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Alpharetta city leaders hold updated budget talks By SHELBY ISRAEL shelby@appenmedia.com
Students flee carnage of Hawaiian wildfire
Local woman aids couple who lost everything By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com ROSWELL, Ga. — As the wildfires slowly enclosed Hawaii’s historic coastal town of Lahaina, Kristina Benbow quickly grabbed her laptop, wallet and passport. “The smoke that was starting to get really black – we were starting to see orange and red,” Benbow said. “At this point, we were sobbing.” She and her friend Natalie Moning are in their final year of pharmacy school at the University of South Carolina. To have some fun during their nine one-month
rotations, they applied to a Walgreens in Lahaina and arrived at the home of Bill and Lorri Robusto July 30, about a week before the deadliest wildfire in modern U.S. history. The Robustos have been integral to the Lahaina community for more than 20 years, with Bill as the pharmacist at the town’s Walgreens. He retired last year after a 46-year career in the field but continued to host students in the guest house behind his home, a 5-minute walk from the beach. In an aerial shot taken a day after the
See LAHAINA, Page 10
PHOTOS BY KRISTINA BENBOW/PROVIDED
At top: smoke from building flames is seen from a porch in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 8. Above: Natalie Moning and Kristina Benbow, pharmacy students at the University of South Carolina, join a sunset dinner cruise three days before the wildfires in Lahaina, Hawaii. They planned to stay with Bill Robusto, a retired pharmacist, and his wife Lorri for a month to work at a local Walgreens.
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — The Alpharetta City Council is proposing to set the property tax rate the same as in past years, a move that is expected to bring in an additional $1.8 million in revenues. At the first of three public hearings Aug. 21, councilmembers agreed to hold the levy on property steady at 5.75 mills. Most of the levy, 4.951 mills, covers operational costs. Revenue from the remaining 0.799 mills is dedicated to debt service on bonds. City staff said the transfer of 0.081 mills from debt service will result in an additional $505,000 to the general fund. Alpharetta has maintained a 5.75mill tax rate since 2009. Although the combined mill levy remains unchanged from its previous approval in June, the city must reopen the process because of revised figures from Fulton County showing larger than anticipated growth in property values. The city adopted the first iteration of its budget June 19, but received the county tax digest June 28. When City Administrator Chris Lagerbloom
See RATE, Page 12