The La Madeleine French-themed cafe at Providence Square has closed, as of Friday.
There are twin signs on the door thanking customers for their patronage but the reason for the closure wasn’t indicated.
According to the ToNeTo restaurant and retail website, this is the most recent closing for the Texas-based chain, which has more than 80 locations in the U.S.
A Sandy Springs La Madeleine location closed in January, and according to the sign posted on the door of the former East Cobb site, only two Gwinnett cafes remain in metro Atlanta.
The Providence Square shopping center features a number of fast-casual restaurant concepts, including the adjacent Chicken Salad Chick and nearby Einstein Bagel, as well as Salata and the newly opened Beyond Juicery and Eatery.
Another sign taped to the front window at the former La Madeleine in East Cobb says that “Everything must go. Souvenirs, antiques, picture frames. Make me an offer.”
Temporary Closure
The Chipotle Mexican Grill at Merchant’s Walk is closed temporarily. A sign at the entrance doesn’t indicate the reason or how long the closure will be in effect.
“We apologize for the inconvenience and will be up and running as soon as possible.”
Inside the premises, chairs were stacked on top of tables.
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Kell High School’s Class of 2026 walked across the stage Friday night to receive their diplomas, but school leaders encouraged them to think of the occasion as so much more than that.
This year’s seniors include 87 Presidential Scholars—students with GPAs of 3.5 or higher and ACT scores of 1100 or higher—and earned more than $8 million in college scholarship funding.
“You’re not just walking away with a diploma,” Principal Peter Giles said. “You’re carrying memories, lessons and relationships that have shaped you and in turn have shaped this school.”
Giles said he watched this year’s group from the time they were freshmen four years ago, and like all incoming high school students, was curious to see what they would make of their time at Kell.
“You didn’t just find your place, you created it.”
Among the students offering remarks was salutatorian Dylan Brostoff, who will be enrolling at the University of Georgia with plans to major in nursing.
He admitted to being one of those freshmen who wasn’t sure what to expect of high school. Like other seniors speaking at graduation ceremonies, he mentioned his classmates’ school years being interrupted by COVID, and said that the experience fostered a spirit of resilience.
Kell salutatorian Dylan Brostoff
“We have grown in ways we could never have imagined,” Brostoff said. “Our hard work and determination got us here, but none of us got here alone.”
He paid special tribute to “the teachers who genuinely cared about our success—they made the biggest impact on us.”
Kell’s seniors took active part in community service, logging in more than 3,000 hours and raising $100,000 as part of the Shop With a Longhorn program to help needy younger students enjoy their Christmas holidays.
Those will all be part of this class legacy, Giles said, and serves as an important component of their lives going forward.
He urged them to “find your why,” a purpose to fuel their aspirations, which he said are guaranteed to hit some rough spots.
“Your why keeps you going,” he said. “But your toughest challenges will give your journey its real purpose.
“Failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of it. You’re being redirected, not defeated. You won’t always succeed, but you will always learn.”
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The Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary has exceeded the $1 million milestone for dollars raised in its annual Kettle Krush 5K that it has coordinated for the last nine years.
This milestone was achieved following the completion of SAWA’s 12th annual event – that helps The Salvation Army “krush” poverty, homelessness, and human trafficking while supporting youth enrichment and veterans – on May 16 on the campus of Mt. Bethel Church in Marietta.
“We’re so appreciative of all the support we’ve received for this event throughout the years, especially this year,” said Cheryl King, SAWA’s co-fundraising chair. “This year Mt. Bethel Church was not only the title sponsor for the seventh year but hosted our event on its campus. In addition, the Home Depot Foundation and Bay Point were two major external sponsors.”
This year’s event also had a record number of participants (880) and dollars raised ($180,000). Participants also donated food items to the Marietta Corps’ food pantry to help increase its summer food supply.
“Thank you to all our sponsors, volunteers and participants for making this year’s event so successful,” said Mary Jacobs, SAWA’s co-fundraising chair. “We couldn’t have done it without everyone’s help.”
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Marietta Police said a motorist was killed early Friday when his vehicle slammed into a stopped tractor trailer on Interstate 75 near the North Marietta Parkway exit.
Police said that Gordon Fields, 47, of Marietta, was pronounced dead on the scene after officers responded to the crash, which took place around 1 a.m. Friday.
Fields was driving a white Volkswagen southbound in the middle lanes of I-75 at the North Marietta Parkway bridge when the vehicle crashed with a tractor tractor that had been stopped due to a previous accident, according to police.
Police said that all southbound lanes previously had been shut down due to the original crash, and that a tractor trailer, driven by Mayki Marcelin, 29, of Davenport, Fla., remained stationary after traffic began to move.
Another tractor trailer, driven by Daniel Granados, 35, of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., was southbound in the same lane as Marcelin’s vehicle, according to police, and that Granados swerved to avoid hitting it.
The Volkswagen driven by Fields also was in the same southbound lane, and crashed into Marcelin’s tractor trailer, police said, adding that the drivers of the tractor trailers stayed on the scene until officers arrived.
Marietta Police said they are continuing to investigate and that no charges have been filed, and asked anyone with information to Traffic Investigator Henry at 770-794-5266.
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Members of the Scout Buglers Assembly will participate in the flag placement ceremony at Marietta National Cemetery this coming Saturday, May 23 and also Taps Across America on May 25.
The Taps Across America program takes place across the country every Memorial Day at 3 p.m. Eastern time.
That’s part of the official Marietta Memorial Day observance that begins on Monday at 12 p.m. at the Marietta National Cemetery. The event is presented by National Memorial Day Association of Georgia:
Support for this ceremony comes from individuals, veterans organizations and other patriotic groups, the local military bases, the staff of Marietta National Cemetery, local Scouts and High School JROTC and Sea Cadet Units and several interested companies, local Police, and city and county officials. Memorial Day is one of the best opportunities for all of us to express our gratitude for those who have and are serving our country and to honor their sacrifices. The Officers, Directors, and Members of the NMDA encourage as many as possible to share in this patriotic ceremony.
The flag placements took place on Saturday, as American flags were left at every gravestone.
The guest speaker at the Memorial Day event is U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk and the honoree organization is Gold Star Families, who are the family and loved ones of fallen American military personnel.
Marietta National Cemetery is located at 500 Washington Street, near the Marietta Square.
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The last competitions in Georgia high school sports conclude over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, and two East Cobb schools will be taking part.
The Kell and Pope baseball teams have reached the final series in the Georgia High School Association’s state tournaments.
On Saturday, the Kell Longhorns will be vying in the Class 4A finals against North Oconee in a doubleheader starting at 5 p.m. at AdventHealth Stadium in Rome.
Should a decisive game be needed in the best-of-three series, the final would take place at the same venue at 6 p.m. on Monday.
On Monday, the Pope Greyhounds will face Loganville in a doubleader beginning at 1 p.m. at Gwinnett Field in Lawrenceville.
Kell is 25-15 and has rebounded after going 5-7 in regional play. The Longhorns also have won five games a row in the state tournament, even after their coach, Todd Harris, was arrested on DUI charges. He has remained in the dugout since then.
Kell has swept series against East Forsyth and Cartersville to reach the finals.
Pope has been dominant in Class 5A all season, sporting a 36-2 record and 20-1 in regional play.
The Greyhounds will be taking a 25-game winning streak into the finals, as they take aim on their sixth state championship.
Pope last won a state title in 2022, and was a runner-up in 2023 and 2024.
Should the series go to a rubber match, it would be played at 12 p.m. on Tuesday, also in Lawrenceville.
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Some severe weather delayed their graduation celebration, so Lassiter High School’s Class of 2026 got to spend some extra last time together on Thursday.
The start of commencement was held up by more than an hour due to thunderstorms at the Kennesaw State University campus, pausing assembly of the 485-student senior class and movement by guests and staff outdoors and between buildings.
“Because the district does not control the venue and the facility was not designed to accommodate graduations, students and staff must stage in a separate building detached from the ceremony space due to limited capacity onsite,” the Cobb County School District told East Cobb News in a statement.
Principal Chris Richie told the graduates that “you have altered the DNA of Lassiter High School forever.”
“When weather conditions worsen, there is no protected way for students, staff, and families to move safely from one location to another, which contributed to the delay.”
Inside the KSU Convocation Center, Lassiter principal Chris Richie thanked everyone for their patience, and rattled off a long list of accomplishments for a class of which 90 percent is college-bound.
That includes four National Merit Scholarship finalists and more than $11 million in college scholarship finding, excluding the Georgia HOPE program, as well as a variety of artistic, athletic and military accomplishments.
Salutatorian Chloe Cummings said the intangibles are what makes this class special, saying their legacy will be determined not by grade-point averages and honors but “by the kind of people we’ve become.
“The world needs good people, people with compassion and discipline. . . This class is full of those kinds of people.”
Richie said as ninth graders, he “saw you as a class that was full of potential. I hoped that you’d find something to be passionate about and find the power of your voice.
“I’m proud to see that dream fulfilled.”
Taking their aspirations into the larger world was the subject of remarks by Valedictorian Evan Buchanan.
“I’ve found that the pursuit of a dream is a truly beautiful endeavor,” said Buchanan, who will be studying aerospace engineering at Georgia Tech.
Whatever you decide to do, Buchanan told his classmates, “throw yourself into that dream.”
Click the middle button below to view more photos.
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The East Cobb Quilters’ Guildis proud to present Georgia Celebrates Quilts, our 20th Biennial Quilt Show and Market, June 4-6, 2026, at the Cobb County Civic Center. It is Georgia’s largest continuing juried and judged Quilt Show with over 300 quilts by artists from all over Georgia. Beautiful handmade ribbons and over $4,000 in cash prizes will be awarded by nationally certified judges. From artful wall quilts to traditional bed coverings, this show has something for everyone.
Come see the quilts, shop with the vendors, and participate in the raffles. Your interest demonstrates the powerful effect of the quilt-making arts and their ability to strengthen friendships and contribute to our community as a whole.
The purpose of Georgia Celebrates Quilts is to promote the appreciation of quilt making, to encourage excellence in quilt making, and to present the best in traditional and contemporary quilted works. The quilts in the show were entered by their makers, then selected for display by a jury, and judged for visual impact and technical skill by nationally-certified judges. The quilts on display come from all over Georgia and represent a wide range of styles, sizes, techniques and inspiration, and were made by quilters of all ages, backgrounds and experience levels. Every visitor will find quilts that speak to them.
Raffle Quilt
We are excited to present “Terrazzo” the 2026 raffle quilt made by the members of the East Cobb Quilters’ Guild. Thank you for your interest in buying tickets to win this great quilt! “Terrazzo” measures 76″ x 87.″
Proceeds from the raffle support the educational mission of the Guild, providing workshops and lectures by nationally and internationally known quilt artists. If you’re not already a member, why not check out our programs, join online and be part of the fun!
One of our absolute favorite local gems is joining us at Georgia Celebrates Quilts 2026 — and we could not be more excited to welcome Stitched Gifts from right here in Marietta!
Stitched is so much more than a quilt shop — it is a boutique, class venue, fabric store, and crafting community all in one! They specialize in t-shirt quilts, memory quilts, longarm services, and custom handmade sewn gifts, and their boutique is filled with locally handmade treasures for everyone. Winner of the Best of Georgia Award!
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Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
Breakfast and lunch meals will be served to children free of charge weekdays in June and July inside three Cobb County public libraries.
Nutritious meals will be provided by Happy Helpings, Georgia’s Summer Food Service Program, through the local partnership of Cobb County Public Library (CCPL) and Georgia Educational Resources Inc. (GERI). Happy Helpings is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and administered by the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning.
The meals will be offered June 1 through July 24 three days per week on a first-come, first-served basis while supplies last. No meals will be served Friday, June 19 on the Juneteenth holiday and Friday, July 3, a Cobb County holiday for Independence Day.
The Happy Helpings 2026 schedule is: South Cobb Regional Library, 805 Clay Road, Mableton 30126
The meals, prepared by a local county-inspected commercial kitchen, are free for children ages 18 and younger. Adults 19 years and older who are enrolled in school programs for persons with disabilities will also receive meals. Parents and caregivers must remain with the children during the meals.
“Cobb libraries partner with the community to target barriers of access to learning and play, like food insecurity,” said Terri Tresp, CCPL Division Director. “Happy Helpings meals offer a cool, comfortable space for families to meet neighbors and connect with countywide Summer Reading programs.”
For information on the Happy Helpings program and children’s food insecurity in Georgia, visit happyhelpingsga.com. For information on summertime Cobb County Public Library programs and resources, visit cobbcat.org.
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Micheal Garza and Susan McCartney are vying to challenge Republican Cobb school board member David Chastain in November.
The Democratic candidates in a Cobb Board of Education primary in the East Cobb area are fewer than 100 votes apart following Tuesday’s elections.
Micheal Garza leads Susan McCartney by 78 votes in Post 4 results that are final, but unofficial, according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office.
Post 4 includes the Kell, Lassiter and Sprayberry high school clusters.
A critic of the Cobb County School District’s leadership, Garza has 5,016 votes, or 50.39 percent. McCartney, a retired teacher at Shallowford Falls Elementary School, has 4,938 votes, or 49.61 percent.
That’s a margin of 0.78 percent. Under Georgia law, second-place candidates can call for a recount if the difference is 0.5 percent or less.
Garza told East Cobb News Wednesday afternoon that “our campaign is confident that we will be named the winner of the primary when the results are made official.”
He said it’s his understanding that “every vote, outside of any provisional votes, has been counted in the early vote, mail vote, and election day vote.”
On her campaign Facebook page, McCartney conceded Wednesday afternoon, saying that “I am incredibly proud of what we accomplished with a grassroots effort and absolutely no financial backing from any groups or PAC’s. We ran a race with a hundred dollars and only lost by less than one percent.”
The Cobb Board of Registration and Elections will meet next Tuesday to certify primary election results.
Related:
Cobb school board Post 4 Democratic profiles:Garza | McCartney
Garza will face three-term incumbent David Chastain in November in a contest that will determine party control of a Cobb Board of Education that has been increasingly fractious in recent years.
Chastain, who was unopposed Tuesday, is the only Republican on the ballot in this year’s school board elections. Republicans hold a 4-3 majority, while Democrats control the Cobb Board of Commissioners and the county’s legislative delegation.
In the Post 6 school board race, Democratic incumbent Nichelle Davis easily won her primary over school district critic Jennifer Susko and has no Republican opposition. Post 2 Democratic incumbent Becky Sayler was unopposed in the primary and the general election.
This year, Chastain has early support from prominent Cobb business and civic leaders, including John Loud of Loud Security Systems, a former Cobb Chamber of Commerce chairman who’s gotten involved recently in local Republican campaigns, and who is Chastain’s steering committee chairman.
Garza unsuccessfully ran twice against Republican State Rep. John Carson of Northeast Cobb in 2022 and 2024.
“The challenge for us was to impress upon voters the importance of a school board race and to hit enough voters in a short amount of time in a large post that spanned 27 precincts,” Garza said Wednesday.
He said his campaign had more than 100 volunteers who wrote 7,000 postcards and knocked on almost 3,000 doors during the primary, including high school students writing out notes on a digital learning day.
“You don’t win races like this alone, and I am humbled that so many people in the community have supported me over the years, including my school community,” said Garza, a PTA leader at Keheley Elementary School, where his daughter is a student, as well as the East Cobb County Council of PTAs.
McCartney pledged her support to Garza and said that “my commitment to our community and to public education remains as strong as ever. I ran because I care deeply about our students, our teachers, and the future of our schools, and that passion does not end tonight. This is not the last you will see of me.”
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Valedictorians Peyton Pace of Sprayberry and Dev Patel of Walton had GPAs above 4.8.
The Cobb County School District on Wednesday announced the Class of 2026 valedictorians and salutatorians.
Overall, the valedictorians in the Cobb school district combined for an average grade-point average of 4.717, with salutatorians at 4.50.
The highest GPAs are all at Campbell High School, which has three valedictorians—Krishna Anand, Amulya Patil and Livia Ross, with 4.848 scores.
Among East Cobb high schools, Sprayberry valedictorian Peyton Pace has the highest GPA, at 4.813.
Sixteen of the vals and sals from the Cobb school district are headed to Georgia Tech, with six others bound for the University of Georgia.
Other college destinations for this year’s vals and sals are Stanford University, Duke University, Princeton University, Columbia University, Rice University, the University of Pennsylvania, the California Institute of Technology, and the United States Air Force Academy.
What follows are the vals and sals from the six East Cobb high schools, their GPAs, college choices and intended majors. For the full list of vals and sals in the Cobb school district, click here.
Kell High School
Valedictorian— Juan Diego Jimenez Ramirez, 4.750, Rice University, pre-med
Salutatorian—Dylan Brostoff, 4.507, UGA, nursing
Lassiter High School
Valedictorian—Evan Taylor Buchanan, 4.790, Georgia Tech, aerospace engineering
Salutatorian—Chloe Elizabeth Cummings, 4.729, UGA, business
Pope High School
Valedictorian—Kenneth Kim, 4.778, Duke University, biology
Salutatorian—Malachy O’Connor, 4.776, Georgia Tech, computer science
Sprayberry High School
Valedictorian—Peyton Pace, 4.813, Emory University, neuroscience
Salutatorian—Sebastian Ezqueda, 4.646, Georgia Tech, computer science
Walton High School
Valedictorian—Dev Patel, 4.808, Georgia Tech, computer science
Salutatorian—Jerry Xu, 4.803, Princeton University, classics or economics
Wheeler High School
Valedictorian—Vidya Sinha, 4.794, Stanford University, computer science
Salutatorians—Devang Doshi, 4.779, Georgia Tech, computer science
Click the middle button below to view the photo gallery of all the East Cobb vals and sals.
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Wheeler graduates celebrate after getting their diplomas Tuesday. CCSD screenshots.
More than 300 students at Wheeler High School received their diplomas on Tuesday.
The Class of 2026 held commencement exercises at the KSU Convocation Center with plenty of plaudits.
Principal Sara Fetterman said that the seniors will be receiving nearly $20 million in scholarship money, and a majority of them graduated with honors.
Another 14 will be entering the ranks of the military or the National Guard after high school.
“This class exemplifies a true sense of community,” said Fetterman, in her first year at Wheeler after coming from Sprayberry, and recalling its commitment to community service.
Those distinguishing marks may be many, but seniors speaking to their classmates offered some sobering reminders of what they’ve gone through, and how to remember their days in high school.
Wheeler senior class president Kassidy Sweeney
Senior class president Kassidy Sweeney recalled that at times, the rigors of being a high school student can make them feel “overwhelmed,” and not just academically.
“We still pushed through, and we made it through,” Sweeney said, applauding her classmates’ demonstration of patience and resilience “that has made us stronger people.
“Remember these lessons and take them with you.”
Valedictorian Vidya Sinha, who will be attending Stanford University, expanded on that theme and asked the graduates to consider how their experiences now will be remembered in the years to come.
“There’s something special, the feeling you can come out together in the confines of a classroom,” she said.
But this class, she added, has had to endure experiences that go far beyond an academic setting.
Halfway through their education, they experienced the closures and disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There is no certainty about anything,” Sinha said, adding that perhaps the greatest lesson the Wheeler seniors have learned is that “we’re willing to look uncertainty straight in the eye and keep going.
“In a few years, these memories will belong to strangers,” she added. “But for now, they belong to us.”
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Republican voters in the Georgia primaries will have some more voting ahead of them in key races at the federal and state levels in June.
The 11th Congressional District, which includes most of East Cobb, has a vacancy due to the retirement of U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk.
In Tuesday’s elections, physician John Cowan led a crowded field, receiving 42 percent of the vote. He will be in a June 16 runoff against Rob Adkerson, who is Loudermilk’s chief of staff.
According to final, unofficial results from the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, Adkerson received 21 percent, while former Georgia Public Service Commissioner Tricia Pridemore got 18 percent.
The 11th District also includes Cherokee, Bartow and parts of Gordon and Pickens counties. The Democratic nominee is Chris Harden, who easily won his primary on Tuesday.
U.S. Senate runoff
The Republican battle in the U.S. Senate also was extended when Tuesday’s results weren’t sufficient to secure the nomination.
Two-term U.S. Rep. Mike Collins and former football coach Derek Dooley will be competing for the right to face incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in November.
Collins led the five-man field with 40 percent of the vote, to 30 percent for Dooley, who coached at the University of Tennessee and is the son of the late University of Georgia football coach and athletics director Vince Dooley.
Dooley, who is supported by outgoing Gov. Brian Kemp, got more votes in Cobb County than the other candidates, receiving 4o percent.
Battle for Governor
Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and business executive Rick Jackson will square off in the Republican runoff for Georgia governor.
Jones received 38 percent of the vote to 33 percent for Jackson, who entered the race in January and spent an estimated $100 million on his campaign.
Both candidates are vying for the votes of supporters of President Donald Trump, who officially endorsed Jones.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and Attorney General Chris Carr got 15 and 11 percent of the vote, respectively, in the gubernatorial primary.
In November, the GOP nominee will face former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who crushed Democratic primary opposition, getting 56 percent of the vote.
Former State Sen. Jason Esteves, who briefly represented a portion of East Cobb, finished second with 18 percent of the vote.
Rankin and Jordan, the Democratic nominee for Georgia Attorney General in 2022, were cited by the Georgia Judicial Qualifications Commission for likely violating ethics rules prohibiting endorsements of one another and by stating positions on issues likely to come before a court, in particular abortion rights.
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L-R: JoAnn Birrell and Nichelle Davis won big in their primary races Tuesday, as did other Cobb incumbents
Cobb’s two Republican commissioners claimed decisive victories in their contested primary races on Tuesday, as did a Democratic Cobb school board member.
And there will be a runoff to determine a Republican nominee for the Congressional seat that includes East Cobb, as well as Republican Party candidates in November for governor and the U.S. Senate.
The links below include continuously updated totals by the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office, including precinct breakdowns. The figures are unofficial and must be certified by the Cobb Board of Elections and Registration.
Birrell, seeking her fifth term, advances to the November general election against Kevin Redmon, who was unopposed in the Democratic primary. District 3 covers most of East Cobb.
Commissioner Keli Gambrill, a Republican from District 1 in West Cobb, also easily won her primary, as well as a third term on Tuesday. She trounced Cobb Development Authority member Clark Hungerford with 71 percent of the vote.
There was not a Democratic qualifier for that race in November.
Democratic Cobb Board of Education member Nichelle Davis handily defeated challenger Jennifer Susko to earn a second term in Post 6, which includes some of the Wheeler High School attendance zone.
Davis received 76 percent of the vote against Susko, a vocal critical of the Cobb County School District.
There wasn’t a Republican candidate who qualified for that seat, which is centered in the Cumberland-Smyrna-Vinings area.
L-R: Michael Garza, Susan McCartney
In the Democratic primary for Cobb Board of Education Post 4, another school district critic, Micheal Garza, was holding a razor-thin lead over retired Cobb school teacher Susan McCartney.
That post includes the Kell, Lassiter and Sprayberry high school clusters.
Garza had 5,014 votes, or 50.38 percent of the vote, to 4,938 votes for McCartney, or 49.62 percent.
In November he will challenge Republican David Chastain, a three-term incumbent, with party control of the school board on the line. The GOP holds a 4-3 majority and Chastain is the only Republican on the ballot this year.
In the Post 2 school board seat in the Smyrna area, first-term Democrat Becky Sayler ran unopposed in the primary, and she has no Republican opposition in November.
John Cowan, a physician, got 34 percent of the vote and will be in a June 16 runoff for the Republican nomination for the 11th Congressional District seat that’s being vacated by retiring U.S. Rep. Barry Loudermilk.
Cowan’s opponent is Rick Adkerson, Loudermilk’s chief of staff.
In November, the winner will meet Chris Harden, who won the Democratic primary Tuesday with 73 percent of the vote.
There will be runoffs in a variety of statewide races, including Republican primaries for governor and the U.S. Senate.
Burt Jones and Rick Jackson will vie June 16 in the GOP gubernatorial runoff with the winner to meet former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who easily won the Democratic primary Tuesday.
U.S. Rep. Mike Collins and former football coach Derek Dooley are in a Republican runoff for the right to face Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff.
More statewide election results can be found at this link.
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Pope graduates flash their cell phone flashlights to celebrate getting their diplomas. CCSD screenshots.
Pope High School led off a week-long schedule of Cobb County School District graduations on Monday night, and its Class of 2026 had much to celebrate.
As seniors listened during commencement exercises at the KSU Convocation Center, they were told by Principal Matthew Bradford that they set some school records along the way, especially when it came to community service.
He said that this class exemplified the “characteristics of greatness” that included excellence, respect, integrity and toughness.
Among the notables were 17,000 hours of community service, “the most in school history,” as well as raising more than $25,000 for cancer research in the name of former Pope student Matt Hobby.
Pope students also raised $40,000 as part of its Shop With a Greyhound program to assist Brumby Elementary School students during the holidays.
As far as class legacies go, Bradford said, “you have not just met” such a high standard, “you have surpassed it.”
Nearly a half of Pope’s seniors graduated with honors, and its college-bound graduates have accrued more than $12.5 million in scholarship assistance, excluding the Georgia HOPE program.
“Wherever your journey takes you, know that your Pope family will always be behind you,” Bradford said.
The student speakers included valedictorian Kenneth Kim, who will be attending Duke University, and salutatorian Malachy O’Connor, who is bound for Georgia Tech.
Cobb Board of Education member John Cristadoro urged all the graduates to become influencers, not on social media, but in their communities and with people in their lives on a daily basis.
He cited a figure that some people could influence more than 80,000 others—enough to fill a football stadium—during the course of their lives, and that as they will be remembered at the end of their lives, to consider “what the reaction will be.
“Make those moments of influence count,” Cristadoro said. “Leave every situation better than when you found it.”
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The Bells Ferry Civic Association submitted a graphic expressing the impact of a gas station.
With practically no discussion, the Cobb Board of Commissioners on Tuesday rejected a request by RaceTrac Inc. to build a 24/7 gas station and convenience store near Bells Ferry Elementary School.
Two weeks after the Cobb Planning Commission recommended approving rezoning to the Neighborhood Retail Commercial (NRC) category, but prohibiting fuel sales and other uses, Commissioner Erick Allen quickly made a motion to deny the application outright.
This is the second time RaceTrac has applied for rezoning—its initial request last year was withdrawn before commissioners could formally consider it.
“We’ver heard this case several times,” Allen said after the RaceTrac presentation Tuesday, adding that that “not a lot has materially changed.”
Commissioner JoAnn Birrell—whose East Cobb District 3 formerly included the two-acre tract on Bells Ferry at Barrett Parkway—just quickly seconded the motion, and the vote was a unanimous 5-0.
The property had been zoned for Planned Shopping Center, which doesn’t allow for a gas station.
For decades, a structure known as the McAfee House, built in the 1840s, stood on the land. The home was used by a Union general during the Civil War and recently was relocated to Cherokee County earlier this year by Cobb Landmarks, an historic preservation non-profit.
Some citizens opposed to the gas station suggested the property maintain its natural character, retaining many of the trees.
But the tract is surrounded by commercially zoned development in a busy corridor.
Opponents have fought the proposal for months, citing the land’s proximity to the school and being adjacent to a day care center, and a gas station’s effect on traffic and the environment.
Kevin Moore, Race’Trac’s attorney, presented slides repeating his client’s claims that there wouldn’t be much additional traffic coming to the intersection to get gas. And he also reiterated claims from a third-party environmental engineer that RaceTrac’s vapor recovery systems would capture 98 percent of benzene emissions at the gas station.
He showed a map of a RaceTrac near Milford Elementary School and said that what his client was seeking now isn’t unusual.
But earlier this month, Planning Commission member Fred Beloin noted that “I don’t think there’s any serious question that people should not be breathing any great quantities of benzene on a regular basis.”
He cited various distance requirements in other jurisdictions, as well as those cited for increased cancer risks, and noted that Cobb has no such restrictions on how close fuel storage tanks can be located to such sensitive operations like child care centers and schools.
“We don’t have a strict rule, but we don’t have a strict rule that we’re supposed to stick our heads in the sand like an ostrich,” Beloin said, generating some applause in the audience.
“Where this community stands, there is no doubt. I just don’t see that this is an appropriate use of this property.”
Before Tuesday’s vote, Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid made a similar reference, suggesting “to take a look at this in code,” meaning a possible county ordinance change.
“There have been instances where looked at the impact of gas stations near residential property. So we need to make sure that we’re being consistent as a board in protecting the health and safety and welfare of all of our residents.”
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Cobb Superior Court Judge Kimberly Childs has issued an order keeping 11 precincts open past the 7 p.m. closing time Tuesday, due to technical issues with polling pad devices.
The order was requested by the Cobb Board of Elections and Registration. In East Cobb those precincts and new closing times are as follows:
East Cobb News readers reported lengthy lines at their precincts on Tuesday.
Lauren Beth Reid said she waited two hours to cast her ballot at the Sewell Mill Library and Cultural Center, which this year is the venue for two precincts, and reported there hasn’t been much communication with voters on-site about the problems.
When East Cobb News visited the polling station around 3 p.m. Tuesday, the back of the line formed outside the front doors, and continued inside the lobby and through the facility’s art gallery leading to a room where the voting was taking place.
“There’s 30 people waiting out the sun. I’ve personally made phone calls to try to get things situated in a better way,” Reid wrote on the East Cobb News Facebook page after 4 p.m. Tuesday.
“They have no notices on the doors. Nobody’s come out and talk to anybody.”
Reid said older people initially were being allowed to come inside to the front of the line, but some were sent back.
“It’s a little chaotic. We’re trying to keep people safe and we’re the ones waiting in line doing it,” she added. “It’s a very disappointing. I have Uber eats and I’m half tempted to order five cases of ice cold water and pass them out to people, but I’d probably get in trouble. That’s truly how bad it is.”
Teri Hovsepian said the line where she votes at Sope Creek Elementary School is “the longest it’s been in recent memory.”
She said when she arrived at 2 p.m., three check-in machines weren’t working, and when her husband went there at 4 p.m. “the line was twice as long.”
Updated, 3:15 Tuesday:
Cobb Elections said the issues involve poll pad devices:
We are actively working with the Secretary of State to deploy additional poll pads. In the meantime, polling places are successfully utilizing backup manual check-in procedures to ensure voting continues without interruption.”
UPDATED, 8:50 A.M.:
Cobb Elections just issued the following message:
Cobb County Elections & Registration is aware of issues impacting some election operations today. Backup procedures are in place and voting has NOT stopped.
Voters are encouraged to remain patient as our staff work to assist voters and support polling locations across the county.
All eligible voters in line by 7:00 p.m. will be allowed to cast their ballot.
For questions or assistance, please call our office with any issues or concerns at 770-528-2581.
At 10:15 a.m., Cobb government sent out a release saying that there are “technical issues” at “some polling locations” but wasn’t more specific.
ORIGINAL REPORT, 7 A.M.
The polls are open in East Cobb and throughout Georgia Tuesday for the 2026 primary elections.
All precincts will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and East Cobb News will be providing updates at this link during voting hours.
We will update election results after the polls close on a separate link.
The deadline for mailed-in or hand-delivered absentee ballots to the Cobb Elections office is 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Voters in East Cobb will be deciding party nominees in local Cobb commission and school board races, as well as legislative and Congressional races and statewide elections, including governor and U.S. Senate.
Cobb Elections said Monday that more than 78,000 ballots were cast in early voting, about 14 percent of all registered voters in the county.
The Tim D. Lee Senior Center and the East Cobb Government Service Center had the most early voters, with around 9,000 and 8,700 ballots cast there, respectively.
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At East Cobb News, storytelling is what we do. Every day for nearly nine years now, we have proudly told the stories that are important to East Cobb residents on a variety of subjects, to keep them updated on what’s happening in the community.
But our storytelling mission includes letting readers know about the small and local business owners in East Cobb who form the backbone of our community.
East Cobb’s a big place, and there’s a lot of competition for customers and clients in almost every kind of business.
There are also so many ways to get your message out, and it can be bewildering to sort it all out.
Business owners have to wear a lot of hats, and marketing their businesses can be a challenge.
At East Cobb News, we’d love to tell your story to East Cobb’s most engaged audience. We offer a variety of digital advertising products—display, newsletter and sponsored posts—that effectively and affordably tell your story.
If you want to let people know who you are, and distinguish yourself from the competition, hit the “yes” button below, fill in your e-mail address and we’ll get back to you promptly.
We’d love to hear your story, so we can tell it to the rest of East Cobb.
At East Cobb News, we want to help you tell your story and Discover the Power of Local!
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Cobb REALTORS will officially celebrate the grand reopening of its headquarters on Thursday, May 21, 2026, with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
The celebration will take place at 444 Manget Street SE, Suite 100, Marietta, GA 30060, with guests invited to attend between 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM.
The event will feature tours of the newly renovated space, opportunities to connect with local REALTORS, business and community leaders, food from local restaurants, live music, giveaways, interactive experiences, and more. The official ribbon cutting ceremony will begin at 4:00 PM.
Community members, local businesses, families, and friends are invited to attend the celebration.
Cobb REALTORS is proud to unveil a refreshed headquarters designed to better serve its members, strengthen local connections, and support the future of the real estate industry in Cobb and beyond.
Founded in 1954, Cobb REALTORS has served as the professional trade association for real estate professionals across Cobb County, providing advocacy, education, leadership, and resources that help members succeed while supporting strong communities and protecting private property rights.
“Cobb REALTORS has proudly served and supported the Cobb community for more than 70 years,” said Norm Kennedy, 2026 President. “This reimagined space reflects our continued commitment to our members, our profession, and the communities we serve. We’re excited to welcome our members, partners, and neighbors as we celebrate this new chapter together.”
Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up and you’re good to go!
We are excited to present “Terrazzo” the 2026 raffle quilt made by the members of the East Cobb Quilters’ Guild. Thank you for your interest in buying tickets to win this great quilt! “Terrazzo” measures 76″ x 87.″
