North Atlanta Today: Suwanee Approves a City Tax Break With 92% Support

Suwanee homeowners will receive a new city property-tax break in 2027 after voters approved a $15,000 homestead exemption with nearly 92% support.

Saturday, November 7, 2026. Reporting cutoff: 12:04 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Election, school and weather information was checked at that time.

Suwanee voters approve a $15,000 homestead exemption

Unofficial results showed 998 votes in favor and 90 against, giving the measure 91.7% support. The result still awaits certification, but the exemption is scheduled to take effect January 1, 2027.

The $15,000 will be deducted from the assessed value of an eligible owner-occupied home before Suwanee calculates city property taxes. At the current 4.93-mill rate, that works out to annual city-tax savings of about $73.95. It does not reduce Gwinnett County or school property taxes, and it applies only to qualified homes inside the city limits, not every address with a Suwanee mailing label.

Most homeowners with an approved homestead exemption should not need to file again solely because of the vote. The savings will change if Suwanee changes its millage rate in a future year. Read how the exemption works and who should check eligibility.

Closer look: the childhood mystery behind Hollow Oak

Katie Bossie spent about a decade in software sales before leaving to build the bookstore she had imagined for years. Hollow Oak opened at Medley with a name drawn from a childhood favorite, the Nancy Drew mystery The Message in the Hollow Oak.

When Bossie first told her husband, Devin O’Guin, that she wanted to open a bookstore, she remembers his answer: “My God, we’re gonna save a fortune on books.” O’Guin went on to create the logo, mural, bookmarks and much of the shop’s design.

Bossie’s “little millennial dream” was a library ladder inspired by Beauty and the Beast. Her larger plan is to make the store a place for book clubs, author talks, letterpress workshops, writing classes and craft nights, giving people a reason to set down their screens and make something together.

Visit Hollow Oak with North Atlanta Star for Bossie and O’Guin’s reading recommendations, the story behind the shop and photographs from inside.

A Pinecrest school day, in a ninth grader’s own words

Jacqueline Cook begins her Pinecrest Academy day by leaving her phone in a designated storage compartment, meeting friends near her third-floor locker and heading to weightlifting before Spanish, advisory and a full schedule of classes.

Cook writes that biology helped her understand how she learns best: listening to the teacher explain notes before writing them down. Theater brings another kind of work as she rehearses with the ensemble for Legally Blonde Jr.

Her account also explains how the school’s Catholic life fits into an ordinary Thursday, with Adoration available during lunch before religion, AP Modern World History and algebra. Read Cook’s complete first-person school day.

Woodstock’s new trail connection opens November 14

A 1.5-mile extension of the Noonday Creek Trail will open next Saturday, linking the Woodstock trailhead near Reformation Brewery and Elm Street Green with Noonday Creek Park in Cobb County.

The route follows the creek and passes beneath Highway 92, creating a longer path for walkers, runners and cyclists. Construction began in December 2023 after years of planning among Woodstock, Cherokee County, Cobb County, the Atlanta Regional Commission and the Georgia Department of Transportation.

Woodstock officials see the project as one step toward an eventual connection to the Silver Comet Trail, but that longer link remains a future goal. See the new route and what it connects.

Look ahead: North Fulton school maps arrive Sunday

Fulton County Schools plans to publish its first draft elementary attendance-zone maps for schools north of the Chattahoochee River at noon Sunday. The review includes Esther Jackson, Hembree Springs, Mimosa and Vickery Mill elementary schools.

An in-person forum follows Monday from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Roswell High School gym. Draft middle-school maps covering Autrey Mill, Elkins Pointe, Haynes Bridge and Holcomb Bridge are due Tuesday, with a Wednesday forum at Centennial High School. No boundary change, consolidation or closure has received final approval.

The schedule and school list are in the NAS Friday morning report and the district’s redistricting resource center.

The National Weather Service’s 1:27 a.m. zone forecast called for a mostly sunny Saturday with a high in the upper 60s across North Fulton, Forsyth and Gwinnett. Sunday should begin sunny, turn partly sunny later and again reach the upper 60s. Saturday night lows are expected in the lower 40s. Check the latest dated zone forecast before making outdoor plans.