Death Penalty Not Sought in Toco Hill Armored Car Guard Killing

Garry Castillo was shot outside the Kroger in the Toco Hill shopping center in 2011.

The Justice Department won't pursue the death penalty for two men charged in the killing of armored car guard Garry Castillo outside the Kroger in the Toco Hill shopping center two years ago. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution first reported the justice department's decision. Ashley Henderson and Stacey Dooley have been charged in the killing. Garda Cash Logistics guard Castillo was shot while leaving the grocery store with a cash pick-up in the early afternoon of March 15, 2011. He was transported to Grady Hospital where later died of his injuries. Read also:

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Drunk, Drowsy Emory Student Bounced from Bar Calls Police

No one was charged in the April 7 incident.

A drunk Emory University student was bounced from Maggie's Neighborhood Bar & Grill in Toco Hill this month and called the police on the bouncer to say she felt assaulted. The bouncer told DeKalb County police he found the 22-year-old student asleep at a table shortly before 1 a.m. on Sunday, April 7, according to a police report. When he woke her, she would fall back asleep, he said, so he escorted her from the bar. On the way out, her body went limp, so he supported her by placing his hands under her armpits, he said. Once outside, the student tried to re-enter the bar, and the bouncer said she struck him. The student admitted to a responding officer she was intoxicated and tired but said she was able to leave the bar on her own and felt…

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Toco Hill's Caribou Coffee Closes

Sunday was the Toco Hill location's final day for business.

If Caribou Coffee in Toco Hill was your place to stop for a morning pick-me-up, we've got, uh, bad news. It's closed. Sunday was the shop's final day for business. It was shuttered as part of the national chain's recently announced plan to close about 80 stores and covert some of them to tea shops. The closures and conversions affected a number of Caribou locations across the metro Atlanta area, according to Tomorrow's News Today. So, if you're a Caribou loyalist, you can check there to see if any of your other options in the area might be affected. When you need coffee in our community, where do you go? Are you a Starbucks person? Or do you favor independent shops such as Atlanta Coffee Roasters? Tell us in the comments section below.

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Lakeside Alliance Postpones Monday Toco Hill Meeting

The group studying cityhood in the area plans to reschedule when it finds a larger venue.

The Lakeside City Alliance has postponed its Monday meeting at Clairmont Presbyterian Church in Toco Hill so it can find a larger venue, the group said Friday. The alliance wants to avoid the oversized crowd at a similar meeting at Tucker Middle School last week the bled from the packed cafeteria into the hallway and concerned the fire marshall who turned away more than 100 residents, said Susan Meyers, a member of the alliance's organizing committee. The meeting was scheduled to feature Oliver Porter, a Sandy Springs resident who won an award for his expertise on the creation of efficient cities. Porter is the author of the book, Creating the New City of Sandy Springs: The 21st Century Paradigm. The alliance is also rescheduling a …

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New Kroger Executive Started as Toco Hill Bagger in '80s

Ruben Fernandez was named Kroger's vice president of merchandising for the chain's Atlanta Division on Thursday.

Ruben Fernandez started as a bagger in the Toco Hill Kroger in 1982. It was the start of a 30-year journey up the supermarket's chain that continues today. Kroger announced Thursday the promotion of Fernandez to vice president of merchandising for the grocery store chain's Atlanta Division. In this new role, Fernandez will oversee merchandising efforts for all 213 stores in Georgia, Eastern Tennessee, Alabama and South Carolina. “Throughout the years, Ruben has been a strong leader for our division and has contributed greatly to our success,” said Bruce Lucia, president of Kroger’s Atlanta Division. “With his vast knowledge, dedication and work ethic, he will take merchandising to new levels in the company.” “I’m very proud to be promoted …

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Chase Bank Coming to Toco Hill

A new location will open in Toco Hill Shopping Center.

Chase bank is coming to Toco Hill Shopping Center. The bank chain is planning to open a free-standing location where an emissions testing facility sits, according to Tomorrow's News Today. From the post: The Toco Hill outparcel is plenty big, as one can see by the amount of fencing up already.  A reliable source at Chick-fil-A said that they were at one point (a couple years ago) contemplating a new location in Toco Hill that would likely have been the spot where Chase is now building. Read the full post for more information.

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Roda

1:57 pm on Thursday, March 14, 2013

Burning Bridges, Just watch Thrive on youtube and some of the other links above for verification. We have been programmed to think conspiracies are not true; "oh, our government wouldn't hurt us!" They are all paid and threatened to obey.   more ›

Uncle Maddio's Owner: Pizza Business Recession-Proof

“We opened then, when the [economic] floor fell out,” owner Matt Andrew said last week. “We came out of the gate with guns blazing.”

Toco Hill's Uncle Maddio's Pizza Joint has had its share of struggles in a dim economy over the last several years, but, for the most part, business has been good, the restaurant's owner said last week. The pizza business is essentially recession-proof, Matt Andrew told Neighbor Newspapers. From the story: The pizza restaurant started in January 2009 in the Toco Hills Shopping Center in Druid Hills. “We opened then, when the [economic] floor fell out,” he said. “We came out of the gate with guns blazing.” Although he said they had to “weather the storm through the economy,” he considers the pizza business to be somewhat recession proof because people do not usually make it at home. He said Uncle Maddio’s is similar to Moe’s, where …

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George Miranda

8:47 pm on Monday, March 11, 2013

Where's the beer and wine??   more ›

Downed Tree Kills Power for 9,000 Toco Hill Residents

The tree, brought down by high, stormy winds, fell on power lines along Lavista Road just north of its intersection with North Druid Hills Road.

Rain, high winds and a downed tree knocked out power for about 9,000 residents in the Toco Hill area Tuesday night. A Georgia Power work crew was still cleaning up around 11 p.m. after the tree fell on Lavista Road just north of its intersection with North Druid Hills Road. The tree forced the crew to shut down traffic along the road, and motorists heading north from Toco Hill had to turn around and find new routes. The crew worked into Wednesday morning, according to FOX 5 Atlanta: As of 4 a.m. on Wednesday, Georgia Power officials say about 3,600 customers are without power statewide, with 2,800 of those in the metro Atlanta area. But Gordon County took the brunt of the storm. Ten homes were damaged there, including one that housed a …

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Toco Hill Doctor Wins Health Care Award

Dr. Joseph Tate, who practices in Norcross, won a REAL Award in the field of newborn and mother care.

Sip Wine and Tapas Restaurant Coming to Toco Hills

The wine retail shop and tapas restaurant is coming to Toco Hills Promenade.

Sip Wine and Tapas Restaurant is coming to Toco Hills Promenade, the shopping center announced Thursday. No additional details were offered on the shopping center's Facebook page, including whether Sip is moving its Milton location or opening a new one in Toco Hill. (Though no move has been announced on the restaurant's Facebook and Twitter accounts either.) Here's a quick rundown on its website of how the restaurant – which is a little different – operates: Sip is a retail wine shop and tapas restaurant with over 50 wines that may be ordered by the 1 ounce sip, the half glass, full glass or bottle and another 150 more wines by the bottle. Any wine enjoyed in the restaurant, may be purchase to take home. We don’t have a normal restaurant …

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