a one-acre private park on the Wagon Stop property. Yowell said he has received a letter of intent from a buyer who indicated he could build four homes on the site. “The biggest problem I have is for you to stand up there and threaten the City Council,” DeJulio told Yowell at the Tuesday evening meeting. “I don’t appreciate that. You’re saying that we could wind up with four houses. That...

By Katie Fallon katiefallon@reporternewspapers.net Little European Bakery shares a 30-year tradition Sometimes taking over a business with strong community ties can be difficult for the new owner, but Mike Rogers has successfully done just that at the Little European Bakery. Though he had no prior baking experience, Rogers bought the bakery—which at the time was named Bruweiler’s—on Sandy Springs Circle in 1999. The bakery has been in the same location since 1981, and many long-time Sandy Springs residents remember it as Hoffer’s Bakery, which it remained until it switched owners for a few years in the mid-1990’s. But it was Bruweiler’s when Rogers bought the business. All together, the bakery has been in Sandy Springs for almost 30 years, originally being located in the Hancock Fabrics shopping center on Roswell Road—practically next door to where it is now. Rogers said he bought the bakery when he needed a career change. “I had always worked in corporate America and decided I was tired of being in corporate America,” Rogers said. “I wanted something else to do and was looking for a business to buy.” Because multiple generations of residents have been coming to the bakery for decades, Rogers said he was initially reluctant to change its name because many people still associated it with the original owner. “If we changed the name on the outside, we thought people would think...

3 office buildings at Northpark in Sandy Springs are for sale In the late 1980s, Sandy Springs resident and famed Atlanta architect/developer John Portman developed the first two office towers near the intersection of Abernathy Road and Georgia 400 and named the development Northpark Town Center. A third building was added in 1998. All three buildings, comprising 1.5 million square feet of office space, have now been put on the market for sale by their owner the State of Michigan Retirement System. C. B. Richard Ellis is the broker. The 400 building was completed by Portman in 1986 at 1000 Abernathy Road, followed by the 500 building at 1100 Abernathy Road in 1989. The brownish granite and glass complex, which began the office park development around the intersection of Abernathy Road and Georgia 400, will be marketed worldwide, according to the broker. Northpark Town Center connects to the Sandy Springs MARTA rail station. Winans Coffee shop leaves CityWalk Winans Coffees and Chocolates, which was located in CityWalk for two years, has moved its operations to Marietta Square. Store owners Jackie and Scott Winans left a note on its doors to let customers know that the shop has moved to 160 Roswell St. in Marietta. The notice went on further to thank customers for their patronage. “We have enjoyed getting to know you and becoming friends with you over the...